'NEW' MOVIE POLICY NOT NEW; LOCAL THEATERS ALREADY CONTROL R-RATED MOVIE ADMISSIONS

The latest commitment by the nation's movie theaters to card young people seeking admission to R-rated movies is nothing new, local movie theater operators say.

With much fanfare, President Clinton announced Tuesday that he had won pledges from thousands of movie theaters to require photo identification from young people seeking admission to R-rated movies.

The National Association of Theater Owners said it would adopt a new policy requiring young people unaccompanied by adults to show photo identification that they are at least 17 years of age before being admitted to R-rated films.

The association represents about 20,000 screens or 65 percent of the motion picture screens.

The association said it would post notices of its new policy.

But the two companies that operate movie theaters in Cape Girardeau said they already "card" young customers who attempt to buy tickets to R-rated shows.

"It has been corporate policy to card anyone who is 17 or under," said Rob Lehman, area manager for Kerasotes Theatres. The company operates the five-screen Town Plaza Cinema.

"This is standard operating procedure with our theaters," said Lehman. "It has been for 10 plus years. This is nothing new to us," he said from his Springfield office.

Lehman said tickets to R-rated movies won't be issued to young people who aren't accompanied by their parents or other responsible adults.

The adults don't have to sit with the young movie goers and watch the same movie. They just have to buy the tickets.

Ultimately, the movie theater managers have the final authority when it comes to admitting young people to R-rated movies.

On occasion, 18-year-olds have tried to buy tickets for younger friends and been turned away.

"We won't allow that," said Lehman.

Young customers sometimes buy tickets to movies that aren't R-rated and then sneak into an R-rated show at the same theater.

"A lot of times, the kids test us. We send in ushers. They do walk throughs before the movies," said Lehman.

But Lehman said no policy is foolproof. Some young people manage to escape detection and sit through R-rated movies.

Lehman said admission restrictions at movie theaters alone won't keep young people from watching violent movies. Such films can be viewed on video tape or on cable television.

"We show the movies. We don't make them," he said.

Wehrenberg Theatres of St. Louis operates the 14-screen Cape West Cine.

Wehrenberg's Kelly Hoskins said the company requires young people, unaccompanied by adults, to show their driver's licenses to purchase tickets to R-rated movies.

If a driver's license isn't displayed, the young person isn't admitted, Hoskins said.

But Hoskins said Wehrenberg welcomes the national effort to card young movie goers.

The company plans to post the policy to better inform the public about its admission practices and the Motion Picture Association of America's movie rating system.

The rating system was adopted by the Motion Picture Association of America in 1968.