From: spencer@der.Princeton.EDU (S. Spencer Sun)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies
Subject: Re: PEEVES at MOVIE THEATERS !
Date: 27 Jan 93 06:29:00 GMT
Reply-To: spencer@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (S. Spencer Sun)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Society for Promotion of Entropy in the Universe (SPEU)
Originator: news@nimaster

In article <BD.93Jan24084258@bd.UUCP>, bd%fluent@dartmouth.EDU writes:
>spencer@der.Princeton.EDU (S. Spencer Sun) writes:
>
>>In article <BD.93Jan20133213@bd.UUCP>, bd%fluent@dartmouth.EDU writes:
>>>fontana@cis.ohio-state.edu (Mark Fontana) writes:
>>>
>>>>(The booth door is always RIGHT NEXT to two big swinging doors that are
>>>>unmistakably the entrance to the auditorium!)
>>>>
>>>>Then later on, I'll be out in the hall doing usher stuff, and some
>>>>patrons will walk up to the booth door and start tugging on it,
>>>>completely missing the swinging doors right beside it.
>>>
>>>How can you say with a straight face that the entrance dorrs
>>>are unmistakable when it's clear that patron after patron
>>>are mistaking them?
>>
>>I hate to break this to you, but there *ARE* an incredible number of
>>stupid people in the world.  I have had people stand in front of a
>>marquee (with large easy-to-read numbers) and ask me what time the next
>>showing was.
>
>Spencer, your condescension is showing (once again).

Because I think there are stupid people in the world?  That's not
condescension, that's reality.
 
>Yes, there *are* some stupid people out there, but your example
>is a bad one.  Since there is often considerable variance between
>the marquee time and the actual starting time, to ask theatre
>personel when a movie is going to start is not unreasonable
>regardless of how big the sign with the times is.

If it were around showtime when he asked, I Would be sympathetic,
perhaps.  Given that he asked the question well over an hour before the
next show, I'm unconvinced.  Also, for the record, i answered his
question courteously and without rancor.

>>Besides those people, there are also the people who think that
>>"Everything applies to everyone else except me/us."  We put up crowd
>>control ropes to block off access to the auditorium AND close the doors
>>while we're cleaning our theaters.  Once, while we were cleaning, with
>>about 10-20 people waiting outside, someone walked in.  We politely
>>explained that we weren't finished cleaning yet and if they would wait
>>behind the ropes we'd be happy to let them in when we were done.  They
>>said "Oh, sorry" and went back out.  5 seconds later, repeat, with
>>different couple.  And again.  At least 5 different groups of people,
>>all of whom were already waiting when we started, walked in while we
>>were still cleaning.  You'd think they would notice when the first few
>>people went in, then came back out.  You'd think that those people would
>>tell them that we were still cleaning.
>
>Oh, so now you expect members of the paying public to do your
>job for you?  It's not the responsibility or obligation of
>the patrons to tell another patron when you are cleaning.

You are correct.  However, as a patron, I would consider it _courteous_
to tell other patrons what was going on.  Don't you?  (Again let me
stress that when people do wander in, we tell them politely that we're
not done cleaning yet and ask them to wait outside and we will let them
in when we're done).

By the way, my job and that of my staff is to provide a clean theater.
I suppose you'd like me to reserve one usher solely to stand outside the
auditorium to keep people out?  (1) That's what crowd control ropes and
closed doors should signal to most people (2) I think the usher is much
better used to expedite the cleaning process, don't you?

>What you fail to see, for some reason, is that many of the
>actions of the paying public which you find objectionable
>are actions that we have developed over time to deal with the
>lack of consideration of theatre personnel.  Not waiting for
>the theatre cleaners to finish, for instance, is IMO a
>reaction to having theatre personnel clean a theatre, leave,
>and not bother to tell the crowd that it's okay to go in
>now.  Instead we wait patiently until some employee happens
>to notice us and says with a sneer "that theatres been clean
>for five minutes now - you'all can go in".

