Bank Night

American  

[bangk nahyt] / ˈbæŋk ˌnaɪt /

noun

Informal.

1. (in the 1930s) an evening when prizes were awarded by lottery to members of the audience at a movie theater as part of a promotion to encourage theater patronage.

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Etymology

Origin of Bank Night

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Bank Night

The simplicity of Bank Night makes all the more remarkable the way in which it has functioned, not merely to the advantage of theatre owners, but also to that of its shrewd young promoters.

From Time Magazine Archive

Bank Night owners dropped an infringement of copyright suit against the McCollum circuit when the circuit agreed to substitute Bank Night for the "Cash Night" it had been running.

From Time Magazine Archive

Hardest hit by the Bank Night ban was the Balaban & Katz chain of 39 Chicago theatres whose Bank Night profits are estimated at $60,000 a week.

From Time Magazine Archive

He admits that the independents had a share in building up Bank Night but asserts: "We were getting such rotten pictures that we had to do something to get people into the houses."

From Time Magazine Archive

In Augusta, the Supreme Court refused to review a Superior Court decision that Bank Night was not a violation of the Maine lottery law.

From Time Magazine Archive