DECEMBER

ini,
|
'
: a
I
distributed
I
I
I
State
I
lie
«'8altj
*?«(*;
»py."Y«-.
HobbsE
in
thai
St,
ail I
ibitionilii}
iianlatj;
itoittlll;
lyiitlii
sniafe
linsth!-:
g
ilevotfil
tie pte
sored »fc^
Diimenli'r.
dates.
Packs
ning
;e;olttt''
rited !i d
;ity.
»"'
fit
nothei !»:
ofttelf^
''
nle."
BattW^'
1
I |;
Co-Op Champ Outdoes
Himself on Free Ads
For 'Kilimanjaro'
Tony Ma.scllu. inaiiaKi'r of the Palace Theatre.
MiTldcn. Conn., who ha.s a con.slderabUreputation
for getting co-op newspaper advertising,
set a new record In thl.s form o(
promotion In his campaign for "Snows of
Kilimanjaro."
Masella got 13 merchants to take a fullpage
co-op ad In the Meriden Dally Journal
the day before opening. The Identical ad
appeared in the Meriden Record on opening
day. Banner headline urged the public to
"shop and dine downtown today, then see
"Snows of Kilimanjaro' at the Palace Theare."
Each Individual ad on the page Included catch
copy tieing in the product with the picture.
Upham's, men's shop, ran large threecolumn
display ads pushing Christmas ties
for men. with a two-column star cut of Ava
Gardner. Two-column display ads were promoted
from Judy's teenage shop, the Ford
dealer, a Meriden travel bureau. Jepson'.s
l)ookstore and a dairy.
The Meriden Light & Power Co. used two
six-column display ads headed. "Wash your
clothes white as the 'Snows of Kilimanjaro'
With a Westinghou.se Laundromat." and included
display ads and theatre credits plugging
the picture playdates.
In addition to the extensive newspaper coop
promotion. Masella's campaign included
lobby displays, window cards, counter cards,
door-to-door distribution of co-op jumbo
heralds, and 1.000 bookmarks distributed
through the pubhc library.
Bags promoted from a supermarket were
imprinted with theatre copy. A coloring
contest was planted with the Meriden Record
week in advance, and 1.000 place mats were
to restaurants.
Masella obtained permission from the police
department to post traffic safety cards with
picture imprint in the downtown area. A
walking book made an effective street ballyhoo,
and bumper strips were placed on Yellow
cabs.
Announcements of the picture and playdates
were made at local bingo parlors, and a
quiz contest was promoted over the local
radio station. Five full window displays
promoted with prominent stores included
large credib signs for picture and theatre.
iCooks Up Demonstration
Of Culinary Concoctions
Norman Wolk, manager of the Riviera Tlirlatre,
Rochester. N. 'V., has promoted a manl
.cooking school demonstration for the Riviera,
and West End theatres. An appliance
store and local merchants are sponsoring the
event, with the utilities company furnishing
a competent demonstrator.
Uses Kids for Ballyhoo
For "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,"
I
(Jack Ward, manager of the Seneca Theatre.
Niagara Falls, had five juvenile sandwichmen
iparade the business and residential areas
after .school and all day Saturday during
[shopping hours. The stunt paid off. with
jWard getting many comments on how "cute"
the idea was.
L
BOXOFFICE Showmiandiser :: Dec. 13, 1952
License
Numbers Give Drive-In
Valuable, Permanent Check List
Joe Aapley. manaser of the Moonlight
Drivc-In near Long B«uch, MIjm.. offerx outdoor
thcntremen n sURKe.itlon that b«arfi several
valuable advantage.s.
A.splcy keep.s a
nightly record of the
location of every car In
the field on a propiired
form. The Information
gives the number of
speaker unit and the
license number of each
car.
This system has kept
speaker loss to a point
where It Is negligible
since the public is
aware the car owner
Juc .V.splcy
ran be Identified from the license regLstratlon.
In .several instances, articles lost from cars
were recovered because the license number
furnished the Immediate area which was then
searched.
The licen.se numbers furnish the theatre
with the means of building a mailing list as
names and addre.sses can be checked with the
county car registry. Aspley uses this method
to identify first-time theatre patrons and
each receives a personal letter from him enclosing
a pass as a goodwill builder.
The nightly Ust also furnishes the key to a
weekly business booster called Tag night. A
card is made out with the licen.se numbers
every night. These are dropped into a con-
Drive-Ins Collaborate
On Season Closing Ads
Pcarce Parkiiurst. manager of the Lansing
(Mich. I Drive-In Theatre, got three outdoor
theatremen to co-sponsor a series of season'send
ads. Beginning October 17, one-column
announcements appeared on the movie page
headed with copy, "ten more nights of drive-in
theatre movies . . . eight more nights . . .
seven more nights, etc." These were dropped
in daily until closing night, at which time a
two-column message of thanks for past patronage
was run over the signatures of the
four sponsors.
Street Photographer
Ballyhoos 'Skirts'
Vernon Hud^ion, manager of the Capitol in
St. Catherine, Ont., had an usher on the
streets three days prior to the opening of
"Skirts Ahoy!" pretending to take pictures
of passersby with a candid camera. As he
did this, he handed each person a card
apologizing for fooling them and an assurance
that they wouldn't be fooled when they saw
"Skirts Ahoy!" On opening night, the sea
cadets paraded to the theatre with signs.
Shows 'Paleface'
Costume
Through a lieup arranged by Bill Cooley,
manager of the Everett iWash.i Theatre, the
Bon Marche store devoted its principal window
to a display of original costumes worn
during the filming of "Son of Paleface."
— 283 —
tatner and on Tag night one card U Micctcd.
If the owner I.h prenent he receive* a Jackpot
award. It the prize U not claimed, the amount
bulld.n up each week.
Every night a few of the cardii are drawn
from the hopper and the numbem are ported
In the conce.vilon booth. Ouent uckefai and
rnenti are given to theae winners. The
hu\e Co vl.ilt the concesnlon In order
tu leitrn If they are wlnncm and this device
a .stimulant for candy sales.
I.H
A.splcy u.se.>i his public addresn syiitem to
ballyhoo the conce.