Announcement

**Graham Ritchie** · January 27, 2023, 12:17 PM

I think Ed about the same, one thing about aircraft though, is to "always" have somebody to watch your wing tips and tail for you in , that's a must in a hanger you don't move without it. The ATP as an example had only a couple of feet to spare at the wing tips. The chap who wrote my above reference, once asked me to bring in the ATP into the hanger during our Christmas break up. As I towed it into the hanger, Allan was standing at the far end on the centre line, with our large home made spit going round and round behind him, a beer in one hand, watching the aircraft "very carefully" I should add, with the other hand and giving me the thumbs up.

I wish I had a camera with me that day, it was quite a sight

.

Here is a interesting bit of history, way back in 1957 the company was involved in the making the Cinerama "South Seas Adventure" with both the person who started the company and other pilots, and after a bit of testing, were to mount the Cinerama camera on one wing the batteries on the other, plus it was said the cameraman who was 16 stone all into a single engine Auster. The Cinerama camera shot between the the Anzac Peaks which is now known as the Cinerama Gap in the film ever since.

If there was ever a photo to make one cringe, its this one of that Auster.

**Graham Ritchie** · January 27, 2023, 12:34 PM

A few years ago Ed I came across this you-tube video completely made in "fun"

but does show how they were good times. They even used some of mine with me at the start of it

. I should add it finishes with a picture of Harry Wigley the man who started it all

**Graham Ritchie** · January 28, 2023, 11:46 AM

I have never seen "South Seas Adventure" but I did watch the trailer on you-tube yesterday, now what caught my eye was the following stills I took from the computer screen.

If you look at the above photo of the Auster, take note the "red engine cowling" marking, now from the trailer below, the "Auster" cowling is in shot in the following two photos, The mounted Cinerama camera on the Auster right wing captures some very impressive images.

**Graham Ritchie** · February 15, 2023, 02:54 AM

Well the poor old North Island is taking a hammering over the last couple of days with a Cyclone, but down here in the South Island we have been only getting the edge of it, but tonight while watching a movie I thought things were moving around a wee bit, nothing to be concerned about, must be my imagination. Well I just checked and the North Island did get a little bit of a shake a 6.3 and what I had felt, was the shock wave travelling South, so my photo for the day must go to the North Island and hope things improve for them, in saying that its nothing compared to what has happened in Turkey-Syria in recent days.

**Melvin England** · March 07, 2023, 04:17 AM

Yesterday, my wife and I travelled 100 miles north to visit her uncle who has just gone into a retirement home in Billingham in Teeside.

This area is my wife's home territory and at the top of the street where the home is located, I saw this old cinema and she casually remarked how often she would go and see movies there all those years ago. Therefore, photograph needed !

.

As you can see, the left hand side has been converted into 6 businesses, the ground floor from the entrance is a pizza house. What is probably not as obvious is that the first floor is now a dancing school. What puzzles me is........ If the original circle is still intact, what on earth is a dancing school doing on a sloping floor ??!! The other question as a film person...... I wonder if there is still any film equipment left behind up in the gods ?

.

**Steve Klare** · March 07, 2023, 02:05 PM

-dancing on an incline builds leg muscles!

(They tried building a roller-skating rink, but everybody kept piling up at the bottom of the hill!)

**Ed Gordon** · March 07, 2023, 03:37 PM

Originally posted by Steve Klare View Post

-dancing on an incline builds leg muscles!

(They tried building a roller-skating rink, but everybody kept piling up at the bottom of the hill!)

Here is a photo of a former dancing school graduate:

**Chip Gelmini** · March 16, 2023, 07:00 PM

I found this quite interesting

**Steve Lee** · March 17, 2023, 03:47 AM

Hi Melvin,
I found out a little more information about the Picture House cinema, the shop units below were not connected to the cinema. They were built as individual units because of the gradient of the land, just as a fill in under the stalls.
From what I can understand the stalls area got converted into a car showroom, with the balcony extended over the entire auditorium for the dance school above.
The entrance foyer got originally converted into a pub which is now the pizza restaurant.

Located in Billingham-on-Tees, Cleveland on the corner of South View and Mill Lane. The Picture House was opened in December 1928. It had a 28 feet wide proscenium and by 1930 was equipped with a Western Electric(WE) sound system. It was equipped with CinemaScope in 1955 and the proscenium was widened to 35 feet.

**Melvin England** · March 17, 2023, 05:08 AM

Steve - Thank you sooooo much for the added information about this cinema. I am very touched that you have taken the time to do the research and post here.
I have just shown this to my wife who got quite excited about it. I may have mentioned previously, she used to visit this cinema in the early 1960's with her parents and has a lot of good memories of it in its heyday.
It is sad what they have done to these beautiful buildings............. but at least it is still standing !

**Steve Lee** · March 17, 2023, 01:05 PM

It was my pleasure Melvin, I love researching old cinemas to see what they originally looked like and how they transition over the years. I just find it fascinating, especially when you can find photos of them.
Here's a couple more that I found.

**Graham Ritchie** · March 17, 2023, 01:39 PM

After watching JAWS 2 during the week, it reminded me I still had it on Super8 Scope. I gave up watching long ago as it was fading away. So yesterday I went down to the Heritage Park with the view to do more painting after framing a bit if wood for the screen, but decided to include it in our display that I have slowly been working on. I added "This Is The Movies" Sign during the week, a left over from my Movieland days.

Now as I was just about to leave a group of primary school kids dressed in the Victorian era educational thing the park runs came along. I thought mmmm just wait a minute and see what the reaction is. Straight away one youngster pointed to JAWS

. The parent with them said typical

to me that's my son, he has good taste I replied

. After a quick chat to the parent I found out she had been a regular to our old Movieland cinema and had missed going to it.

Its a small world

anyway it shows the JAWS exhibit works