AMERICAN GENIUS FOR ADVERTISING.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 10517, 27 July 1910, Page 6

AMERICAN GENIUS FOR ADVERTISING.

The American !.;; i:lu« i'cr advertising hj; written large in icticrs of lire against Broadway's skyline. There is no dark for Broadway,, untii ;'.la>r midnight, when the twinkling advertisements res;at thi' l roi'.t-hiK''..!! of their live or m.: ;io;:::' '..<;, i'.::.';f ■. The Gvc::i Whit > ■Way is nj i: '[. i iaioJy named, for ; mi-i-h'tr- is ;".: .rc?iv more brilliant than i.; th > effect p:o(k.ocd by the myriad cl The old style of simple electric advertising, which switched a liim's n.a-rne, or its product, in incandescent lights on and off, lias been discmled for a most elaborate system of cobred moving effect.-, that would ensure the nuccess of a Drur.y j.ane pantomime. One of the most beautiful of the signs . advertise a famous Kurop'ean mineral water. A huge facsimile ol the firm's bottle is outlined in incandescent- globes, and the water appears to be shooting out of the mouth of the bottle and falling on all sides, like a great golden fountain. By a curious nVanipulatic.it of the light, l ; Hie wateV is seemingly in porpotud nuuicn, with what appears to be golden rpray Coating in the air.

An Irish ginger ale (inn has a gigantic display in three scenes. The first shows the ginger ale bottle, illuminated, just as it looks on a restaurant table.' Then the cork, of elect lie lights, is extracted, and the electric light liquid and foam come out, running down the bottle's fide. From v. distance the effect is one of the njost striking of all the Broadway displays. A theatrical advertisement shows an electrically outlined lady riding bareback a horse in full gallop, also of electric globes. The action of the horse and the fair rider are admirably simulated by the twinkling lights. The horse's legs move, not in jerky, mi-lfi-eial manner, but just as they would if the animal were real, while its tail and mane appear to be blown by the breeze.

A huge American flag in red, white-, and blue electric lights is attractively displayed from the top of the tower of a newspaper building. The lights- are so arranged that by their quick appearance and disappearance the flag seems to be waving vigorously in the air, high above the heads of the people. A device that is much employed is not so elaborate as the principal signs, but attracts attention because of its curious effect. It consists of a long, narrow frame projecting from the front of a building and extending upward, usually for half a dozen storeys. Along the edges of the frame a light- seems to climb in a zigzag course, up one side, across to the other, then down again, and across and up once more. It is like a squirming worm, and itfascinates people, who stand in the streets and natch it work as if it were some kind of puzzle. There is really no movement of the light, the effect being obtained by the manner of turning the lights on and off. The revolving wheel signs are frequently displayed without the worm accompaniment. Some of them are fifteen and twenty feet in diameter, and they are of all colors. The lights do not really revolve, but produce the revolutionary effect by the rapid sequence of their appearance and dis-

appearance. A cocoa advertisement shows a lingo cup and saucer, with the cocoa ))oured into it, and steaming forth from the cup. The sign is a favorite one on cold nights. People, shivering, as they pass, are comforted by the illusion, and express a hmging to have a sip of the warming drink. A household cleaning powder has its merits displayed'by an old Dutch dame with a stick. The advertising motto of the firm is "Chases dirt." The old lady represents the powder, and the dir. approaches her. whereupon she grabs a stick and heats the dirt vigorously, which iiies away. The usual method is to have as little lettering as possible, and to attract attention' bv the action of the elect vie lights. Continual motion is the rule Where simple letter signs are used, iliev do not ilash oil and on some <:r." sentence or the name of a linn, but they give a long series of brief sentences, describing the merits of the advertised product. Supposing the Martians are able to spare time'from their canal dicing to ]>eer at the earth, it is not litodaway's fault if the people on the noighbni ing planet have been unable to pick (Mil the Great White Way From the other thoroughfares on the lace of the earth.