ABERDEEN CINEMAS: a retrospective by Barney Crockett
On 20th June we were treated to a most entertaining talk by our new Lord Provost Barney Crockett on the history of the cinema in Aberdeen. He interspersed his talk with some very amusing anecdotes.
In the early days cinemas were very popular and attracted large audiences and in Aberdeen there were more cinema seats per head of population than anywhere else in the UK. At this time the city suffered from overcrowding and a visit to the cinema was a means of escape. They were especially popular with children. The cinemas were provided and financed by local businessmen, some with altruistic motives and others to make money.
The first cinema to open was Aberdeen Beach Cinema and Zoo but the zoo consisted of two very old lions in a tiny cage and the other animals were merely pictures of animals. Some of the cinemas offered roller-skating as well as films e.g. the Coliseum in Belmont Street which is now the Belmont. This cinema and the Globe had a reputation for their clientele leaving the venues with fleas. Bert and Nellie Gates, who had done a one day course on how to run a cinema, opened the Star in Park Street. They would act out the story in front of the screen while the film was running. They also introduced disinfectant sprays with which to spray the audience when it was believed by some doctors that cinemas were spreading infection.
Later on more women started going to the cinema flocking to see Rudolph Valentino in ’The Sheikh’. The men preferred Greta Garbo, ‘Swedish, seductive and silent’. Aberdeen’s own famous operatic soprano, Mary Garden, made a couple of silent cinemas. She appeared in a quite risqué film ’The Splendid Sinner’.
The advertising of films became more outrageous. When the film ‘Aces High’ was being shown an aeroplane was suspended from the ceiling and when ‘King Kong’ was showing men in gorilla suits roamed the streets.
The Donald family bought up cinemas as they closed and came to dominate the business. Their first one was the Grand Central in George Street and later the Cinema House in Skene Terrace, where 15 year old Dick was installed as manager.
The Capitol and the Astoria both had cinema organs. The Astoria organ was rebuilt in St Machar Academy but was burnt down in a deliberate fire there. The Capitol’s organ was removed and put into storage during the recent redevelopment.
1939 was the peak year for the cinemas but by the 1950s they were losing popularity and many were closing.
Barney ended his talk with a very humorous poem about going to the cinema, which was followed by some revealing reminiscences from members of the audience.
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On 20th June we were treated to a most entertaining talk by our new Lord Provost Barney Crockett on the history of the cinema in Aberdeen. He interspersed his talk with some very amusing anecdotes.
In the early days cinemas were very popular and attracted large audiences and in Aberdeen there were more cinema seats per head of population than anywhere else in the UK. At this time the city suffered from overcrowding and a visit to the cinema was a means of escape. They were especially popular with children. The cinemas were provided and financed by local businessmen, some with altruistic motives and others to make money.
The first cinema to open was Aberdeen Beach Cinema and Zoo but the zoo consisted of two very old lions in a tiny cage and the other animals were merely pictures of animals. Some of the cinemas offered roller-skating as well as films e.g. the Coliseum in Belmont Street which is now the Belmont. This cinema and the Globe had a reputation for their clientele leaving the venues with fleas. Bert and Nellie Gates, who had done a one day course on how to run a cinema, opened the Star in Park Street. They would act out the story in front of the screen while the film was running. They also introduced disinfectant sprays with which to spray the audience when it was believed by some doctors that cinemas were spreading infection.
Later on more women started going to the cinema flocking to see Rudolph Valentino in ’The Sheikh’. The men preferred Greta Garbo, ‘Swedish, seductive and silent’. Aberdeen’s own famous operatic soprano, Mary Garden, made a couple of silent cinemas. She appeared in a quite risqué film ’The Splendid Sinner’.
The advertising of films became more outrageous. When the film ‘Aces High’ was being shown an aeroplane was suspended from the ceiling and when ‘King Kong’ was showing men in gorilla suits roamed the streets.
The Donald family bought up cinemas as they closed and came to dominate the business. Their first one was the Grand Central in George Street and later the Cinema House in Skene Terrace, where 15 year old Dick was installed as manager.
The Capitol and the Astoria both had cinema organs. The Astoria organ was rebuilt in St Machar Academy but was burnt down in a deliberate fire there. The Capitol’s organ was removed and put into storage during the recent redevelopment.
1939 was the peak year for the cinemas but by the 1950s they were losing popularity and many were closing.
Barney ended his talk with a very humorous poem about going to the cinema, which was followed by some revealing reminiscences from members of the audience.
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BUILDING A FAMILY TREE
Our May event was a presentation by member Eileen Grassick on the method she uses to trace and build a family tree. She used the example of her husband’s family to take us through all the stages of her search using mainly online resources such as Ancestry UK and Scotland’s People. A good place to start is talking to older relatives and noting the information they can provide and they may also have old birth, marriage and death certificates.
