Rye Brook, NY: Re “Government’s $227 Billion Budget Praised and Criticized” (Feb 3): In her 2023-24 budget, Governor Hochul proposes to increase the state’s $420 annual film and television tax credit million to $700 million for the next 10 years. The Business Council of Westchester strongly supports the Governor. The credit has already been enormously beneficial in fostering the film industry in the county and is essential for the trend to continue. Other states, including New Jersey, are now offering aggressive incentive packages to guide filmmakers on their way. While New York has unique advantages, production companies will go elsewhere if the financial disparity grows too large.
Media production in 2021 generated $1.1 billion in sales, up from $752 million in 2020, and supported 3,784 production and service-related jobs. Local governments collected more than $5 million in hotel sales and occupancy taxes in 2021, and more than $2.4 million in movie permits and property rental fees.
Currently, the credits spotlight is on Yonkers, which has earned the nickname “Hollywood on the Hudson.” Last year, Great Point Studios opened Lionsgate Studios in the heart of downtown, the first element of what will be the largest television and film production facility in the Northeast. The company will open a media arts high school that will allow some of our county’s most disadvantaged children to learn skills that will enable them to work six-figure film production jobs.
We cannot overstate the economic importance of this burgeoning industry to our county. We all have front row seats to the exciting transformation you are powering. BCW calls on our state legislative delegation to support Hochul’s proposal. This is a show that must go on. John Ravitz, Executive Vice President, Westchester Business Council
Forest Hills: Anyone tempted by “scratch off multiplier” lottery ads should remember this elementary school math lesson: Zero times 100 equals zero. alan hirschberg
Staten Island: Eighty years ago, on May 29, we were introduced to Rosie the Riveter as a woman, glorifying and exalting the roles of working women and suggesting that a woman’s femininity need not be sacrificed. This was an issue of women’s empowerment, not race. Myra B. Goodman
Bayonne: Let me echo host Bob Krupoff on the “Grand Avenue” limp. You can and should do better and frankly I wouldn’t miss “WUMO” if that stupidity faded away too! marty wolfson
Manhattan: Totally agree with Voicer Bob Krupoff on “Grand Avenue.” What a boring comic! The Daily News used to run “Curtis.” Why not bring that strip back? I follow it every day on Arcamax and feel like it offers some good comedy, as well as something to think about from time to time. lindsay cohen
Brooklyn: To the host Charles Lavorerio: I agree with you on “Everything Everywhere, Everything at Once.” I tried to watch the movie three times and still only have 30 minutes. What a failure. Now that you’ve summarized it for me, I won’t waste any more time on it. Thank you. Yes, Angela Bassett was robbed. june lowe
Rockaway Park: This is in response to Voicer Richard Reif’s letter about the length of the Academy Awards. It is true that the program can drag on too long. However, having worked in the corporate office of a major film company for 45 years, I can tell you that it’s not just the actors, but also the people behind the scenes who deserve all the credit. The general public is only interested in seeing the stars, but they are only a few of what it takes to show a movie in the theater. Behind these stars there may be hundreds of people who make the image possible and deserve to be recognized: set designers, electricians, musicians, costume designers, makeup artists, food artisans and many others. In case the image is done on location outside of a studio, some of these people may be away from their families for weeks. sharon gabriel
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Bronx: Is It Reckoning Day for Us? Will the hopes and dreams of the Democrats, the media and the rest of the left in America come to fruition? In their minds, will one of the most despised men in all of humanity, the one who has made their miserable lives a living hell, be brought to justice? They have been wringing their hands and waiting in much anger and dismay for nearly seven years. In that time, they have carried out endless hate-filled harassment and abuse of his nemesis. In the end, I believe that former President Trump will prevail. paschal bob
Scarsdale, New York: The time has come. Politics cannot usurp the law, no matter how minor the crime. The law is the law and no one is above it. To Trump’s henchmen, Trump has allegedly broken the law and, as my friend John the cop would say, “got busted.” harvey wielstein
White Plains, NY: I realize Donald Trump carries a lot of nasty baggage with him, but trying to convict a former president for paying money to shut up a porn star for something that’s supposed to have happened many years ago, and having the The federal government ignores bank records showing that China, our most hated enemy, paid money to members of the Biden family, is crazy. joan cocurullo
Utica, New York: So once again, Trump calls on his base to act violently on his behalf as he finally faces the real possibility of consequences for his alleged crimes. What an outrage! How do you dare? In our opinion, Trump should not only be charged and tried for his own actions, but he should be named an accessory in every case where someone is injured or, God forbid, killed as a result of incitement by he! We all know very well what he means by “Protest, Take Back Our Nation!” We’ve heard it before, and we’ve seen what happens. It’s time we kick this loser to the curb! Jeff and Joan Ganeles
Park Ridge, NJ: This letter does not endorse or condemn Donald Trump. He’d be happy if he just left, but he’s still here and thinks he’ll be charged with paying porn star Stormy Daniels shut-up money in 2016 for a 2006 sexual encounter. bells. . Michael Cohen, the Trump attorney who made the payment on his behalf, who was as involved as Trump in this encounter with the exception of the actual sex, is a prosecution witness. One can only imagine what promises were made to Cohen, how candid he will be, and how the prosecution will hide the puppet strings when Cohen testifies. steve ostlund
Brooklyn: Host John Brindisi blames the current state of affairs in this country on the “awake” belief in the separation of church and state. That separation allows him, and anyone else, to practice whatever religion they choose, or none at all, if that is his choice. The reasons for the decline of organized religion in this country are many and have nothing to do with the separation of church and state. It is not the place of government to tell us about God. However, it would be beneficial if the government, and all religious institutions, made ethics a basic tenet of their teachings. ilsa ruten
Bronx: Now that the NYPD is going after dealers in license plate covers, they need to be alerted to another scam being committed by drivers. I have observed many who fold the edge of their license plate so that you cannot read the numbers or letters on it. They only bend the corner of the plate, but that’s enough to make the plate unreadable. Honest citizens are not doing this. The police should be informed of this practice. David Gonzalez
