Box Office Bonanza

My first memory of waiting in line on opening day for an event movie was in the summer of 1989. The film was Tim Burton's Batman and I was 10. The first time I remember being interested in how much money a film made was in the summer of 1993. That film was Jurassic Park and I had just finished the 8th grade. I had seen the movie 15 times @ $3.25/piece in the theater and felt that Spielberg was becoming a billionaire based on my allowance. I also discovered that the films that made the most money, came out on VHS for sale the same day they came out for rent! Ever since then I followed my favorites at the box office, hoping they would do well so I could buy the film when it came out. Now films cost more to make, tickets cost more to buy, and box office successes are hit and miss, even during the summer. With the advent of DVD and the increase in video sales, every movie comes out for sale when it hits the home video market. The challenge now is to guess how soon it happens. Shrek 2 has just made $125 million at the box office since it opened on Wednesday. It will hit $375 million by the end of its theatrical run, and come to us on DVD and VHS in late-November, just in time for Christmas. Let's see if my Bachelor's of Box Office and Statistical Studies was worth the money.