She uses the Statutory Registers to search for births, marriages, and deaths from 1855 and census reports from 1841-1911. For the period prior to 1855 she makes use of the indexes to the Old Parish Registers. These records were kept in each of the parishes by the kirk session clerk who was usually the school master or the minister himself. The registers for all parishes have not survived, possibly due to fire, dampness, theft and mice. They are incomplete because e.g. not all births were recorded, especially when a charge for registration was introduced and some families would not have been able to afford the fee. As there was no standard form for recording the information, the records may, but not always, include the child’s name, father’s name and occupation, mother’s name with maiden name, residence, date of baptism and names of witnesses.
She talked about the social conditions of the times when her husband’s ancestors had lived and she used pictures and photos in her presentation, e.g. the Aberdeen Combworks in Hutcheon Street where one of them had worked.
Her obvious enthusiasm for her subject may have encouraged some of our members to take up a search themselves. If so, can I recommend the comprehensive resources of the Aberdeen and North East Scotland Family History Centre in King Street, where there are volunteers to assist with your research.
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Our May event was a presentation by member Eileen Grassick on the method she uses to trace and build a family tree. She used the example of her husband’s family to take us through all the stages of her search using mainly online resources such as Ancestry UK and Scotland’s People. A good place to start is talking to older relatives and noting the information they can provide and they may also have old birth, marriage and death certificates.
She uses the Statutory Registers to search for births, marriages, and deaths from 1855 and census reports from 1841-1911. For the period prior to 1855 she makes use of the indexes to the Old Parish Registers. These records were kept in each of the parishes by the kirk session clerk who was usually the school master or the minister himself. The registers for all parishes have not survived, possibly due to fire, dampness, theft and mice. They are incomplete because e.g. not all births were recorded, especially when a charge for registration was introduced and some families would not have been able to afford the fee. As there was no standard form for recording the information, the records may, but not always, include the child’s name, father’s name and occupation, mother’s name with maiden name, residence, date of baptism and names of witnesses.
She talked about the social conditions of the times when her husband’s ancestors had lived and she used pictures and photos in her presentation, e.g. the Aberdeen Combworks in Hutcheon Street where one of them had worked.
Her obvious enthusiasm for her subject may have encouraged some of our members to take up a search themselves. If so, can I recommend the comprehensive resources of the Aberdeen and North East Scotland Family History Centre in King Street, where there are volunteers to assist with your research.
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On 18th April the Society was treated to an illustrated talk on the history of the Aberdeen Beach Ballroom by John Johnston, who has been manager there for 27 years.
As part of a plan to improve facilities at the beach, Aberdeen Town Council ran a competition inviting designs for a dance hall. Plans by architects Roberts & Hume of Bathgate were chosen and the original cost was £50,000 but this was considered too expensive by the Council, so the plans had to be amended to cost £30,000. The building work started in 1927 and the ballroom opened on 3rd May 1929 with a fancy dress carnival. The Star Ballroom was added in 1963 at a cost of £46,000.
In 1939 it was closed and commandeered by the Armed Forces until January 1946. After £7,000 of repairs it was handed back to the Council and re-opened at Christmas. In 1948 the first Arts Ball was held and the Coronation Ball on 15th May 1953.
The venue hosted ballroom dancing in the Fifties and the 1960s was the era when bands such as Manfred Mann, the Who and the Searchers appeared there. The Beatles played there as a support band but, by the time they came on, most of the audience had left to catch the last bus home.
Over the years the building has had a few refurbishments, including during the 1980s when the stage was rebuilt and the Leisure Centre was added. The ballroom floor needs a special mention. It floats on 1400 steel springs and in 2010 it was completely relaid working from the centre. It has an octagonal maple floor, which was what the original floor was made of. Unfortunately, due to Health & Safety regulations the floor has had to be covered by carpet.
This must have been a nostalgic trip through the ballroom’s history for many of our members. They would have remembered the wonderful dance floor, the fountain in the middle and not forgetting the the attendants who would tap dancers on the shoulder if they thought couples were dancing too close together.
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ANNUAL SUMMER OUTING
On 3rd July 2016 members of the Society went on their Annual Summer bus trip to Fraserburgh to visit the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses, Kinnaird Head Lighthouse and the Heritage Centre. On the way we stopped for a comfort break at the Happy Plant Mintlaw and after the visit we had high tea in Ellon at the Buchan Hotel. It was a good day out in spite of the chilly wind, especially near the top of the lighthouse. (Photos by members Margaret Dundas & Helen McKenzie) |