Louisville, KY -- Grand Lodge officers and other Masonic leaders in Kentucky, are in the process of putting together a "modern public relations campaign" to attract new members.
"We were kind of impressed with the work that the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts did," said Right Worshipful Earl Flynn, who heads up the Grand Lodge Public Relations Committee. "The problem we saw, though, is that they tried to capitalize on the historic angle, and used all those famous founding fathers and such. We don't think that kind of thing appeals to the younger folks that we're trying to attract, so our campaign is going to feature a more modern, contemporary angle."
The Past Bastard asked to see some previews, but the PR Committee was not willing to release anything before final editing was finished.
"I can tell you, though, that the younger guys will be pretty impressed by the radio ads, billboards, and a few TV spots, said RW Flynn. "We're going to get across the idea that Freemasons are pretty hip by showing them to be television and movie actors, and even rock stars."
The Past Bastard asked which actors and musicians they were able to get.
"Well, we weren't able to actually sign the actors themselves," explained RW Flynn. "However, we got some brothers who are great likenesses of John Wayne, Kirk Douglass, Bill Bixby, and David Hasselhoff. And we've also got a few guys impersonating Buddy Holly, Glen Campbell, and Davey Jones. You'd swear you were watching the originals."
RW Flynn explained that the idea was to feature these modern entertainers in spots similar to the way the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts featured George Washington and Ben Franklin. "Our thinking is that these guys will be more recognizable to the new, younger generation that we hope to attract in order to sustain our membership. By featuring well-known, modern figures, we expect that these kids will see Freemasonry as being more relevant." He added, "You know, like, real hep cats."
Many of the new public relations spots were filmed at the Grand Lodge building. |
The Past Bastard asked to see some previews, but the PR Committee was not willing to release anything before final editing was finished.
"I can tell you, though, that the younger guys will be pretty impressed by the radio ads, billboards, and a few TV spots, said RW Flynn. "We're going to get across the idea that Freemasons are pretty hip by showing them to be television and movie actors, and even rock stars."
The Past Bastard asked which actors and musicians they were able to get.
"Well, we weren't able to actually sign the actors themselves," explained RW Flynn. "However, we got some brothers who are great likenesses of John Wayne, Kirk Douglass, Bill Bixby, and David Hasselhoff. And we've also got a few guys impersonating Buddy Holly, Glen Campbell, and Davey Jones. You'd swear you were watching the originals."
RW Flynn explained that the idea was to feature these modern entertainers in spots similar to the way the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts featured George Washington and Ben Franklin. "Our thinking is that these guys will be more recognizable to the new, younger generation that we hope to attract in order to sustain our membership. By featuring well-known, modern figures, we expect that these kids will see Freemasonry as being more relevant." He added, "You know, like, real hep cats."