• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, April 7, 2011

 

Seems that AMC Theaters is complying with one big movie studio's request to help out our hunger with a real-time combination of entertainment and food.

Sony Pictures Entertainment encouraged AMC to make healthier snacks available, instead of just chips, popcorn and fizzy sugary drinks, which, when combined with movies, builds the wrong kind of bulk -- especially among kids.

As far as entertainment in our homes, I'm wondering this: with DVRs and the ability to stop any TV show for any length of time, does this mean a similar problem exists -- that more time to snack on the wrong stuff is raising doctors' eyebrows when it comes to TV watching and food?

The movie industry concern goes to a big health issue of its core audience: teenage obesity. In that regard, if we are worried about the fattening of our youth outside the house, perhaps we'd better think about entertainment inside as well.

That said, we should probably ditch our DVRs and go back to more live TV programs. Well, there's a shorter window of time -- due to those commercials -- to grab a juice box, power bar, or smoothie. (I'm sure long lines at the movie concession stand could dissuade people as well).

Most U.S. TV homes -- around 60% or so -- still don't have a DVR. That means just a short two to three minute commercial pod to grab your pretzels, your french fries dipped in gravy, your deep-fried Pop Tart.

It's not just AMC Theaters making changes, apparently. Other chains are taking a less menu-changing approach: just raising prices of fattening snacks hoping to make them prohibitively expensive to buy. (How clever and capitalistic!)

Deadline.com says this price-raising activity is kind of like what is done with cigarettes. Problem is people still smoke. So I'm not too sure whether this will stop the at-any-price hunger pains in a movie theater.

TV marketers don't have the same problem. You can eat whatever you want in your own home while watching your favorite primetime autopsy.

Maybe TV marketers of the future will push holographic mobile messaging floating in your kitchen during whatever entertainment breaks you take -- all to make TV marketers whole on their media buys.

Many years from now, I look forward to the day when images of maltitol-sweetened chocolate almond bars dance above my head -- just out of reach -- almost making me forget to return to watching that TV medical drama starring Miley Cyrus on CBS.