edhiggins

You did this to my wife, and totally made our years. We have many blurry photos of you holding her hand, as well as some grainy video of you humping the chair next to me.

Thanks for everything, Al!

Because that's how the theater is actually making money. It sucks, but it's not entirely the theater's fault.

Theater chains have contracts with film distribution companies that determine how much money from each ticket goes back to the distributor. Typically, for the first week or two of each movie, the theater keeps almost none of the actual money you've paid for the ticket. That money goes back to Universal, or Paramount, or whoever is distributing the film.

Obviously no theater could stay in business making pennies per ticket, so the preferred business model is to make money back through pre-movie advertising and vastly overpriced concessions.

Interesting note: Because the profit percentage for theaters goes up for each week since a film's release, theater chains love movies that are in theaters a long time. Things like Titanic, Sixth Sense, etc. That's when they make big profits.

Another interesting note: Because the distributor makes the vast majority of their profits in the first week or two, that's why all the advertising is geared to get your butt in the seat on opening day or shortly after. Once a few weeks have gone by, distributors have less incentive to get you to buy a ticket.

Last interesting note: Once a film has been out long enough, the distributor's percentage is so low that other, smaller theater chains can start carrying the movie and charging a much lower price. This is where dollar theaters come in. They charge a ton less per ticket, but are making about the same amount of profit per ticket, due to the distribution contracts.

Hi there! For someone who isn't super familiar with your videos, which ones would you recommend?

Hey, Lloyd! I once drove you around Salt Lake City and told you terrible jokes. Then we smoked a bunch of cigarettes together and I dropped you off at a 7-11. Just wanted to say thanks for an awesome night.