The nation was just emerging from Depression and Recession and an outing to the local Picture House had a special place in the social life of a good proportion of the population. It was affordable to the masses and with the dominance of movies from the much more glamorous Hollywood Studios being a real opportunity for escapism from the privations of normal life.
In addition to main features the cinematic screens gave presentations of newsreels of home and international news, a catch up of the engagements and activities of the Royal Family, sporting events and snippets from what we would call today the antics of celebrities and the rich and famous.
In my home city of Kingston Upon Hull the year 1930 was a bumper one for the local cinemas.
The Monday night edition of The Hull Daily Mail on 8th March 1930 was a typical one for the listings of films so that its readership could plan for the week ahead.
We, today, take for granted the wide screen, quality sound and razor sharp digitalised images as well as comfortable seating, air conditioning and a good selection of snacks and goodies. In 1930 many of the Cinemas will have been very old fashioned and uncomfortable but they quickly geared up for the revolution of the age, the Talking Picture.
Only two years before had seen the release of The Jazz Singer, the first synchronised talking movie although of the sound on disc method.
This was the catalyst for the industry to churn out Talkies and the Hull audiences were attracted in huge numbers to witness the phenomena for themselves.
There appears to have been a cinema on every street in the city centre and out into the newly built suburban areas fronting the main highways. Some of them still survive today but most in other guises of Bingo Halls and Entertainment Venues as the Duplex and Out of Town Complexes became dominant.
Other buildings are hanging on in a semi derelict state or, as in the case of The Eureka which I wrote about yesterday, long since demolished and cleared.
Their names are iconic in Hull's urban and social history.
Take The Cecil on Ferensway, The National on Beverley Road, Carlton on Anlaby Road, The Savoy on Holderness Road, The Playhouse on Porter Street, Tower on Anlaby Road, Monica on Newland Avenue, Rialto, Mayfair, Sherburn Street, Ritz, Strand, Regent and Boulevard. Quite a choice for Matinees during the week and the big night out on a friday or a saturday.
All of the column inches heralded the wonders of the Talkies via Western Electric although not all. For example the Rialto continued with its dedication as being "the silent house with orchestral music.
So what was being shown on the stage mounted screens in that week in 1930?
I don't recognise a great deal of them although amongst the names of the stars of the screen are Barbara Stanwyck, Ronald Colman, Maurice Chevalier and a good mixture of lesser known, up and comings and home grown talent.
A few names that I am not at all familiar with are Rod La Rocque, Betty Bronson, Gypsy Rhouma, Joseph Schildkraut, Anny Ondra and Madge Bellamy. No doubt much loved and idolised in their day.
The IMDB resource is invaluable in finding out about the performers and movie releases and a few can still be found in grainy black and white on You Tube.
I recognise the title Bulldog Drummond but not so such movies as The Locked Door, White Cargo, A Dangerous Woman, Behind that Curtain, Innocents of Paris, Master and Man, The Great Divide, Tonight at 12, Her Private Affair, The Faker, The Manxman and The Passenger.
The plot lines were certainly of what we would regard as racist, sexist and politically incorrect by today's sensitivities covering abusive relationships, sexy and saucy heroines, colonial misdeeds, crimes of extortion and embezzlement and a host of shady characters. There were also comedies and musicals for the more genteel of cinema goers of the era.
In all a feast of entertainment could be had by the population of Hull in the magically darkened auditoriums in their sparse and therefore valuable leisure time.
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