Bomb threat
SPORTS
Former VI Raiders QB Yantz is dreaming big
Wellington Secondary School evacuated again and police hunt for potential suspects
Jordan Yantz is working hard to dispel the myth that a Canadian can’t be a starting quarterback in the CFL. B2
Nanaimo Region, A3
The newspaper of record for Nanaimo and region since 1874 || Tuesday, May 12, 2015 LEADERSHIP
Movie Magic Nanaimo’s Clinton Thornley is one of a rare and endangered breed in the retail sector — the owner of a remaining video rental outlet
Astronaut HadďŹ eld to speak in Nanaimo ROBERT BARRON DAILY NEWS
Film Buff Video owner Clinton Thornley. [AARON HINKS/DAILY NEWS]
Small operations outlive rental giants
I
t wasn’t that long ago when nearly every neighbourhood had its own shop to rent a movie. Those stores were bustling places on any given night, particularly on weekends. Movie trailers were screened from televisions above a wall of new releases, older flicks, and sometimes video games. In some stores, guests were given a small bag of popcorn to nibble on before they selected a movie. Chain video rental giants such as Rogers and Blockbuster were thriving in Nanaimo, as were the dozen or so other small mom-and-pop rental stores. Clinton Thornley, owner of Film Buff Video, can name 14 different video rental stores that were operating in Nanaimo when he opened the doors in December 2003. Nanaimo has lost virtually all of the stores since 2008. Thornley’s Film Buff Video,
off Tenth Street, and Vanthe same as he did 15 years Isle Video, off Bowen Road, ago. The store has more than remain. 20,000 titles available for rent Van-Isle Video has been serand one of the largest foreign vicing Nanaimo since 1985. film sections on the Island. Owners Richard Perks In the golden years and his wife Purita of movie rentals, have owned the store Perks had a distribusince 1995. tor who would mail Perks said he started him a flyer of all movto see the impact of ies available. Today illegal downloadthe films are hand ing shortly after the selected by him and United States housing his staff. bubble popped. “Now we can look up “I would say in 2009 and Google if the film we started to see it is worth getting. We Aaron come on,� he said. can get more informaPerks had to respond Hinks tion now than what Reporting by downsizing the we ever did. Technolsquare footage of his ogy is a good thing store a little more and a bad thing for than a year ago. us,� he said. “I can’t say what will happen Thornley also saw a change in the industry. I don’t even in business shortly after 2009 call it an industry anymore, and has kept his operations it’s mainly mom-and-pop operthe same through the years. ations, which is what we are,� Thornley views his shop as he said. an open club for film enthusiOther than downsizing, Perks asts, rather than a store. has been running his business Film Buff Video, which has
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Chance of showers High 19, Low 11 Details A2
approximately 10,000 titles for rent, has been able to survive the numerous other industry closures with the help of Thornley’s selective approach when stocking the shelves. “Every movie had to earn its shelf space and had to have merit in order to get on that shelf space,� Thornley said. Thornley says he’s watched more than 10,000 films, has been to the Toronto International Film Festival for the past eight consecutive years and has been to more than 200 premieres. “Films are nothing but my life and I live the film buff lifestyle. So when I go home, I’m reviewing movies. I’ve written more than 400 movie reviews,� he said. Inside his store he has picture frames filled with dozens of 5x7 photographs he has taken of Hollywood’s greatest actors, actresses and directors. See MOVIES, Page A3
Effective leadership is vitally important in life-and-death situations that take place hundreds of kilometres above the earth, says Chris Hadfield. The first Canadian commander of the International Space Station, Hadfield said being a leader in space comes with more pressure than many comparable roles on Earth and, in most cases, the costs are extremely high for failure and HADFIELD there is often no second chances to fix mistakes. Hadfield has travelled the world over the past two decades telling stories about his time in space and “sharing ideas� about leadership with his audiences, and will speak in Nanaimo on Oct. 20. Hadfield’s presentation at the Port Theatre is the latest in a series of leadership initiatives being presented by the Nanaimo Daily News, Coastal Community Credit Union and other community organizations in the city. “I learned a lot of lessons around leadership while training to go to space and when I was there, and I continue to learn new things every day,� he said. “My first book (An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth) deals a lot with facing complex tasks and I’ve found that some of these ideas are useful to others in their lives.� Through his 21 years as an astronaut, Hadfield became a pioneer of many historic “firsts.� In 1992, he was selected by the Canadian Space Agency as a NASA mission specialist and became Canada’s first fully qualified space shuttle crew member. Three years later, aboard shuttle Atlantis, he was the first Canadian to operate the Canadarm in space, and the first Canadian to board a Russian spacecraft as he helped build space station Mir. In 2001, aboard shuttle Endeavour, Hadfield performed two space walks and in 2013, he was commander of the International Space Station, the first and only Canadian to ever command such a craft. Tickets are $63 each, which includes a networking session in the Port Theatre’s lobby from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., followed by Hadfield’s presentation at 7 p.m. For tickets, go to www.porttheatre.com or call 250-754-8550. Robert.Barron @nanaimodailynews.com 250-729-4234
New blood test may aid cancer treatments
City dentist returns from helping in Nepal
The tests, called liquid biopsies, capture cancer cells or DNA that tumors shed into the blood, instead of taking tissue from the tumour itself. Âť Health, B1
Sanjivan Mahara saw death and devastation on a grand scale, and heard horrific stories of efforts to rescue victims or recover bodies. Âť Nanaimo Region, A5
Local news .................... A3-5 Markets ................................A2 B.C. news ............................. A8
Editorials and letters ..... A4 Sports .................................. B2 Scoreboard ........................ B4
Classified ............................ B6 Obituaries ........................... B6 Comics ................................. B5
Crossword .......................... B5 Sudoku ................................. A2 Horoscope .......................... B6
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Nanaimo Daily News, nanaimodailynews.com and Harbour City Star reach more than 60,000 readers each week in print and online. General inquires: 250-729-4200 | Newsroom: 250-729-4224 | To subscribe: 250-729-4266 | Copyright 2015. All rights reserved
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