NAACP Chapter Seeks to Boost ‘Sleep’ at the Box Office

Fearing that a poor turnout for the black family drama “To Sleep With Anger” will send the wrong message to Hollywood studios, the Beverly Hills-Hollywood Chapter of the NAACP announced Friday that it is launching a drive to get blacks into theaters this weekend.

“We know there is interest in this film within the black community,” said Sandra Evers-Manly of the local chapter, “(but) where was the money for advertising it? What happens to this movie pretty much dictates the future in Hollywood for black-oriented movies.”

Evers-Manly said the local chapter is calling its 2,700 members and handing out flyers at the Crenshaw and Fox Hills shopping areas, as well as at black community churches, urging people to see “To Sleep With Anger,” a story about a black family in South-Central Los Angeles. “We have to show the major film companies . . . that black images and artistry can mean green box-office results.”

The distributor, the Samuel Goldwyn Co., welcomed the help from the local branch of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People.

“We’ve been trying everything we know to sell the movie,” said Tom Rothman, senior vice president and head of production for Goldwyn. “We’ve made a very substantial advertising push on this, not only in the usual media, but in all the black publications.”

Rothman said that director Charles Burnett and the movie’s star Danny Glover have done extensive publicity for the film.