Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1945)

May 5, 1945 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW 21 Timeliness Is Stressed in Two Campaigns on ^Counter-Attack^ Loew*s 'Gray' Manual v^overs All AngI es Highlights from the exceptional exploitation and advertising campaigns essayed by three Loew Theatres in New Orleans, Rochester and Houston have been incorporated into a sales manual on "The Picture of Dorian Gray" under the supervision of Oscar Doob for the use of Loew Theatres everywhere. The three campaigns in themselves were so exceptional that the reports from the theatres were made out as single-spaced typewritten copy on from seven to nine pages and these contained just details without the usual padding! The manual of 30 pages reproduces outstanding ads from the campaigns, shows photos of exploitation and ballyhoo and gives detailed descriptions of the exact methods used to accomplish these excellent results. Working from a premise that the picture would have to be sensationalized to do a successful box-office job the Loew men in the field used every idea they could dream up and every media available to put the picture across with remarkable results at the box-offices of all three theatres. Advice from Doob to all Loew Theatres states . . . "If you have any really good exploitation ideas and you need some extra money for them, let us know all about it. We'll get any reasonable amount of money you need to sell 'Dorian Gray' ... it is okay to exceed your regular local (advertising) budget for extra space for teaser ads . . . send in your recommendation for costs for any special advertising. We'll give you a quick answer." With an admonition against "alibis" because "I couldn't spend the money," Doob concludes his advice about advertising and exploitation expenditures with this statement : "This attraction is one of those rare exceptions ; we're not breaking policies or making new ones ; just bending the old ones to meet a special situation." Another part of the manual starts where other exploitation campaigns usually end : after the picture's opening. Discussing the "Gray" run at New York's Capitol Theatre, Doob points up the information that the 35th day of the run was the biggest 3Sth day any picture had attained at that theatre and that extra efforts are to be made on the part of out-of-town theatre managers to continue display advertising after opening and to highlight exploitation for holdover business. Bacall Whistling Contest Is Staged at Capitol in Sioux City Highlight of thf advance campaign for "To Have and Have Not" at the Capitol Theatre, Sioux City, la., was a "Bacall of the Wild Whistling Contest," put on over Station KTRL The stunt is based on Miss Bacall's utterance to Humphrey Bogart in the film : "If you want something, just whistle." Warner Bros, have been supplying exhibitors with a "whistle transcription" which has been proving very effective as a "call to the box-office," but the staging of a live whistling contest goes several steps beyond. Two local USO clubs cooperated in the preIminiaries, with their hostesses serving as judges, and eight finalists were selected to compete for the championship, witli a $25 war bond as first prize. ^ The station's topnotch announcer was assigned to emcee the contest. Shopping Bags Plug Film Imprinted paper shopping bags were used by Carl Sherred to promote Columbia's "A Song to Remember" at the Maryland Theatre, Cumberland, Md. Copy on the bags : "To save paper remember' to carry this bag every day. For a great picture remember to see 'A Song to Remember' at the Maryland." The exploitable possibilities and timeliness of Columbia's "Counter-Attack" have been demonstrated graphically in the two top exploitation campaigns essayed by managers Bill Brererton and Alec Davis of the Lafayette Theatre, Buffalo and the Warner Theatre, Worcester, respectively in their early showings of the picture. In Buffalo Brererton worked closely with the nearby Bell Aircraft plant, local stores, Russian War Relief and the public library and succeeded in arranging valuable tie-ups through these media. In the Bell Plant posters were mounted on all available bulletin boards with copy. "Bell Aircobras and King Cobras have helped make the great Russian Counter Attack possible. Now see the story behind it ... in the Columbia picture, 'Counter Attack'." Theatre and playdates completed the valuable tieup. The Bell house-organ also carried the story of the film, illustrated with stills from the picture the weekend before opening. The lobby of the airplane plant was dressed with a display consisting of photos of the Bell planes with copy explaining that "this type of aircraft made the great Russian Counter Attack possible." Brererton set a seven-day radio contest over two local stations running three hours each morning and also arranged to have Russian War Relief headquarters in the city mail 5000 cards to its own mailing list urging attendance at the picture. The War Relief agency also devoted two full windows to the picture in its two branch offices. Department stores, public and lending libraries, beauty shops, etc., cooperated with window displays and the distribution of bookmarks and heralds. In addition to generous space from the city's leading newspaper the picture received added sales impetus from the Polish Press, widely read in Buffalo, which ran news stories with accompanying stills in addition to telling the "story in pictures." Highlight of Alec Davis' campaign in Worcester was his arrangement with a radio station to run a direct wire into his theatre lobby and broadcast hourly news bulletins The OUTDOOR TOGS DISPLAY. A display of outdoor togs was used in Wolfe's, Salt Lake City store, to attract attention to the opening of Republic's outdoor Roy Rogers special, "Utah." Widespread promotion highlighted the opening. Joseph Rosenfield was assisted in the excellent campaign by Manager Jerry Ross. display around the news desk in the lobby was devoted to stills and blow-ups from the picture, and printed news flashes adorned the bulletin board backgrounds for the benefit of "in-betweeners." Davis managed to have posters placed in the war plants in and around Worcester, heralding the coming of the picture and extolling the work of plant employes as valuable contributors to the success of the actual counterattack on which the picture is based. Another unusual stunt in the Worcester campaign was brought about by the proximity of a Russian war hero whom Davis brought to the city especially for a radio interview. The Russian, Lt. I. Poletaev, spoke of the importance of morale among war workers and discussed the activities of Russian guerrillas. During the broadcast several allusions were made to "Counter-Attack" and the Warner Theatre. Several eye-catching windows in department stores, drug stores, beauty shops, etc., were arranged, and the chain drug store system credited the picture and its local playdate in newspaper advertising. Uses 'Local Boy' Angle to Exploit 'Vanities' in Denver Capitalizing on the "local boy makes good" angle, Manager Ralph R. Batschelet of the Paramount Theatre, Denver, set up an extensive exploitation campaign for his showing of Republic's "Earl Carroll Vanities," utilizing in addition a special front, several window displays, a lobby wheel of fortune, newspapers and radio to pre-sell the musical. The theatre front included blowups of Tommy Ivo, born in Denver and who studied dancing in a local school, with other enlargements of dancing girls, cut-out letters, flitter, etc. Songs from the picture and Woody Herman's name were prominently displayed. Fourteen window displays, all of which utilized 11x14 stills were set in downtown locations, including a special display in the city's largest music store. The Jimmy Gallagher School of Dancing at which Tommy Ivo received his dancing instruction cooperated in a campaign which resulted in the sale of 2000 tickets. Radio was used extensively, including a promotion stunt in which the station announced various names taken at random from the telephone book, with listeners receiving guest tickets if they called the station within a stated period of time following the announcement. James Dunn, Betty Smith Aid Springfield 'Tree' Campaign James Dunn, 20th Century-Fox star, and Betty Smith, author of "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," were the focal points around which George Freeman built his exploitation campaign for the picturization of the book, which played his Poli-Springfield Theatre recently. Harry F. Shaw, division manager for PoliNew England Theatres, and Lou Brown, director of publicity and advertising, arranged a reception for the two celebrities at which members of local radio stations and newspapers were present, resulting in advance and follow-up stories, benefitting the local showing of the picture. Radio and newspaper interviews, book window displays and cooperative advertising were also features of the campaign. Sam Horwitz assisted Freeman in the arrangements.