Theater refuses to explain
absence of films
By Jessica Webster
City
Editor
 The
excuses are waning from Greater Lafayette theater representatives as to
why they've stopped showing Sony Pictures since December.
"Look, I really don't have to comment anymore,"
said Matt Johnson, marketing director with Goodrich Quality Theaters.
"I'll just say that we're continuing our discussions. We are hopefully
seeing the end of those discussions, but they're continuing."
As the media man, Johnson has been forced
to come up with reasons for the no-show of three popular Sony movies since
late December. For the first few months, Johnson said the absence of "Girl
Interrupted" and "Hanging Up" was due to a glitch causing a short disruption
in service. Johnson also said the situation was a common "buyer/seller
secret."
In March, Johnson said a death, a fired
sales representative and a 9,000-person Las Vegas film conference were
among the reasons for the continued communication glitch between Sony
and Goodrich that caused the no-show of "Whatever it Takes."
Now, with a heavily touted summer of Sony
blockbusters, Greater Lafayette movie goers should prepare to drive to
Indianapolis to see films such as "Black and White" with Mike Tyson and
Robert Downy, Jr., and "28 Days" with Sandra Bullock.
Though Johnson remains reticent in revealing
what caused this situation, local theater employees said in January they
knew exactly what the problem was. Local employees at Eastside 10 and
Lafayette 7 theaters said Sony Pictures is upset because the Tippecanoe
theater (which generally shows older films) showed Sony’s "Stuart
Little" on New Year’s Eve.
Local Goodrich Quality Theater employees
have since been instructed not to comment further on the situation.
Johnson concurred that the problems with
Sony originated with "Stuart Little," but would not expound
beyond that.
Last month, Johnson said, "I know
all these reasons (for delay) sound almost fictional, but we really are
trying to solve this immediately."
However, nobody at Goodrich is promising
immediacy anymore.
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