Boxoffice-April.17.1948

and
Hay-Burner Versus Tractor Issue
Kindles Interest in 'Scudda Hoo!'
Taking advantage of an extensive newspaper
advertising campaign for the opening
of "Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay!" in Omaha,
Dwight Seymour, manager of the Arbor in
Nebraska City, kept his ad campaign for the
film at a minimum, although the playdates
were prominently in evidence.
Two days prior to opening, 1,000 teaser
cards were distributed to car owners and
employes of all stores. On the following day,
cards were distributed over the same route,
with copy, "Mark 'Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay!'
as a must-see picture." A two-column scene
cut and theatre imprint appeared in the
lower portion of the card, and a pencil with
theatre imiprint was affixed to each card.
Seymour distributed the cards and pencils
to 86 members attending a Rotary club meeting
on Wednesday before opening. The fact
that he drew a $2 fine from the president
of the organization was justified, according
to Seymour, because of the comment which
the gag provoked among the membership.
A week prior to opening, all employes of
the Arbor Theatre wore blue .leans, loud
plaid shirts or gingham dresses, and large
straw hats set off by press sheet ads. The
outfits also were worn to classes by parttime
employes who attend school.
For a lobby display, Seymour borrowed a
large hammermill, a harrow in two sections.
Lobby Display and Puppy
Animate Tender Years'
A simply contrived mechanical display
helped focus attention on Manager Jack
Randall's date for "The Tender Years" at
the Strand in Vancouver, B. C,
Randall attached a series of stills to a
regular color wheel. The wheel was placed
behind a display with an aperture through
which the stills appeared as the disk revolved.
With color illumination from behind,
the effect was that of a small screen.
Randall promoted a terrier puppy from a
local pet shop and tied up for a giveaway in
conjunction with the Tillicum club, administered
by Diana Gray in the Vancouver
Daily Province.
The newspaper carried entry blanks for
the contest and instructions for contestants
to deposit their entry forms in the Strand
lobby. On the Saturday of the giveaway, a
record crowd was on hand, necessitating the
opening of the balcony.
Lucky Shoppers Win
Gifts and Passes
A ten-week tieup has been arranged by
Leonard Tuttle, manager of the Lam-elton
Theatre, Laurelton, N. Y., which has been
producing front page publicity in the Reflector,
a suburban weekly newspaper.
Each week the paper publishes a photo of
a group of shoppers in one of the local stores,
with the faces of three circled. Persons thus
singled out receive a pass to the Laurelton,
a years subscription to the Reflector and gifts
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motors and many small farm implements,
which he set up in the lobby with tiein copy.
For outside ballyhoo, a Massey-Harris tractor
was placed in the theatre safety zone,
with teaser copy: "Will the tractor replace
the mule on the farm?" Two 40x60s set near
the tractor gave visitors from the stirrounding
farming communities a good laugh and
got the picture extra word-of-mouth advertising.
Net advertising expenses for the exploitation
was held to a low of $17.
donated by the merchant in whose store the
photograph was taken.
Tuttle gets his theatre attractions mentioned
gratis in each story and uses a blowup
of each week's photo in the lobby to attract
extra attention to the tieup.
Holyoke Street Ballyhoo
Is Promoted at No Cost
Paul Kessler, manager of the Suffolk,
Holyoke, Mass., arranged for a no-cost street
ballyhoo to exploit "T-Men."
The Willys dealer provided several jeeps,
one of which was equipped with a public
address system. The cars toured the downtown
business section for several days carrying
banners armouncing the Suffolk playdates
and used a "T-Men" transcription,
providing audible as well as graphic advertising
for the picture.
The car dealer used a large window display,
while the local Treasury department office
and the press cooperated.
Yo-Yo Contest Attracts
Youths to Safety Show
A yo-yo contest staged in conjunction with
a safety campaign in San Pedro, Calif., tested
the capacity of the Strand for Manager Constantine
Papandrew.
Papandrew Introduced the San Pedro police
chief, from the stage, who made a brief talk
on the subject of safety and the need for
obeying traffic rules to a capacity audience of
youngsters. An expert demonstrated a variety
of tricks to the fascinated children, who competed
for honors as the best yo-yo players.
Art Theatre Features
Literature Series of
Features, Shorts
Great classics of literature, documentaries
of bookish interest and poetic featurettes
may sound like stuffy material to the average
exhibitor, but for Irving Levin, district
manager for San Francisco Theatres,
Inc., they comprise the entire program of
a highly successful "Limelighting Literature"
series screened each Wednesday in
February at the Vogue Theatre.
Repeating a formula which he originated
for the presentation of a light opera festival,
a series of famous musical films .shown each
year at the Vogue, Levin launched a new
and unique presentation of classical pictures
from the literature of both book and
screen.
Billing his four attractions as "integrated,
enlightened entertainment for discriminating
students of the motion picture as an art
form," Levin prepared a novel program of
"Crime and Punishment," "The Lower
Depths," "Peter the Great" and "Time in
the Sun." Featurettes included a Shakesperian
reading by Wilfred Lawson and Leo
Genn, interviews with famous authors (Somerset
Maugham. Rebecca West and Julian
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Huxley pictorial recitations of modern
and classic poetry.
Levin offered reservations to the Vogue
on a season ticket basis. Brochures on tan
book stock, emphasizing the program's literary
quality with a short commentary on the
films, were .sent out to the mailing list of
one of San Francisco's most prominent book
stores as well as to private and public school
teachers and all the literary and drama societies
in the Bay area. The heralds were
made available at book stores and were distributed
in other theatres of the circuit.
While Limelighting Literature was originally
scheduled for matinee performances
only, demand for tickets prompted Levin to
run continuously from 2:30 p. m. each
Wednesday.
Music Score Is Exploited
For 'Albuquerque' Date
For the Detroit opening of "Albuquerque"
at the Palms-State. Ahce Gorham, publicity
director for United Detroit Theatres, obtained
the piano score of the unpublished
song, "Albuquerque," from Paramount's studios
and had it plugged into hit parade
stature via local radio stations. Barber shop
quartets were promoted through a tieup
with the Franmeneth Brewing Co.
The picture was screened for the writers
of the Lone Ranger, popular radio serial,
and a special episode was framed around
the theme of the film for use on the 225-
station network which carried the story.
Picture Plug Dominates
Co-Op 'Avenue Angel'
A three-column, eight-inch co-op ad was
promoted by Eddie DiResta, manager of the
Rialto in Amsterdam, N. Y., to help publicize
"Tenth Avenue Angel." DiResta tied up with
a local children's clothing shop featuring
the Margaret O'Brien brand. In addition
to theatre credits, a large star cut and scene
illumination were incorporated in the ad.
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36 —450— BOXOFFICE Showmandiser :: April 17, 1948