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I was burglarized last week and they took two big speakers out of their enclosures and an amp. So I guess I will break down and get that alarm that I should have had installed when I bought the place. I have decided on a silent alarm with all the doors/windows alarmed and with the added benefit of microphones in three strategic locations. The alarm will call my cellphone and I will be able to hear what is going on inside. I may take the time to call the Sheriff's Office before I drive the 1/5 mile to the theatre from my house, but their response time is much longer than mine.

I was wondering what you all have?

Just a regular Alarm with door sensors on front and back door and lots of motion detectors. including booth door sensors.

Also listen for cars with loud bass stereos in them and you wil find your speakers.

[This message has been edited by GTEntertainment (edited April 15, 2002).]

Welcome to the club! I can't tell you how many theater service calls I've been on where they report "no bass" and I get there and find "no speakers"!

9 times out of ten it's either the janitors or a new employee (inside job).
If you use microphones you'll need to post signs saying something to the effect: "audio monitoring on premises" for your legal protection.

For the speakers, you may want to tie each of them into the alarm system with a proximity switch. For your own safety, please don't beat the Sheriff's deputy to the theatre if you believe a burglary is in progress.

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Telephone: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

If you beat the cops there, watch the place and get a description or plate number. DO NOT go into a building you believe is being burglarized. Even if you shoot in self-defense a crack-head sporting a cheap 9mm coming at you in your own place, you'll spend the rest of your life either doing time or paying off the lawyer so you won't. All they can take is stuff. Your health and the trust of your customers will be there long after the speakers, money, or whatever else has been replaced.

That being said, I have a basic El cheapo Radio Shack alarm system I installed myself with auto dialer and two sirens. One siren is outside, one is inside for the bad guy's listening pleasure should he get into my office. Alarms are great, but spend some bucks on good locks, back door barricades and signage. A video camera at the snack bar gives someone casing the joint the idea his image might be kept. Anyone who seems to be unusually interested in places or doors he shouldn't be should be approached and asked if there's anything you can help him with. Get those back doors lit up and leave on a light in the lobby.

Sorry you got hit. It takes awhile to get over it, but don't do anything that might get you hurt or arrested.

Sorry to hear of your burglary--I have been very lucky over the years as most of the neighboring businesses have been broke into--mostly by kids and young adults--I have never been as yet and contribute it to the closed circuit camera system I picked up at Sam's Club years ago--I actually use it so I can cut staff early and still not miss a sale--but I have the "warning" stickers in the door ways and never tell people if I record or not. It does have record capabilities and the lapse time recorder is not that expensive either. I never heard of a smart group of thieves "hitting" a theatre, just kids, and the thought of them being taped is a deterrant.

OhhhCrap! I'm sorry to hear that! I missed this post for some reason. I don't give a dang about burlar alarms but I sure care that Donna got busted into! Hang in there Donna!

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Mike Hurley
www.bigscreenbiz.com

Like Ken mine were stolen by a projection person working the late shift letting his buddy in to jack them while he made sure the janitors were not in those auditoriums

Never recovered those speakers stolen a few years ago. Have since installed an alarm system and video surveillance.

Last night someone broke into the little hand hole in my box office and stole a bunch of small signs (prices, no food..., balcony closed, pay inside, closed) and about 30 tickets from my Automaticket machine before it jammed. The adult male responsible kept trying to get more tickets in the ten full minutes he was reaching through that hole. Got him on the surveillance, but lighting was poor due to it being 1:15am. The box office itself is not alarmed, but the window is. The window wasn't broken, so no alarm. The deputies might have an idea who it was.

P.S. I do know all about being safe and waiting for the Sheriff's Office. After all these years I'll tell you, I am a retired S.O. sergeant, with 20 years service in a high crime, metro area.

Sorry to hear that you've been hit again. Even though it seems odd for the person to take your signage, at least it wasn't anything major.

Assuming that you have kept track of your ticket numbers, you should be able to tell if someone brought in one of the stolen tickets.

I'm sorry that happened to you again, Burney, but all I can think of is what an idiot? Does he really think that you don't keep track of your ticket numbers? Really obvious to know how many tickets were stolen and which numbered ones they are. Not likely he could ever use them at your place as you will be on the lookout for them. How many people buy advance tickets and show up at the theater with a ticket in their hand already anyway? Just incredibly obvious.

You lost almost nothing and he is looking at at least a misdemeanor and possibly a felony depending upon the maximum value of the tickets stolen which he is unlikely to ever be able to use. At least you could get your signs and small stuff back if he tries to use the tickets.

I don't know how you do it but we always assigned a different color set of tickets to each feature so that any thief would also have to know what colors that you were using for that film and come at the correct time of day. We also had our automaticket machine on a switch and turned the power off every night just so no one could play with the machine and cause a missing ticket sequence to mess up our box office reports.

OK I'm still laughing and you've made my day a bit better for sharing your story. Thanks!

oh geez! Beats a real burglary! But sounds like your idiot crook could live in my town. It's our kind of small town stupid.

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Michael Hurley
Impresario

I eliminated the green General admit tickets today and replaced them with Red ones. The pink tickets he stole were only for seniors and children anyway, but I swapped them also. I rarely presell tickets, usually just use a gift certificate instead. I always tear tickets at the box office, so perhaps, those 20 general tickets could have turned into 40, but as everyone agrees, that is highly unlikely since I will be on the lookout for the tall, long-armed idiot, and my tickets.

Good idea about putting the machine on a switch. Will do that soon.

I hope they catch this one, send him to jail or better yet prison (It is technically a burglary and a felony here in Calif to enter a building with the intent to steal--entry does not require the entire body), and his cellmates find out his crime!! Priceless.

Think about checking out Ebay and changing your camera to one that has inferred for night. These are the cameras with the little plastic bubbles all around the lens or a line of them to either side. They do not emite any light you can see but they can really brighten up the picture when it is dim. I have them on my boxoffice camera for this reason.

What an idiot that thief was! Reminds me of the conclusion I always reached after watching that wonderful TV show "America's Dumbest Criminals": they HAD to be crooks because they were too dumb to do anything else! --and they got caught being would-be crooks anyway! You almost have to pity them.