Showmen's Trade Review (Oct-Dec 1947)

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SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW, October 18, 1947 11 'Double^ Stunt Sells ^Narcissus^ A 3, COO population and two changes of program weekly with a special Sunday bill dees not deter Manager Fred Bull of the Odeon, Lancing, Sussex England, from going all cut on exploitation. Two weeks before playing Rank's "Black Narcissus," he erected a life-size portrait of Jean Simmons, as the native girl in the film, in the entrance foyer and went on the stage daily inviting girls who thought they looked like her to give him their name. A double was chosen and dressed in native costume; he paraded her extensively through the district. For three nights before playdate, he introduced her to the audience and she presented "Black Narcissus" flowers to occupants of certain seats. The result of this extensive, though economic scheme was excellent business. Hoel, DiFazio Set ^Down to Earth^ Sales in Pittsburgh Film Campaign Revolver Shots, Sales Slips Plug 'Crossfire' Revolver shots and imprinted sales slips were among the stunts evolved by two W'alter Reade city managers in Xew Jersey in their promotion of RKO Radio's "Crossfire." City Manager Guy Hevia in^ Morristown, N. J., thought up a dramatic nifty when he instructed two ushers to stand at either side of the curtain, armed with .22 revolvers, and to fire them oflE after e%ery mention of the word "Crossfire" by the narrator of the trailer and also when the title was flashed upon the screen. The shots startled the audience into shocked attention and that gave the stunt much wordof-mouth publicity, redounding to the advantage of the box-oiice. Hevia also invited the clerg\', educational and political leaders of Morris County to a special screening a week in advance of playdate — again resulting in word-of-mouth promotion. Teaser cards were distributed two weeks in advance, with the words "Murder without motive" under title and playdate anlouncements. Two weeks in advance 10,000 programs with teaser copy were mailed to a selected list, followed a week later by an equal number of programs with special layout, giving full information about "Crossfire." Window cards were distributed throughout the county. Sales slips with imprinted copy on "Crossfire" and its coming to the Strand in Freehold was a tiein with various Freehold cleaning establishments made by City Manager John Balmer. He had 1,000 triplicate sales slips imprinted and these the cleaning shops presented to all customers. Window displays with stills and one-sheet blowups of Robert Young were planted with the Dolly Madison restaurant and various shops. .\ hundred window cards were placed and special cards were posted back to back on crossroad posts and parking lots to get the attention of motorists. Terre Haute Playgrounds Aid on 'Red Stallion' Highlight of Manager Ted Kraft's exploitation campaign for Eagle-Lion's "Red Stallion" it the Orpheum Theatre. Terre Haute, Ind., was a tieup with Roger Winters, superintendent of city parks, whereby all recreation directors of the city's playgrounds plugged the showing not only through the posting of 15 special 22x28s containing copy and scene stills, but urged the youngsters to see the film and take their parents with them. Two girl riders on mounts from the Deming Riding Stable paraded the streets for three days in advance, and for two days at the annual miners' picnic at the city's big stadium. Blankets on the horses carried theatre and playdate copy. 16 Records of Song in Campaign on 'Intermezzo' Si.xteen recordings of the song, Intermezzo, will be released this week in the campaign to herald the re-release of David O. Selznick's "Intermezzo," set for regional openings in late October. Records from six companies include Columbia — Xavier Cugat, X'ladimir Selinsky ; RCAVictor — Toscha Seidel. .'Mian Jones, Boston Pops Orchestra, Freddie Martin, Dick Liebert ; Decca— .-Mbert Kerry, Decoa Salon Orchestra, Guy Lombardo, Bob Hannan, Woody Herman. Tony Martin; MGM — David Rose; Majestic — .■\lfred Xewman ; Mercury — Jack Fina. .\iming the big guns of their extensive exploitation campaign on Columbia's "Down to Earth" on the nation's present clamor for more realistic "down to earth" price reductions on consumer goods, Publicity Manager Ken Hoel and Manager Sam DiFazio of the J. P. Harris Theatre, Pittsburgh, wound up and let go to the extent that one of the city's biggest department stores ran a "down to earth" sale. Boggs and Buehl told the public about it via large newspaper display ads and by decorating the windows of their store with news about "down to earth" prices. The store also gave away 1,000 imprinted photos of Rita Hay worth to its first customers, which fact was advertised in advance. The C. A. Verner Shoe Store also went for the "down to earth" price angle in newspaper ads and store windows with credit to the picture as its inspiration for the movement. Other "natural" tieups obtained tlirough use of the title included a window display of meteorites set in an optical store and an unusual stunt in which a print of the film literally came "down to earth" as a parachutist carrying the print descended at a local airport. Stills of I he stunt broke in the local dailies. .\ "look through a telescope" gag attracted considerable attention on a crowded street corner when passersby were invited to peer through a threeinch 'scope to see "a heavenly body come 'down to earth'." A miniature photo of Hayworth, of course, was the f>iecr dc resistance inside the telescope. .•\nother stunt the newspapers liked was an announcement (jf Miss Hayworth's selection by GOOD STUNT. Picketing their protest against long skirts, these three students of an exclusive Boston finishing school carried signs through the streets which also called attention to Columbia's "Down to Earth." Credit for the tie-in goes to Joe Di Pesa, Tim Shanahan and Abe Bernstein. the American Society of Illustrators as the world's most symmetrical woman, and a follow-up by Hoel and Di Fazio to have runnersup in the Miss Pittsburgh contest photographed next to the statue of Venus de Milo at Carnegie Institute, with a sort of "what-has-she-got-thatI-haven't-got" attitude. The dailies printed photos of the stunt, playing up the beatuy of the local girls as compared with the Venus de Milo and Miss Hayworth. A street ballyhoo, based on the legend that Terpsichore had kissed 2,000 men, was arranged with a candy company which supplied 5,000 candy kisses for street distribution, each tagged with a card about the legend and the picture. .A. dance contest sponsored by the local Arthur -Murray branch in which a loving cup was given to the best couple doing the "Down to Earth Glide" (whatever that is) was advertisied in the newspapers by the Murray organization. Music tieups were extensive too, with eveiy local radio station being supplied with reco-dings of music from the film and various disc jockeys setting up their own methbds of telling Pittsburgh's populace about the music and the picture. Windows displays were set with record and sheet music stores. Pre-arranged national tieups were given attention by Hoel and DiFazio, particularly with Lux Soap, resulting in the distribution of 1,600 posters plugging the picture's local playdate ; with Max Factor, resulting in the display of posters in all stores of the Sun Drug Company, and in Gimbel's store, running a display ad in the dailies in connection with the tieup with Tussey's Terpsichore Perfume. Gimbel's also used a large interior display on the perfume. Balloons from Airplanes Plug 'Gone With Wind' Four airplanes were promoted from the South Dayton Airport, tied in with radio station WHIG, to drop 1,100 balloons o\er fair grounds, swimming pools and amusement parks in and around Dayton, O., as a means of promoting the showing of MGM-Selznick's "Gone With the Wind" at Loew's Theatre. Stunt was arranged by Relief Manager Vincent Aldert. The toy balloons were dropped in clusters of 25 to 50, .^ome of them containing guests tickets. While the airplanes were still in the air, the theatre began to receive calls from persons who had captured a balloon with a pass. Th? following day long-distance calls came in from five to 10 miles away. One Week in Advance -\ special lobby board displayed one week in advance was used by Harral Reeves of the Palace Theatre, Abilene, Texas, to advertise the Universal short, "Frontier Frolics."