Sometimes a story so important comes along that you must drop everything else you're doing to work on it: Vanity Fair contributing editor and media enemy-maker Michael Wolff was just told by the NYPD to leave a LES movie theater or be arrested, because he brought in his own "fancy juice." We asked a Sunshine Cinema employee if it was normal to call the police if someone brings in their own juice. "We're not saying anything about this, OK?" she replied. Yet somehow Rupert Murdoch's biographer and the founder of Newser didn't know that one has to sufficiently obscure outside food and drink in movie theaters to avoid the obscene price gouging at the snack stand.
Wolff tweeted that he was trying to see Whit Stillman's newest film, and that the juice in question is an $8 bottle of Juice Press' "Fountain of Youth" variety. The writer and his companion were turned away without a refund for the $26 tickets. Though the "no outside goods" policy is clearly visible at the ticket booth, Wolff's incident sparked a nerve with moviegoers who have long been sick of the 3000% markup on kernels of corn and bring in their own snacks.
We've reached out to Sunshine's parent company, Landmark Theaters, to determine if calling the police is a standard response to bringing in outside food or drink. Until we hear back, enjoy these Michael Wolff/JUICEGATE-related tweets.
OMG someone just told me that someone told them that @MichaelWolffNYC was shot by the cops for smuggling jews into the movies. Only in NY!
— SpragueD (@SpragueD) April 28, 2012
A bag of juice has finally accomplished what thousand of humans have attempted and failed: to bring down Michael Wolff.
— Choire Sicha (@Choire) April 28, 2012
.@MichaelWolffNYC I am sympathetic. I always fear the sound of me opening my lemonade can will get me busted
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 28, 2012
Police: "your trespassing with your juice." Me: "This is a commerical establishment. I've paid. I'm not doing anything illegal. "
— Michael Wolff (@MichaelWolffNYC) April 28, 2012