Star Witness (Warner Bros.) (1931)

oa, ‘~ a i SURE-FIRE EXPLO ATIO Your Ad Campaign There are several angles in “The Star Witness” on which to back your newspaper advertising campaign. In this press sheet you will find several very effective type ads of a most unusual nature as well as pictorial ads. The type ads proved extremely effective in New York because of their timeliness. “The Star Witness” opened at the Winter Garden on Broadway during the hectic excitement over the shooting of five children by gangsters. Crimes similar importance stream across newspaper pages almost daily. Watch. your local papers closely for them and tie your campaign in with local news in a way similar to the New York campaign. Your lobby marquee, trailer and heralds should also tie in with the theme in your newspaper ads. Oldest Civil War Veteran Another good publicity stunt would be to invite the oldest Civil War Veteran to the first showing of “The Star Witness.” Chic Sale plays the part of a Civil War Veteran with such reality that it would be an easy matter to get an endorsement from your local Veteran. Anything he says will make excellent newspaper copy. And you will find newspapers anxious to cooperate with you on “The Star Witness,” because it shouts a message of civic and_ national importance. rR TE Fife Playing Contest Here is a stunt that is sure to cause wide comment and be of extreme value in interesting the young folk of your town in “The Star Witness.” You can go heavily on the kid angle, because “The Star ~~~Witness” is clean, whclesome enter| tainment and carries a message every young American SHOULD hear. Tie in with your local newspaper on this contest, offering prizes for the best fife playing kid in town. There are plenty of stills in the press and star set showing Chic Sale playing the fife. Use these for illustrations in your newspaper. If you think there are not enough kids in town familiar with fife playing to make this contest a success, advertise for a fife player as a lobby attraction. Your ad should come in for a lot of newspaper comment. It’s a natural no matter how you play it. The songs to be played, of course, will be “Yankee Doodle” and “Marching Throught Georgia.” Street Stunt A novel street stunt would be to hire a man to impersonate the leading character of “The Star Witness” as played by Chic Sale, and have him walk in the busiest sections of your town playing his fife. He could stop at intervals and distribute heralds announcing that he is “The Star Witness” and is on his way to your theatre to disclose the most startling facts that have the police of your town on edge! Another way to use this character is to have him stop on busy corners, set up a talking platform, Boy Scouts of America American Legion Junior Leagues City Officials Police Officials In Exploiting “The Star Witness , Be Sure To Enlist The Aid Of Daughters of The American Revolution Educators and Public School Officials Veterans of the G. A. R. Veterans of Foreign Wars Parent-Teachers Associations Boy Scouts Will Help Enlist the aid of the Boy Scouts in putting over your campaign on “The Star Witness.” Here is a picture that Boy Scout organizations will be glad to endorse because of its message to all America. Undoubtedly, you can get the boy scouts to parade to your theatre on Saturday afternoon. They should carry signs and banners reading: WE ARE ON OUR WAY TO SEE “THE STAR WITNESS” AT THE STRAND. Reserve a special section for the scouts. And be sure to send a notice to your newspaper regarding their appearance at your theatre. Newspaper Contest “The Star Witness” presents a problem that is on the minds of every thinking American. It tells a story of a typical American family which becomes involved in a notorious crime, merely because they were eye witnesses to it. The testimony of this family is enough to convict the city’s most notorious criminal, who has been captured by the police and held pending their identification. However, the father is captured and he refuses the proffered bribe to keep silent is badly beaten by way of intimidation. The gang then kidnap the youngest child and threaten death if the family appears in court and identifies the killer. This theme lends itself to one of the most timely contests that any newspaper can sponsor, i. e. Would You Testify Against A Gang Leader Though It Meant Death At The Hands Of His Gang? This is a question that will make the public think in lieu of many similar instances that are acknowledged to occur almost daily. This should be more than a contest. It should be a campaign on the part of the newspapers to call to arms the American public to join hands in helping the police’ eradicate organized crime. Go after this contest with all the power at your command. Impress the editor with the full importance of the contest as a civic good. ‘The Star Witness” has been commented upon editorially along the above lines and you should have no trouble in getting your local newspapers to cooperate with you on this picture. Se Sn a draped with American flags and speak to the people on Americanism and how they can be of help to the police of their city in the fight to drive organized crime from the country. After his speech, he should hand out specially prepared heralds on the cover of which should be: HOW LONG ARE WE GOING TO TOLERATE ORGANIZED CRIME. On the inside pages should be a message, signed by The Star Witness, saying that his family has been threatened by gangsters because he is going to testify against a notorious criminal. The copy should incorporate all the highlights