I was watching an advance copy of the documentary about the Screen Actor's Guild I'd worked on a few years ago this afternoon. It was really fun to see all the people I'd read about and researched and so on come alive in recreations of old meetings and in interviews and so on.
However, while watching it, something occurred to me that I hadn't really thought of when I was doing my research. In 1948, the Supreme Court issued what was known as the "Paramount Decision." Basically, what this meant was that studios could no longer own movie theaters AND produce movies.
The arrangement had its benefits. Studios had guaranteed distribution for anything they made, and it allowed for the rise of the "studio system" which had actors under contract for multiple years. Studios made lots of movies and actors had guaranteed employment. They were also subject to rules that essentially regulated their personal and public lives, and there was no way a non-studio film could get a film shown without paying exorbitant fees.
Thus, the Paramount Decision, which forced the studios to divest their movie theaters. Ever wonder why all those old theaters are called "Fox" or "Paramount" or "Warners?" Well now you know.
Anyway, here's something I realized - once these theaters were cast off from the studios, they were left to their own devices to stay in business. Most got bought up by theater chains, but some were not. And without a guaranteed lifeline of their own 'product' to simply show on the screen, many theaters were no longer viable as businesses. Boarded up theaters ended up becoming urban eyesores, or the site of redevelopment. In San Francisco, the Cylon-esque "Fox Plaza" is built on the remains of the Fox Theater. In Burlingame, the Fox Theater was demolished for "Fox Mall," one of the lamest looking 70s style buildings ever, and a gouge on Burlingame Avenue. And so on.
Thus, you had a situation where because of a decision made based on media distribution, you had fallout that affected cities across the country. Talk about unintended consequences.
Interestingly enough, nowadays you have TV producers like NBC/Universal own cable television channels for distribution of their own product. In fact, this is commonplace. This would seem to violate the spirit of the 1948 decision, but thanks to Congress and Bill Clinton, lobbyists amended the law so that today's media barons could do as they pleased. Thanks, Bill!
No really.
Yes, really.
the uncessarily complicated end credit song and dance from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiyua is being done....by Filipino Prison Inmates.
yeah.
discuss.
- 19:25 Going to another meeting and sell another fb app #
- 20:35 In the outer mission going home #
- 22:44 @psdbny at the Con they had a special Eureka ice cream truck and gave away Eureka tins full of "smarties" candies! #
- 22:45 today was a day of win at work, on MUNI, and elsewhere. and I am so hoping I get this new client which would offer pay + fun #
- 09:49 OMG HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? I got "best local blogger" by the readers of the BAY GUARDIAN?!? www.sfbg.com/bob/2008/city.php #
- 10:02 thank you all for your kind words. now i'm off to the newsrack to swipe 50 Bay Guardians... #
- 12:09 twitterpals! email me at gregdewar@gmail.com ! we're gonna have an impromptu celebration tonight! #
- 12:27 holy crap! I gotta get ready for a biz meeting! yikes! #
- 13:44 Mighty N where are you #
- 13:47 Epic muni fail the n is taking no riders thanks muni now im late to my sales call #
- 14:05 Stuck in n at duboce they wont let up out #
- 14:06 Holy frak it it fail fest a duboce #
- 16:18 Weird to see pcc cars on the n #
- 17:12 apparently the pcc's were just F lines being shuttled around or something.. #
- 17:24 ok twitterpals in SF...i'm heading to the blackthorn, stop by if you like. #
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- 17:32 day's almost over, but work continues utnil late tonight! #
- 19:25 Going to another meeting and sell another fb app #
- 20:35 In the outer mission going home #
- 22:44 @psdbny at the Con they had a special Eureka ice cream truck and gave away Eureka tins full of "smarties" candies! #
- 22:45 today was a day of win at work, on MUNI, and elsewhere. and I am so hoping I get this new client which would offer pay + fun #
