The death Friday of Larry H. Miller - car magnate, entrepreneur, Utah Jazz owner, racing enthusiast - is going to leave a gaping hole in Utah's cultural fabric.

In so many ways, the idea of going out for a night on the town in Salt Lake City - whether it's a Jazz game, a concert at EnergySolutions Arena, or a movie at one of the Megaplex Theatres - wouldn't be the same without Miller's influence.

I interviewed Miller a few times about movies, which sparked his interest as an exhibitor - his Megaplex chain covers 70 screens in Utah - and, briefly, as a movie producer on "The Work and the Glory" series.

Movie producing was foreign territory for Miller, and it wasn't a good fit for him. In Miller's experience - selling cars and building an NBA franchise - quality means success; you put out a well-made car or a winning team, and people will buy.

Movies don't always work that way. "There can be some really well done stuff - cinematography-wise, story-wise, even acting-wise - and not have it do well," Miller told me in 2006.

Then there was that whole dust-up in 2006, when Miller pulled "Brokeback Mountain" from the Megaplex 17 because he was offended by the idea of gay cowboys. With that decision was the added hypocrisy that the theater, at the same time, was okey-dokey about booking a gruesome torture-porn horror movie, "Hostel."

"It's not my favorite business, just because it's one I'm not that engaged with like the car business and the basketball business," Miller said. "I don't understand it as much as the others."

Labels: Larry H. Miller, movies, Utah Jazz