Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Stolen "Star Wars" one-sheet

This is topic Stolen "Star Wars" one-sheet in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=001390

Posted by Timothy Ervin (Member # 733) on 03-20-2005, 01:08 AM:

Earlier this week, I received the new one sheet for "Star Wars". I had put it in my office for "safe keeping", and one of my Assistants moved it upstairs where the older one sheets are kept (errrrrrrr),well guess what? One of the projectionist stole it. [Mad]

My boss is livid and wants it returned by Monday or there will be terminations. It is even to the point where movie privleges are considered being taken away from the entire staff for six months. It's certainly not fair to punish the rest of the team for the stupidity of one individual.

I know, it's only a one sheet, but you guys know how paticular Fox is about their "Star Wars" stuff. Back in 98, when the first Episode 1 trailers first came out I remember Fox sending out memos stating that the trailers had to be returned......blah blah blah. Anyway, I had a projectionist who took one of the trailers to sell on Ebay, he returned the trailer and was written up.

Has anyone else had a problem like this? If so, how did you handle the situation and what did you do to the person (s) who were at fault? What are the chances Fox will give us another one sheet, in the event this one does not turn up? Isn't it fucking crazy that something like this can cause so much stress? [Eek!]

I mean, whoever would have thought? [Confused]

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 03-20-2005, 01:19 AM:

To play devil's advocate, you shouldn't be blaming the projectionist outright, for it could've just as easily been that assistant manager! Think about it, if it disappeared from the office, it would be obvious that it was a member of management. By "innocently" moving it to the booth, it suddenly becomes an issue of management, projectionists and quite possibly floor staff having access to it...and the odds are that the assistant won't get the finger pointed at him because he is a member of the management team.

Your assistant is the one at most fault here.

BTW, nothing ever happened on Episode I or II when one-sheets and/or trailers were returned, so don't sweat it. It is after all just a friggin' poster! [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Timothy Ervin (Member # 733) on 03-20-2005, 01:58 AM:

Actually, we found out that a certain projectionist stole another one sheet the same night SW vanished so that's why we are suspecting that certain individual.

I agree with you Brad, my Assistant is at fault.

I also want to say that I am one GM who does not believe that just because an individual is a member of the management team, it does not make them perfect.

Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 03-20-2005, 02:29 AM:

This is why I hide those "special" one-sheets above the ceiling tiles in the office.

Posted by Timothy Ervin (Member # 733) on 03-20-2005, 02:46 AM:

Ahhhhhh good idea Mike! [Big Grin]

Posted by Chase Hanson (Member # 2779) on 03-20-2005, 02:58 AM:

Being an Assistant myself, this is solely the facilitators responisibility. I would discipline the staff member for the theft...I would PUNISH the Assistant for not thinking clearly.

Posted by Timothy Ervin (Member # 733) on 03-20-2005, 03:06 PM:

As of this afternoon, the one sheet "turned up" after employees went on a search.

Now everyone is happy, [Big Grin]

lessons were learned [uhoh]

. Case closed. [Cool]

Posted by Scott Balko (Member # 438) on 03-20-2005, 09:03 PM:

So, Mike, what other "special" stuff ya got in them tiles? [Wink]

Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 03-20-2005, 09:30 PM:

I'll leave that up to your imagination.

Posted by Dean Kollet (Member # 1789) on 03-21-2005, 04:29 PM:

I've seen a few instances where the managers were the ones stealing them, and selling them on eBay. Or the old, "I took the Star Wars banner how b/c there is no way it would last hung up". Total bullshit, especially when they hang them 10-12 feet up from the ground.

Posted by Adam Wilbert (Member # 1184) on 03-21-2005, 06:58 PM:

I thought everyone hid stuff above the ceiling tiles!

Posted by Tracy Bellar (Member # 3049) on 03-23-2005, 11:22 PM:

After a water leak in the lobby roof. We are suddely missing the Star Wars teaser posters, The Banner, And I havn't seen a one sheet yet. The Assistant Manager at the theater I work in has taken all previews home so I can only imagine where they have gone. My Dad has been a manager for thirty years and after every Star Wars left and we were done with the posters He gave them to me. Unfortunatly, The last movie to finish the series is missing. No advertising, No happy customers eyeing the movie poster thats been so long awaited. I remember as a child seeing the posters in the lobby was powerful (to a kid at least). The person that took the poster left a clue however so it's only a matter of getting them to confess and bring it back unless ups hasn't already delivered it to an e-bay buyer or something.

Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 03-24-2005, 12:39 PM:

In my world, this is called theft. Taking a one-sheet isn't any different than if that person removed an amp from a sound rack and carried it out of the building to sell on E-bay.
Heads should roll.

