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No Audiophiles in Hollywood

A thought just came to me that a lot of movies show us the lives of fictional people doing the everyday things that real people do. However, we never see anyone sitting down and listening to a high end system.

The only thing that I can remember is when the billionaire played by Robert Redford put on an LP on what appeared to be a high end turntable in the movie "Indecent Proposal".

I have never seen exposed tubes on-screen, or an amp of any type for that matter. Big speakers, fuggedaboudit...it seems hifi does not fit the decor scheme of movie sets, or more realistically, audiophiles are rarer on earth than Klingons and Romulans and hollywood does not know of their existence.

It would seem that some of the well heeled actors, directors and producers would own a killer 2 channel system and periodically include one in a scene when the character has discretionary income.

We've all seen scenes with the wife complaining about the husband always watching sports, but never complaining about him pampering his hi-fi rig.

We've all seen characters with automobiles and other toys that we've envied, but never a stereo system to make you salivate.

Anyone ever see a hi-fi system onscreen worth mentioning?

Just a thought.
128x128mitch4t
mbiker340
3 posts
 
It's an image thing. The studio will pay for what the the producer thinks the audience will notice or want to see.
I worked in a store that sold telescopes, and quite often studios would rent a huge telescope for about 20% of it's retail value (sometimes the owner would cut the fee for a credit).
The studios must not feel that the audience will notice or care about high end equipment, especially since it's a bit esoteric, and not as noticable as a huge telescope or an italian sports car. I have noticed, as in Austin Powers spoof type movies, that entertainment packages that include moving beds and automatic lighting changes get some play.
I guess high end audio isn't sexy enough.
rottenclam
59 posts
 
A couple of additions to this thread:

1. In Sixteen Candles, when panning over Jake's house after the big party has occured, you can see a Nakimichi Dragon malfunctioning.

2. In the first Punisher movie (with Dolph Lungren) you can see, once again, a Nakimichi Dragon in the house of the mobster that the Punisher kills.

3. In a Chinese cop thriller called Internal Affairs, there is a scene near the beginning of the film that takes place in an audio store. Two characters (one being a salesman and the other being a customer) actually sit down and listen to some hi-fi. There is tube gear, Thiels, B&Ws, etc. They listen to some female vocals and the sales guy talks about "letting the sound wash over you".

Internal Affairs is actually a good movie, and as far as I know, it is the only example of true-to-life audiophilia ever making it to the big screen.
kpinneo
10 posts
 
I'm convinced most of them just don't know what they're missing -which is great,in a way- how else would I ever have a chance of one-upping them?
biomimetic
252 posts
 
In Ghost World and in American Splendor characters listen to 78's.
clf
6 posts
 
just an add-on to Rottenclam post : the exact title is "InFernal Affairs". And incidentally, the "dealer" promotes Esat Asian production as being as good as the "occidental" one, then refers the buyer to another shop where the item's cheaper. Beside this small variation (but it has its self-explanation in the movie drama), it is indeed very true-to-life...
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