SCRANTON -- A few film buffs have been complaining about a recent half-price promotion at one local theater.
The half-off promotion involved the Iron Horse Movie Bistro theater in downtown Scranton and a group of five local radio stations.
According to the radio station that offered the promotion, about 20 people learned they'd pay more than full price for half-price certificates.
When we brought one man's complaint to the movie theater's parent company, the CEO admitted there was a mistake.
In September, Heath Hines from Shickshinny saw a promotion on the web page for five local radio stations including Magic 93, a half-price coupon for four movie tickets to the Iron Horse Movie Bistro in downtown Scranton.
It was a $54 value for just $27.
The Iron Horse promises the experience of gourmet meals, cocktails, and comfort for moviegoers.
So Heath treated his girlfriend and another couple to the "Thor: Ragnarok" movie at the Iron Horse.
"It's a nice place. They have nice seating, so I figured it would be a great time out for us," he said.
It wasn't.
Heath noticed movie tickets at the Iron Horse were just $6 each.
So instead of getting $54 worth of tickets for his $27, he got only $24 worth, meaning he ended up paying $3 more with the radio station promotion then he would have paid if he bought tickets at the door.
"I was furious," Hines said. "In fact, we even thought about not even watching the movie. I went out, asked for my certificate back, and just paid the $24 for the tickets."
The CEO of Phoenix Entertainment in Tennessee, which owns the Iron Horse Movie Bistro, took responsibility for the mix-up, emailing us:
"We dropped our admission price after Cumulus radio Started selling their gift certificates, Cumulus was notified of this change but misunderstood and thought the $6 price was only for matinees. We canceled the program a few weeks ago and will make any gift certificate holder whole."
Those with certificates can now choose between a $27 refund, or nine movie tickets instead of four.
Heath Hines will take the tickets.
"I'll probably still go back there just because it's a nice theater."