Page 15 - CinemaRecord Edition 3-2003 #41

Who was projectionist at the Padua?
Ron Alexander I remember. Ron
was great, he was another phase of my
education. Of course at the Padua we
had a second assistant - we were
always training up second assistants.
Come Saturday afternoon Ron
Alexander - well I can speak about this
now I suppose - he enjoyed a drink, and
for the quarter to two show on Saturday
the second assistant and I would make
up the film and get it all ready. Ron
wouldn’t be there, so we’d start the
matinee and about half an hour later the
lights would come on in the stairwell
and you’d walk over and look down
and you’d see Ron’s head sticking
Hoyts’ former work -rooms, Little
through the door at the bottom saying,
Bourke Street, at the rear of what
“Everything right up there fellas?”
was the Esquire/De Luxe, remain
“Yes Ron, it's all running well.” almost unchanged from when they
“OK, I’ll see you in about an hour,” and were built in 1915.
off he’d go back to the pub. But that
was good experience.
drop it in, pick up the B-feature and With the wooden box cases we looked
Those were the years when not every bring it back to the Padua, and then go like business executives I’m sure.
theatre had its own copy of a film. home again for the rest of the day. Then I met a young gentleman just
At the Regent South Yarra we That was quite a chore actually. arrived out from England, James White.
used to switch with the Regent Fitzroy Quite regularly the tram conductor He had been in the film industry there
of all places, which was several suburbs would say “What’s in the bag son?” and I palled up with Jim who was
away. Sometimes if they were close “Film Mr. Conductor.” “Well, you working at the Barkly in Footscray.
switches the film would be coming over know you’re not supposed to carry film I’d been at the Padua for about 18
spool by spool, carried by two people on trams.” That was because film was months at this time and it had become a
on motor bikes. If the film was running highly flammable in those days, there bit of a chore to me mostly because of
short at the Regent South Yarra, Frank was no safety film. the day switching of the films.
Krautel had a knack of holding the I heard of a vacancy at the
Were you one of the assistants who
motor and let the belt slip slightly to Trocadero Footscray and applied for a
every week used to take in advertising
slow the projector down. He’d get the transfer. It was a second or third release
slides and records to be swapped over?
broom handle and lever it under the house, and they rarely had to switch
Yes, it was quite a social event
motor so that it lifted the motor, which their films. This meant we had all the
really. In the offices behind the Esquire
was hinged, and take some tension off film made up on the change day and we
in Bourke Street (the back of the
the belts, and you’d hear the sound kept that film without it going out of
theatre faced on to Little Bourke
come down a tone or two. the projection room, which was a nice
Street), Harry Gratton a projectionist at
The Padua used to switch with the change, not worrying about switching
Essendon - either the Circle or Plaza,
Grand because they were only about films with other people.
and another manager arranged the
two or three km. apart. Alec Boyce was projectionist at the
swap.
And films arrived tail out didn't they? You would carry a little square Trocadero, and I got on well with him.
Yes, it was up to the theatre wooden case, quite narrow, to take He told me where to go downstairs
receiving to rewind them. about eight or ten records, all in their when the phone rang, where to go to
get coffee for him and once he told me
cardboard folders, and each week you’d
That would need some fast rewinding that he always revelled in the fact that
go in there and give them to Harry who
in some cases. he had the best assistant projectionist
would give you back another case.
Oh, it wasn’t so bad at the Padua on the circuit because I never missed
You would check the records, give
and Grand. The only thing was, the out on getting his coffee for him.
them a quick clean and put them back
Padua - because of its superiority on Alec was a great punter and all
in your case.
the circuit - always ran the main feature Saturday afternoon he would have his
You would also bring back your
after interval, so the assistant or the cupboard open over in the side of the
used ads for that week and hed give
second assistant had to do the swap projection room with his little portable
you the new ones for the following
during the day. I used to come out from radio in it. It was taboo in those days to
week. That was on the change day - it
Richmond to Brunswick by tram, pick have portable radios in projection
might have been a Friday then, I’m not
up the film at the Padua, get on rooms, but he’d tie up the phone lines
sure - Thursday or Friday.
another tram and take it down in a for most of the day to his bookmaker. I
canvas bag down to the Grand, don’t think he won a lot of money.
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