I've come to expect the blank glazed look I get when I talk to the "button presser" on duty. The last place I visited had intermitents that reminded me of fuzzy pink slippers my wife has. While the "button presser" was yanking film through the rollers to thread the projector I saw the leader dip into a pool of projector oil on the floor that had been collecting the rest of the emulsion dust for however long it's been since the projectors have been cleaned.

The less-than-6-month-old Simplex was covered in crap. The lenses were hazzy from dirt and cigarette smoke, the apeture plates had fuzzy edges all over them, and the lamp hours meter read just over 3000 playing a 1.85:1 print that looked like the night scenes from Sleepy Hollow.

I wasn't even going to waste my time telling the kid what was wrong. He did his "button pressing" job and let the show go.

Here was a theater with brand spankin' new projectors and platters with CSP500 processors and all the goodies playing one of the worst shows I've ever seen in my life. Thank god the lamp was so dark or the dirt on the print would've been much more noticeable.

Upon trying to talk to the manager on duty, he hadn't a clue what I was talking about. After trying to force free passes on me for the fifth time I just gave up and left.

This booth could be imacculate. With the equipment they have there I would be in heaven. But at $7.00/hr I might as well be flipping burgers.

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"And the monkey flips the switch."
- Major Don West, "Lost In Space"