Chapter 250: Coinciding Chills in Summer
"On that note… where do we go from here, grandpa?" Alexander asked after everything was settled. They've already found out what they wanted to find out and have established some pretty decent insights from all of it.
With all of that, where do they go from there?
"We have pretty much done all that we could." Old Sullivan reasoned. "With our whimsical little plot being a bonus all around, I think its best that we quit while we're ahead and have the film run its already impressive course."
"There's always Columbia that should do their part as a film distributor well and we have our own team that can cover all the other bases that might be missed." Truthfully, their little Back to the Future comic book was a little snog that wasn't really supposed to be in BttF's theatrical itinerary… but it should still be a welcome surprise given the effect it garnered. "They'll probably add our little tactic into the mix though… and probably maximize its momentum to further bolster the film."
"Envision this, Alex." Old Sullivan suddenly felt enthused. "Alex Creed is Alexander Creed: The comic strip and comic book creator turned cinematic wonder!"
"Creed Comics, Creed Toys, and now… Creed Pictures! How does Alexander Creed fit in all of this?!"
"From picture book to moving picture! Young Alex's heartbreaking story turns into a cinematic masterpiece!"
"If we go full force on all of this, then we won't just be depending on the comic book industry's word-of-mouth." Old Sullivan really saw a shot at capitalizing all of this. "We will be rousing society to see another side of the time travel film that is overtaking the rest of the summer!"
Alexander stalled from that! It wasn't because of the corny taglines or the big merit of his grandfather's new publicity idea though… it was from the fact that his anonymous life might be a mess!
Wouldn't that mean that he'll be tied up in the whole propaganda plan? Would Columbia Pictures drag him from his comfortable anonymity and release his shocking truth to the world? All this is possible just to give an extra oompf to the film.
Alexander had seen major studios do a lot worse… like glorifying an actor's death and making an author a celebrity. How could they treat him any differently? He'll probably be hailed as some creative child wonder and whatnot… and mess up the introverted but plundering-ly glorious re-life he wanted to live!
He's all for helping out Back to the Future earn more profits and all that… but not at cost of pitching himself out into the crowd. Just his name is fine… but pictures, biographies, and all that would really be crossing Alexander's line.
The more he thought on it, the gloomier he felt.
For a cold and indifferent person, such gloom results in them being icy cold and even more detached than how they usually are.
Alexander's countenance at the moment was the very embodiment of that!
Old Sullivan was on an inspired high because he finally found something that enabled him to brag about his grandson and earn more profits as well. That inspiration was frozen with a chill though… as the room they were discussing in felt like it was no different from Antarctica!
This chill and all that may seem like an exaggerated cartoon-ization… but it wasn't from old Sullivan's perspective.
Just as how lax and aloof Alexander would somewhat moodily affect others while he is in his Goku character… his gloomy cold feeling could somehow ooze onto others as well.
"Err… very method of you, Alex!" Old Sullivan hoped to dispense the chill with that… but Alexander still remained cold throughout the day from just the possibility of his worries coming true.
Suffice to say… the Alexander Creed-focused publicity plan still happened… but it was censored down to keep the intriguing mystery of Alexander Creed. A name that a lot of people knew… but a person that they didn't know any squat about!
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Anyhows… the new publicity plan did work somewhat… as it bolstered Alexander Creed's notoriety and put Creed's brand recognition a notch higher!
While interviewing Zemeckis to Fox, they helped sell the idea of Alexander Creed being a core on a lot of things involving the film. They'd keep lull on who he really is, in fact, quite a few of them didn't even realize that the producer's grandchild on set was the one they were talking about. They were just told what to do and they'd do it... that was part of their contract.
A key point in all of this is is how a picture book seems to have started everything out. It wasn't just the 40-time rejection story now... it became something else.
Still, it effectively made them a point of interest for inquisitive geeks to finally get to the bottom of their favorite comic creator. Also... the picture book became a true collector's item in the hearts of Creed fans. Oh... how they wished they could get their hands on it!
