Showmen's Trade Review (1939)

July 8, 1939 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW Page 13 MGM Information Centre Opens Styled according to the theme of the New York World's Fair, the Loew's-MGM World's Fair Information Center has opened at Times Square. Exhibitors and their families — in fact, anyone who wants information about what to see and where, will be helped by courteous attendants. MGM Opens World's Fair Information Centre in N. Y. The new Loew-M-G-M World's Fair Information Centre, located in the island at Forty-sixth street, between Broadway and Seventh Avenue, was formally opened to the public and dedicated to the interests of World's Fair visitors recently with Eddie Cantor in charge of the. ceremonies. Many other celebrities of the stage, screen and radio were present to participate in the event. Designed to render a comprehensive service to all visitors to the city during the World's Fair period, the Information Centre answers all queries relating to New York City and the Fair. For the benefit of visitors from foreign countries, attendants are present speaking fluent French, Spanish, German, Italian and Russian. Free maps and guide pamphlets are distributed, while the staff in charge of the booth has been specially drilled in details of all the exhibits at the Fair. A unique supplementary service is a visitors' registry and index filing system, permitting all tourists to list their New York addresses and telephone numbers so that their friends may easily locate them on arrival in the city. The information booth is located inside a miniature replica of the World's Fair perisphere, with circular reference shelves and a small library. Next to the booth there has been constructed a forty-two foot high replica of the trylon, the other decorative theme of the Fair. The Information Centre is open to the public from 8 A.M. until midnight, seven days a week, during the entire period of the Fair. In presenting its general service to visitors, the Centre is cooperating actively with the metropolitan police department on a campaign for traffic safety. Signs, posters and pamphlets calling attention to the importance of careful driving and careful crossing of streets are being circulated and distributed. "No One Will Be Seated—" Immediately following the regular Vitagraph trailer on "Dark Victory," Manager Steve Fitzgerald of the Stratford Theatre, Chicago, ran this announcement: "No one will be seated during the last fifteen minutes of the picture, 'Dark Victory.' This is a special favor to patrons viewing the ending of so great a production . . ." Many Gratis Tieups Are Arranged by Bill Brown His Great Campaign On '■' 'Union Pacific " Typical Showmanship Example YOU'VE heard about making tieups and effecting a big campaign at the least possible cost. That's what we call showmanship, and that's what makes every campaign undertaken by Bill Brown, manager of the Durfee Theatre, Fall River, Mass., a standout. Bill does a lot, but he spends little money doing it. Well, there's nothing like starting at the beginning, so let's "be off. Using Study Guides, contest manuals and still sheets, Bill made a contest tieup with the "Movie Appreciation Department" of the Durfee High School. The only cost here, so far as we can see, was for the Study Guides. Next he promoted a two-column cooperative ad from Gorney's Beauty Shoppe, which ran in the Herald-N en>s. A photo of Barbara Stanwyck, the name of the feature and the playdate were included in the layout. He placed a jumbo telegram in the Western Union window telling about the "Union Pacific" Guessing Contest. What were the fans to guess? Well, it seems that through the courtesy of the Walter C. Fraze Co., an electric train was promoted which ran and ran until the opening of the engagement, and fans were invited to guess how many miles that added up by the time the opening day arrived. Five winners received passes. Jumbo telegrams were also placed by Western Union in several different sections of the city. In a tieup with the California Fruit Growers Exchange (oh yes, we're still in Fall River, but folks everywhere eat oranges) a tieup was effected on Sunkist Oranges whereby 100 special posters were planted by the district salesman in store windows throughout the city. Are you still following us? We don't stop here for tea, but Bill did. Yes, he Lindsay's "0Z" Post Card We recently received an attractive post card from Ray Lindsay, manager of the Fox Pomona Theatre, Pomona, California, on which he advises us that he "just sneakpreviewed 'Wizard of Oz'." He says "it's great" and warns us not to miss it. The card is handsomely illustrated, and also contains a few pertinent facts about the production. We imagine you'll have the opportunity to use these cards in advance of your own showing. stopped long enough to arrange a tieup with the Thomas Lipton Tea Co. in which 125 special posters were planted in windows with tea displays. These posters, as well as those used in the orange tieup, had the theatre playdate on them. And what a lot of tieups Bill made through W. W. Leach Co., wholesale dealer of Southeastern Massachusetts, on Pennzoil. For one thing, the Pennzoil-ers printed, paid for, and distributed 25,000 heralds on "Union Pacific." Posters were placed on both sides of 25 of the company's oil trucks. With the theatre name and playdate included, a cooperative ad ran in the HeraldNews. All this, mind you, was gratis. We're still going at a fast pace, but we're not through yet. A window display of toy trains, stills and playdate on the picture was promoted from the S. S. Kresge Co. J. J. Newberry had a window display of Movie Magazine with stills and playdate. A book display was promoted from McWhirr's Department store and Cherry & Webbs. And so here we are. How do you feel after that fast trip through Showmanship Village? Want to take it again sometime? Well, perhaps you can, if Bill will promise to send us more of his campaigns. As you probably already know, there are lots and lots of tieups available on "Union Pacific," so if you're playing the picture, we'd advise you to take advantage of every one of them. They're practically all gratis, too. Union Pacil w V/. LEACH iCU SEE LIST OF DEALERb MACHINE or MACHINELESS PERMANENT WAVE <"es. S4.50 Value! PERMANENT ENDS <K'S. $2.25 V.lue) Sm J S3 BARBARA STANWYCK UNION ""$1.50 KRESGE'Sl 7' So""> Main St. JOEL McCREA iUHE mm jmm Bill Brown's Ad Tieups on "Union Pacific" Here are two cooperative ads promoted by Bill Brown, manager of the Durfee Theatre, Fall River, Mass., as part of his campaign on Cecil B. DeMille's Paramount production, "Union Pacific." The ad on the left is on Pennzoil, while the layout at the right was promoted from a local beauty shoppe.