To See or Not to See

Movie ticket stubs from my past. Yes, I saved these.


The Wall Street Journal reported this week that movie theaters are RAISING their ticket prices for several different reasons during our economic calamity.

Ever since I was a child I've loved going to the movie theater. I can remember my father taking me to see Return of the Jedi when I was four years old and how upset he kept getting when I'd tell him I had to go to the bathroom every twenty minutes. I remember going to see Walt Disney's Peter Pan with my mother and sister during the re-release in 1982. I think we missed the beginning and the attendant at Movie World let us attend the second showing for free. I enjoyed it so much that I intended to see the third showing until my mom threatened to leave me there if I didn't come with her. As a scared three year old with limited survival skills and abandonment issues I reluctantly went with her.

Cinema Paradiso is a beautiful movie and example of how films can capture our hearts and imaginations, how they sweeten our memories and link us as humans in ways unseen in other art forms. Yet, greed and short sightedness could eventually destroy this. Where else, besides a religious ceremony will you see that many strangers sit quietly together for nearly two hours?

Record companies didn't plan for the digital age and file sharing, Ipods and mp3s. The movie industry has been trying for years to crack down on pirated material, how long do you think they have before they find themselves in the same predicament as the record business?

For a low to middle income family to enjoy a professional sporting event or a movie experience they must forfeit an obscene amount of money to do so. It is why my mother and I only go to one Cleveland Indians game a year, why my father and I will only go to one to two movies a year together, or why my wife and I only go to Drive-ins during the summer months. I'm tired of these greedy mongrels who take advantage of the fans and hard working people who just want to escape for a few hours and to share experiences with loved ones they will cherish for a lifetime.

Sold! To the Woman in Black.

My piece was purchased last night by a woman who was very familiar with Stephen Crane's poem The Heart, and really enjoyed my interpretation. She enjoyed it so much that when introduced she had me give her my information so she could commission me should her name not be chosen from the raffle. I received many compliments but it didn't appear as though I had that many bids. I find it weird how this stuff works. I guess it reaffirms what I've been telling myself lately, don't worry about what I think other people might like but concentrate on doing what I like and if does not sell then I have something that I've made and enjoy.

30-30-30

I'll be entering a piece for this show. As of now I'm working on a sculpture to enter. Let us hope it turns out. The show is in Highland Square in Akron at Revival and Square Records from 7-9. If you are in the area you should stop by and say hello. I'm sure there will be plenty of interesting items for sale. You can buy clothes, you can buy some music and you can buy some art all in the same night! Where else can you do this so cheaply in Ohio while you support local business and hungry artists?