Page 36 - CinemaRecord #76C

In the Ozone's heyday and through to its demise,
Ozone Theatre auditorium.
Projectionist Tom Harvey in the Ozone bio - box.
Bottom and Right: Ozone Projection equipment.
36 2012 CINEM AREC ORD
the projection plant consisted of Simplex
projector heads with Western Electric sound
heads and amplifier. They were mounted on
universal bases. The Calder arc lamps were
driven by a Lincoln D.C. motor-generator set.
During summer on Saturday afternoons
with the heat from the arc lamps and the sun
shining full onto the projection room, it was
not unusual for the temperature in the room
to reach 118 degrees Fahrenheit!
With the introduction of black and white
television in the 1960’s the demise of the local
cinema in Australia began. Falling attendances
at Gawler led to a restrictive policy of night
screenings on Wednesdays, Fridays, and
Saturdays, plus Saturday matinees.
This was accompanied by the removal of
every second row of seats downstairs to
reduce the seating capacity to below 500 -
as under the (then) state law, a fireman did
not have to be employed thus cutting costs.
Eventually the manager Bob Plume reduced
the screening policy further to Saturday
matinee and night only in February 1962.
Despite television, there were often still
occasions a brief revival. This was brought
about by what was termed in the industry as
'road-show films' which had a wide appeal and
returned patrons to the cinema and included
titles such as Those Magnificent Men in Their
Flying Machines, The Sound of Music, and
Around the World in Eighty Days.
When these films were screened in Gawler
the Ozone burst back into life once again.
Screening policy was once again nightly for
six days with a Saturday matinee and, on one
occasion, even an intermediate session at
5.00 p.m. on the Saturday!