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of the screen. A switch would cut over one
projector to the next. All going well, the
change-overs would be scarcely noticeable as
the movie continued until the interval. Of
course all these films had to be re-wound
before being returned to the distributors.

Patrons would queue up at the box office for
their tickets, even for Reserves, unless they
were prepaid. Some folk had a Reserve for
each Saturday night, no doubt for other nights
as well. Once the tickets were obtained, it was
through the doors, down the ramp and carefully
find the way to your seats, jostling past
already-seated patrons.

Above the Mens toilet door was the theatre
clock. This was fairly large, about 50 or 60 cm
in diameter, with bold black numbers and
hands. It was lit by an overhead dull green
light, easily seen in the dark by most patrons,
but not bright enough to be a distraction.
Patrons relied on the clock at a time when not
too many had watches, nor could afford them,
approximately twenty rows with room for 12 The projection box was fitted with two 35 mm and had to catch the last bus or train to get
people on either side of the central aisle. In Kalee projectors from the old silent days. They home.
addition, just at the end of the entry ramp, there were lit by an arc lamp and originally had
was a long leather seat to accommodate the separate equipment to play sound on records, At starting time, the lights would dim, the
local policeman and his family. Up behind this similar to large 78s, even using steel needles. projector would fire up, a beam of light would
on the far side right, at the top, were about four Later, when soundtrack on film was penetrate the patrons’ cigarette smoke, and on
rows of upright leather seats reserved for introduced, these projectors were converted to would come the National Anthem – in those
mature patrons, or maybe for the young fry take the new exciter lamp and photoelectric days ‘God Save the King’. It was then that the
where a bit of canoodling went on. Lloyd cells to pick up the soundtrack. Western curtains would be rolled back, and the show
Crank, who worked at the cinema in the 1940s, Electric was the type chosen for this purpose. was on. There would be a trailer, a news reel,
thought the building could accommodate about The speaker was located behind the screen. sometimes a serial, and then the first movie,
500 patrons. often a B-Grader.
Every movie arrived in half a dozen hexagonal
The screen at the lower end of the aisle, metal boxes, each with a handle on top. The At the interval there would be a rush for the
including the black linings fixed all around it film would be delivered, perhaps via the door, pass-outs were issued and many dashed
(no doubt to make the image stand out better) railway station, to be picked up and transported over the road to Lauriston’s shop. It was good
would have been about 10 metres wide by 8½ to the cinema. If two feature films were shown, business for him, as the Victory never sported
metres high overall. the attendants would have to wrestle with up a refreshment counter.
to ten of these boxes, and probably more, with
On either side of the stage were the doors to shorts, cartoons, newsreels etc. After the interval, when everybody was re-
the toilets, Ladies to the left, Gents to the right. seated, the show would recommence, perhaps
I don’t profess to know what the ladies toilet Reels one and two would be loaded onto the with a cartoon (Tom and Jerry, Donald Duck)
was like, but both toilets were fitted with a projectors and, as each only ran for about 15 or short travel talk (usually ending with a
chemical waste disposal system – a sort of minutes, a changeover of projectors would be drawling voice saying “And as the sun sinks
geared pan connected to the lid, so that when accomplished whenever notification in the slowly in the west, and our ship pulls away
the lid was lifted or closed the pan would turn form of two consecutive circles or a blanked- from the shore, we will remember this land
and dispose of the waste into a caustic-soda- out disc flashed on the top right-hand corner ….”) followed by the main feature.
fed chamber. This was the price of Taringa not
having sewerage.

The Ladies toilet was on the same level as the
concourse in front of the screen, probably
accessed through two doors to form an air-
lock. The men’s on the right hand side had no
such luxury. The door opened to outside onto
an open landing, then you went down about
ten steps to a concrete path going downhill to
the toilet block underneath (or just to the side
of) the Ladies. The steps were protected by a
single handrail, and above them was a single
electric light bracket with a white enamel cowl,
and sporting a 60 watt bulb. The place was not
over-flush with light at night and one had to
be careful on the steps, particularly older men.
Of course there were a few more lights in the
toilet itself. Such was the setup that many
blokes never bothered to go down any further
than the stairs.

CINEMARECORD # 92 37