Comments from itpworld

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itpworld
itpworld commented about Studios 1, 2, 3 on Feb 27, 2023 at 9:13 am

Details of the opening of the Empire in 1912 on this website:

https://amounderness.co.uk/empire_cinema_1912.html

itpworld
itpworld commented about Palace Cinema on Feb 27, 2023 at 9:07 am

Information about the opening of the cinema on Easter Monday 1930 and details about the building on this website:

https://amounderness.co.uk/palace_cinema_lytham.html

itpworld
itpworld commented about Oxford Cinema on Aug 2, 2022 at 8:36 am

The Oxford Cinema was opened on June 17th 1938 by Arthur Hall just a fortnight after he opened the Dominion in Bispham. Hall was at the time the Managing Director of South Shore Theatres Ltd. and the proprietor of cinemas in Blackpool, Chorley and Bolton. Both cinemas cost around £20,000 to build and had approx 1200 seats. A feature of the auditorium of the Oxford was the saucer-shaped floor, designed to give an unobstructed view of the screen from every part. There was no balcony but there was a well appointed stage. (Source: Kinematograph Weekly, 23rd June 1938)

itpworld
itpworld commented about Tatler Cinema on Aug 2, 2022 at 5:35 am

The Clifton Palace was bought by a local Blackpool partnership at the end of 1949 and re-fitted as the Tatler News Theatre after 11 weeks of refurbishment. It re-opened on Monday March 13th 1950 with 412 seats. (Source Kinematograph Weekly, March 16th 1950)

Fylde Cinemas, part of the Emery Circuit bought the Tatler in April 1953 from Arthur Wood (who had purchased it in November 1952). Fylde Cinemas introduced ‘Continental films’ out of season but continued to show newsreel programmes during the Summer. (Source: Kinematograph Weekly, Thursday 30 April 1953)

The Tatler closed on October 16th 1954 with an announcement that it would no longer be used as a cinema. (Source: Kinematograph Weekly, 6 January 1955)

itpworld
itpworld commented about Bradford Playhouse on May 5, 2021 at 5:21 am

Some aspects of the missing history in the above are covered in this website: https://bradfordtimeline.hornseaoldandnew.co.uk/civic.htm

itpworld
itpworld commented about Tatler Theatre on May 4, 2021 at 1:30 pm

I have been researching the showing of European foreign language films in Leeds in the 1930s, using newspaper archives and I have found several listings for Czech, German, French and Russian films at the Academy Cinema, Boar Lane, Leeds between 1931 and 1935.

itpworld
itpworld commented about Omega Cinema on Sep 12, 2020 at 8:27 am

The only reference I can find to this cinema suggests that it was at 35 Waterloo Road, virtually opposite the Waterloo Picture House which opened in April 1912. It was not advertising films in January 1913.

itpworld
itpworld commented about Varietes on Aug 29, 2020 at 2:46 pm

The building was opened in 1856 as a ‘concert-café’ and in 1878 after work by architect Joseph Letz, it took the name Folies Marseillaises then, on October 8, 1887, Théâtre des Variétés. It continued as a live theatre venue up to 1937 when it became a full-time cinema.

The full history is on the website at: https://salles-cinema.com/provence-alpes-cote-d-azur/les-varietes-marseille

In December 2016, Jean Mizrahi, at the head of Ymagis, took over the two Marseille cinemas, Les Variétés and Le César and restored the ‘Art and Essai’ status for what is now a 7 screen Variétés with a total of 609 seats.

itpworld
itpworld commented about Norvic Cinema on Aug 29, 2020 at 3:22 am

The ‘Last Show’ film from the East Anglian Film Archive referenced above is from 1961 and the last film shown at the Norvic was ‘La dolce vita’ which didn’t open in the UK until August 1960.

In 1954 the Kine Year Book entry for the Norvic lists 709 seats and the proprietors were V.E.H. Cinemas Ltd who operated one other cinema in Norwich, The Capitol on Aylsham Road.