The Charge of the Light Brigade (Warner Bros.) (1936)

" THE ( Se HARGE of the LIGHT BRIGADE’ eR RE Ee A 1 ON TAYS TO TELL STROLLERS CURIO EXHIBIT ON TRUCK If you’ve got the equipment for a floating bally, this one ought to ‘rouse plenty of comment. Idea is to post both sides of your truck with film’s posters and erect a small platform inside. On platform you display a bunch of curios (which you can borrow) of the period and locale in an attractive layout. Truck doesn’t roam streets continually but stops at busy corners. After folks have SOLDIER ATOP MARQUEE Even if you don’t dress your lobby like a military station or erect a frontier Indian fort in the marquee, you'll get good results by decking out one of your ushers in uniform as worn in picture and having him march back and forth atop of marquee with a gun on his shoulder. At night a spotlight can be flashed on him to heighten the effect. [llustration shows how guard looks. wih LIGHT their peek, they’re handed show’s heralds. If you care, you can attract many more lookers by installing your P. A. system with usher to spiel while your plug makes the rounds. BUGLERS PERFORM Get local bugle and drum corps like the V.F.W., American Legion or Boy Scout outfits to line up in military formation in front of house and give the usual array of calls including the one for the charge. It shouldn’t be too hard... to persuade them — in return for ducats, of course. K UNIFORM GROUPS Contact the uniformed groups in your city to act as sponsors of benefit performances for charity in their own organizations. They’ll march to the theatre in a body and give you a street bally you couldn’t buy. It’s good for a newspaper story, too. Among the groups are the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Elks’ Marching Clubs, Boy and Girl Scouts, National Guards, certain Masonic orders, etc. AUTO PARADE AS An auto parade of new model cars using film’s title as the. lead* line should fit in very nicely with your bally ideas. Contact auto dealers to co-op with you in running this parade night of opening with sparklers, and other fire-works enhancing the effect. Cars carry banner copy along these lines: “Buick Leads ‘The. Charge of the Light Brigade’.” At least one dealer will tie in with you, but if you can’t find one, a parade of car owners is easily organized by the judicious use of ducats and your sign painter can do the rest. Since the cars will be traveling at a slow pace, it should be easy for your ushers to distribute heralds and throwaways along the route. Puge Six PARADE OF LANCERS Eight uniformed lancers mounted on white horses, their lances resting in their boots and each flying a banner titled, ‘Charge of the Light Brigade,’ will make a bally that will stop every pedestrian. Of course you'll have to fit this suggestion to your budget. You can’t always get white horses, either. mounted lancer or a regiment—it’s a great stunt to attract attention. Of course, if one of the men can blow a bugle, too, you’ve got something even better. SLIDE ON WALL If you haven’t used your ballyopticon in a long time, simply slip your stills into it and play them on wall of building opposite. Or, if you prefer, get magic lantern and use regular slide instead of stills. K : SNIPING ROAD In plugging your show it would be wise to snipe poles and fences of all roads leading into town with copy saying: “15 Miles to ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ at the Strand Theatre, Parkville.” If you can spare another usher, let him dress the same way, and have him wander ’round town passing out heralds. Copy on back gives show additional plug. PLAY WAR SONGS For your opening you'll probably go to town with ballys and there’s nothing more effective than martial music. Military bands can be contacted—the American Legion band will probably make a tie-up with you — and there are always fife and drum corps available. Don’t forget the Boy Scout trumpeters — they'll do the trick, too. wK COACH AS BALLY If there is a Victorian coach in your vicinity that you could borrow, you have a street bally made to order for the picture. Plant a sweet-looking girl inside and have it driven around town, bannered, of course, with copy inviting folks to look inside and see over whom the “Charge” was made. You can always park the bally in front of your house to attract passers-by. But one INDIAN FORT ON FLOAT Dress up a truck as a frontier fort and you have an inexpensive yet elfective street Dally. Your artist can make it up from beaverboard painted in the dull grey es f =f BAL e \ See Z Ee fee military color. With penNase lp nants and a British flag flying from the turrets and guns stacked in middle it makes a big flash. While truck is patrolling the streets at a fairly slow rate of speed, your ushers can again be busy handing out heralds and throwaways. If you’re anxious to have still more flash, get a few fellows in uniform on the float, having them fire fake bullets as truck moves along the street. Or would band or P.A. system giving out martial music provide the same effect?