Finally, something in this downturn that looks familiar, (somewhat)

Movie attendance is up! Happens in every recession, but this is looking pretty dramatic: In Downturn, Americans Flock to the Movies

While much of the economy is teetering between bust and bailout, the movie industry has been startled by a box-office surge that has little precedent in the modern era. Suddenly it seems as if everyone is going to the movies, with ticket sales this year up 17.5 percent, to $1.7 billion, according to Media by Numbers, a box-office tracking company.
And it is not just because ticket prices are higher. Attendance has also jumped, by nearly 16 percent. If that pace continues through the year, it would amount to the biggest box-office surge in at least two decades.

"Suddenly" indeed. For most of this recession there's been a drop in all indulgences, large and small. Forget vacations, forget dining out, forget the makeup, oublie the shopping spree. But now, kinda out of the blue, is this interesting phenomenon.

What's up with this?

Well, by way of explaining this surge, and the best line from the article - in fact an outright hilarious and insightful line - is this:

Americans, for the moment, just want to hide in a very dark place, said Martin Kaplan, the director of the Norman Lear Center for the study of entertainment and society at the University of Southern California.

So sad that it's funny, alas. Dark hiding places indeed, but with comfortable seats and 20 minutes of cool previews