Buena Vista was wanting to get preliminary schedules and house placements so that final bookings could be placed. Some theatres were confirmed with 'X' prints with 'X+1' available if BV thought the scheduling could allow the extra print.

This probably explains why the Drive-Ins will be late. All the prints are taken by the regular theatres until first of multiple prints are dropped after week 2.

They are looking for $300M take.

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

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While many of us would LIKE to adopt that policy, it would surely put us out of business. Those under-5'ers usually come attached to at least one or two adults! He's training those people with small kids to stay home and watch video.

Word has it that we will probably receive Shrek next, followed by Atlantis.

My booker said he saw a letter from Disney saying they are going to be very diligent about watching print condition, and theatres damaging the prints will be charged! Also that this is a very expensive print, about 2X what a normal print costs. I attribute some of this to the length of the print, but is there some other reason?

IB Tech prints, maybe?? I can always hope...

"Disney's plans for its big summer action/love story, Pearl Harbor, have left some theater operators befuddled. The studio sent them a letter outlining how the film, starring Ben Affleck, Kate Beckinsale and Josh Hartnett, was to be shown.

''They do have certain requirements,'' says Bob Bagby, who runs the Missouri-based B+B Theatres. Among the letter's points, which Bagby says are the most wide-ranging since Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace: The three-hour film should start during the 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. prime-time hours and play in the largest auditoriums.

Disney distribution chief Chuck Viane, who confirms this column's earlier report that drive-ins will not be allowed to show Harbor for at least a month after it opens May 25, says some theater operators misunderstood the letter.

''There's no blanket policy,'' Viane says. ''But we have as good a movie as anyone, and we do want the biggest houses we can get.''

While some theater operators have privately groused that the demands are tough in an extremely competitive season, Bagby and others say Disney's requests -- regardless of whether they are demands or suggestions -- are a small price to pay to get the movie.

''We believe this is going to be one of the biggest movies of the year and possibly one of the very biggest movies of all time,'' says Brian Callaghan of the General Cinema theater chain. ''It's a movie with a Titanic level of interest.''

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Historically, there have even been drive-ins that never even placed the feature's title in their newspaper ad. Instead, they mentioned coming out early for the playground or the volleyball or the burgers or whatever. When it got too dark to play, they just happened to show a movie.

But that's another thread. Of course, results may vary by market.

I have heard rumblings that we may get Pearl Harbor in DLP, but we only have about 50GB of disk space, I would think that we would need double that to hold this long print.