ORANGE COUNTY’S ESTIMATED WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

There’s nothing like a dose of unbearable heat to boost theater revenues: As temperatures climbed and theaters’ air conditioners hummed, the per screen averages last weekend were the highest they have been in a while. The weather may not have been the only factor contributing to a particularly frenzied box office weekend, though. “Another thing that’s helped is that (media coverage) has kept pictures in front of the public,” said John Krier, president of Exhibitor Relations, citing the controversy over “The Last Temptation of Christ” and the coverage of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” as two examples.

ORANGE COUNTY’S ESTIMATED WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Movie (National ranking) Weekend Gross Screens/Avg. Weeks (Studio) (National) (National) Released 1.Betrayed (2) $111,292 11/$10,117 2 (MGM/UA) ($5.5 million) (1,099/$5,001) 2.A Fish Called Wanda (3) $102,372 11/$9,307 8 (MGM/UA) ($5.1 million) (1,187/$4,294) 3.Young Guns (7) $92,481 16/$5,780 4 (20th Century Fox) ($4.1 million) (1,399/$2,386) 4.Die Hard (4) $71,849 12/$5,987 8 (20th Century Fox) ($4.8 million) (1,461/$3,262) 5.Tucker (10) $69,302 7/$9,900 4 (Paramount) ($2.3 million) (706/$3,299)

SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.