Ah, now we get to the root of the problem.  *I* don't have an attitude
problem, *YOU* do.  You seem to be automatically assuming that
everything comes up is a plot by theater personnel to make the
movie-going experinece as mcuh a pain in the ass as possible, and we try
at every opportunity to get in an underhanded jab at you.

First of all, I am sorry that you have run into theaters where they
leave the doors closed when they're done and are rude enough not to tell
people they can go in.  We put ropes up and close the doors while we're
cleaning.  When we're done, we open the doors, take the ropes down, and
announce loudly and clearly "Now seating the xx:xx showing of ____."

Let me again stress, however, that if something pisses you off, yelling
to rec.arts.movies, for example, is not going to help much.  COMPLAIN.
Tell the manager you didn't appreciate standing outside for 5 minutes
and not being told that you could go in.  If you don't seem to be
getting a favorable response, ask for his superior's phone number and
bitch at him.  Yes, you shouldn't have to be doing this in the first
place, but unfortunately the situation may not improve unless you talk
to some people about it.  Otherwise you're dooming all the patrons after
you to the same treatment, until someone else decides to complain.

>>It ought to piss off
>>other patrons, because for some reason this particular patron or group
>>of patrons thinks that he/she/they are for some reason exempt from
>>whatever is holding back everyone else.
>
>Condescension again.  I think you're mis-reading the situation.

Please elaborate on how you think this is condescending and how I am
misinterpreting the situation.

When I show contempt for people who step over or around the crowd
control ropes or the poles, I say that as another member of society.
The fact that I am a manager has nothing to do with it.  

>My point is that we have become so accustomed to rude
>and inconsiderate treatment be theatre personnel that
>we have had to find ways around it.  If the door is 
>closed we open it because more often than not theatre 
>personnel won't do it for us.  If we as what time a
>movie is going to start it's because when there is a delay
>in the starting tiome of a movie theatre personnel don't
>bother to tell us.

Two points to make here.  First, you again show that you are convinced
that every theater person you run into is going to be a rude,
unconcerned, arrogant asshole.  This is not a safe assumption to make.
Secondly, I wish to distinguish between my example, when someone asked
over an hour before the next show when the next showing was, and another
situation, when I consider it perfectly reasonable to ask when the movie
will start.

If it's past the show time (more than 5 minutes) I would consider it
quite reasonable to ask when the movie will start.  More often than not
the reason is because there is still a large line backed up at the box
office.

My immediate superior (My position is equivalent to assistant manager)
likes to delay movies for lines at the concessions stand.  He justifies
this on the basis that most of the money theaters make is out of
concessions.  This is a correct claim, and when I'm working with him, I
respect his wishes because he's in charge, and he gets a bonus based on
the volume of concessions sales (i.e. how much he gets paid depends
partially on concessions sales, since that is where revenue is being
generated).

I personally don't like doing this though, so when I'm the only manager
present, I only hold up movies for long lines at the box office.  (If
it's really bad, we'll ask everyone in line not wishing to see the movie
that is supposed to start to step aside so we cna move people for that
movie in first).

>Sorry to go on for so long, but your attitude *really*
>bothers me.  I got out of retail because I found my
>attitude beginning to approach yours, and I felt that
>both the customers and I deserved better than that.

Once again (I hope you're still reading this far) I'll summarize my
basic philosophy.  Yes, patrons are the life-blood of any business such
as a movie theater.  Yes, they deserve to be treated courteously and
promptly.  However, the employees and the managers deserve to be
treated with respect and courtesy too.  We are not your slaves, and you
are not the only patron present.  We have to consider the wishes and
desires of all patrons present, not just yours.

-----
sss / Princeton University Class of 1994 / Department of Computer Science
Ninety per cent of true love is acute, ear-burning embarrassment.
[Terry Pratchett, _Wyrd Sisters_]
Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies