Annoyed theatergoer ejected after grabbing cell phone and tossing it

[Onkel Neal]

My hero. Cell phone and the idiots who use them during a film and a big reason why I almost never go to the theaters any more.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-...nd-tossing-it/

In the very latest incident of someone using a cell phone when they should have been watching a cultural performance, Kevin Williamson decided he'd do something about it.

No, he wasn't one of the actors on stage. Nor was he conducting an orchestra.

He was merely trying to enjoy "Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812." This is a musical based on "War and Peace." Of course it's loosely based. If it wasn't, it would last until Google Glass is available to the public.
The one incessant thing about this particular performance was the alleged cell phone use by a woman seated close by.

Cell phone use is -- as always in the theater -- expressly forbidden during this performance. However, this was New York, where people think they can (and should) do what they like.

As Williamson told the Gothamist, the woman was a member of a group that was already being a touch disruptive.

"It looked like she was Googling or something. So I leaned over and told her it was distracting and told her to put it away. She responded, 'So don't look,'" he explained to the Gothamist.

[AVGWarhawk]

I went with my daughter to see Iron Man 3 last weekend. Sure enough, mid-movie, out came a bonehead's cellphone. Blinding light and texting away. Idiot.

[Gerald]

It is rare to encounter an idiot like that nowadays.

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Vendor

It is rare to encounter an idiot like that nowadays.

Not in my world. Cellphones are a constant pain quite honestly. People texting at stoplights ignoring the traffic signals. Open texting and call taking at restaurants. People talking on the earphone looking thing from Star Trek as they shop. They look like they are talking to themselves. Taking calls as they drive totally oblivious to the idea that they are driving. Just last week, as I noted above, cellphone pulled out at the movies. Stopping just about anywhere to post some nonsense on Facebook or Twitter. The cellphone trumps all for most people.

[Gerald]

People must have the sense of reality, when it should deal with the cell phone, and responsibility.

[Skybird]

Small range jamming device run by the theatre.

Maybe a physical solution, like a Faraday cage?

Or having a sign at the entrance prohibiting cellphones inside, and staff of the house escorting any ignorant antisocials out.

Or interrupting the movie, switching on the lights and displaying row and seat of the antisocial in large letters on the screen, and then wait until the dust has settled.

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Vendor

People must have the sense of reality, when it should deal with the cell phone, and responsibility.

Most don't. As the author of article writes, people are mesmerized. Any sense or sensibility is tossed out the window as tunnel vision pulls the individual from any notion of reality. People immerse themselves into what is running on their phone. The world is tune out. Decorum is shot to hell.