Posted on 08/18/2005 10:30:02 AM PDT by Puppage
WALLKILL, N.Y. -- The family of a disabled 7-year-old boy want an apology from a Middletown movie theater, because the manager of the theater threw out their boy for laughing too loudly while watching "March of the Penguins."
The parents of Anthony Pratti said the incident happened at the Loew's cineplex at the Galleria Mall at Crystal Run on Sunday afternoon. Their son has cerebral palsy and autism and was enjoying the movie from his wheelchair when a theater worker said he was laughing too loudly and would have to leave.
Gina Pratti said they would try to have their son laugh more quietly, but the manager wanted him to leave.
The manager said the entire family didn't have to go; just the boy in the wheelchair.
Gina Pratti said they were dumbfounded to think the manager suggested leaving their son outside while they all went back into the movie.
The manager refunded everyone's money.
Gina Pratti and her husband have spent the past three days making phone calls and sending e-mails, trying to get someone from Loews to give them an explanation. She said no one has called back.
A representative of the company told the Times Herald-Record in Middletown on Wednesday that they were looking into the situation.
I wondered about that too. If an autistic or Tourette's Syndrome child is bursting into laughter at points in a movie where that's totally inappropriate, the rest of the theater hears the laughter but has no way of knowing it's coming from a disabled child. It could really ruin normal people's enjoyment of a movie, to hear loud laughter at points where, for example (guessing at the content of this movie), a mother penguin has just realized that her baby is dead.
I remember when movie theaters had "crying rooms" where parents could take their children, watch the movie, and not disturb the other patrons. Those pretty much went the way of the drive-in when the multiplexes became the norm and each new theater had to outdo the rest in terms of numbers of screens.
In order to stop him from laughing they sent him to the next theater over which was showing "Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo".
T,
Didn't think of that. Or maybe he was sedated.
My mother told me once that my father would give me a drop of bourbon to shut me up when I was an infink.
The irony is that today I can talk for hours if my pal Jim Beam is around.
HAHAHA
The pastor called the family a few days later to inform them they were NOT welcome to return.
Actually, it's a great movie! I enjoyed it immensely.
I'm surprised she has those sorts of insights about herself.
I'll be positive and say they probably just knew he would be quiet. Each kid is different you know. My oldest on the one hand has what we call diarrhea of the mouth. But he was a quiet baby. My youngest was neither a quiet baby nor is she a quiet child.
Well said. You nailed it.
Of course moviegoers shouldn't have a movie disrupted....but it is disgusting that the manager is defended here more than the boy. So he laughed loud. Are people that petty that they would have no problem removing a boy with autism and cerebral palsy who is God forbid enjoying himself too much. I would have left if he annoyed me; there's no way I would have taken a little bit of joy away from this kid for a few bucks. Its not that important!
I can just imagine some moviegoer saying: "Ohhh look at the cute penguins. They're so adorable...Huh? What the hell is that noise? Hey kid shut up and get out!!!!"
Although I can see your point. What concerns me is the way he said that they did not have to leave, only the one in the wheelchair.
And, laughing loudly no doubt.
Much to the annoyance of the other patrons waiting to be overcharged on expired baby food...
THANK YOU! COME AGAIN! ping
Geeeze, life isn't tough enough for this family?...hope the theatre chain does something to make this right.
Thanks for pointing out what others seem to miss. If I'm in the theatre, I and the other patrons also have the right to enjoy it. If the boy was disruptive to the enjoyment of the film he should have been removed.
I asked him if he was to CS to confront the kids and he just stared at the floor. So, if you complain about rowdy kids who might whip butt on the manager you get thrown out, but if you complain about handicapped people they get thrown out.
I told the manager what a jerk he was, called the owners of the theater later, no satisfaction, and haven't been back to a theater since.
As, I was just joshing about the "typical movie theater manager". I had that job, myself, about a thousand years ago. We used to entertain the crowds with hand shadows for hours at a time...
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