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In 1937, while we were showing at won't take it out tonight." I said, "What design. Murphy got quotes for the
Korumburra Theatre, I had the do you mean, take it out? You're not framework from builders. He reckoned
accident which resulted in me losing going to take my eye out!” Of course their price was exorbitant. "I think we
my eye. I used to pick up the program the next thing was an operation. It can do better than this, I'll send the
for Berwick, Pakenham and seemed as though they had made a specifications over to England." The
Korumburra, and sometimes Drouin, good job of it, but after a couple of quotes were competitive. The frame
and take them all in one trip. On this months it started to go bad and they was made in England, shipped and
occasion I was on the way to did have to take it out. landed here for about half the price of
Korumburra after having delivered the I used to fiddle around with the the first quote. So there you are, that's
other programs. It was just on dusk, speakers at Korumburra Theatre to the truth, isn't it amazing?
and there had been a storm. The see if I could get better distribution of While all this was going on at
accident happened just after the turn off the sound. It was never successful until Traralgon I was still looking around.
to Wonthaggi along the Nyora Road. we got decent speakers in there. I'd One day I was having lunch with my
A car was travelling towards us play around after the show had friend Alec Jaensch, who had a theatre
and we both had our lights on. I could finished. Ernie would have gone home at Mornington. He was pretty
see a tree across the road right in front and I'd be on my own in the place. I'd depressed, his wife was ill and he
of me, not a big tree, just a sapling. I go up into the box and put a record on, wanted to sell out. The owner of the
thought, "By gosh, this is going to be then I'd go down the ladder, down all theatre in Rosebud was interested. I
a bit tough." I had to drive through the the stairs into the theatre, then right up said, "I'm interested too, I would like
bushy end of it. The other bloke to the front to have a listen. To make a to get it." Jossie and I talked to him.
evidently saw the tree at the same time change I had to go down to the back, We agreed on a price but we couldn't
that I did, but to miss it he swerved on up all the stairs and the ladder to the finance it. The banks wouldn't come to
to my side of the road. box again, back down again to the the party. A big insurance office
He knocked into my front wheel front of the place to have another seemed interested at first then later
and punctured it, dented the mud guard listen. I tell you what, I used to be told us that they'd had their fingers
and carved off the outside rear vision jolly tired at the end of it. burnt with picture theatres before. I
mirror. A piece of glass from the The curtains did not work from the didn't know where to get the money. I
mirror flew into the car and cut my box, a lad down on the stage operated also knew that the more you hawk a
eye. His car careered off the road. them by hand. We had a buzzer rigged proposition like this around, the harder
While I was trying to change the wheel up from the box to the stage to give it gets because people begin to say,
another car came along, heading the cue. We ran that theatre very "Well nobody else will take this on,
towards Korumburra. He stopped so I successfully until the last twelve we're not going to be in it either." So it
said, "Look, can you do something for months. Actually, what was happening lay dormant for a while and Alec was
me? I've got this program for was that the whole darned thing was getting a bit edgy because the other
Korumburra theatre on board and it's getting too big, we couldn't control it fellow had the money to buy it.
screening tonight. Would you drop it properly, and things started to fall Driving through Edithvale one
off at the theatre for me." "Sure I apart a bit. It was a big worry for us. evening on the way to Mornington to
will."So we loaded the program into A chap called 'Kitchen' came along to see Alec, I saw a big sign on a wall -
his car and off he went. see us, he was running some theatres 'Manchester Unity.' I repeated the
Doo (my wife) was with me on in Oakleigh and he wanted name to myself. I had my chat with
this trip. She was going to spend the Korumburra. We weren't thinking of Alec to find out how things were
weekend with Ern Bruhn's family. selling it, but he was prepared to pay going. The next morning I went into
After we got the wheel changed she whatever we wanted for it. Jossie and the Manchester Unity offices. "Yes, I
drove the van on towards Korumburra I haggled with him over price for a bit, think we can do business, we've got a
because I couldn't see out of my right and eventually we did sell to him. We bit of money come in." I put this
eye. We hadn't got very far when made a substantial profit out of it. proposition to Jossie and he came back
Ernie met us. He'd heard that we'd had I was still browsing around the in there with me and we signed it all
an accident. Ernie took me straight to circuits and I got my eye on up. That's how we got the money for
the Doctor when we got to Traralgon - "This place needs a good the Plaza Mornington in 1948. Later,
Korumburra. The Doctor looked at my theatre." The war was on at this time. Traralgon was financed the same way.
eye and I could heard him say, "It's We bought a block from the owner of We worked Mornington just the way
pretty bad, just a moment while I the big corner pub in Traralgon and it was. We put in Peter Wallace as
phone Melbourne." He rang up an eye held on to it. manager. He had worked for us at East
specialist and made arrangements for The shortage of building materials Malvern. We then turned our thoughts
me to go down. After I had been after the war meant that houses were back to Traralgon. We managed to get
bandaged up Ernie took us around to the priority. In due course we got a permits and we built a beautiful theatre.
his parent’s home for a meal, then we permit to put up the framework. By gee it was a nice place. When we
set off in Ernie's car for Melbourne. I Gordon Murphy of Cowper, Murphy were getting the building on a bit we
started to get sick and we had to stop and Associates in Melbourne was the thought we'd better start looking around
a couple of times because I was ill. architect. He designed most of the for someone to manage it. This is where
In hospital in Melbourne the independent theatres around the place; Jim came into it. He was back from
Doctor had a look at my eye and very good chap he was too. We England. As I've already said, the whole
wasn’t reassuring, "I promise you I decided to use a half round, igloo blooming thing was getting too big for

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