Of course, the comic creator doesn't just fall in the comic book category but in the comic strip category as well. Alexander Creed is quite a darling for newspapers that has funny pages in their publications… and setting some article on the Calvin and Hobbes fellow's achievement should just help them out as well.
Suffice to say, the newspaper influence that the Creeds were hoping to tap with the comic strip had been quite handy and working out even better than initially intended.
Back to the Future, Alexander Creed, and Creed Pictures… these were point topics for the entertainment sections… and they should help on the still-ongoing BttF theatrical run.
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Things were good and all… but all these publicity and articles on Alexander Creed only played second fiddle when it came to promoting Back to the Future on its third theatrical week.
A very eye-catching expose was what honed people's attention on the film and inadvertently had them buy tickets for the time travel flick of this summer.
As it turns out… said time travel film was a hit at Camp David!
One of the funniest moments from Back to the Future came when the Doc Brown of 1955 asked Marty who the President of the United States was in 1985 — and then reacted with disbelief when he learned actor Ronald Reagan would become President Reagan in the future.
Former Hollywood actor and current president Reagan, who viewed the film for the first time at Camp David, "got a kick" out of an early scene where Marty walked by a 1955 movie theater advertising the Reagan film, Cattle Queen of Montana (1954).
When the disbelieving Doc engaged more about this banter with Marty, however, the mood at Camp David is said to have darkened — not because of Doc's comment about Reagan, but because Doc sarcastically asked: "I suppose Jane Wyman or Nancy Davis that became the first lady?"
Wyman was Reagan's first wife, whom he divorced in 1949. By 1955, Regan was married to future First Lady Nancy Reagan. It was not that Doc completely ignored that fact… it was that he just had to include Wyman on it!
It is said that there was an "unspoken ban" on mentioning Wyman among the Reagan staff and that… it was as if Reagan had willed himself to forget about that period of his life with Wyman, and may have been startled and resentful when the film he's watched reminded him of it.
Fortunately, the discomfort was only momentary, and Reagan never commented publicly on Doc's faulty reference.
It was circulated that Ronald Reagan himself did become a fan of the film.
Yes… despite his brief discomfort at the mention of ex-wife Jane Wyman by Doc Brown, President Ronald Reagan became a big fan of Back to the Future!
It was also important to note that both Ronald and First Lady Nancy Reagan were impressed by Michael J. Fox's performance as Marty McFly. This may have been related to the fact that Fox was also playing Republican teenager Alex Keaton on the Reagans' favorite television show, Family Ties.
Regardless, actor-turned-politician Reagan commented at the time on how "clever" the movie was.
President Reagan even remarked that "this was the type of movie that Hollywood should be making, as opposed to some of the more controversial, violent or adult-themed films that seemed all too common at this time."
It was not clear how and why this telltale-ing account of Camp David and the US. President had come out on news articles and news coverage… however, this was just a welcome boon to the centerpiece-d film and specified scenes.
Interested folks headed to the film to watch the film that the president liked… and other interested folks re-watched the film to focus on the President and First Lady scene which made the Camp David staff unnerved!
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With all of this planned and unexpected publicity propaganda coming together… it more or less had a noticeable effect on Back to the Future's box office run!
For Monday with everything just starting off… a steady $1.91 million in the box office was accrued.
With Tuesday and Thursday… having comic creator-turned-screenwriter Alexander Creed being the news in propagation… it jumped to the day-to-day box office to average from $2.72 million to $2.94 million!
Come Friday with the Reagan reaction in circulation, the average jumped to about double with $4.02 million at Friday's box office… and $4.08 million and $4.2 million for both Saturday and Sunday respectively!
All in all, Back to the Future garnered a total of $22,642,485 for its third week in the theaters. That was $1,902,008 more than its second week!
$1,902,008 may not seem much but a jump from 20,714,477 to $22,642,485 is a big deal when taking into account that the film should already be on its decline at this point.
An improving trend is a sign of greater momentum and who could have expected that it may just have come from publicity involving a chilled boy and a somewhat chill president?
They are pretty chill coincidences that happen to blow up a film in this summer heat!