NEW YORK-
Thousands of moviegoers who saw the film “Night at the Museum” are spending the day there, too. The American Museum of Natural History has experienced a 20 percent boost in attendance during the holiday season this year, and museum officials attribute some of the increase to the family film that stars Ben Stiller as a museum night watchman who must deal with exhibits that come to life. Parts of the movie were shot at the venerable building on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. “The movie has generated a lot of interest,” said museum president Ellen V. Futter. “But there’s also just terrific excitement about the museum right now–especially with some of our exhibits like the live butterflies, and the gorgeous gold exhibit.” Futter also attributed the jump to an overall increase in New York City tourism. She said there is usually a spike in attendance during the holidays, but not like this. About 250,000 visitors came to the museum between Dec. 22 and Jan. 7, which is nearly 50,000 more than the same time last year. The movie is not doing so badly either. It was the No. 1 film at the box office in the United States and Canada for the third straight weekend.
