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From the Editor....

Images are the best way to show the strengths and weaknesses of a theatre
design, and the on-going search to find the best illustrations shows a simple truth:
the best theatres had the best photo record. A second observation is that the best

stories, those from the ‘pioneer’ days, often come from the histories of lower-rank
theatres, for which the photo record is scant.
Our feature on Bourke Street is a small part of Bernie Halperin’s life-long
interest in the changing face of the cinema and theatre scene in Melbourne.
The official journal of the Cinema And
Inevitably, the story here skims the surface, and the photo record to go with it is
Theatre Historical Society Inc.
Australia patchy, a fact which lets the reader imagine those old interiors.
ISSN 1443-3664 • Published quarterly
★ The writers of effusive descriptions of theatres built between 1910 and 1915
Editor: Ian Smith could not have imagined the revolution in design to come. No doubt the owners of
★ the early picture theatres were proud of their achievement and wanted it recorded
CinemaRecord Artwork:
in photos or drawings.
Bill Kerr, Optimum Design 9419 4144
★ Years later, the children or grand children ‘tidying-up’ the family Estate, and
The main aim of CATHS and this raised on visits to the next generation of better theatres, might open an old box and
publication is to accurately document and say, “ Who would be interested in that?” and toss the lot.
create an archive of the history of
cinemas and theatres. Oh to be proved wrong! If any reader has a picture of the interior of the Star,
Input in the form of articles, Strand, Empire, Melba, Britannia or Roxy, please step forward. In the absence
constructive criticism, and substantiated
of a photo record we only have the early publicity – Ian Smith
dispute of printed matter is welcome, and
necessary to enable us to reach our
objective. NOW SHOWING!
Opinions expressed are those of the
Editor or contributors, and unless
expressly stated so, are not necessarily
those of the Cinema And Theatre
Historical Society Inc. 4 Letters
Articles printed in CinemaRecord
should not be reproduced without the 4 Newsreel
permission of the author or the editor.
8 Essendon at the Pictures
All photos are from the collection of
the person or organisation stated. Every
10 The Electric Cinema - Bill Chew
effort has been made to trace the
ownership of copyright. In the event of 14 The Twilight Drive-In - Michael Purden
any questions arising as to the use of any
material, the author and publisher will be 18 Under The Stars - Roger Seccombe
happy to make the necessary corrections
in future printings. 20 Waterfall Curtains - Tony Froude
Contributions and suggestions for
CinemaRecord are most welcome. Please 24 How The Talkies Changed Bourke Street - Bernie Halperin
contact the Editor if you are planning
to write an article for the magazine. 32 Blow Ups - Eric White
We may be able to assist you with
34 Korumburra Theatre - Gerry Kennedy & Ern Bruhn
information, contacts, etc and it will help
us with forward planning.
38 CATHS Tours Walhalla
★
Contact: Ian Smith
Telephone: 5443 0692 (1-9pm) Images in this publication are from CATHS Archive unless credited to another source.
Email: ijsmith@impulse.net.au
Cover: Two survivors from the 1930s shake-out on Bourke Street: the Lyceum,
Postal Address: PO Box 476,
home to aspiring cowboys, and the Tivoli, the famous vaudeville house.
Bentleigh, Victoria, 3204
See story page 24.
CINEMARECORD 2005 3