Odeon Birmingham
139 New Street,
Birmingham,
B2 4NU
139 New Street,
Birmingham,
B2 4NU
2 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 41 comments found
One of my memories is of when father sent me on an errand to Felton Rapley, the organist at the Gaumont in 1938. I caught a glimpse of the screen. It was a scene from “Snow white and the seven dwarfs”. Christmas ‘38 was a good time. “If I were King” with Ronald Colman was playing at the Paramount. (Fiction of Francois Villon, the knave poet, taking King Louis XI’s place for a day during a war with Burgundy. Came out as a musical in '56 as the “Vagabond King”.)
Of course, I HAD to go and see the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios in Culver City, suburb of Los Angeles, and found it disappointing. Someone was making a clip for a TV weekly. Our group was allowed into the studio commissariat where we could lunch with the players.I did see Debbie Reynolds and a few from long forgotten series like “Shenandoah” and “Chaparral” “Dr. Kildare” Buildings were quite old, 1910s or 1920s. You could almost imagine operators hand-turning their cameras.
Can’t argue after 70 years. That’s how it seemed to me. There is photograph of father on the organ in the May 1938 issue of “Cinema Management”. Remember, he is at the extreme left of the stage, as seen from the auditorium. I am fortunate in still having photos of Autry’s visit, of the enormous film projectors, some of the staff, including some charming usherettes. I might be able to forward them, although I have never done that before. It will have to wait, because they are in Anchorage, Alaska, and I am writing from Portland,. Oregon. I will watch the Youtube.
Kindest Regards,
Stan Austin.
Raymond, the organ console turned to the left, so that the organist could see the screen and the orchestra. If it had turned to the left the organist would have been facing the wall, and unable to see what was going on. Here is some footage of the ODEON and the organ in action. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCdunRXpuZg
A man walked through the blacked out Birmingham streets from the Paramount to our Edgbaston home early in World War II. Nothing special, except that the No 7 bus to Portland Road and all others had stopped running. He placed a small dud firebomb found during the air raid on our mantle piece.He was Arthur Raymond, resident organist at the Paramount from 1937 to 1944, and my father. His real name was Cecil Austin which he later used for Chopin concerts around the United Kingdom. It is very nostalgic to recall the glory of the Paramount after seventy-five years. However, my father’s talent was unique. The usual programme contained a supporting film, the news, trailers,occasional cartoon (Disney) and the main film. Very frequently threre was a stage show and Arthur’s repertoire: a slide show of operettas such as “Rose Marie”, “Student Prince” accompanied by records played from the projection room while he played the organ.The organ actually rose six feet or more and turned half right for dad’s performance. Audiences were really intrigued when he accompanied songs in a musical film. On 11/12/40 we had a really hefty air raid. It is surprising that the theatre was untouched; on Friday 13/12/40 I sat on the organ seat with him as he rehearsed the accompaniment to the “New Moon” with Jeanette MacDonald and Helson Eddy and of course played it the next week. I was allowed to go pretty well all over the theatre including the projection room with Jackson the operator,or watch Gregory the stage manager controlling the coloured lights still playing on the screen when the film opened. (Many years later I saw Nelson Eddy’s live show and spoke to him a day later)
One special event was the visit of cowboy singer Gene Autry and his horse “Champion”. The press photographer did not come, and I can’t say how thrilled I was to “snap” the star and Mr Smith- a manager from Loughborough- for publicity. I still have the B/W print in my album as well as much else: popular music which father gave me.
When I project the classic DVDs on a 6' by 41/2' screen, even that isn’t anything like watching it in such a luxurious and fabulous cinema as the Paramount was although I have visited the New Gallery, the Regert Brighton,and many theatres in the UK and US. The Paramount wsa artistry beyond compare.
A Birmingham resident, Mr, Cyril Barbier, has recently constructed a large, extremely detailed scale model of this theatre. There is a link to an article about it here and a link to a slide show that includes pictures of the theatre as it is today and several photos of the model.
Ah, the memories. I saw MOONRAKER (1979), ROCKY III (1982), BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA (1986) and THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS (1987) here when it was a single screen. THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS was also the film that reopened the cinema as a cinema only after the last gig in the summer of 1987. I also saw Huey Lewis and The News at their sell-out gig in 1986. Always bizarre that the Widescreen movies played on a bigger screen than the Scope Films. Disney films and CARRIE were also two other movie regulars here.
Scanned images of the Odeon in 1988 here:–
Foyer:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/4941088936/
Auditorium (with Organ):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/4941089140/
2007 photo of the Odeon.
