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Author Topic: Film User Magazine
Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted June 01, 2018 05:28 AM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The recent comment by Dave Groves in a separate topic in which he refers to the old magazine called "Film User" took me back some years.

Perhaps it should have been called "16mm Film User" as it was primarily aimed at the 16mm showmen who ran mobile units of the time, although perhaps schools, colleges and some home users would have found it useful.

It was a magazine which monthly reviewed all 16mm films which had had a recent release, including the many varied sponsored films of the time, such as those available from the superb Sound Services which had mainly free-loan films from all sorts of sponsors. Also, there was Petroleum Films Bureau which had, as the name suggests, free-loan films from most of the oil companies.

There were also mentions of new equipment, such as reviews of projectors and accessories. And plenty of interesting advertisements.

I always found the magazines a fascinating read.

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Maurice

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Luigi Castellitto
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 715
From: Campobasso, Italy
Registered: Jun 2013


 - posted June 01, 2018 08:40 AM      Profile for Luigi Castellitto   Email Luigi Castellitto   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I saw that there are some numbers on eBay. Maybe I'll take one, I'm curious, I've never seen this magazine.

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted June 01, 2018 09:32 AM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The mags on eBay sale are much later than the ones I used to take, maybe they've altered in modernity.
I had them monthly in the 50s when I was doing mobile shows around Somerset villages, and then later in the 60s as secretary of the Taunton Film Guild where we supplemented our foreign feature films with free-loan sponsored films like BPs "Giuseppina" and "The Home Made Car".

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Maurice

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Dave Groves
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 508
From: Southend on Sea, Essex, UK
Registered: Feb 2015


 - posted June 01, 2018 11:57 AM      Profile for Dave Groves     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
As I had to watch the pennies in those days I was only able to buy 'Film User' occasionally. It was amazing how many firms had films on free loan in days when borrowing from a library was expensive, unless you just went for B picture stuff from libraries like Wallace Heaton or ? Price in Wales. Towards it's end it seemed to run out of steam with fewer reviews, advertisers, and probably pages.

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Dave

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted June 01, 2018 01:50 PM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Gerald Price as Intercontinental Films in South Wales. Passed away in June 2005.
The real place for cheap 16mm hire was Watsofilms of Coventry.

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Maurice

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Dave Groves
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 508
From: Southend on Sea, Essex, UK
Registered: Feb 2015


 - posted June 02, 2018 06:03 AM      Profile for Dave Groves     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
You're absolutely right Maurice. I bought both 'Old Mother Riley, Headmistress' and a Three Stooges short from Watsofilms. Quite reasonable prices and I still have them.

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Dave

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Luigi Castellitto
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 715
From: Campobasso, Italy
Registered: Jun 2013


 - posted June 02, 2018 08:44 AM      Profile for Luigi Castellitto   Email Luigi Castellitto   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Ah, Maurice, I thought they were from "your" period of reader.
And those of the 50s were very different graphically?

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007


 - posted June 02, 2018 10:15 AM      Profile for Maurice Leakey   Email Maurice Leakey   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Luigi
I am afraid that I cannot answer your query as I only was a reader during the 40s, 50s and 60s. They were then a small size, somewhat like today's A5 size.
Therefore, I have never seen the large ones now on eBay sale. No doubt, they are probably more to their times.

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Maurice

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Luigi Castellitto
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 715
From: Campobasso, Italy
Registered: Jun 2013


 - posted June 06, 2018 07:42 AM      Profile for Luigi Castellitto   Email Luigi Castellitto   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Here is an example of a magazine for sale. It must be said that the seller does not report the size, difficult to understand the proportions. [Smile]

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