of the film. On the back page should be your theatre name and playdates as well as the title and cast of the picture. tge Two Please Note Carefully That “The Star Witness” is more than a great motion picture. It is a call to arms for every thinking American to organize and fight the menace that is part of their everyday existence. Every civic leader and everybody in a position to mold public opinion should be enlisted in the promotion of “The Star Witness” because the more people see it, the more people will be influenced by its important message. In the exploitation outline in this press sheet are ideas that will help you carry out plans along the above lines. You owe it to yourself and to your city to see that “The Star Witness” gets the greatest backing that has ever been put behind any picture. School Cooperation It should be a simple task to get the cooperation of public and high school officials. You might be able to arrange a special Saturday morning contest at a special rate for your local public and high schools. You might also arrange to conduct an essay contest offering prizes for each grade. The subject will naturally be: WHAT DOES “THE STAR WITNESS” TEACH EVERY AMERICAN CITIZEN? Essay contests of this nature have been tried in the past with extreme success, but never has any picture had the appeal to educators as has “The Star Witness.” Don’t over look this angle in your exploitation campaign as it will do more to make “The Star Witness” a byword in every household than any stunt you can think of. One week prior to the opening of “The Star Witness” at your thea tre, buy some radio time to an nounce daily the disappearance of “The Star Witness” who is wanted by the district attorney to testify against the most notorious criminal in town. Give full description of him and offer rewards for information leading to the apprehension of the star witness. Limit your prizes tickets) to the first fifteen The night first newspaper anthe broadcast that the star witness is or twenty informants. before your nouncement of engagement, the name of a First National and Vitaphone picture that is coming to your theatre and give details of the plot and its importance to the citi zens of your. town. COLORTONE EFFECT a Beer _ Make Your Screen Presentation Artistic and Colorful EFFECT SLIDE, created colored, elaborately especially for The STAR WITNESS a No. N-84 Made in two sizes, 4x5 and 314x4 for Breno graph F-7 or any standard equipment. Colored positive alone will give excellent results. Can also be used with uncolored negative to obtain greater depth. PRICE E 4x5—Colored positive only —Set (positive and negative ) 34%4x4—Colored positive only —Set (positive and negative ) $2.00 3.00 1.50 2.25 Order by number direct from NATIONAL STUDIOS, INC. 226 WEST 56th STREET, NEW YORK,N. Y. Be sure to specify size and send remittance with order, to avoid parcel post and C. O. D. charges. Special Preview Here is an idea that was proved and found to be exceptionally successful in New York and should prove the one big stunt of your exploitation campaign. For the opening of “The Star Witness” at the New York Wir’ + Garden, Warner Bros. invited special preview the editors of papers, church leaders, civic \ ers, members of the pulpit and every person in a.position to mold public opinion. The invitation stated that “The Star Witness” carried an important message to every thinking citizen and they, as civic leaders, should lend their efforts to the furtherance of it. The invitation also stated that when America became involved in a war against another nation the press and the pulpit use their influence to rally America round the flag and today America is involved in an equally important fight to rid the country of the menace of organized crime. The response to this invitation was tremendous and resulted in editorial comment. that made “The Star Witness” the most talked of picture that has opened on Broadway in years. Be sure to handle this preview with the dignity and. importance it justly deserves. It ‘« America’s answer to the chal! of organized crime, which is a ject that cannot be slighted in possible way. _You can also invite the mayor, district attorney, educators and other civic officials to this preview. Their Lobby Decoration Key your lobby decoration to the theme of the picture and the balance of your campaign. If your newspaper campaign is tied in with local crime news, make your lobby carry a similar appeal. Do not devote your entire lobby to one angle, but divide it to include the cast, motherlove, local, and patriotic appeal: ii you play. .ne -tat, Meee ness” at the time when gangster news is in the headlines, clip your newspapers and use the clipping in one of your lobby frames. Over them letter AMERICA’S ANSWER--TO-ORGANTZS CRIME” in big bold letters. your other frames use cut-out, the posters with catchlines from tus ads in this press sheet. Lobby Stunt _To supplement your regular lobby display, have your carpenter build an imitation witness stand. On this stand place a cut-out of the three sheet showing Chic Sale, Dicky Moore and Walter Huston. A panel at back of these figures should carry advertising copy from the ads in this press sheet. Novelties Court Summons ae 1000 2 eee $5.00 2000: Se 4.50 per M S000. a eee 4.00 per M SOQUG on eee 3.50 per M S00 ee $4.00 SOG ee ee 6.00 per M ri ee See eas 5.50 per M SOOQ ae ne -..5.00 per M Cardboard Star ©5002 a ee $6.00 1000 2 9.50 SOOR Fe ae Fs ee 8.00 Above prices include imprinting Order direct from Economy Novelty & Ptg. Co. 338 West 39th St., N. Y. City