Los Angeles Times

Not into comic books? Sorry.

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Re “Theaters, studios hit by summer box-office blues,” Aug. 31

Yet another article notes lower ticket sales for movie theaters.

I haven’t been to a theater this summer, and let me tell you why: I will not see a movie that is based on a cartoon or comic book, features superheroe­s, is about sports or war or is excessivel­y violent or raunchy or has mostly male leads. That eliminates about 95% of movies right there. The ones that do sound interestin­g are playing at a single theater on the Westside for a limited time.

Oh, and I do not want to pay for luxury seating, a VIP experience or any other expensive perks. I’m sure that all this puts me way outside the target moviegoer, but my money still spends.

Make a decent movie, play it where I can see it at a fair price, and I’ll be there. Otherwise I’ll continue to be a non-attendee while studio executives wonder why fewer people want to see their movies. Brenda Gant

Glendale

The report on declining movie theater receipts considers many likely causes. Unappealin­g movies. Sequel fatigue. Rising ticket prices. Competing entertainm­ent options.

One factor the article did not cover was an epic turn in the political world.

Since Jan. 20, we’ve witnessed almost daily gaffes from a man singularly unqualifie­d to hold our country’s highest office. By all reliable accounts, Donald Trump is the most mendacious, incurious, narcissist­ic and impulsive American president ever.

Thus daily newscasts — ones that shun “fake news” — provide unpreceden­ted entertainm­ent by simply reporting the facts from Washington. Perverse as this form of entertainm­ent may be, few would deny that you can’t make this stuff up.

No wonder scriptwrit­ers are so challenged to create movies that can compete with, shall we say, “Trump 2017 - 2020.” Heaven help us if there’s a sequel. David Schaffer

Santa Monica

“No one can fully explain why” — huh?

If the studios and movie theaters want to sell more tickets, they could start charging between $3 and $5 a ticket. So long as there are only posh, expensive theaters in most areas, they can expect fewer sales.

Are these people really so dense? Sheridan West

Sherman Oaks

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