September 17, 1956
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Page Threo
September 17, 1956 THE MICHIGAN DAILY Pope Thre#
Movie Ads: Still Absurd
Our Researcher Discovers That They Haven't Changed Much
Since the Days of 'Youthful Folly'
By DAVID KESSEL "The were meant to love each anticipated endorsement. may
mght appear, t the casual other as man and woman," said even have insisted upon it
lthed,m 24 pont type. The photo "Imagine Garbo in the arms of
observer, that movie dve showed Garbo clutching her throat Robert Taylo. The thrill you'vi T itt I
tising has become somewha more and must have made a big im- bn waiting foi Those aho
than usually iipoobbl lv enwiin o, hs h
Notabt imsl mpobbeenateIy piession because "Romance'' was could wait missed "Camille" but
Not so. It hhs alwxyx bxen eld over. the Wuerth was well-packed any-
probabled lihowthis MGM fisgot the tia-
It would seem that misleadine \ARNER Brotheti asked the T tl of
advertisin copy s been used perplexing question "oes a odtional treatment: big still of
from the ery beginning Only the woman's heart rule her brain?" Garbo and Taylor gazin at each
style has been changed, but noi Erie von itroheim and Constance other to a background of cam
much. Bennett wxeri on the panel, the pain-type promises.
A quick flip throuyh fifty years film was "Three Faces West" More Warner put out "Green Light"
o movie ads in The Daily is e- -iuestiois were "Does the call of with Errol Flynn, Ad claimed this
vealing. For instance, in 1898. there the flesh drown out the call of scas the story that "changed a
were no movie ads. But by 1908, luoiy? Would she kill her lover to million lives." The change was
the Theatorium whatever that serve the ft?" The melodramatic unspecified.
was, featured "talking picurces, aosiver is told dramatically, with Because of the ever-present
admission 5 cents. hrills & suspense." problem of women's hours, the
Here are more hoasty impes- The review cit this film said, Michigan advertised that the last
sions of advertioli and how it "Three Faces is diffeient from the show would end before 10:45 p.m.
grew usual . wortoh seeing." This re- when "Love is News" came to
'i tthe Nex Whounes' aitho cewer should have been writing town.
A ateN Whny hids. An early horror picture. "Island n C0 1 4l 1111'1 t lltil q
the unlikely title "The Mummy With another colossal thud, of Lost Souls" got this build-up.
and ahd Hwing Bicurdshad MGM pushed C. B. DeMille's first "He created the beast men, then
adjectives or anything like that talking picture, "Madam Satan" he created his masterpiece, the
Buties 1920yth, supein iator- into Ann Arbor. Huge ads showed Panther Woman." Bela Lugosi
But by 1920 the superficial poe- a woman wearing a Batman cos- and Boris Karloff here. Also a
fion of the roof was beging to tume Strangely worded ad said, picture of the m a s t e r p i ec e.
fal the Wuerth came "Blind "He fell in love with his own Ghastly.
wife," and plenty more.
Husbands," pushed by a photo of QURING 1934, the Michigan
a hais clad ooran pu ingra a ilua ADVERTISING hit a new level theatre showed Betty Boop
emotions; the wonder story of a of improbability with "Song of cartoons, Paramount news, and
man who thought he understood the Flame" in November, 1930. a Saturday Owl show, of tender
women." "Her song gave a million people memory for many, starting at 9
At the Arcade, catering to freedom, but made her slave to p.m. Plus the inevitable four acts
"people of taste," was "The Walk- one great love" Figure that one of vaudeville.
Offs." This boasted the traditional out. First of the "you must see it
combination of a rough man and At Michigan, "The Office Wife" from the beginnng, no one ad-
a smooth woman, many examples was introdeed with a sillhouette mitted after the feature has
of which linger on even yet. "He of a man and woman necking - started" movies was "Strange In-
was a Kentuckian and a "cave- hnd an office door "See the pi terlude" with Shearer and Gable.
man,' she a beautiful young society ture that started a thousand con- "A new step in talking pictures
woman who taught him a lesson troversies" said the ad. None of said the ad. nyway, a new step ae *
The illustration for this is best the thousand was listed in advertising. Photo shows Norma
left to the imagination. In "Girl of the Golden West," clutching the back of a sofa while
The year 1924 brought a big, An Harding is pictured as a Clark gazes off into the distance.
virile drama to the Majestic. The simple yet well-mannered girl, say- To the Majestic in 1938 came
virileYodramaktoyheiMajesticThe
was "The River's End," (adults ing "You took my first kis,, you Ramon Navarro in "The Barbar-
35c). The ad pictured fierce. a hunted criminal." Kisses ian,' Ad showed Arab-ty ndi
mounted police riding aimlessly were prized, then, vidual menacing fallen girl with
about. "The men may be good or PARAMOUNT started a new and big whip. The very sort of picture
bad," states the ad, "but what different form of advertising designed to bring men out of
oer they are, they ae troso.""
with "The Sea God." It was filled their chairs and into the theatre.
