Detroit Free Press Tom Walsh column: Pair lower prices to revive Taylor movie theater [Detroit Free Press]

June 29--Who hasn't walked out of a movie theater grousing about just having spent $10 apiece, or more, for tickets -- and $15, or more, for a tub of popcorn and a couple of soft drinks?

Especially if the movie was "Clash of the Titans" or "The Back-up Plan," eh?

Jake Stocker, an enterprising 21-year-old University of Michigan student, and his dad, Ken Stocker, feel your pain.

And they're doing something to ease the drain on moviegoers' wallets by stealing a page -- or several chapters -- from the Southwest Airlines playbook of low prices, no frills and service with a smile.

Tonight at midnight, the Stockers will reopen the former AMC Star Theatre in Taylor as the Spotlight Taylor, with a showing of "Twilight Eclipse." A batch of first-run films starts the following day, and "The Last Airbender," M. Night Shyamalan's new fantasy, launches Friday.

Ticket prices are $7.50 for adults, $6.75 for students, $4.75 for seniors and children, and $4.75 for all matinees. Oh, and a large popcorn and four small drinks will set you back only $6, total.

The Stockers are also using their value model at the recently relaunched Silverdome Drive-in in Pontiac, soon to incorporate the Spotlight brand into its name, and other theaters they are planning to open soon in Macomb County and mid-Michigan.

"Most of the time in movie theaters, people feel like they're getting ripped off," Jake Stocker told me Monday, as he and his father directed workers putting the finishing touches on renovations at the 10-screen Taylor cinema across Eureka Road from Southland Mall.

Stocker plans to graduate in December from U-M with a sports marketing degree. He studied Southwest Airlines' business model in a class he took and was taken by the parallels between movies and airlines. As with airlines, where mergers keep collapsing one brand into another, the original Star Theatre in Taylor was swallowed up in Loews and AMC megadeals, and then neglected as the giant parent chose to focus on upscale multiplexes.

But the Stockers -- Ken, 55, is a longtime entrepreneur in the cleaning business -- see value in well-kept theaters like the Spotlight in Taylor (call 734-287-8222 for movie times and details). And especially at drive-ins, where modern technology eliminates the need for clunky old speakers and the lots can take on a festive, tailgate atmosphere.

"We used to have more than 100 drive-ins in Michigan; now we're down to nine or 10," Jake said. But the Stockers are looking to boost that number as they build the Spotlight brand.

Contact TOM WALSH: 313-223-4430 or [email protected]

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