Page 1 of 1
Screening of "The Birth of a Nation" Attracts Protesters
Posted: Tue Jan 06, 2015 2:33 pm
by misteranalog
Schnectady New York is about 130 miles north of New York
http://www.proctors.org/events/100-birth-nation" target="_blank
http://www.timesunion.com/local/article ... 851586.php" target="_blank
I was curious about how big an audience they got for this 1915 silent film........ $5 admission is an okay price
Re: Screening of "The Birth of a Nation" Attracts Protesters
Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2015 1:56 pm
by FrankFay
Odd- this is in my backyard & I wasn't aware of it happening.
A few years back the Capitol Theater in Rome NY showed it & got a pretty full house- and though there was plenty of controversy & can recall only one really screaming protestor out front. Otherwise the audience was quite respectful.
The second part (where things REALLY get complaint worthy) was watched in a nearly unreal silence, with one break: The scene where the black southern housekeeper & the black northern secretary meet & size each other up got a quick burst of laughter.
Re: Screening of "The Birth of a Nation" Attracts Protesters
Posted: Fri Jan 09, 2015 12:48 pm
by oldposterho
misteranalog wrote:$5 admission is an okay price
I love this quote by Mr. Griffith from 1915:
My first prediction is that a moving picture will be made within 3 or 4 years for which the entrance money will be $5 and $6 a seat. It's easy to predict that.
--Peter
Re: Screening of "The Birth of a Nation" Attracts Protesters
Posted: Fri Jan 09, 2015 3:33 pm
by misteranalog
Inflation means that what cost $1 in 1915 costs about $25 a hundred years later,
so....
$5 then X 25 = $125 now, I don't see very many movies at this price level,
$15 or so seems to be the limit at the local mall theaters for a 3-D movie.....
Griffith was right about the upward trend in ticket prices over time....
But a $15 movie ticket for a 3-D movie was about 60 cents in 1915 pre-inflation terms
In 1910 or so an entire working class family lived on about $700 a year.
Most movies were about 5 minutes long, and "nickelodeons" cost a "nickel" hence their name!!!