Last week, The National World War II Museum opened three new venues in a blaze of power, pomp and poignancy as Hollywood celebrities including Tom Hanks, Patricia Clarkson and Mickey Rooney, as well as a flyover of military jets and a crowd of 4,000, saluted 350 WWII veterans assembled on the Museum’s parade grounds. As the Museum’s public relations agency of record, Peter Mayer executed and delivered results on all fronts, garnering the New Orleans institution national TV exposure with a Monday Night Football segment featuring Saints quarterback Drew Brees, a six-minute segment on NBC’s TODAY show with Tom Brokaw and Tom Hanks, more than 300 stories in the nation’s most important news markets and virtually nonstop coverage from regional and local TV outlets. The agency also worked closely with Museum staff to help produce four days of ceremonies, balls and concerts which drew 10,000 visitors from all across the United States to the Museum’s campus. The agency also initiated an award-winning (Public Relations Society of America Award of Excellence) social media campaign on Twitter.

The Museum’s new attractions include the Solomon Victory Theater, designed especially for Hanks’ new 4-D movie experience Beyond All Boundaries; the American Sector, a Chef John Besh restaurant; and the Stage Door Canteen, featuring a USO-themed performance called Let Freedom Swing saluting the music and popular culture of WWII. For additional information and opening event pictures, please visit the Museum’s website and Flickr page.