Page 16 - CinemaRecord #80

So my life as an assistant projectionist began.
DŝĐŚĂĞů ŝŶ ƚŚĞ WůĂnjĂ ƉƌŽũĞĐƟŽŶ ƌŽŽŵ ϭϵϲϬ͘
Bendigo Plaza.
Bendigo Plaza 1967.
16 2013 CINEMAREC ORD
Movie programs sometimes consisted of a
The projectionist I commenced work with was &LQHPDVFRSH IHDWXUH DQG WKH ¿OP ZRXOG DUULYH
John Leggo, he had obtained his projectionist accompanied by a wooden box that contained a
licence while working at the Lyric, and had pair of anamorphic lenses which were attached
opened the Swan Lake Drive-In in Sale (Vic), RQWR EUDFNHWV WKDW ZHUH DOUHDG\ ¿WWHG WR WKH IURQW
and worked at the Rex Theatre in Daylesford of the projectors.
(Vic) before working at the Plaza. These lenses remained there till the end of
that week’s program, and then removed
Movies were shown those days, Mondays to and forwarded onto the Capitol Theatre
Saturdays only, as cinemas weren’t allowed to Warrnambool. The Plaza and the Capitol were
screen movies on Sundays. leased at the time by the Thornley Brothers.
There were matinees at 2pm and evening A couple of months later we received a new
screenings at 7.30pm. I had half a day off each pair of Bausch & Lomb anamorphic lenses,
Saturday, alternating with the matinee off one as they had now purchased another pair for
Saturday, and the night session off the next. Warrnambool.
$ W\SLFDO VWDUW HDFK GD\ ZDV SP ¿UVW MRE FOHDQ For the Plaza, Saturday matinees were a change
WKH JODVV SURMHFWLRQ SRUWV VZHHS WKH ÀRRU RLO RI SURJUDP DQG LW ZDV FRPPRQ WR KDYH ¿OPV
the projectors and run them for a while. After arrive in 1000ft cans, spool one consisted of
a warm up, switch off and wipe down any oil part 1A and another can part 1B, when joined
GULSV DQG WKHQ WKUHDG WKH UHHOV RI ¿OP together made up the complete spool one, and
so on.
The projectors were a pair of Australian made Many a Saturday we screened the shorter reels
Cummings and Wilson model E mounted on singly without joining them, so that we could
Western Electric Universal Bases that were burn up the smaller carbon butts to use them up.
installed since the Plaza was constructed in
1934, and a pair of Peerless Magnarc carbon On occasions we ran cartoons that were on
arc lamps that were installed when VistaVision KLJKO\ ÀDPPDEOH QLWUDWH ¿OP , UHPHPEHU D
opened in 1954. The slide projector was an 3RSH\H cartoon that had quite a few joins and
ancient affair; it was a vertical carbon arc lamp KDG EURNHQ DQG FDXJKW ¿UH LQ WKH ¿OP JDWH
that had to be manually operated whilst showing John the projectionist quickly ripped out a few
the slides. IHHW RI ¿OP IURP WKH WRS VSRRO DQG WKUHZ LW RQ
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A couple of weeks later a gentleman in a There were two red buckets of sand with little
pinstriped suit armed with a brief case came up hand scoops hanging on the back bio wall ready
to the bio and began taking my personal details for this type of problem; this is the only time
on a form, he handed me a pen and tapped the that they were used.
IRUP DQG VDLG ³VLJQ LW´ , HQTXLUHG ZKDW IRU DQG The smoke was thick and smelled terrible, and
KH VDLG ³<RX DUH MRLQLQJ WKH XQLRQ´ , VDLG QR WKH VWLFN\ EXUQW ¿OP ZDV GLI¿FXOW WR UHPRYH RII
WKDQNV , GRQ¶W ZDQW WR MRLQ KH JUXIÀ\ VDLG µ6LJQ WKH QLFHO\ VWDLQHG UHG JXP ÀRRU
LW RU \RX ZRQ¶W KDYH D MRE´ , VLJQHG On the Monday a phone call to Paramount to
report the incident, and after that no more nitrate
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By now I had received a small green folded
card from the Department of Public Health –
Cinematograph Operators Regulations it’s title
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presented to any manager of another cinema that
I visited, gave me approval to look through other
bio boxes where staff were always welcoming.
A visit to Melbourne on occasions I saw bios
like the Plaza Cinerama, Century Swanston
Street and the Padua Brunswick.
Cinerama at the
Melbourne Plaza.