Screeno
Encyclopedia
Screeno was a form of bingo
played in American
movie theater
s during the Great Depression
of the 1930s. To bolster attendance on slow weeknights, the neighborhood movie houses would feature the game in which audience
members would have a chance to win cash prizes. The story is that many a theater was saved from bankruptcy
by the advent of Screeno (sometimes spelled in caps: SCREENO) The game was played between the two main features.
A number dial and a giant spinning needle were projected on the movie screen. Patrons were provided with toothpicks to punch out the winning numbers on their cards. Apparently, on most nights patrons paid a modest fee for their cards, but one night a week was designated as “Bank Night” in which the audience would get free Screeno cards with their movie tickets
. A 1937 romantic-comedic
-musical
movie entitled “Thrill of a Lifetime” featured a song called “Keno, Screeno and You.”
Bingo (US)
Bingo is a game of chance played with randomly drawn numbers which players match against numbers that have been pre-printed on 5x5 matrices. The matrices may be printed on paper, card stock or electronically represented and are referred to as cards. Many versions conclude the game when the first...
played in American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
movie theater
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
s during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
of the 1930s. To bolster attendance on slow weeknights, the neighborhood movie houses would feature the game in which audience
Audience
An audience is a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature , theatre, music or academics in any medium...
members would have a chance to win cash prizes. The story is that many a theater was saved from bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
by the advent of Screeno (sometimes spelled in caps: SCREENO) The game was played between the two main features.
A number dial and a giant spinning needle were projected on the movie screen. Patrons were provided with toothpicks to punch out the winning numbers on their cards. Apparently, on most nights patrons paid a modest fee for their cards, but one night a week was designated as “Bank Night” in which the audience would get free Screeno cards with their movie tickets
Ticket (admission)
A ticket is a voucher that indicates that one has paid for admission to an event or establishment such as a theatre, movie theater, amusement park, zoo, museum, concert, or other attraction, or permission to travel on a vehicle such as an airliner, train, bus, or boat, typically because one has...
. A 1937 romantic-comedic
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
-musical
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
movie entitled “Thrill of a Lifetime” featured a song called “Keno, Screeno and You.”