The summer blockbuster movies are coming to an end as we head into fall. Throughout your many visits to the movies, have you ever wondered why popcorn is the main feature in theaters no matter where you go? Or maybe you’ve wondered why the idea of going to the theater to see a movie sometimes results in the idea of eating popcorn, sometimes even before entering the theater compound. If you’re like me and curious about this movie theater and popcorn marriage culture, read on.
Popcorn (or rather popcorn) vendors would drive their carts to places of high human traffic, which in the early days were carnivals, vaudeville shows, burlesque entertainment, and the like. When the advent of “moving picture houses” came, people were fascinated and visited these places in numbers. Where there are many people, there will be the popcorn vendors.
Originally, theater owners were scornful of the idea that their fancy, fancy movie venues were being read and sticky with the popcorn and other sweets. Despite their efforts to prevent popcorn and other sweets from entering their premises, these items continued to somehow enter their locations. Also, there were many people who stood up during the movies to rush out to buy some popcorn and bring it back to eat.
A main factor in the popularity of popcorn shopping was due to the low price of a tasty and filling treat to accompany your low-priced entertainment, especially since the popularity of movie theaters came during the Great Depression era, so watching a movie and having popcorn with family or friends was an affordable luxury. World War II came along and sugar was rationed, but popcorn persisted as the snack of choice as it was considered to be more nutritious compared to other confectioneries, and so was the production of choice.
Some theater owners realized that no matter what they tried, they couldn’t stop people from enjoying their sweet treat. So if you can’t beat them, join them! Why let vendors of popcorn and other sweets make a profit? Therefore, some movie house owners began to install their own vending machines and soon found that their profits increased significantly. Realizing this, some venues lowered their ticket prices to attract moviegoers who would still buy the popcorn, and this resulted in higher customer volume. Theater owners who did not install popcorn machines lost and soon found themselves out of business!
Today about two-thirds of a typical movie theater’s revenue comes from ticket sales. However, most of the gross profit comes from sales of popcorn and other snack foods. This difference is due to the fact that movie ticket sales are split with movie studios, while sales of other items go to the movie theater. In this sense, I doubt that the owners of the cinemas would ever consider not having their popcorn, snack and drink machines in their vicinity.
As the years passed, movie theater owners continued to have popcorn machines and sell popcorn and other candy as well as beverages. From generation to generation, moviegoers remember popcorn in theaters, with the familiar scents wafting throughout the venue. I remember the strong smell of popcorn seeping through the vents in my car as I was driving by a roadside movie theater! Over the years, a kind of conditioning has spread globally… one in which a cinematic experience is sometimes incomplete without that bag of popcorn. So, even as popcorn prices rose slowly and even health studies criticized popcorn, throngs of people continued to enjoy their favorite snack at movie theaters.
Now, if you don’t mind, I have a movie to see, and you can bet a bag of caramel popcorn would be in my hand!