Posted by Lee Michael Breese (Member # 3056) on 03-24-2005, 05:33 PM:

In my experince when I was the asst. It was true fault of management never to look into that if the asst. was at fault because he was in managment. I remember we found out things out my old theatre and employees were terminated and I saw a bunch of my friends get the axe from it. The thing was I was apart of it to and I was never questioned and I could have gotten away with it and no one would have known but I bite my lip and I told my manager that I was apart of it and even laid my keys on the desk because I was sure to get fired. I wish I had a camera at the time to see the look on her face. She was not angry which if you knew this woman you would be as shocked as I was. She called our district manager told him what happened and they let me stay I didn't even get written up which is another shocker for me. Well the whole point of this story is that experience helped me later on in the long run. I am a laid back manager on a lot of things and all my employees know that but they also know when they cross the line my punnishments or peniltys are a little harsher. The simple fact if I caught someone stealing posters or trailers they would be written up to according to what I think is fair. If they are caught stealing money lets just say I hope they enjoy sitting in the backseat of a car in handcuffs. I don't know I am a young manager I am going to make mistakes and keep making them but that is what makes you better in the long run.

Posted by Christopher Duvall (Member # 284) on 03-28-2005, 02:53 AM:

One of the theatres here in Vegas had two of the teaser posters stolen by 2 assistants. They are now currently unemployed due to theft of company property. That says it all for me.

Posted by Dean Kollet (Member # 1789) on 03-28-2005, 09:48 AM:

and I wonder if Fox would like to hear about Mgmt stealing posters, I wonder if it would have any effect on the amount (if any) or prints they would get.

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 03-28-2005, 05:10 PM:

Fox barks more than they bite in my opinion. They're too big to waste time screwing with someone over a trailer or a one sheet. Who's to say either one didn't get trashed in an accident?

As for hiding things...I've been known to hide the booth phone in a projector pedastal to prevent unwanted usage during work hours.
I've also had to resort to hiding the framing knobs off our projectors on top of a cabinet behind a bunch of belts. Now I'm finding allen wrenches all over the place [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 04-02-2005, 08:59 PM:

FWIW - Fox shipped the SWEpIII posters under a "code name," "Caden's Pride" or some dumb thing like that. The thing sat around here in a tube for about a month before I finally decided to see whether it was something worth saving. So they lost out on a month's worth of display time here (which admittedly isn't worth much!) with their dumb code name. I wonder how many of those sheets hit the landfills unintentionally because of it.

Sorry if this has been brought up before.

Posted by Robert Burtcher (Member # 3227) on 07-04-2005, 04:10 AM:

quote: Dean Kollet
I've seen a few instances where the managers were the ones stealing them, and selling them on eBay. Or the old, "I took the Star Wars banner how b/c there is no way it would last hung up". Total bullshit, especially when they hang them 10-12 feet up from the ground.

Our SWEpIII banner got ripped down by a late night customer shortly after the film opened. The closing manager was upstairs and the closing staff member was up in Projection cleaning up. Management was pretty [Mad]

but there was little they could do about it.

Posted by Andy Summers (Member # 3207) on 07-21-2005, 05:23 PM:

There should be a safe like the bank with the correct Temperature cooling for it and fire-sprinklers as well.

Fail-safe that should keep the film safe, I mean projection rooms are so easy, more easy than knocking off a bank and making prefect copy’s for those vulture pyrites…

[ 07-21-2005, 06:24 PM: Message edited by: Andy Summers ]

Posted by Kyle McEachern (Member # 2250) on 07-21-2005, 05:47 PM:

Was that post run through a translator to one language and then back through a translator to English? All the words are spelled right, they're just so so so far from the right words that it makes one wonder.

Posted by Olivia Coleman (Member # 3193) on 07-21-2005, 06:09 PM:

We had received our teasers just fine. The banner and 30 sheet arrived no problem. The one sheets disappeared after being signed for by a manager. We contacted Fox and got more which took forever to arrive. Luckily we have Rubbermaid tubs with padlocks so only 3 out of the now 11 managers can have access to the posters. Once all the promo material for SW3 came down, it was locked but up. (The tubs are also in the upstairs office which requires no less than two different manager keys to access! We have tight security!) [Razz]

Posted by Andy Summers (Member # 3207) on 07-21-2005, 06:26 PM:

Is that just better Kyle, and let one wonder no more, get some sleep…

Posted by Daryl C. W. O'Shea (Member # 1303) on 07-21-2005, 07:44 PM:

11 managers? What do you have, 80 screens?

Posted by Jim Ziegler (Member # 86) on 07-22-2005, 05:45 PM:

quote:
Is that just better Kyle, and let one wonder no more, get some sleep…

Huh?