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Comments

• Posted by Martin Bolton, October 16, 2009 19:44:

  Is that one year for every week that CHESS played on Broadway?
  
  The power of Agnetha, Frida, Michael Tretow, Stig and the boys! Awesome.

  
  
• Posted by John Bernhardt, October 16, 2009 20:34:

  I think many observers would still consider the "Sound of Music" to be the most successful movie musical of all time, based on total ticket sales as opposed to inflated gross dollars ticket sales.

  
  
• Posted by Tony, October 17, 2009 01:00:

  It is amazing! Being an ABBA fan since 1976, I still find it slightly surreal that ABBA (I guess with the help of Mamma Mia) has been on such a high success-level in USA of recent years, that escaped ABBA in their heyday (when basically every other country went wild for all the ABBA goodies that we still love to this day). Cheers, Tony.

  
  
• Posted by Michael, October 17, 2009 01:18:

  "They said you'd never make it, but you finally came through..." That's one in the face of all those critics over the years that said their music was rubbish. And to have made it in perhaps one of the very toughest places of all!! The words I've quoted are from an Australian beer ad for Fosters (circa early 80's) celebrating its success in the hardest market of all, New York!
  

  
  
• Posted by Bernard Danker, October 17, 2009 01:31:

  Simply amazing!
  
  Yes, I know Stig would be so proud.

  
  
• Posted by Tony, October 17, 2009 09:09:

  Hi Michael,
  
  I remember those beer ads.
  
  Cheers, Tony.

  
  
• Posted by Michael Salkeld, October 17, 2009 21:08:

  It will be interesting to see how it pans out in terms of cinema attendances , not long ago they ran a chart of
  Most popular films based on cinema attendees (not based on inflation related box office receipts)and the Sound of Music was way ahead of Star Wars just behind Gone with the wind, films like ET were no where.

  
  
• Posted by Gary, October 18, 2009 02:05:

  I'm not sure if there is a list of most popular films by bums on seats, but you can see a list where the total has been adjusted for inflation here (US and Canada only): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_films_in_the_United_States_and_Canada
  
  The Sound Of Music is at #3 behind the original Star Wars ar #2 and Gone With The Wind at #1. E.T. incidentally is at #4. Mamma Mia! is nowhere.

  
  
• Posted by Michael Salkeld, October 19, 2009 22:54:

  The program I saw was a couple of years ago now but it was billed as the definitive count down of all time most popular films based on cinema attendees I cant remember whether it included DVD sales as well,but probably did.
  
  ET was no 20 star wars no 5 I think Snow white and the seven Dwarfs was above star wars,
  The sound of music no 2 Titanic was in the top ten.
  I remember when star wars came out there was a documentary in the UK where a studio executive when question said he wasn’t sure whether it was more popular than the sound of music, but it had definitely done better than Jaws. So it rings true to me.with what was said at the time.