Boxoffice - October 2016

SHOWBIZ SPEAK > A GLOSSARY
BURLESQUE
Vaudeville was clean,
family-friendly entertainment.
Burlesque shows
were also variety shows,
but for adults. Strippers
were often headliners,
and the comedians did
blue material. Gypsy
Rose Lee was the most
famous burlesque entertainer.
PICTURED: NATALIE WOOD
AS GYPSY ROSE LEE IN
1962'S GYPSY.
Thursday opening, but that isn’t really true as the studio
won’t allow matinees (now we know what they are) or
showings earlier than a specified evening time.
BREAK A LEG is the recognized way to say “good
luck” to an actor. According to showbiz tradition,
saying the words “good luck” is regarded as bad luck.
Most people think that it’s just a matter of reverse
psychology—say a bad thing to make a good thing
happen. But not in this case. This is another tradition
that goes back to vaudeville days.
In a live stage theater, a “leg” is one of the side
curtains that frame the stage. There are usually three
or four legs running parallel to the stage opening, one
behind the other, on each side of the stage. They allow
the performers to walk onstage between the legs but
block the view of the audience into the “wings,” the
areas on each side of the stage that lead backstage. In
vaudeville days, a theater manager might cancel an act
anytime right up to the last minute before it went on.
Saying “break a leg” meant you hoped the entertainer
broke through the legs and made it onstage to perform
his or her act and get paid.
ONE SHEET refers to the standard size theatrical
poster, which today is 27 by 40 inches. Twenty years
ago they were 41 inches high but were eventually
shortened by an inch. The term actually goes back to
vaudeville days. At the turn of the century, the largest
sheet of paper that any printing press in America could
handle was 27 by 41 inches. The basic theatrical poster
was called a one sheet. Posters measuring 22 by 28
were referred to as “half sheets.” Larger posters were
made by printing the poster in sections. The sections
were then pasted on a board to form the larger poster.
Theaters routinely used three sheets and six sheets. The
technique was also used by other advertisers. Even today,
the basic billboard is still referred to as a 24 sheet,
even though today’s presses can handle larger sheets
of paper. Modern giant billboards use plastic covers
stretched over a frame.
MARQUEE and MARQUIS are often mistakenly
interchanged by the public and even many writers. A
marquee is the large canopy sign on the front of a theater
or hotel. Theater marquees usually have changeable
letters (nowadays sometimes digital reader boards)
used to advertise the current attractions. According to
Webster’s dictionary, a marquis is a title of honor in
some European countries. A marquis ranks below an
earl but above a count or a duke. Let’s not hang a royal
European dude from the front of the building.
PROJECTOR and CAMERA are very different
pieces of equipment. Projectors show pictures by
projecting them onto a screen. Cameras take pictures.
They aren’t the same thing. ’Nuff said.
We’ll leave you with GHOST LIGHT, a term from
live theater. It was considered bad luck to turn out
all the lights in a theater when leaving for the night.
One lightbulb on a portable stand was left on in the
middle of the stage, presumably to ward off the ghosts
in the theater. In reality, it was probably a good safety
measure so the poor janitor didn’t trip over cables or
scenery when he walked in the next morning.
Just remember—it's important to be kind and patient
with your customers, even when they say stupid
things. After all, they’re the ones paying our salaries. So
put up your new one sheets, change your marquee for
tomorrow’s matinee, turn off the projector, leave your
ghost light shining—and break a leg.
This story originally appeared in the summer
2016 edition of The Trailer, the North Central
NATO newsletter.
34 BoxOffice ® OCTOBER 2016