Ad Nauseum
I went to see a movie this weekend and while I avoid the snack bar's obscene prices, I wanted to see how obscene they were these days. Trouble was, the board where prices are normally listed was a video screen which was currently showing an ad for Dasani bottled water. This crossed some imaginary line of acceptability in my head and I nearly combusted into flames. I want to know the prices and I want to know them now!
Small popcorn $5.50. Dasani bottled water $4.00.
(Hey, wasn't my blog post title clever? I'm sure no one has used it for a post about advertising before!)
Small popcorn $5.50. Dasani bottled water $4.00.
(Hey, wasn't my blog post title clever? I'm sure no one has used it for a post about advertising before!)
posted by Matt Bors at
1:11 PM
6 Comments:
Jenn and I went out for dinner and a movie on Friday night. Dinner at hipster joint (very good food, nonetheless): $50. Movie tickets, one medium popcorn, one large drink: $40.
The Depression may have sucked, but you could spend the whole day in the theater for only a nickel. Watdafok?
Ah, these must be the good 'ol days.
I use to work at a theater in high school. Back then a small bag of popcorn was like $4 ~ $5 I think. My manager told me it cost lest than $.01 for the corn, oil and salt (they bought massive bags of each in bulk). It cost more to pay people to make it than for the ingredients.
The theaters only make money off concessions. They normally get nothing from movie tickets. For independent films they may get 5 to 10 cents per ticket.
Another interesting note, they paid us $5.15 (minimum wage in 98) and NO overtime. That's right. You don't have to pay overtime to some industries including farmers and entertainment. The reasoning for entertainment is some camera men and stage hands make upwards of $100 an hour, so no overtime for them. Theaters that pay minimum kinda slip in there.
It's for this and other reasons I download all my movies illegally and watch them on my home projector...not that I'd advocate such things lest the RIAA comes to rape me in the ass for my life savings to feed starving actors.
There are still some good theaters here in Portland that have cheap food. Cinema 21 is good.
But the video screen was just too much for me.
I still sneak shit into the theatre. Yeah I can afford not to, but why get rusty?
If you're ever in Austin, try the Alamo Drafthouse: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamo_Drafthouse
Movies with reasonably priced, good food, beer, wine, whatever.
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