The Cigar Institute of America, seeking publicity which would popularize cigars, had a ring-blowing contest on college campuses and at State Fairs. They also named a national "Cigar Smoking Man of Distinction," borrowing an idea from the well-known Calvert ad series. To make sure of press interest, contestants were limited to newspaper photographers.
The Kaywoodie Company had a pipe sculpture competition. Themes had human interest, business, and art interest, not to mention newsworthiness. Cash prizes up to $1,000 were awarded.
An Atlanta, Georgia, jeweler offered a $500 prize for the first parakeet who could say the slogan of the store. The winner was put on the store's payroll at $15 a week (which was presumably adequate for parakeets). The Fulton National Bank in Atlanta opened an account for the bird, and accepted its footprint as identification.
The Hollywood Beach Hotel in Florida had an interesting tie-in with a department store in Little Rock, Ark. Sports clothes on display at the store were draped around a picture of the hotel. Other pictures showed attractions of the hotel. A drawing each week at the store gave the winner a free week at the Hollywood Beach.
Kings, Queens, and Champions
To spark publicity interest in the Peter Pan Chain of Drive-In restaurants, the PR counsel found a coal miner with a prodigious appetite. Phil Yazdzik was his name. He ate 77 hamburgers nonstop. On another spree he downed 31 orders of chicken. His record on hot dogs was 81. They dubbed him Eating King.
"Rustie" was a pretty aviatrix who worked for Rust Craft Greeting Cards. She barnstormed by airplane in a suit block-printed with Rust Craft card designs. The costume and Rustie made good pictorial copy for the photographers covering airports. While in a town she would appear at hospitals, stores, and at any special event going on.
Miss America being as popular as she is, promoters came up with Mrs. America. One time the lady selected, a St. Louis housewife, was sent on a good-will tour of Europe. Her counsel issued a clip sheet on her press notices abroad-to compound public interest in the annual contest.
No one, to the editor's knowledge, has made a list of all the King, Queen, and Champion events. But there has been a Sauerkraut Queen among thousands of others. Tall girls haven't been neglected, either. There was an American Affiliation of Tall Girls club, and a Queen of Height.
Hitching to a National Event
The National Plowing Contest has been quite an attraction. One year it drew Vice President and Mrs. Nixon. Incidentally, there were State Furrow Kings and Queens. Hitched to the event was Caterpillar Tractor demonstrating soil conservation and reclamation. A Farmerette presented a toy tractor to V.P. Nixon.
Life had a "Food for America" issue. To attract press attention to it, the editor sent hot lunches wrapped in foil to other editors around New York. The lunch consisted of five regional dishes, two desserts, and coffee in each package.
When Wallach's opened a new men's store on Fifth Avenue, it created a conversation piece. There was a Dog Bar out on the sidewalk, in marble, with carvings, and with fresh water daily for the canine set.
Some time ago Delta-C&S Airlines opened coach service between Dallas and other points. On the occasion a cowgirl was aboard wearing a six-shooter and carrying an armload of ten-gallon hats. At each stop a hat was presented to the city's mayor, with the press watching.
Kick-off Events
Publicity by the Celanese Corporation for its first all-plastic tank trailer fizzled because another truck had beaten it to market. Then luck took a hand, part bad luck and part good. There was a snow storm. The truck had skidded, hit a culvert, and emerged almost unscathed. The press gave it big space.
To introduce a new line of Mercury automobiles, Ford Motor Company sent platoons of prominent Hollywood Studio stars and starlets to dealers' agencies in 11 states. The stars were photographed with dealers and in the new cars. Reams of publicity resulted at the all-important home-town level. Studios were repaid with gifts of cars and trucks.
Annually, at Thanksgiving time, the Christmas shopping season in New York is launched by a parade. Prime sponsor of the parade is R. H. Macy & Co. It has been a major good-will and sales-minded project involving hundreds of workers, who start preparations in April. Some 700 ride or march in the parade.
The Electric Boat Division, General Dynamics Corp., launched for Chas. Pfizer & Co. a barge designed to transport and dump chemical waste. As the barge slipped down the ways, a Pfizer lady chemist christened it with a chemical flask. In place of champagne the flask contained a Pfizer remedy for seasickness and samples of the antibiotics made by the firm.
Special Events
Powerama, like Motorama before it, was a big deal, with a diesel-powered cascade of national publicity. People stood in long lines to see The Kitchen of Tomorrow, or an Army tank, a submarine, a dream car of the future, or a saw mill. GM was magnificent, imaginative, and thorough. In the Chicago showing a traffic bottleneck was cleared by constructing a pedestrian overpass. To show what that accomplished, a GM public relations man had a baby elephant photographed leading a parade of kids on the overpass.
New York Life Insurance Company owns and manages at least one housing project in Fresh Meadows, Queens. It has sought to build a pride-of-community spirit. Among the events there has been a Tournament of Terraces to encourage flower gardens. At Christmas time a Dickens Quartet, in costume, and in carriage, rode around singing carols.
In new Duncan Hines markets, a custom has been a "Duncan Hines Day." On that day Mr. Hines himself showed up to breakfast with the press, see the Mayor about a key to the city, visit the stores to autograph books, have lunch as somebody's guest of honor, and receive any Honorary titles anybody had in mind. Restaurants, of course, tied in with advertising.
Among the many activities that have taken place during Oil Progress Week was a 50-car motorcade. The cars rolled from Oklahoma City to Tulsa over a new turnpike. Oil stations along the way sported Welcome balloons.
Exhibits, Displays and Films
The National Association of Hosiery Manufacturers sponsored "Show Time," a hosiery caravan. The caravan toured major markets and played to retail salesgirls. In the show were a stocking-changing contest, a color film on special hosiery for special occasions, a quiz program about the film shown, and an announcement about a mystery shopper. This shopper would hand out cash prizes for outstanding sales performance and attitude.
In Buffalo, the Erie County Savings Bank staged a series of exhibits. One of them concerned modern and old time railroading.
Exhibits were seen by upwards of 12,000 people. There were some exact replicas of famous trains furnished by railroads.
