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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 11, 1994)
Sarah Diky Drinks to be on the house during KZUM fund-raiser iving off campus this year has brought out the frec-food hunter in me. Or it might be better to say that living off campus has made me quite a bargain shopper. I don’t know what it is about living in an apartment that causes one to try to be as thrifty as possible. But it’s an obvious fact that on the whole, college students arc probably the most unlikely big monetary do nors to any cause. But maybe if beer and music were involved, helping a good cause would seem like a smaller commitment. Saturday at Cabana’s, 226 S. Ninth St., drinking,dancing and donating is an all-in-one affair. Robert and Wayne Cramm and local deejay Prince de la Kim will spin urban and Top 40 records. Cabana’s will provide the bev erages. And the $5 cov er charge will ben efit KZUM. “We also have a lotof music togive away Saturday,” s'aid Caroline Tctschncr, pro gram coordinator for KZUM. Tetschncr said “Cramm Jamm ” was the radio station’s largest fund-raiser. KZUM, 89.3 FM, is Lincoln’s com munity radio station, which plays music from a variety of genres: reggae, New Age, jazz, blues, urban, hip-hop, alternative and gospel. “Basically, if it’s there, we’re do ing it,” Tetschner said. For more than 15 years, the station has provided Lincoln with informa tive, educational and entertaining pro gramming without commercials, she said. Since 1987, “Cramm Jamm” has generated more than $30,000 in in come for the radio. A lot can be jammed into Saturday night at Cabana’s starting at 9 p.m. Cram it in this weekend. Ducy is a senior news-editorial major and the Daily Nebraskan Arts & Entertainment editor. Plenty of Coke, but no nuts at Douglas Theaters Editor’s Note: This article con cludes a three-part question-and answer session on the Douglas The atres in Lincoln. hethcr in the theater lobby or the theater itself, the average moviegoer is bom barded with smells, sounds and selections of food and bev erages. The following questions and an swers may help moviegoers under stand cinematic cuisine. Why are concession prices so high? “We used to use other theaters as a reference point for our concession prices,” Livingston said. But, since Douglas Theater Com pany now owns the competition, Livingston said, “we can’t compare ourselves to our competition any more.” Believe it or not, there is a justifi able reason for the prices of conces sions that some moviegoers deem to be outrageous. “Since we don’t make money on every picture we play, we use the con cessions to subsidize the box-office,” he said. “The average $1.30 that each cus tomer spends on concessions supports an otherwise risky business.” Why can no one bring in their own munchies or drinks? Many moviegoers have thought about (or actually attempted) bringing in their own snacks to avoid paying the high prices at the concession stand. Aside from the protection of their own sales, the Douglas Theaters have an explanation for the violation of this practice. “We can’t let our patrons bring in food items that have odorous quali ties that might be irritant to other cus tomers,” Livingston said. Why are Coke products offered instead of Pepsi? Livingston said that it was more than just a habit. “Coke has been a great supporter (of several facets) of the movie indus try,” said Livingston. “That’s what got Coke synonymous with the theater going experience.” According to Livingston, Douglas Theater Company buys several Coke products, and receives a good price be cause of its business. “We get a national pricing basis. If we were to make both Coke and Pepsi available to our patrons, neither Pepsi nor Coke would want to give us the national pricing, so all of the sudden we’ve lost that advantage.” Why the limited selection of con cessions? Some moviegoers prefer Ilershey chocolate over Nestle Crunch bars, and others may just want more stuff from the same distributor, such as ev ery variety of M&M’s that has ever been produced. Livingston said that the selection was limited for a variety of reasons, including accuracy of inventory and that the wider variety of selections there are, the greater the chance that the candy will go stale. “However, variety has been in creasing from consumer requests,” Livingston said. W'hy only junk food? Why not a healthier selection? Many moviegoers who frequent the concession stand would like to see a more nutritious selection of snacks and beverages. “There has been a wider distribu tion of healthier drinks like Clearly Canadian,” Livingston said.“But there is still the problem with broken bottles and customer safety.” There is a trend towards bulk dis tribution of nutritious food in dispens ers, Livingston said. “Items like trail mix and peanuts would be available on a flat per-pound basis,” he said. This has been experimented with in other theaters and the results have been very successful, he said. Why must a customer pay full price for a beverage cup, even when it’s only going to be used for water? It is a matter of keeping track of how much of whatever is being sold at each theater. “It’s an inventory control thing.” • Livingston did point out that six ounce courtesy cups were available for free at the concessions counter. —Gerry Beltz and Joe! Strauch. James Mehsling/DN