FOREIGN FILM IN AUSTRALIA – 1910s to 1930s.

Article that appeared in The Register 17th December 1925. Retrieved from https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/60634402

I recently attended a talk by American academic Professor Julie Allen. Allen – who is an academic from Brigham Young University in the USA – has written several books, but the book in the discussion last Wednesday was “Screening Europe in Australasia: Transnational Silent Film before and after the rise of Hollywood”. It was a very enlightening talk. I knew about the growth of Foreign Language Films in Australia after WWII but knew only a little about these films in Australia in the early 20th Century. Allen’s book concentrates on the period 1910s through to the early 1930s.

Read more here https://sapicturetheatres.wixsite.com/sapicturetheatres/post/foreign-film-in-australia-1910s-to-1930s

Walkerville Outdoor Theatre

Picture courtesy of SA State Library
Outdoor Picture Theatre [B 50194] • Photograph

W. Lesley Boyle set up an outdoor screen for those warmer nights in Adelaide as an extension to the theatre that he ran at Walkerville Town Hall. The outdoor theatre ran from 1929 until 1936(SLSA/ Walkerville collection). Although as earlier as 1921 Boyle had been submitting applications for an outdoor cinema, The Register, Adelaide dated 10th September, 1921 notes that there had been an application submitted to the council that had been rejected (The Register, 10 September, 1921, p. 94). Wooden planks made up the seating and a pianist was also in attendance, situated at the base of the screen(SLSA/ Walkerville collection). The building you can see is the old Police Station – since demolished.

The Register, 10 September, 1921, p. 94)

References

“District Councils” The Register, Adelaide, 10 September 1921, p. 94. Retrieved 2 February 2020 from Trove

“Outdoor Picture Theatre” viewed 2 February 2020 https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/B+50194

SLSA Walkerville Collection, viewed 2 February 2020 https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/find/walkerville

State Theatre, Hindley Street, Adelaide

You will find that I will pop in information from time to time, I’m using this site to gather research for a later possible project, so there will be several posts about the same theatres.

State Theatre in Hindley Street, it was situated where Downtown was. In contrast to the idea of most theatres this one when built didn’t go for the ‘palace’ type of architecture. It is a building of its time, the mid 1950s.

Exterior view of State Theatre, Hindley Street, Adelaide,
Image courtesy of State Library of South Australia. Photo; Vic Grimmett c 1957
https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+1662/9/38

Today the exterior looks quite run down, I remember visiting Downtown as a young adult. I think I remember the stairs that are shown below, you climbed them to reach the rolling skating rink, which was possibly where the screen once was.

Inside the theatre kept to the same modern theme. Clean lines, nothing ornate, it seems quite austere, I would love to know the colours used.

Interior view of State Theatre, Hindley Street, Adelaide.
Image courtesy of State Library of South Australia. Photo; Vic Grimmett c 1957
https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+1662/9/39

References

State Library of South Australia, Vic Grimmett Collection, Retrieved 26th Jan 2019.
https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au

Google Maps https://goo.gl/maps/dSdQQtNFu3q

Majestic Theatre

I by chance came across this photo on the State Library of South Australia’s Flickr page, and I thought I needed to share it. The photo is from 1962 and taken during the Festival of Arts, there is no mention why there are so many people of either sides of the road.

But this post is about The Majestic Theatre which opened 1916 and later became the Warner Cinema. I will be doing more research on this theatre and will add more information as I research.

References:

Photo: State Library of South Australia Record b2128072

Best’s Canvas Theatre

Here are a few articles(or advertisements?) for Best’s Canvas Theatre.  It would seem that Best’s was able to draw crowds even when it rained, and that the crowds were able to remain dry in the wet weather.  The first article is from The Register, and is dated 30th May, 1910 and discusses how although there was a heavy downpour on the Saturday night, the crowds still came.  It also tells us that Best’s had now been open of 33 weeks, it gives us the names of the manager, Mr G C Audley and the secretary Mr W C R Ward.  (courtesy of Trove)

This next article tells us a little more about how Best’s Theatres patrons are protected from the rains, it also tells us the size of the theatre, over 2000 patrons,   Best’s Theatres are called Trocadero Canvas Theatre in this article also, this appeared in The Advertiser the 16th May 1910.  (courtesy of Trove)

In December of the same year the Trocadero Theatre seems still to be bringing in the crowds.  With a change in programe which includes “When Old New York was Young” and “Too soon and Too Late.  Sadly I’ve not been able to find any copies available of any of these films. The article appeared in The Advertiser on the 19th December 1910. (courtesy of Trove)

Best’s Pictures

Best’s Pictures opened in October 1909, above is an article which appeared in The Register newspaper on the 25th October 1909.  It states that on the opening night the crowd was met with very good weather in which to spend the evening out watching films.  The photo shows Best’s Pictures – which were situated on the corner of Gouger Street and Victoria Square.

As I find more information I will update.

References:

Photograph courtesy of the State Library of South Australia -B-2187

Newspaper Article: from Trove  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-title89