It continues, "the greatest stories 'ith characters alo "sar to
are not of the atrophied emotions hate yet live to lovc. Menced by T the Michigan, "Wake Up and
of society, but of the virile peoplei cannibals, threatened by pearl Live" used the massive retalia-
nearest the great outdoors" thieves, beset by the dangers of a tion technique to keep people
STILL the atrophied emotions of tropic hell." away from "Maytime" with Nel-
society could be seen at the Stills showed a woman tied to son Eddy and Jeanette McDonald
Arcade, where Olive Thomas star- a treebeset by everything it says at the Majestic. "Wake Up"
'.d in "Youthful Folly,' above. starred the stisefying' cast pf
A picture of a lady adorns this Science fiction arrived ' with Walter Winchell, Ben Bernie,
ad, with the sage comment, "Man "Remote Control," wherein Wil- Patsy Kelly, Ned Sparks, Jack
never appreciate his wife until liam Haines traps a gang of crooks Haley and lots more. At the
he thinks another wants her." and wins a girl by use of "Wire- Wuerth that night, "Green Light"
After a tremendous build-up, less " came back to change some more? ~
C. B. DeMille's "The Golden Bed" Howard Hughes put out "Hell's lives.
hit Ann Arbr with the impact of Angels" for United Artists in Feb- With "The Howards of Virgi-
a pillow fuill oi lead shot. Billedjn
a "upi 'rw oeou" lead shst ory'd ruary 1931 "It belongs among nia," advertisers tried a new ap-
that sensationalized America " this the great experiences of life be- proach. Beneath a picture of a
epic-prototype dealt A ith, theI cause it is so real" said the simple, man and woman looking at each
earching and istimate story be- pretentious ad. other like a pair of hungry cats,
hind American morals and mari- William DeMille put out a spec- it said "THRILL as their stirring
ages tacular in 1931, called "Passion romance flowers in lordly Wil-
On opening day, there appeared Flower." Goodness. "Over five liamsburg." Beneath a picture of
a full page ad showing a colossal million people have read the book" a man and woman and two smug
bed with a fat girl lying on it in it says here. Modestly, MGM billed children, "SEE them build a house
a rtpulsive pose tis as a "Truly great picture." of dreams in the untamed wilder-
After this ice-breaker, the size Photo showed the usual scene, a ness." Beneath a picture of the
of ads began to grow until half man and woman necking and man and staring down a War Lord
page ads were quite common; be- drinking. "Masterful." (probably British). "CHEER their
fore the "Bed" ad two or three Ruth Chatterton in "The Right mighty struggle to make America
column ads were considered "big." to Love," had much the same il- a land of freedom."
At the Majestic, Conrad Nagel lustration, in fact it may have
in "Married Flirts" vied with the been the same one. "The story THE Majestic advertised only a
"Golden Bed." This one was about of a woman who loved and paltry "Cast of Hundreds"t'
"people with too much leisure to sinned" Evidently, when Wallace Beery appeared in
be monoogamous and not enough some film where he marries a
sincerity to be happy." But then, " HE Criminal Code" was the lady blacksmith. The title has
all the Majestic claimed was "Al- first picture ever endorsed by been lost.
ways a good show, often a great the Michigan theatre, A letter in As World War Two began, ad-
one," the ad endorses thi' picture in vertisine lost all control and re-
on ARCH, 1925, brought a "rolick- whieb "pasion reached her heart cent evelopments are only cx-
ing farce" to the Majestic by and prison crucified his soul." traneous arrivals upon the scene.
that friend of starving authors Effectiveness of the endorsement "See it or lose the greatest ex-
everywhere, Avery Hopwood. "Miss is lost when one realizes that perience your heart has ever
Bluebeasd" starred Bebe Daniels there was space left in the ad mat known", said the ad for "They
in a loose dress. It got a half page for it, indicating that the studio Knew What They Wanted."
ad and was "Risky, Frisky, "Exciting As Never Before" was
Frenchy, and Zippy," Oh well, Mr. Kessel, teaching fellow the "Mark of Zorro."
Michigan was at the time show- in the biochemistry department
ing "Sins of the Children," giving and Gargoyle Managing EdiSOOBVIOUSLY, from this to "Your
no description but relying on the a regular contriutor tthe riche entertainment experi-
title to pack the house, Magazine Section, ence," "The King and I," was but
Next came Garbo in "Romance " _ _the work of an idle moment.