The building reflects Soviet Era hospitality and construction. The large structure was once considered futuristic and a shining triumph of Communism. The hotel was one of the most modern buildings in Krakow in 1989 when it finally opened. It was big and was openly derided for its size. And that it looks like cinder blocks on top of Lincoln logs. Today it is used as large billboard but the ground floor is where a trendy bar is located. Photo: Zygmunt Put Zetpe0202 (Wikipedia)
According to Radio Poland, Titanic: The Exhibition is at Kraków’s Forum Hotel. According to the news report:
The exhibition also documents the stories of a group of passengers with Polish names such as Ostrowska, Paw?owski and Paw?owicz. The victims of the tragedy included a Polish Roman Catholic priest named Józef Montwi??, who was traveling to the United States to take over a parish in the state of Massachusetts. He is said to have refused a place on a lifeboat.
Premiere Exhibitions, which owns RMS Titanic Inc, recently announced its earnings for the first fiscal quarter of 2015 saw revenue decrease by 16.2% compared with first quarter last year. According to the press release:
Total revenue decreased 16.2% to $7.5 million compared to $8.9 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2014. Exhibition revenue was negatively impacted by a decrease in admissions revenue as a result of fewer touring exhibitions achieving profit share participation despite comparable average attendance per day. This was only partially offset by higher non-refundable license fees. Merchandise revenue was negatively impacted by a decrease in total attendance for semi-permanent and partnered exhibitions along with a decline in average retail sales per attendee.
Average attendance per exhibition day fell by 9.4% to 462 compared to same quarter last year with 510. They had more exhibition days during the quarter compared to last year. Some costs went down due to lower compensation costs.
So what does it all mean? Well Michael Little the interim president writes:
Our top-line performance reflects weaker demand for Titanic and Bodies in established venues such as Las Vegas and Orlando, lower average ticket prices across all semi-permanent locations, along with fewer of our domestic touring partnered exhibitions achieving profit share participation. These factors led to admission and merchandise sales declines that were only partially offset by higher license fees for rented exhibitions touring internationally. The year over year decrease in total revenues, coupled with rising exhibition costs, yielded a reduction in adjusted EBITDA and a net loss for the Company during the three-month period.
So things are not rosy over at Premiere. Fewer people are going to their exhibitions which translates into fewer merchandise sales. As for the Titanic artifacts collection, the official line is “Premier continues to explore strategic alternatives in conjunction with J.P. Morgan, however, there is nothing definitive to announce at the present time. In addition, the Company expects its independent appraisers to complete new appraisals of the entire Titanic collection, including all the artifacts and intellectual property obtained and developed subsequent to the last appraisal in 2009, over the next month.”
The nugget here is a new appraisal is being undertaken but not just of the Titanic artifacts but the intellectual property developed as part of this collection. That tells me they are trying to sweeten the pot. They will not only get the entire Titanic collection but all the other proprietary materials as well. It also makes sense if you are asking big money people to pony up millions of dollars.
1. Mystery Solved? Titanic Exhibit That Closed Due To Water Damage Was Atlanta Or Las Vegas The Huffington Post reported earlier this week on the shutdown and said it was at the Atlanta exhibition. They claimed to have spoken to someone in the ticket office that confirmed it had been closed for less than a day and water damage not serious. However NBC Nightly News ran a report that night saying the exhibit involved was the Luxor in Las Vegas. So which one is correct? Only the mummy knows for sure.
Sources:
1.Titanic Exhibition Temporarily Closed Due To Water Damage(7 Nov 2013,Huffington Post)
2. Water Damage Closes Titanic Memorabilia Collection-Video(7 Nov 2013,NBC News)
2. Celine Dion revealed in an interview that she initially did not want to sing “My Heart Will Go On” and did not like it much. She only made one recording of it, a demo, that was used in the movie and on the soundtrack. Of course she adds she has sung it “three million times after that live.” Although she has had many other hits, the song has been identified with her. But she has one request: not to play it at her funeral.
Source Celine Dion: Please Don’t Play The Titanic Theme Tune When I Die(8 Nov 2013,Radio Times)
3. Thomas Zaller, a former employee of Premiere Exhibitions that currently runs Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition, is being sued alleging he used protected information and some of Premiere’s materials to create a copy of its exhibition in Macau, China. “Premiere said Zaller used underwater videos owned by Premier and photos of Premier’s Singapore exhibition to promote its competing exhibition on the Internet, in the media and at trade shows in the United States.” Zaller sought dismissal of the suit against him and his companies claiming the federal court lacked jurisdiction and not the right venue. U.S. District Judge William Duffey Jr. ruled that the court had jurisdiction over the trademark infringement claims against Zaller and the U.S. entities, but dismissed Zaller’s Singapore-based company as a defendant, finding that it had acted outside the United States and had no interaction with U.S. consumers,” reported Courthouse News Service.
Source: Titanic Exhibit Creators Pick Up Steam in Court(7 Nov 2013,Courthouse News Service)
Yesterday I noted that there was chatter on the Internet about a Titanic exhibition that was shut down by water damage. A sign was posted saying the exhibit was closed but failed to disclose the location. I have yet to see a full picture that shows not only the door it was on but can show exactly what building it is attached to. I have seen one picture, actually one that seems to accompany the water sign, that seems to indicate it might be the Luxor Las Vegas. Right now Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition is there and the picture also just catches the name Bodies. Bodies, another Premiere exhibition, is also at the Luxor as well. Earlier speculation is that it was either in Belfast or England.
UPI now has a story in its odd section that seems to confirm the Las Vegas angle. UPI reports “It was like 1912 all over again as a Las Vegas exhibition dedicated to displaying artifacts from the Titanic was closed due to water damage.Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition was taking place at the Luxor Hotel Casino in Las Vegas when the following sign appeared: “Titanic the Artifact exhibition is currently closed due to water damage.”
However it seems they are just relying on Tweets and blog postings. I have yet to see any concrete proof that the Titanic exhibit in Las Vegas has been shut down. I took a look at the Luxor site and then clicked on the purchase tickets section. That connects to Ticketmaster which shows tickets available for the Titanic exhibit 7 November on. There is no notice of closure. I looked at the official Luxor tweets and found no mention of the exhibit being closed either.
Now if someone out there can state exactly the date, time and place this occurred, please drop me a note here at Titanic News Channel. I suspect this is looking to be a gag since we cannot seem to find hard evidence this actually occurred. I will update when I have more information.
Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition will be at the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium starting 16 November and runs to 20 April 2014. Tickets: $15 adults/$11.50 for kids 3-13/$13.50 seniors (62+). Hours: Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; weekends 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission includes Titanic exhibit and admission to rest of Science center. Further information is at sfsciencecenter.org.
Premiere Exhibitions, which owns RMS Titanic Inc, recently announced its earnings for the first fiscal quarter of 2015 saw revenue decrease by 16.2% compared with first quarter last year. According to the press release:
1. Mystery Solved? Titanic Exhibit That Closed Due To Water Damage Was Atlanta Or Las Vegas
