Showmen's Trade Review (Jan-Mar 1945)

February 17. 1945 S H O M E N ' S TRADE REVIEW 23 Capitalizes on Mucci Newsreel Clip Campaign Boosts To Have, Have Not Taking fast advantage of a publicity opportunity that conies along just once in a lifetime, Manager Harry A. Rcse of Loew's Majestic Theatre, Bridgeport, made advantageous use of the furore in his city created by Lt. Col. Henry A. Mucci, a local boy whose freeing of 500 American prisoners from a Japanese prison camp in the early days of the Philippine campaign made fiim a national and home-town hero. Manager Rose arranged to switch his odd-numbered Fox Movietone News with a theatre in Watertown which was playing the even-numbered edition and which contained newsreel shots of the whole Mucci family. He got a line in his ad and hung a double-faced sign under his marquee announcing the showing. Another perfect break which added to the publicity snowball, growing by the minute, was his booking of "Sunday Dinner for a Soldier." Since Col. Mucci was otherwise engaged, he couldn't be Rose's guest for Sunday dinner. But the family could and did, resulting in a two-column art break and two-column human interest story in the Bridgeport Post. The fact that Rose arranged for Col. Mucci's mother to telephone her famous son added to the story's interest. More 'Co-Pilot' Stunts As Date Draws Near Warners' campaign to ballyhoo its world premiere of "God Is My Co-Pilot" at the Grand Theatre, Macon, Ga., Feb. 21 includes so many state-wide activities that reports come daily from Warner headquarters in that city as newer stunts become activated. The newest announcement states that a medal will be presented to the Boy Scout whose life is most closely patterned after Col. Robert Lee Scott, whose biographical best-seller forms the basis of the Warner picture. The medal is being designed by Russell V. Hatfield, University of Georgia artist. Also included in the latest communique is news of Janis Paige, Warner starlet, who has been selected by the soldiers of Camp Wheeler, as "Queen of Infantry." A new camp radio station and orientation center at Wheeler will be dedicated as part of the premiere ceremonies. In an extensive tieup with publishers of Macon's News and Telegraph, arrangements have been made for every store and shop in the city to participate in a window display contest based on the film with the newspaper donating war bond prizes to winners. Another feature of the campaign will be a gas-less parade in which all available surreys, farm wagons and other horse drawn vehicles will march in honor of Colonel Robert Lee Scott, central character of the picture and native son. The parade also will feature lady MPs from nearby Camp Wheeler. The Wac military police also will handle the world premiere crowd. A military band from Warner Robins Field will lead the parade, and an imposing lineup of floats, all horsedrawn, is being prepared for participation. A delegation of Chinese Boy Scouts and a fleet of Chinese rickshaws also will participate in the parade and add unusual color to the ceremonies. Lamar Park, opposite the Grand Theatre, has been named Scott Park for the premiere day, with a big war bond sale scheduled to take place on the site. Entire proceeds of the $10 admission gala premiere will go to the Army Air Forces Aid Society. Tokyo' Model Plane Contest A model plane contest sponsored by the Cleveland Press and the Jack & Heintz Co., highlighted the campaign on "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" at Loew's State, managed by Howard Burkhardt. Novel Experience Contest Sparks 'Experiment Perilous' in Denver In order to get the maximum newspaper and radio publicity for his engagement of RKO Radio's "Experiment Perilous," Manager Mark Ailing of the RKO Orpheum Theatre, Denver, Colorado, in cooperation with RKO Field Alan T. Bidwell McCormick, tied-in with the Denver Post and Radio Station KLZ for a novel contest to find the man or woman in that locale who had been a party to a perilous experiment. From the first announcement in the Post to the close of the contest over a week later, widespread interest was manifested by readers of the newspaper and listeners of the powerful Columbia station. The entries came in from far and wide, many of them having exceptional interest and possibilities for the climax of the campaign wliich was the dramatization and reenactment of tlie experience over' Station KLZ by the station's staff of players. War bonds amounting to $175 were offered in prizes. The contest, purposely, was not closed until after the opening of "Experiment Perilous" in order to permit patrons an opportunity of seeing the picture if they desired before submitting their entries. This resulted in a smash opening as interest in the contest was running high by opening day. SEND THANKS TO SHIRLEY. This huge postal card, prepared by Fort Sneiling soldiers to thank Shirley Temple for making them her guests at the special showing of United Artists' "I'll Be Seeing You" at the Radio City Theatre, Minneapolis, was forwarded to the star in Hollywood. Miss Temple sent a check to provide for 100 free tickets to the showing, which was for the benefit of Cedric Adams' Parade of Pennies. .\ campaign sparking the Midwest premiere of "To Have and Have Not" at the Riverside Theatre in Milwaukee recently, paid off with exceptionally gratifying returns as a result of intensive efforts by its sponsors. Promotional activity was initiated more than one month before the opening. Appealing to holiday crowds, a huge display was set up over the entrance doors in the inner lobby featuring a 40x60 colored blowup of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, stars of the picture. This impressive layout caught the eyes of patrons going into the theatre. A special screening was held for the editors of all high school papers, suburban papers and the general press. Two weeks in advance, a 40x60 blowup was on display in the lower lounge room and in the foyer, while a one-card trailer ran on the screens of eight Warner and four neighborhood houses. The trailer also was shown during the engagement with the first card ciianged to read : Now Playing Riverside Theatre. Teaser trailers ran lliree weeks in advance of the playdate ; while one week in advance, a 36inch electric letter display was placed over the lobby doors where it was observed by audiences going out of the tlieatre. A large 6xl8-ft. display with a colored blowup of Bogart and Bacall also was set up to catch the eye of patrons on their way out of the theatre. One 36x72-inch colored enlargement of Bogart and one of Bacall were placed in lobby display cases where they could be seen by people entering as vvell as leaving the house. A large banner with a colored blowup of Bogart on one side and Bacall on the other was placed out front, while on both sides of the box-office there was a 36x72-inch colored blowup of the actor and actress in frames. In regular poster cases, small colored blowups of Bogart and Bacall were spotted with a variety of stills, and the marquee during the engage-^ ment "sold" Bogart and Bacall in 36-inch electric lights. Army Parades in Richmond To Exploit 'Winged Victory' Army men and women, with army trucks and jeeps, turned out in force to parade in honor of the twin showing of 20th Century-Fox's "Winged \^ictory" at the Byrd and State theatres, Richmond, Va. Elizabeth Morris, manager of the houses, received full cooperation from army public relations officers and specialists. Miss Morris is the first member of her sex to have had active participation in exploiting "Winged Victory" thus far. Boost 'Berlin' Radio Budget To exploit the timeliness of its March 17 release, "Hotel Berlin," Warner Bros, has boosted the radio advertising budget on the picture 40 per cent above the normal expenditures. Appropriation will be concentrated on spot announcements to follow leading news commentators in key cities. "Hotel Berlin" opens at the New York Strand in three weeks, following the current run of "Objective Burma." A large number of key city openings also will take place before the March 17 national release.