The end of a great KC company...
 

China firm buys AMC to form world's largest cinema chain

http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/21/busine...html?hpt=hp_t3


AMC Theaters was one of the great KC based companies for decades. Founded by Stan Durwood who built the company from scratch and treated his employees lke family. My Dad worked for AMC for 34 years. He started at 15 taking tickets and sweeping floors and when he left the company 34 years later he was a Senior Exec. VP in charge of theater construction world wide. AMC paid for him go get both his bachelor's and master's degree.

Durwood was one of the original pioneers for the idea of the now P&L district. He loved KC and wanted to build up downtown. When companies were moving out of downtown he stayed put. When he passed away AMC took on a more typical corporate atomosphere but now it seems it has gone the way of the dragon.

I grew up with AMC. I remember when the Empire and Midland theaters showed movies back in the day. I know they will still be around in some form or another but it's just a little disheartening to see one of the KC companies like AMC now owned by foreign ownership

Does this mean you'll be able to buy egg rolls at the concession stand?

on a related note................. The Chinese own Symantec Anti-virus software. If you are still using it for virus protections, stop.

Brought to you buy America's #1 trade partner
That puts the antifreeze in your dog's food
the lead paint in your child's toy & drywall that kills

Sounds like the company will change very little.....

I remember seeing Empire Strike Back opening weekend at the Midland back when i was 9. Good times....Back in those days big movies only played in 1 theater in the entire area.

I remember seeing some really cheesy stuff like Meteor play at the Empire. LOL

I saw Star Wars and Superman for the first time at the Empire. I remember when Empire Strikes Back was playing at the Midland, my Uncle, Cousin and I would go up in the balcony where you weren't allowed to sit and duck down and make all the noises and stuff in the movie and crack up at the people looking around like WTF is that?

It scares me about the future of this country, not just this one thing, but it seems like there has been a lot more of this nations earliest root type businesses that are now owned abroad.

If they don't own the business outright they own just about everything the business sells.

This is globalization.

This doesn't mean the end of AMC in Kansas City and there's only a few corporations that I can think of that are originally Kansas City. Hallmark being one of them.

Hallmark, Sprint (though now in OP), Tension Envelope, DST, American Century

Kansas City will continue to lose companies to Kansas as long as guys like Sly James and Kansas City voters continue to vote. I'm not saying that was the case with AMC though.

Actually I believe AMC was or is moving to OP.

AMC is building their new headquarters right off Nall.