Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1945)

May 5, 1945 SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW 39 'Springfield' Launched With Big Campaign {Continued from Page 38) tions and leading citizens throughout the country. Latest of the many national organizations to endorse "It Happened in Springfield" is the Council for Democracy, with Ernest Angell as president and Raymond Swing as chairman. In a letter to Warners, Angell said, in part: "Because of the urgent need for the expansion of this wholesome type of education at this particular time, the Council highly recommends this film." On April 28 CBS carried a special coast-tocoast broadcast on "Springfield" on Dolphe Martin's Youth on Parade program. Feature of the broadcast was a citation to Harry M. Warner, with Warner participating in the program. Introduced by Mayor J. Albin Anderson, Jr., of Springfield, Mass., Warner said, in part: "We regard the making of this picture as the performance of a civic responsibility. It is part of our investment in America. We feel this picture can do immeasurable good for civilization, and we're proud that so many church, school and civic groups, as well as 11 great youth organizations, have so readily endorsed it." On April 29, the subject was given another nationwide boost on the CBS coast-to-coast program. We the People, when John Garfield and four Springfield school children who appear in the short presented a skit telling about the Springfield Plan. Special ads promoting the Youth on Parade broadcast appeared Friday (April 27) on the radio pages of newspapers, and were augmented by one-sheets sent to theatres in all key cities calling attention to the broadcast and announcing the local engagement of the picture. The posters were given prominent display, particularly in theatre lobbies. Publicity interest created, not only by the broadcast itself but also by the importance placed upon it through the special promotion, added considerably to the already huge nationwide interest aroused in "It Happened in Springfield" as the most-talked-about short subject in years. Staub Reel to Show Winners of Oscars for Past 17 Years A summary of 17 years of Academy Awards yi\\\ be prepared by Ralph Staub as one of the Columbia Screen Snapshots for the current seaon. The reel will feature the 34 male and female op stars who have been recipients of Oscars, starting with the 1927-28 awards to Janet Gaynor and Emil Jannings, and will present them in scenes from the pictures for which they won the awards. Other Award winners to be seen in the short are: Mary Pickford and Warner Baxter ; Norma Shearer and George Arliss ; Marie Dressier and Lionel Barrymore ; Helen Hayes and Frederic March; Katharine Hepburn and Charles Laughton ; Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable ; Bette Davis and Victor McLaglen ; Luise Rainer in successive years with Paul Muni and Spencer Tracy, the latter also winning a second year with Bette Davis ; Vivian Leigh and Robert Donat ; Ginger Rogers and James Stewart ; Joan Fontaine and Gary Cooper ; Greer Garson and James Cagney ; Jennifer Jones and Paul Lukas, and the recent winners, Ingrid Bergman and Bing Crosby. Sniper Kills Newsreel Ace Gaston Madru, staff cameraman of News of the Day and camera correspondent with the American Forces representing the American newsreel pool, was killed by a German sniper in Leipzig on April 19. Madru's spectacular movies of the fighting in the streets of Paris before the arrival of the Allied troops, are among the best action pictures of World War II. SHORT GETS WINDOW. This one of three windows devoted by Bonwit Teller, one of New York's leading Fifth Avenue department stores, to the RKO This Is America short feature, "Power Unlimited," coincident with its recent engagement at the RKO Palace. This is unprecedented recognition for this series in New York. Two Color Featurettes Set Marking the first time that two Paramount Musical Featurettes in Technicolor have gone before the cameras in immediate succession, "The Little Witch" and "Homecoming Queen" have been scheduled for immediate production by George Templeton. Olga San Juan and Bob Graham head the cast of "The Little Witch" from an original by Franz Rosenwald, while the cast of "Homecoming Queen" from an original by Jacqueline Dufiie is headed by Johnny Coy and Noel Neill. 3-Way Tieup Sells Subject for Golden Taking advantage of the fact that the Clapp Baby Food Company, whose president is H. W. Roden, is located in Rochester, Manager Jay Golden of the RKO Palace staged a world premiere of Universal's short subject, "Author in Babyland." Title of the picture derives from the fact that Roden, aside from his duties as corporation executive, is also the author of best-selling mystery stories. Therefore, the world premiere campaign was based in a three-way tieup between the publishers, the Clapp company and the theatre. A few days in advance of the opening performance, Clapp sponsored a preview screening of the subject at the Rochester Club to which the press was invited, including the motion picture, book and food editors. A lobby display was used and a trailer projected for one week ahead of the opening. In his advertising Golden used a photo of Roden. Because of the executive's prominence in Rochester, the Democrat and Chronicle devoted a half-column story to "Author in Babyland." Names and addresses of local youngsters appearing in the short proved good "local copy" for stories that appeared in the Times Union and Democrat and Chronicle. Displays featuring Roden, the name of his new book, his connection with the Clapp company, the title of the picture and playdates were promoted in book stores and in the book departments of leading department stores. Tieups with the Clapp company and William Morrow & Co., publishers of the book, are available to any theatre in any city. ■I The BIRTH of A STAR " DIRECTED BY BUD POLLARD A REAL MONEY SHOW Ask Any Exhibitor That Has Played It A Streamlined Feature (40 MINUTES) TODAY AT THESE EXCHANGES Atlanta — Astor Boston — Embassy Buffalo — Pam-0 Chicago — Capitol Charlotte — Astor Cincinnati — Popular Cleveland — Imperial Dallas — Astor Denver — Commercial Des Moines — Film Classics Detroit — Allied Indianapolis — P.R.C. Los Angeles — Astor Minneapolis — Film Classics Milwaukee — Astor New Haven — Embassy — Boston New Orleans — Astor New York — Astor Philadelphia — Capitol Pittsburgh — Crown Portland — Star San Francisco — Astor St. Lours — Dieti Washington — Astor