Page 31 - CinemaRecord #77C

Wollongong Crown. Pre-deco façade.

During the 1930s the Art-Moderne style of
architecture became popular in cinemas, and
was adopted fully at the Savoy and Crown,
but in varying degrees at other venues.
In August 1937 the company was incorporated
under the NSW Companies Act, allowing Wollongong Crown. Art-deco auditorium.
“Pty” to be added to the name.
By 1949/50 the company was operating
fourteen venues, the maximum number at Crown. Fairy Meadow Drive-In.
any one period, most as cinemas, some for
other purposes such as dancing or storage
to prevent competitors entering the field.
Travelling stage productions, other live
entertainers, school concerts, prize-giving
and public meetings were often welcomed in
many venues.

During the Royal visit of Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II in February 1954, Except for two drive-in theatres, the
the company produced a film of local management of which was shared with
celebrations for screening at its cinemas. Greater Union (Fairy Meadow Southline
1957-84; Dapto Lakeline 1967-86), there
Wide-screen projection in the form of was a complete withdrawal from hard-top
CinemaScope was introduced at the Savoy cinemas by the end of 1965.
in December 1954 and, when it proved
sufficiently popular and cost-effective (at In February 1966 O’Connell Corporation
least for the present), other venues in the Ltd, a finance and investment group, made
circuit were appropriately equipped starting a successful takeover bid, and Wollongong
with the Wollongong Crown in July 1955. Theatres Pty Ltd eventually became a
shelf company for complex financial
Between 1936 and 1965 the company planned transactions. Deregistration was recorded
seven other new theatres or leases. Since in July 1992.
most proposals were conceived between the
end of the 1950s and into the 1960s, when
the industry was starting to feel the effects
of television, increased social mobility and
changes in entertainment patterns, all the
schemes came to nothing.

A failure to adapt to changing conditions by
converting cavernous, hard-to-fill buildings into
smaller auditoriums foreshadowed a sad end to
a once prosperous and vibrant company which,
either through Boland himself or as a syndicate,
had managed some twenty-four ventures over
the course of its existence

Port Kembla Whiteway

Wollongong Savoy.

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