View link
I joined Cinerama when it was in Sheffield, in the early ‘60s, I think I was 18. The name WAS Cinerama not Itinerama and the venue was a 'Big Top’(the centre lock hub weighed 5 tons)and the film that was shown was South Seas Adventure – but NOT as described on the web sites I have visited?? The ‘Windjammer’ plot, plus film of Australia’s outback was what I watched 13 times per week(and loved it, and my favourite music was all ready Grieg’s Piano Concerto)so somewhere the info lines have got crossed.
The screen was I believe 108 feet wide but I forget the height -huge covers it! The tent we were told,cost 1 $million due to the cost of
the fireproof? material. Seating number was enormous and at (laugh)12/6d per seat with 2 shows per day the take was at least 1000 quid I believe.
We wore black guards type daks with double stitched seams, maroon cummerbund and dickiebow, white shirt and white waistcoat with gold or silver? navy type buttons.
I went with the company to Southsea but parted company after a time as I had a bad relationship with a particular manager, went on to
Paignton, Devon, and worked in a large hotel(Markham Court) for two
seasons, then migrated to Oz.
The Southsea site was on Southsea Common but I cannot remember the
Sheffield site’s location. Anyone help??
One manager was ‘Johnny’ Heinz, another was David Monk?? I have
attempted to locate and contact a good Swiss friend from that time but although I located his name and a contact number – the person I
contacted apparently spoke no English- had to get his daughter to speak to me- and had never been anywhere near Cinerama!!
A mystery, as there is only one person listed in Switzerland with his name!!
Oh, the music played outside of film time was a Glen Miller selection.
Hope this stuff is of interest.
‘Once Upon A Time In The Midlands’ is showing on Film 4 at 9pm on Sunday 9 March.
Ian-i’ve got ‘em all on paper. Past 45 (yes,45!) years even. Every movie since Elizabeth Taylor got bitten by her ass (or was it asp?) in Cleopatra. Soundtracks, posters, brochures too. Come over to Wolverhampton and taste the beer while yer at it!
Wow! i used to love all those old film ad layouts.
various ads for derby cinemas and at the bottom an ad for Odeon Birmingham live show with Elkie Brooks
http://www.flickr.com/photos/woody1969/2313607874/
lol yes, well it was only £2.99
‘Once upon a Time in the Midlands’ is being shown on TV this coming weekend,Sunday 9th March. Film4 at 9.00 pm to be exact. But I suppose all you posh lot out there have got the film on DVD by now anyway…….
The organ was a 4/10 Compton.
Thanks guys. ‘Once Upon A Time In The Midlands’ was filmed at the Capitol Cinema in Radford, Nottingham.
David Slack/anyone: The Alan Eyles 1996 book “Gaumont British Cinemas has extensive photos of the Gaumont Colmore Circus in.
Myself am collecting all the ads from the Birmingham Post from those years with the Cinerama logo on for Roland to put on his site in due course. Its when one gets to actual photos the copyright law gets a bit scary however. The “West End” cinema was the third widescreen cinema in those days-equipped for 70mm I think as well as the ABC Coleshill Street-the latter now demolished for the super-duper extension in 1969 to Aston University.
The West End took all the overload from the Gaumont Cinerama and ABC Bristol Road in those days when Julie Andrews was humping herself(did i say that?LOL)all over the Austrian alps in the 3-year Sound of Music marathon at the Gaumont, and Julie(again) in Star in Todd-Ao at the ABC Bristol Road for a six-month period.The West End featured on the “Suffolk Street” page of DJNorton’s website-maybe we should e-mail the guy and tell him what a dream his pictures are to us?
Woody. Where are the “subrubs” of Nottingham eh? LOL Remember this a respectable information site LOLOL
The filming location could have been the Capitol Cinema, Radford, Nottingham /theaters/22609/
cant remember the name but its in the subrubs of nottingham, either radford or beeston and is now a church
Location shooting was in Nottingham, if that helps
Anyone here know what cinema /bingo hall the movie “Once Upon A Time In The Midlands' with Kathy Burk was filmed???
Yes, Roland’s is a site of true devotion! I have just looked through your website and I’m very impressed. I love the ‘then and now’ photos. Well done! I look forward to more from you on Cinerama. I donated all of my Cinerama and CineMiracle memorabilia, including my orginal photos of the Itinerama tent, to the National Media Museum in Bradford some years ago. It gave me quite a thrill to see some of it used in the Cinerama feature display recently. I recall going to the Gaumont and the ABC Bristol Road when they were Cinerama theatres. I saw ‘Paint Your Wagon’ as a Cinerama presentation at the ABC. It had been intended to make that film in 3-strip Cinerama, but it was switched to 70mm at the last minute!