This is topic Knife wielding lunatic terrorizes Frida patrons in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


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Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 12-27-2002, 04:41 PM:
 
On December 26th, 2002 during the 6:50 PM show of Frida there was an incident with a man and a knife.

A patron came out and told our assistant manager that there was a man in Frida with a knife and he was threatening the customers. He immediately told the other manager and called the police. The police were slow to respond so he called them again. One policeman showed up and when appraised of the situation called for back up. Five policemen in 3 cars showed up. They told the assistant manager that upon their signal to turn up the lights and stop the film. They gave the signal and he turned up the lights and stopped the film. The police jumped on this guy and threw him to the floor with a mighty womp.

The assistant managers gave free small popcorns to the patrons of the film and restarted the film. There were six witnesses who gave their reports to the police in the lobby. We gave them passes. The police told my assistant manager that this guy had been involved in a robbery earlier in the day and that they had been looking for him.

All in all it turned out all right. Nobody was hurt and the criminal was arrested. We have not heard from any patrons from last night yet. I wish the police had been quicker to respond and I worry about what to do in the time we were waiting for them. I think my assistant managers acted correctly. I think if they had stopped the film earlier, the criminal would have caused harm or run away. I am glad that he was caught.

He was definitely not the kind of patron we are looking for at our genteel art house. He received no refund.
 

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Posted by Bob Maar (Member # 763) on 12-27-2002, 05:01 PM:
 
Ian, New York is a calm city, we have nothing but the nicest of people attending movies here on the coast that will celebrate New Year's Eve a full three hours before your coast. I told you many posts ago if you and Ky want to open a theatre here in the "World's Greatest City" I will be happy to work for you. Only good things happen in New York.....right guy's.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-27-2002, 06:52 PM:
 
Ian,
Give your assistants a pat on the back and a couple of martini's from
Bob Marr, courtesy of me, for handling it the right way!

Good thing you are not in Salt Lake City!! All of your patrons would have had their throats slashed by the time our police got there. We have one of the WORST police departments on earth, and certainly the slowest...average response time I think is 35 min. I wonder if its the doughnuts or what??? Perhaps they are too busy making doughnuts.......or keeping protesters off the LSD Church Plaza......
Mark
 

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Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 12-27-2002, 07:15 PM:
 

quote:

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I wish the police had been quicker to respond and I worry about what to do in the time we were waiting for them. ... I think if they had stopped the film earlier, the criminal would have caused harm or run away.

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So the evil patron had a knife. So just arm your managers with guns and send them to target practice! It could be kind of like the old west.

Still, kudos go to your guys. Keeping things running normally was definitely the best thing to do for the safety of everyone (since they were pretty much defenseless, of course ).

Just be happy the guy wasn't watching Pinocchio. No telling what would've happened.
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 12-27-2002, 08:07 PM:
 
Not giving the knife-wielder a refund or pass was the best way to ensure he never returns. Customers always vow never to return when they are not "compensated", even when they are in the wrong. If he had been in Pinocchio he would have probably used the knife on himself.

But I agree that your employees did the best thing they could given the circumstances. Hopefully nothing like this ever happens again. You don't want to get a reputation as the theater where all the crazies go. Hopefully the customers who were in that show praise the theater to their circle of friends.
 

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Posted by Ken Layton (Member # 133) on 12-28-2002, 12:09 AM:
 
This is exactly the reason I own 5 police scanners and keep one running in the booth with me.
 

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Posted by Mike Williams (Member # 1140) on 12-28-2002, 10:19 AM:
 

quote:

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So the evil patron had a knife. So just arm your managers with guns and send them to target practice! It could be kind of like the old west.

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You really are from Texas!

 

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Posted by Gerard S. Cohen (Member # 994) on 12-28-2002, 05:18 PM:
 
Ian wrote:

quote:

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He was definitely not the kind of patron we are looking for at our gentile art house.

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He wouldn't be welcome in a Jewish art house, either!

Seriously, I'm glad it turned out well. Having a member of management
stationed where he was able to receive early notice by a patron of the threat posed made all the difference in the outcome.
Gerard
 

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Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 12-28-2002, 05:44 PM:
 
Update,

The knife wielding lunatic's name was Michael and the cops knew him. He had been released that day from a psychiatric hospital to a halfway house. He simply walked out of the halfway house. He had pulled the knife stunt on a bus earlier that day and that was why the police were seeking him.

What he did in the theatre was pull out the knife and tell the patron that he 'was going to cut her fucking throat.' They were understandably upset.

The police knew who he was even before they went into the theatre. The cop put his hand on the criminals shoulder and said 'come quietly Michael.' Then he and his partners put him on the ground quickly.

The police were pleased to get him. The arresting officer talked to the theatre full of patrons to calm them down. This is probably why I haven't heard from any of the patrons.

My third assistant manager said, when told of the story, "oh why do I always miss the fun?" The lads seem to be taking it in stride.
 

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Posted by Jim Ziegler (Member # 86) on 12-30-2002, 05:33 PM:
 
Brad and Joe,

Had he been in Pinocchio, he would have had to use the knife on himself... No one else would have been in there...
 

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Posted by Charles Everett (Member # 889) on 12-31-2002, 08:02 AM:
 
Or maybe Gangs of New York.

BTW the AMC Empire had a fight break out in the middle of Gangs. That turned Times Square into the Wild West for one night.
 

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Posted by Rachel Gilardi (Member # 1016) on 12-31-2002, 07:04 PM:
 
Well Ian my buddy across the country. Seems Art houses have not been doing to well. Last night our box office got held up at gunpoint. They waited for me to walk out of the lobby for 2 seconds and made their way in, the whole ordeal lasted about 45 seconds, all the while, I was in the bathroom.
 

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Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 01-01-2003, 02:05 PM:
 
Oh my God!

Tell us what happend.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 01-01-2003, 03:36 PM:
 
Rachel, Where was your gun? You coulda been a local hero!
Mark
 

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Posted by Paul G. Thompson (Member # 655) on 01-01-2003, 10:41 PM:
 
Personally, I think all money handling areas should be monitored by surveillance cameras. It keeps the help honest and it also helps the cops to catch the low-life bung who knocked over the joint.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 01-01-2003, 11:25 PM:
 
Paul,
Many of our customers already do that. Some have a seperate money counting room where the manager can do the proper counting and paperwork without fear of being invaded. One somewhat eccentric customer has all his cameras linked via internet back to home office so he can spy from the comfort of his desk. Now, that is rediclous INHO. Although there is no excuse on the books for theft by an employee, I find that operators that pay their employees enough don't need to worry about them stealing.
One customer caught a ticket sales kid stealing, they figure he got away with 16 grand or more during the run of Lion King. Concession sales were way up from what box office should have been. That led them to know something was up.......
Mark
 

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Posted by Rachel Gilardi (Member # 1016) on 01-03-2003, 12:50 PM:
 
We have cameras; unfortunately, the men were covered from head to toe. Luckily the clerk did the right thing and just did what they told him to do. I feel so bad for him, I could not imagine being in that situation, it just figures they waited for the manager to leave the lobby, they were obviously waiting.
 

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Posted by William Hooper (Member # 71) on 01-08-2003, 02:22 AM:
 

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Only good things happen in New York.....right guy's.

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