Before the days of television most suburbs and small towns had a picture theatre, we kids called them the ‘Flicks’.

At the beginning of a ‘Flick’ we had to stand for God Save the King (or Queen in later years). Then the latest news reels or propaganda reels would play, reminding us of the fights going on in Europe and the Pacific.

They were very different in those days. Some theatres opened at 10am and carried on showing several films rolling them on until 10pm. You were able to stay as long as you wished. If you walked in the middle of a film you could stay until the beginning started up once again. You were permitted to smoke and drink in the theatres. How times have changed!

When my friend T.S. Chang came to New Zealand from China he would spend all his spare time at the pictures to improve his English. Because of his choice of flick he developed a slight American accent, mimicking the movie stars. He ultimate graduated with a Ph.d

There were special showings for the kids on Saturday mornings with serials and cartoons. You needed to come back next week to see what happened to the hero – whether he died or lived.

Another treat on Saturday morning was having enough money to purchase an icecream. The Adams Bruce icecream were particularly special as they were extra large, and tasted different to regular icecream.

When I was very young my grandfather ‘Pop’ took me to the Kinema theatre in Kilbirnie to see the 1935 film ‘Top Hat’. We had to sit at the back of the theatre because he was partly deaf due to being wounded in the battle of Messines in France during the WWI. In the back row they had extra loud headphones for the partially deaf. I recently called up the same film on my television set on YouTube, and I still enjoyed the music and the dancing by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

LOCKED IN THE LOO

One of my most embarrassing trips to the theatre was when I took our young daughter Robyn to a theatre in New Plymouth. Just before the finish of the show she asked to go to the toilet. I took her to the ladies room and waited outside.

After awhile there was a loud cry as she couldn’t get out of the cubical – she had locked herself in.

I slipped into the ladies toilets and was unable to open her cubical door so I climbed over the wall stepping over several cubicals desperately hoping they were empty. Luckily they were and I safely made my way to my daughter. I opened the door and took Robyn out just as the film finished and ladies poured in. One lady said to me as she passed “I thought I had come into the men’s toilets!”

Television has closed most of the cinemas. There are very few left and very few people smoke these days – thank goodness.

Geoffrey Moss(mossassociates.co.nz)

“Take care of your memories and share them with your family.”