- 09:49 OMG HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? I got "best local blogger" by the readers of the BAY GUARDIAN?!? www.sfbg.com/bob/2008/city.php #
- 10:02 thank you all for your kind words. now i'm off to the newsrack to swipe 50 Bay Guardians... #
- 12:09 twitterpals! email me at gregdewar@gmail.com ! we're gonna have an impromptu celebration tonight! #
- 12:27 holy crap! I gotta get ready for a biz meeting! yikes! #
- 13:44 Mighty N where are you #
- 13:47 Epic muni fail the n is taking no riders thanks muni now im late to my sales call #
- 14:05 Stuck in n at duboce they wont let up out #
- 14:06 Holy frak it it fail fest a duboce #
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- 17:18 Saw a woman with a captain hammer shirt 3 guesses where she is headed #
- 17:30 World's unhappiest child is now happy thank you amtrak #
- 17:42 Amtrak is now the nerd train yay #
- 18:34 I was wrong the temp halt of bratty crying is now in hour 4 wtf #
- 19:15 Quiet at last now the nerd train is almost there #
- 20:15 In san diego waiting for mts many people with swag from preview night at the con #
- 20:50 in the hotel room! gave away an Adama poster to the clerk who likes BSG! We have AC! Ready to hit the Con tomorrow! #
- 23:35 i'm wiped out. been up since 4 am, follow Nerdvana at njudah.vox.com (daily 4pm twitter roundup) and galacticasitrep.blogspot.com #
- 07:13 good morning, twitterinos! it's early, the con is already crowded, and we're getting ready to head out in full Adama for Prez regalia #
- 08:49 Got my 4 day pass now looking for press table #
- 09:24 Got the press badge thanks erica #
- 11:09 Made it to old school bsg forum going to try to tape it #
- 11:17 Richard hatch in the house #
- 12:43 Bsg forum 1 was cool tape machine fail sucked used old school note taking ftw #
- 14:00 Leading back to good base for work and writing #
- 15:40 comic con pics are UP: tinyurl.com/6fu32z - gotta do some work now, theb back to the con, and then to the party #
- 15:42 @meganallison I always seem to miss the worst of it when I leave town. #
- 15:58 omg muni wtf? i'm gone a couple of days and you have a massive fail? wow amazing. you are trying to kill my blog muni. #
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- 04:10 Up way way too early #
- 05:50 On caltrain round one of the trip wow it is early #
- 06:52 At san jose train station for half hour it is an odd mix of folks early am #
- 08:57 Departing salinas trying to guess who else is going to nerd prom #
- 11:22 In SLO at least the amtrak bus has ac and is not full #
- 11:24 Omg we are stopping by the madonna inn #
- 11:44 Some live blog fun at njudah.vox.com #
- 13:53 In santa barbara tons of people here #
- 13:59 Gary busey's twin waits for the train #
- 14:22 Amtrak is having a muni style fail and things were going so well #
- 15:20 Amtrak recovers from fail by making double time to next stop #
- 15:26 Another amtrak win they have great beers + no its not bad beer #
- 17:18 Saw a woman with a captain hammer shirt 3 guesses where she is headed #
- 17:30 World's unhappiest child is now happy thank you amtrak #
- 17:42 Amtrak is now the nerd train yay #
- 18:34 I was wrong the temp halt of bratty crying is now in hour 4 wtf #
- 19:15 Quiet at last now the nerd train is almost there #
- 20:15 In san diego waiting for mts many people with swag from preview night at the con #
- 20:50 in the hotel room! gave away an Adama poster to the clerk who likes BSG! We have AC! Ready to hit the Con tomorrow! #
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I am live blogging my trip to the con via my lame cell phone really quickly . The trip via amtrak is pleasant but slow and i will update more on twitter later !
Hey Gang!
I'm going to Comic-Con this year! And I'll be covering it at both Galactica Sitrep (galacticasitrep.blogspot.com) and maybe here too or at gregdewar.com or on Twitter (look for user njudah) and on Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/gdewar/sets/72157606296815599/ Enjoy!
in gotham knight US Sen. Pat Leahy appears in one scene with the Joker. Apparently he's a bigtime Batman fan!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0495004/
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