The Case of the Missing "The"

[AAllan at AOL.COM]

>From Entertainment Weekly:

 WHAT THE? Call it The Case of the Missing "The" (or should we say Case of
Missing "The"?). Lately, our favorite three-letter article has been
mysteriously AWOL from a growing number of movie titles. Consider evidence:
This summer gave us the Will Smith vehicle Wild Wild West (the original 1960s
TV show was The Wild, Wild West). And coming soon: Brad Pitt in Fight Club (a
project that was once called The Fight Club) and director Tim Robbins' Cradle
Will Rock (inspired by a 1936 musical drama called The Cradle Will Rock).
That's not even counting films that sound like they should have a "the" in
their titles, like Julia Roberts' Runaway Bride, or Kevin Costner's For Love
of the Game. Wherefore art "the"? "You have people's attention for about a
second when they look at your title," says Gerald Cohen, a language professor
at the University of Missouri-Rolla. "'The' is one more word that doesn't add
anything." Still, the "the" shortage is tripping up fans and media
alike--several news outlets (EW included) have inadvertently added an extra
article to Costner's title. "I find For the Love of the Game harder to say,"
argues Game producer Amy Robinson. "It's more words." End. --Joshua Rich


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- Allan Metcalf