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when first released. The third screen we see is The TrocaderoThe Trocadero, which
The TrocaderoThe Trocadero
is a narrow long screen (95 seats). When the purple curtain, with a
golden sun motif on it parts so that we can see the screen, the cur-
tain doesn’t bunch up as the runners continue round onto the side
walls – a solution that might be useful for people with home cine-
mas. The last auditorium is TheThe BarklyBarkly (170 seats), which is in the
TheThe BarklyBarkly
original circle area and was full of CATHS members waiting for their
regular bi-monthly meeting to start. During the refreshment interval
the CATHS and CTA members had a chance to mingle, chat and
swap stories about their favourite cinemas. A large crowd was seen
around the book stall as CTA parted with their plastic Australian dol-
lars buying DVDs, videos, books and copies of CATHS’s regular
magazine Cinema Record. Business over, the second half of the
meeting was an entertainment section. We were shown a montage
film of Australian films and stars, a newsreel, an advert for a raffle
with a first prize of a Standard Family 10 car, as well as Now You’re
Talking, a documentary about 1930s and 1940s Australian film,
Sun Theatre Sun Theatre
narrated by Leo McKern. We left the Sun Theatre Sun Theatre incredibly im-
Sun Th
Sun Theatreeatre Trocadero Screen pressed by the cinema as well as the effort that had gone into bring-
Sun TheatreSun Theatre
ing it back to life in such a distinctive and imaginative way. After the
of legroom. The original proscenium is at the back of the auditorium meeting we joined a ‘walking bus’ to the Victoria-on-Hyde, a local
and mouldings were taken from it to make the new one. Next we restaurant, bar and gambling establishment for lunch. On our way
The LyricThe Lyric
head to The LyricThe Lyric, which has 33 chairs and 7 lounge chairs and a there we passed the old Lyric Theatre Lyric Theatre which has been turned into
Lyric Theatre Lyric Theatre
lovely golden coloured curtain with the letters ST embroidered into it. warehouse apartments and an animal hospital. We peered through
An ideal setting for films that you may wish to see again or missed the windows but there was no sign of Rolf Harris!
MONDAY 20 FEBRUARY: ST. KILDA, BEACH SUBONDAY 20 FEBRUARY: ST. KILDA, BEACH SUBURB DAYURB DAY
MONDAY 20 FEBRUARY: ST. KILDA, BEACH SUBMONDAY 20 FEBRUARY: ST. KILDA, BEACH SUBURB DAYURB DAY
M
Our first stop of the day was Windsor, for the site of the now demol-
ished Windsor TheatreWindsor Theatre. Around the corner is the impressive AstorAstor
AstorAstor
Windsor TheatreWindsor Theatre
TheatreTheatre
Theatreeatre, sitting very close to a busy road intersection. It was opened
Th
in April 1936 with 1,692 seats, and is now one of the only two sin-
gle-screen theatres left in Melbourne. The façade is built in three
shades of brick, with a neon fin sign jutting out from the building
with ASTOR vertically on it, above which is a neon lit star.

Astor foyer
AstorAstor
Astor
manually. To give an idea of the varied programme shown, on the
previous weekend the Saturday evening show was the 2005 remake
of King Kong, on Sunday afternoon a double bill of Meet Me in St.
Louis and Singing in the Rain and on Sunday evening a double bill of
Gilda and From Here to Eternity. The programme leaflet from mid-
January to early June 2006, including a two-week run of a new print
of Antonioni’s The Passenger, listed 207 films with release dates
from 1933 to 2006.
Astor Theatreeatre St Kilda
Astor Th
Astor TheatreAstor Theatre
The spacious foyer has an open well in the ceiling and a giant star
design on the floor, while the main auditorium has a plain art deco
style, with the underside of the balcony lit by small chandeliers. Be-
hind the curtain we find the original proscenium, speakers and cur-
tain as well as cans of 70mm film piled up everywhere. The original
proscenium was hidden when a new screen (45' x 18') was installed
in 1985. In 1998 an even larger screen (60' x 28') was installed, the
largest screen in an indoor cinema in Australia, excepting IMAX. The
cans of 70mm film are kept here as this is the only cinema in Mel-
bourne showing 70mm films regularly. Heading up the stairs to the
L-shaped circle foyer, we felt transported back in time to the golden
age of the cinema. The plush carpet is a copy of the design used in
the MGM Chicago and the walls are covered with framed posters
and art deco mirrors. Comfy seats and couches, as well as old radio
sets line the wall. Up in the circle we had a great view of the audito-
rium and met the cinema cat, Marzipan. In the bio box are two Cine-
meccanica Projectors and a 1936 strip slide projector and we learnt
that they still use changeovers, which can cause a problem as some
new films do not have changeover cues and they have to be added Astor Th
Astor Theatreeatre auditorium
Astor TheatreAstor Theatre
v v v v