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Through the pendulum. The clock in the
projection room was a normal round
silver bedside alarm clock.
I can remember my grandfather
the proudly explaining to somebody that
there were two standards for time - one
was railway time and the other was radio
time - and the theatre would start as
Porthole advertised to the second by radio time.
This perfectionist approach was
necessary for a man whose goal was to
ensure smooth running of the Fairfield
Peter Ricketts continues his account theatre. To do all the behind the scenes
of growing-up in and around the work meant methodical, timely
Fairfield theatre. attention to detail. His conscientious
approach was confirmed by my mother
Chapter 4 when I asked her to talk about her
As Time Goes By.. father for a recorded interview in 2000.
“My father would have his lunch
Before hitting the pillow on the last
and tea in the tin shed (generator room)
night of daylight saving, I performed
at the rear of the Fairfield theatre when
the usual ritual of setting the clocks
we lived in Camberwell. After we had
back one hour. It is amazing just how
shifted to Fairfield this enabled him to
many clocks we have in our homes -
come home for tea each night.
wall clocks, video and radio clocks,
“Each Saturday night I would take a
time switches, microwave ovens,
hot meal to the theatre for the manager.
watches and the clocks in the cars. This
“Dad worked at the theatre every
set me to thinking back to my school
day except Friday afternoons and
days in Fairfield when I would hurry
Sundays, but we all
home from school to listen to the many
used to bog in with
serials on the wireless.
cleaning the theatre
This was probably the way I learned
after the films on
to tell the time. I would turn on the
Saturday nights so Dad
huge wooden radio receiver, sit on the
could sleep in on
floor and wait for it to warm up. My
Sundays.
favorite radio serials were Superman,
“The Davies family
Hop Harrigan, Dad and Dave, and The
had seats in the back
Air Adventures of Biggles.
row permanently
There was an unwritten law in our
reserved for us. I never
household. As news-time approached
had to pay to see any
everyone would have to stop what they
show except when I
were doing and be quiet while my
went to the city to see
grandfather Bill Davies took out his fob Gone with the Wind on
watch on its chain. Top: William Davies, caretaker and usher at its first-time screening in Melbourne.
He would wind it up, and have it the Fairfield theatre (above, in 1957).
“Dad cleaned the theatre, received
open ready to set the time exactly to the
bookings, cleaned the glass and
second for six o’clock, when the radio
polished the brass, doors and windows
time pips came through. I can pushed up to turn on, and there were
daily, mended any broken seats,
remember the click as the cover numerous smaller ceramic and brass
attended to the advertising, and
snapped shut and he returned it to the switches for the various circuits
ushering.
special pocket in his waist coat. throughout the theatre.
“He loved and just lived for that
When he arrived at the Fairfield He would enter the theatre by a
theatre until he had to retire due to ill
theatre he would unlock the switch doorway on the extreme left of the
health. When he left, he and Mum sold
room which was the small door on the front of the theatre. This would take
up and moved to Queensland to live.”
footpath to the right of the entrance, him through the ladies toilet into the
As time goes by, theatres age, tastes
and with a small torch that he always foyer and then to the office. He would
change and audience expectations
carried with him, he would enter to turn then go through the procedure to wind
mature. Time was hardest on the oldest
the on power. All power to the theatre the clocks and set them exactly by his
suburban theatres, those built in the
was cut off when it was unoccupied. fob watch. The clock in the office was
teen years of the last century, when
In the switch room there was a large set high on the wall and had a round
marble switchboard about the size of a wooden frame with a section below it building styles for cinemas were
elemental. The Fairfield was one of
door with huge unprotected tripled with an oval window so you could see
these.
ganged knife switches that had to be
32 2005 CINEMARECORD