THE MORGUE: LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT's incredible pressbook

MGM pulled out all the stops when it came to promoting LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT in 1927. In addition the usual display advertisements distributed to print media, the studio also proposed campaigns to local newspaper that might best be described as a prototype for viral marketing. Theaters were given a package that contained everything from a crossword puzzle, to a proposed window display of women's fashions to "create feminine interest."

By the 1970s, these kinds of press books had become du rigour for many studios; MGM's pressbook for HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS looks very much like this one, though it was much less elaborate in its design.

Here's a sampling of the marketing materials created by MGM for LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT. If you're the type to print and complete that crossword puzzle at the top of the post, mention me on Twitter and I'll share the solution with you.