Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1944)

November 11. 1944 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW 25 National Coverage Planned for ^Brazil In line with a specially planned national advertising campaign on its forthcoming interAmerican musical, "Brazil," Republic will double its magazine space in a long list of publications, including Life, Look, Cosmopolitan, Liberty, True Story, American Girl, Boys Life, Young America. Young Catholic Messenger and virtually every recognized fan magazine. In addition, advertisements are appearing in such newspaper supplements as Parade, This Week and American Weekly, syndicated to 56 leading newspapers throughout the country. A full-page will be used in the Christian Science Monitor during November. Musical score of the production, which will have its world premiere November 14 at the Fox Theatre, St. Louis, is being given extensive promotion by Southern Music Publishing Co., publishers of the many songs in the film written by. Latin-American composer Ary Barroso. Southern is circularizing the music trade and is plugging the score with band leaders and artists. Colorful song covers feature Guizar and Virginia Bruce. Title pages are available for theatre lobby and music store displays. Hands Across the Border, by Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington, sung by Roy Rogers in a guest starring role, also is receiving promotion attention. Campaign for the St. Louis premiere is being handled by M. L. Plessner, advertising and publicity director for Fanchon & Marco-St. Louis Amusement Co. theatres. Display ads will be used in the Globe-Democrat, Post and Star. Radio spot announcements and a special five-minute transcribed show are being employed on seven stations. These programs are being advertised on the radio pages of the newspapers. The theatre has erected a special front to herald the engagement. Other advance advertising includes the back cover of the program for the Tito Guizar recital at the Kiel Auditorium. 'Impatient Years' Wins Detroit Radio Plugs Radio was used to especially good advantage by Manager David Idzal of the Roxy Theatre, Detroit, and Sid Zins, Columbia exploiteer, in putting over "The Impatient Years" recently. The promotion duo did a thorough job over the air. They got spot announcements placed on radio stations WWJ, WXYZ, CKLW, WJBK, and WJR for five days up to the opening. Then special plugs were promoted over the Fran Harris programs on station WWJ a week before opening, also on Mary Morgan's programs on station CKLW, and over Dick Osgood's programs on WXYZ. The radio, however, was only part of the campaign. Special stories and art were planted in all local newspapers, including the foreign language group, with an added photo break in the Detroit Times. A large 30x40 sign was set in the window of the largest music store in the city, tieing in music from the picture, and a full set of orchestrations was furnished all leading hotel and night club bands. In the way of screenings, there were three : for the radio and musical contacts, for critics and worfen's radio program directors, and for church and judicial dignitaries. Greater Expression by Showmen Is Urged for Thanksgiving Day Thanksgiving generally will be celebrated throughout the nation Thursday, November 23rd. Showmen should capitalize on the event. Walter Winchell aptly wrote, "Our thanks should be as much for what we have been spared as for what we have been given." This epitomizes the feelings of the people of an America at war. Showmen should make it their business to express their thanks that the war is going our way — not coming. War-time living in America is plentiful. Our hardships are few. Even with rationing we have more food and the good things of life for which America is fighting than most of the world's countries in peace-time. It is a bountiful Thanksgiving this year and we should give hearty thanks for it. Theatre men should join with all other Americans and regard Thanksgiving this year as a day of fuller meaning than at any time they can remember. Showmen should give greater expression to the holiday, through the medium of the theatre and the many avenues it commands. Observed During Bond Drive First among these will be a devotion to war effort, crystallized most importantly in terms of war bond sales. Thanksgiving will fall on the third day of the Sixth Bond drive. A good lobby display could read : "Express thanks to your nation on Thanksgiving Day by purchase of that extra war bond. Do your part in helping make next Thanksgiving Day, not only a day of grateful thanks, but also celebration of a day of Victory." Thanksgiving presents a challenge to good showmanship. Essentially a "family day," theatre schedules should be made with this thought in mind. Take into consideration that many families hold their Thanksgiving feast at midday or early afternoon. Also, many persons sit down to their dinner in the late afternoon. Occurring, as it does, on a mid-week date, many theatres will schedule midnight or owl shows the night before. With the day a full holiday, the morning hours present potentially good times for busy and profitable periods. Plan Manner in which the Rivoli Theatre in New York utilized its lobby door panels as advance advertising space on the Paramount Technicolor film, "Frenchman's Creek" is an excellent pattern for this type of advertising in door panels of other houses. to set a "junior morning" matinee, with probably an extra western, or cartoon comedies. Use the logical selling approach of "keeping junior out of mother's way while she is preparing the turkey." Your community may be the center for the traditional Thanksgiving Day football game. Check to see if football will be played in your community and make plans to cover the crowds. Turnover is one of the problems. Streamline your show without sacrificing patron-interest. Reduce to a minimum all unnecessary delays in presenting your bill. Have your vending machines stocked as well as possible under wartime conditions. If you sell popcorn, see that you have ample supplies of raw material. If your theatre serves a wartime clientele of defense workers, give proper consideration to the accommodation of those on all shifts. Late afternoon workers might want to attend a show before reporting for work, following their Thanksgiving dinner. Bookings naturally play an important role in success of a Thanksgiving Day show. However, "average programs" may be showmanized into an "above average" result. Frog Contest Swells irk Twain' Receipts "Flash," world's champion jumping frog, was used by H. Spencer BregofT, manager of Fabian's Palace, Port Richmond, Staten Island, in a frog contest to stimulate interest in "The Adventures of Mark Twain," during the run of the picture at his theatre. The frog, which appeared in the picture, made a "personal appearance" in a glass case in the lobby a week in advance of the showing, In cooperation with the Goldwyn Reliable Jewelers, who sponsored the frog contest, prizes of war stamps were given children who brought to the theatre the largest frog, the greatest number of frogs by one contestant, and the smallest frog. Following the contest, "Flash" and all the frog entrants were presented to the Barrett Zoo, West Brighton. A letter was sent to all school principals stressing the value of the picture in stimulating interest among pupils in the works of Mark Twain. Radio plugs were used over Station WHOM, Menus of two leading Port Richmond restaurants featured "Frogs legs a la Mark Twain," with a plug for the picture and playdate. Window Contest Entries Grow Window dressers throughout the nation are competing in International Pictures' nation-wide contest with the exploitation of "The Woman in the Window." Alore than 300 entries from 200 cities have been received. International is giving $2750 in prizes for the best-dressed store windows using the "woman in the window" as a theme. SHOWMAN SAM SAYS: A hunk of compo board, a paint brush, and an IDEA will often spell the diflference between 9 turkey and a b.o. bull's eye.