And this is a Mental Floss video. Today, I'm gonna answer Bradley Stein's big question:

歡迎收看 Mental Floss 影片。我今天要回答 Bradley Stein 的大問題：

How did eating popcorn become a custom at movie theaters?

看電影吃爆米花是怎麼變成習俗的？

Nowadays, movie theaters depend on popcorn.

現今，電影院的收入很依賴爆米花。

They earn about 85% of their profits and 40% of their total revenue from concessions.

賣爆米花的利潤佔販賣部的 85%，而電影院總收入有 40% 來自販賣部。

But that wasn't always the case.

但並不是從以前就這樣。

Today, I'm gonna tell you how the tradition got started. Let's get started.

今天我就來告訴各位這個傳統從何而來。我們開始吧！

Popcorn as a snack gained popularity in the US during the 19th century.

爆米花在十九世紀的美國變成熱門的零食。

It quickly became associated with the places where it was sold, like fairs and circuses.

很快地，人們就將爆米花和市集或馬戲團等販賣地點聯想在一起。

It was easy to make and transport for these events.

爆米花容易製作又方便運送到這些活動現場。

The first steam-powered popcorn maker was invented in 1885.

第一台蒸氣式爆米花機在 1885 年被發明了。

Eating popcorn in movie theaters, on the other hand, wasn't a custom yet—probably because there wasn't movie theaters yet.

不過，當時沒有在電影院吃爆米花的習慣，可能因為當時也還沒有電影院。

In 1907, there were around 5,000 Nickelodeon theaters in the US, which were often little spaces the size of a storefront that showed moving pictures for 5 cents.

1907 年的美國大約有五千處五分錢劇場，它們通常小如一間店面，播放著門票五分錢的電影。

It became common for food vendors to set up shop near these theaters.

在劇場附近設置攤販也漸趨普遍。

So food was initially part of the movie-going experience, but that changed when a bunch of huge, classy movie theaters emerged in the 20s.

因此食物起先是觀影體驗的一部份，但在 20 年代許多大型、高級電影院出現後，就轉變了。

There were typically signs posted saying no food allowed at the theaters, and they didn't sell food either.

典型電影院會張貼著「禁止食物」的明確標示，也不販售食品。

This was probably because the owners didn't want to deal with messes in their fancy venues, and they also hated fun.

這可能是因為業主不想處理高級戲院裡的髒亂，他們可能也對樂趣反感。

Plus, movie theaters were inspired by actual theaters rather than places like the circus.

再者，電影院的靈感來自於真實劇場，而不是像馬戲團的地方。

Some of them cost millions to build.

有些電影院造價破百萬。

It wasn't uncommon for them to have antiques, chandeliers, marble columns, and expensive carpets.

電影院裡有骨董、水晶燈、大理石圓柱和昂貴的地毯都見怪不怪了。

Popcorn and expensive carpet are not friends.

爆米花和昂貴的地毯並不是一夥的。

Me and popcorn aren't friends, either, because I eat it.

我跟爆米花也不是一夥的，因為我會吃它。

You don't eat your friends.

你不能把朋友吃了。

By the 30s, some theater owners were allowing vendors to keep food stands either inside or directly outside.

到了 30 年代，有些電影院業者開始允許小販在劇院內或外設攤。

One thing that probably helped convince them to do this was that movies now had sound, so eating would no longer be a loud distraction.

說服他們的一個原因可能是電影開始有聲音了，所以吃東西發出聲音也不再是個干擾。

Another big factor was the Great Depression; people could afford to see a movie and spend 5 to 10 cents on a bag of popcorn.

另一個重要因素是「經濟大蕭條」，人們負擔得起看電影的錢，並花 5 到 10 分錢買一袋爆米花。

Plus, the theater owners benefited financially from having popcorn vendors there because the vendors paid them a daily fee.

此外，電影院業者也從爆米花攤販身上獲利，因為攤販每天都要付他們錢。

Even with a fee, vendors earned a lot of money quickly.

即使被抽成，攤販還是很快速地賺到很多錢。

One of the earliest movie theater popcorn vendors was a woman named Julia Braden.

最早開始在電影院賣爆米花的小販之一，是一位叫做 Julia Braden 的女人。

"The popcorn gal," as no one called her.

「爆米花小妞」，沒人這樣叫她啦。

She first started a little stand at the Lynwood Theater in Kansas City.

她一開始是在堪薩斯城的林伍德電影院設攤位，

By the early 30s, she'd expanded her business to 4 theaters and started earning $14,400 annually, which is about $336,000 today.

到了 30 年代早期，她將事業擴展到四間電影院，並開始每年賺進 14,400 美元，大約等同於今日的 336,000 美元。

As I mentioned earlier, this was the Great Depression, so not everyone was profiting like Julia Braden.

我前面說過，那是「經濟大蕭條」時期，所以不是每個人都能像 Julia Breaden 一樣獲利。

Some movie theaters started closing, but many were able to stay open thanks to popcorn.

有些電影院開始倒閉，但也有很多電影院憑藉著爆米花而繼續營業。

They lowered the cost of admission and started earning more through their own concession stands, and so a custom was born.

他們降低入場費，開始從販賣部賺取更多錢，於是，習俗就這樣誕生了。

Thanks for watching Mental Floss video, which was made with the help of all of these popped kernels.

謝謝收看 Mental Floss 的影片，感謝所有幕後夥伴幫忙製作。

If you have a big question of your own that you'd like answered, leave them below in the comments. I'll see you next week.

如果你有需要解答的問題，請在下方留言，我們下週見！