Hollywood has been playing this game of using ticket sales. At first glance it seems movies are making money like never before. But once you adjust them for inflation, and consider there are twice as many people on the planet since Gone With The Wind, the numbers are really quite abysmal.
If my wife didn’t insist on date night to the movies, I probably would never watch a movie again in my life. I’ve enjoyed very few since Gladiator in the early 2000’s.
It really isn't fair to compare two different eras. In the 30s, 40s and 50s, there was really no competition for movies other than radio. Today, there are hundreds of ways to spend your entertainment dollar, so yes, less people are going to the movie theaters, but with ticket prices increasing, revenue is at a record high. With an actual IMAX screen or IMAX experience costing up to $20 a ticket, millions are willing to pay.
In addition, many more movies are doing well overseas and with ancillary revenue, movies do fine.
That’s not really much of a comparison. When Gone With the Wind came out movie theaters were the only game in town. Now you can just wait a few weeks and watch it on a giant screen HDTV with theater sound in your living room. I can’t even remember the last time I saw a movie in the theater, but it’s been maybe three years?