Boxoffice-April.07.1958

•nnnMinriir
Opening the Drive-In With a Bang
At Cost of Little or No Money
Harold Field of Pioneer Theatres Tells How to
Jam Them in
By Harold Field
on First-Nights
All too often, after sparking an opening
with a big fuse, we open with a "phsst"
Instead of a bang. However. I feel that if
I can bring to you some of the thinking
that has gone into Pioneer Theatres opening
plans. I might stai-t you off on a
train of thought that will prove beneficial.
In our part of the country, we have
extremely uncertain weather in the spring.
However, we have learned from experience
that we are much better off to open our
outdoor theatres as early in the spring as
possible, rather than to drag out the length
of our season in the fall. In other words,
we force our op>ening but we shut off our
operation the very moment we drop into
the danger zone.
THE.^TRES IN
TOP SHAPE
All of this presupposes that our theatres
have been placed in excellent physical condition
and that oui- over-riding aim and
desire is to get as many patrons in the
habit of coming to the theatre again, as
quickly as possible.
We originally spent a great deal of
money in promoting a grand opening. We
had extensive newspaper advertising, radio
campaigns, window cards, bumper strips,
mailing pieces, even fireworks, announcing
the opening. As often as not, we would run
into a heavy snow, freezing weather, or 10
days to two weeks of heavy rain and find
that the opening was ruined and that all
of the money spent promoting it was lost.
The first thing we did was to subscribe
to the Kirk Weather Service out at Denver
and we have found it helpful. At least, it
is a lot better than a guess. We try, and
our conscience is clear.
After a few disasters in the early learning
years of outdoor theatre operation, we
began to believe and subsequent experience
proved, that a successful opening
could be achieved without the expenditui-e
of veiT much, if any money. Thus, if the
weather did ruin the opening or postpone
It a day or a week, at least we were not
out of pocket.
AIM AT BIG OPENERS
Since these early years, we have devoted
our time to finding expense-free or extremely
inexpensive, but effective means
of letting the pubUc know that our outdoor
theatres were about to
open. And we
have concentrated our efforts on getting
as many people out as possible the first
night.
Our opening efforts have run the gamut
from special premieres at advanced prices
The Author-
Harold Field, president of Pioneer
Theatres Corp., which operates more
than 20 theatres in Minnesota and
Iowa, is known as one of the most
progressive exhibitors in his territoi-y.
The article published here is based
on a talk he made at the Theatre
Owners of America drive-in conventionette
March 26, 27.
to free shows that the public was urged
to attend as our guests. Ours is essentially
a farming community and we estimate that
about 65 p>er cent of our attendance in
our outdoor theatres are from rural communities
and out of necessity, our efforts
in publicizing our openings, must be directed
principally to these people.
One idea that we used at various times
to promote our openings has been to work
through the county agent or the 4-H clubs.
We have worked out a benefit arrangement
for a preopening night of a top attraction,
if possible, and we had all of the 4-H
members over a wide area under the leadership
of the county farm agent trying
to sell tickets and publicizing the reopening
by so-doing. For this event, tickets have
been sold at $2 or $3 a car and the selling
organization has shared in the receipts on
a 50 per cent basis.
LET THE FARMERS KNOW
There are some excellent benefits to be
derived from this plan. Every farmer in
the county, in fact several counties, is
made aware that the outdoor theatre is
going to open and the opening date is
emphasized and fiimly implanted in their
minds. In some extreme conditions where
it was impossible to open the theatre on
the planned night, more publicity was secured
on the postponement and on the
new opening date. This plan afforded
plenty of publicity by the farm groups at
their various meetings and the newspapers
of necessity, went along far more than
they do ordinarily on an out-and-out commercial
venture. With several hundred kids
busily canvassing the area, rural as well
as urban