Cursed With Success
What was once a special event, going to the movies, has become so very mundane now that everyone (roundabout where I live, anyway) carries at least one personal entertainment system on themself at all times and comes home to more. Presented below, a brief Before and After.
This story was originally a submission to FurAffinity's [url=https://www.furaffinity.net/user/thursdayprompt/Thursday Prompt[/url] writing group -------------------------------------------------------
Cursed With Success
By: DankeDonuts
https://dankedonuts.sofurry.com/
"Good day to you all, ladies and gentlefurs! My name is Emmett Q. Harrison, and I am here today at the Pan-American Exposition to introduce to you to the future! I invite you to experience the joys, the thrill, the beauty and the splendor of the supreme leisure experience! All made possible via the marvel of the modern world! An ingenious blend of intuitive engineering and the science of photography! I speak to you of the Cinematograph!"
"I say again the Cinematograph! Conceived by Léon Bouly, perfected by the Brothers Lumière, it was the star attraction of last year's Paris Exposition! The toast of the Continent! Now, this eighth wonder of the world has come to in the bosom of America, right here in Buffalo, New York, U S of A!"
"And just what does a Cinematograph do, you ask? Why, it projects moving pictures big and beautiful enough for a whole crowd to see! No stooping over a tiny box! No turning a crank until you your wrist goes sore! Sit yourself down in peace and comfort and allow my able assistant to do all the work! Nothing can compare to the brightness of color! To the sharpness of moving images projected a whopping five feet high! Did you hear me back there at the popcorn fritter stand? I said five feet high! Tall as any Fur you're likely to meet!"
"And oh, what images! You will see waves crashing into the Italian coast! You will see the famed Orient Express rolling out of the station! You will see prizefighters boxing and trick riders plying their art! And more besides! Just on the other side of these two doors, my friends, the world will open up her whole bounty to you! Best of all, each of the ten moving pictures I have to show you today features nearly a minute of footage! Believe it! And it all costs just one small dime!"
"I stand before you a Gopher who has travelled all across this great country and set paw in no less than twelve foreign nations! And I am here to tell you there is absolutely nothing else like a motion picture theater in any corner of the globe! I guarantee you the moving picture will change the world! But why wait for time to prove my words true when you can see for yourselves right and right now? For only the cost of one measly little dime!"
"How about you, my good fur? How would you like to witness the busy streets of London with your very own eyes?... You would!... Excellent, excellent! Allow me to shake your hand of a Fur who's about to take their first step into tomorrow! Right this way, friend, right this way!"
"That'll be just one dime."
. . .
"They tore down another theater, huh? Whatever. I haven't been to one in... how long? It's way too expensive nowadays. Ten bucks for a matinee? Come on! And there's always, always someone gabbing on their phone the whole time. Plus, there's so many ads you gotta get through just to get to the trailers. And any of those I wanted to see, I saw online already. They drop on my newsfeed feed the day they come out."
"This Gopher has better things to do than set foot in a theater. Like maybe find something new to binge watch on Netflix."