Why did all the old cinema houses die out?

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• mame 11 years ago

  Ask konadu Agyeman and the husband.

  Ask konadu Agyeman and the husband.

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• Mac Darling 11 years ago

  Esther Doe, two years of research, did you say? and you came out with this?
  You did not even mentioned Palladium Cinema, opposite Wesley Methodist Church, in Accra, which was one of the most popular cinema after Opera, also ...
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  Esther Doe, two years of research, did you say? and you came out with this?
  You did not even mentioned Palladium Cinema, opposite Wesley Methodist Church, in Accra, which was one of the most popular cinema after Opera, also in Acrra.
  You blamed Ghanaians for our lack of maintenance culture and questioned whether the Pyramid in Egypt would have survived in our care.Although, there is some element of truth (in indivudual cases) in our lack of maintenace in our culture,the reason for this is finance.On the state owned institutions,this lack is due to poor programming and greed.
  
  The majority of the Cinemas mentioned in your piece were owned by the Lebanese, notably the Captans. One wonders whether they were made to pay tax on their earning or made to retain their huge profits in the country. My guess is that they filtered most of their profits out of the country into their respective countries with impunity. Just as the Chinese, Malaysians,Lebanese, Nigerians and the rest are still doing in our country.
  
  On the issue of the Pyramid, it is a state owned monument and there is alot of money set aside for its upkeep. If it is left in the hands of foreigners without proper accountability, then it would suffer the same fate of our defunct cinemas.
  
  Do you know how much Ghana is losing in the hands of the Malaysians through telecommunications? Do you know how much gold leaves the shores of Ghana daily in the hands of the Chinese as well as profits from inferior goods? Do you know how many Ghanaians have been enslaved by the operations of these activities? What is Tigo, MTN etc putting back into our infrastructural development.
  
  Yes, modern technology has a role to play in the patronage of these defunct institutions, but that is not the only cause.Most advanced countries are having to deal with the advent of modern technologies, just like us, but their Cinema Industry are weathering the storm.I leave it to you to judge for yourself what is making the difference.
  
  Our leaders and our entire indigenes lack perspicacity and sustainable planning. The sad thing is, we still have not come to that realisation yet and we continue to allow our assets to be fleeced from us.

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• amangotree 11 years ago

  You do not talk about the offspring of the Video revolution: Small independent cinemas! They exist all over the place.
  In Cape Coast Central alone, there are more than 5 independent cinis, which of course are not cinemas, b ...
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  You do not talk about the offspring of the Video revolution: Small independent cinemas! They exist all over the place.
  In Cape Coast Central alone, there are more than 5 independent cinis, which of course are not cinemas, but TV's with gadgets to display the DVDs or Videos.
  You still have the big Cinema at Cape Coast, but people prefer church to films and sports to films.
  
  There is no reason to think, that the video revolution destroyed cinema. It is alive and thriving in Western countries, where everyone owns TV, Gadgets, home-cinemas (sometimes of a quality outmatching any former 1990's cinema). Nonetheless people buy cinema at horrendous prices for the big screen, the seats, the community, the "red carpet".
  What died in the West were the small independent cinemas.
  
  So, Ghana has independent cinis, which have low, very low quality, but they offer any program possible. The DVD-Sellers have more films for sale than ever. One should not worry about film. Once the money is there among the people, it is there. Once someone thinks, people will go to cinema, they will build one again. So far, Silverlight at Accra-Mall charges more than 10 Ghanacedi for a show, now its maybe 15 or 20. Who should afford it?

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• Sheitu 11 years ago

  I think the history could there, but the building (design) can be use for other activities that can attract money to the society.There is time for everything, if cinema time is gone there are still activities they can rebirt ...
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  I think the history could there, but the building (design) can be use for other activities that can attract money to the society.There is time for everything, if cinema time is gone there are still activities they can rebirth the place.We have joyed our time with cinema ( Doing their thing by Charlotte Dada,I told you so,Name them. Please contact Ghana films with all this good movies.Programmes can be organised like( Good old days, to shoot some of these old film. The aged will attend to have fan.

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• Sheitu 11 years ago

  There are more cheaper ways of REBIRTHING this situationsBUT MY GHANAIANS ARE NOT RELIEABLE AND HONEST.

  There are more cheaper ways of REBIRTHING this situationsBUT MY GHANAIANS ARE NOT RELIEABLE AND HONEST.

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• Boss 11 years ago

  Blame Rawlings

  Blame Rawlings

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• physco 11 years ago

  That's a beautiful piece, can't stop reminiscing, like the idiom over to you Joe Lartey....... Loi

  That's a beautiful piece, can't stop reminiscing, like the idiom over to you Joe Lartey....... Loi

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• BEN 11 years ago

  asem be ba dabi ampa. I remember those days in Ghana when we have to que for a mile to watch sholay and the burning train. it put tears in my eyes to see our history being dismantled. I hope and pray to be blessed by the almi ...
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  asem be ba dabi ampa. I remember those days in Ghana when we have to que for a mile to watch sholay and the burning train. it put tears in my eyes to see our history being dismantled. I hope and pray to be blessed by the almighty GOD to bring back our generation.Please, do not let this our homes and our part of life die. It is a history to tell our current generation.GOD bless us all.

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• J KUFFOUR 11 years ago

  you didn't mention Ophir in Korle Gonno now Lighthouse Chapel

  you didn't mention Ophir in Korle Gonno now Lighthouse Chapel

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