Page 11 - CR-90

The balcony was claimed to be “The Largest in Australia”
supposedly the entrance to the best seats in the However Hoyts did comply, and a year later jettisoned. Finally, after Preston Drive-in
house. the New Malvern was spruced-up. Changes closed around 1985, its Philips Kinoton
included wider entrances with standard timber projectors were brought in.
Hoyts management resisted change for as long doors, internal toilets and enlarged
as possible. A letter of 18 May 1954 shows confectionery counters. It may have just been a thought bubble, but the
their realistic assessment of the hard times width of the New Malvern supposedly placed
ahead, even though public pronouncements The arrival of CinemaScope was another it in contention as Melbourne’s home for
shrugged off the looming impact of television. impetus for improvements. Opening at the Cinerama. A suburban release site would
New Malvern on Thursday 2 December 1954, certainly have been radical. Cinerama would
‘Because of the threatened impact [of TV] we it came six months after the first wave of find its home at the Plaza Collins Street in
have recently sold many blocks of land in the theatres granted Simultaneous with City 1958.
Melbourne suburbs that we intended to erect privileges, and shared that opening date with
theatres upon. It is our considered opinion that five other second-week release outlets. By February 1965, Hoyts had whittled their
after the advent of television, many of the suburban outlets from 37 to 11, and the New
suburban theatres will be a doubtful business The New Malvern’s modest proscenium Malvern underwent its last important change:
proposition. We are most loath, therefore, to received a modest ‘Scope screen. A profitable stage curtains wall-to-wall, and floor-to-
spend further monies on them at this theatre like Malvern might have been expected ceiling. The brilliance of the illumination onto
juncture’.(8) to get a big make-over for a big screen, but this the red curtain was a fine sight.
decision was typical: a profitable theatre didn't
need embellishments. A small screen, and By 1979 the chain had shrunk to three hard-
second-week releases were its destiny for tops: Hoyts Bentleigh, Broadway
some time yet. Camberwell and the New Malvern. Now the
drive-ins were all-important. On a map the
In the 1950s, the New Malvern New Malvern was at the centre of a 12 km
projectors were Centrex with Westrex north-south line, joining the three theatres. For
sound heads but, when Eric White started film-lovers in other suburbs, the car was now
there in the mid-1970s, the heads were the essential form of transport.
C&W model G and the sound-heads RCA
Photophone. In the late 1970s Centrex Attendances had been in decline for years, so
heads were brought in from the Wantirna the stalls were only opened on a Saturday
Drive-in. Their lightweight design caused night. The rake of the circle was again
overheating of the gates which meant that changed, the foot-warmers removed and new
water cooling had to be installed. Xenon seats installed. The total house capacity in
lamps replaced the Westrex 14 carbon arc 1982 was 1,404 seats, still too large. The firm
lamps and 6,000 ft spools were Sofarnos Monsborough and Associates Pty Ltd
introduced. To fit those spools meant that prepared plans to triple the theatre – two down,
the bio-room ceiling had to be raised (and one up.
very crudely at that). Optical Dolby
sound was installed for Yentl in the early Malvern council was antagonistic. The site had
1980s and the Kalee Duosonic rack was never included a car-park and, while street

CINEMARECORD # 90 11