Cinema, Entrepreneurship and Society in the South Wales Valleys, 1900 to the 1970S
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Cinema, Entrepreneurship and Society in the South Wales Valleys, 1900 to the 1970s Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (History and Welsh History) Cardiff University 2016 Angela Evans DECLARATION This work has not been submitted in substance for any other degree or award at this or any other university or place of learning, nor is being submitted concurrently in candidature for any degree or other award. Signed (candidate) Date STATEMENT 1 This thesis is being submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of PhD. Signed (candidate) Date STATEMENT 2 This thesis is the result of my own independent work/investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by explicit references. The views expressed are my own. Signed (candidate) Date STATEMENT 3 I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for inter-library loan, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organisations. Signed (candidate) Date . STATEMENT 4: PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BAR ON ACCESS I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for inter-library loans after expiry of a bar on access previously approved by the Academic Standards & Quality Committee. Signed (candidate) Date ii Summary This thesis explores the role played by small-scale cinema entrepreneurs in the south Wales valleys in establishing cinema as the predominant cultural medium of the twentieth century. The focus and methodology draw heavily on the new cinema history that emerged in the early 2000s and champions a reorientation of cinema history away from a concentration on films as cultural products towards a more sociological approach that views cinema as a social institution located within specific community settings. The continuing dominance of small-scale cinema ownership in the south Wales valleys (in most areas of the UK, the major cinema chains, such as Odeon and ABC, came to control the market) meant that cinema proprietors were often prominent local figures. Not only did they exercise a considerable amount of influence on the audience experience, they were also active players in their local communities, cultivating relationships with civic leaders, contributing to a range of local good causes and promoting the community benefits of cinema. Given the controversial nature of cinema, they became adept cultural brokers, negotiating with regulatory authorities, appeasing oppositional groups whilst keeping a weather eye on fluctuating popular tastes. The divisive nature of cinema makes it an ideal lens through which to examine the dynamics of civil, social and commercial life of south Wales towns as they transitioned from conditions of economic boom to post industrial bust. The focus of this study is Bargoed in the Rhymney Valley, which was home to the Withers, one of the most important, and yet little known, cinema-owning families in south Wales. By holding the magnifying glass up to a single town and business the aim is to move beyond generalizations and examine closely how various social, economic and cultural forces interplayed at the local level. iii Contents Page List of figures vi List of tables vii Dedication viii Acknowledgements ix Introduction 1 Chapter One The historiographical landscape 18 Leisure historiography a vast and varied terrain 18 Towards a new cinema history 32 The Welsh context 36 Chapter Two The importance of place 43 Cinemas early incursion into the valleys 43 Introducing the Withers brothers 46 Bargoed the metropolis of the Rhymney Valley 48 Chapter Three This form of amusement shows no sign of diminishing: The early days of film exhibition in the 57 south Wales valleys A process of continuity as well as change 58 The demand for innovation and spectacle 62 From film pioneer to commercial opportunist 65 Conclusion 71 Chapter Four From showman to businessman: the establishment of the first picture palaces, 1910-1920 74 Front-line pioneers 77 The emergence of the back-room businessman 86 Entertaining as well as educating the role of working mens institutes 101 Let the field be open, free and fair for everyone 105 Conclusion 107 Chapter Five The mainland of modernity or devils instrument?: Cinema as a site for community 110 conflict and cohesion, 1910-1920 Cautious handshake or warm embrace the early 112 responses of civic leaders Too tainted for the young uns 116 Sometimes on a Sunday 122 Conclusion 142 iv Chapter Six Players on a public stage: The incorporation of cinema into community life, 1900 1920 145 Bargoeds civic elite 147 The glue that bonded the civic elite together 151 With characteristic foresight and benevolence 155 A judicious blending of the educational and the entertaining 162 Cinema as national necessity 165 A personal touch 167 Conclusion 169 Chapter Seven The coining of money?: the challenges and opportunities of the inter-war years 172 Let us entertain you 177 Guile and gimmickry gaining the competitive edge 184 A little gold mine or yawning money pit cinemas in crisis 202 The emergence of cinema circuits 211 From civic courtship to legal challenge 218 Conclusion 224 Chapter Eight From community-bound culture to individual pleasures cinema from the 1940s to 1970s 225 Communities in flux 226 Determination is all very well the consequences for the cinema industry 233 Private entreaty to public plebiscite the evolving nature of public engagement 241 Conclusion 250 Conclusion 253 Annex 1 261 Annex 2 263 Bibliography 264 v List of figures Page 1. The Withers brothers 46 2. The New Hall Theatre, Bargoed 47 3. OS maps of Bargoed and Gilfach 49 4. Isnt Bargoed a nice place? 52 5. Hanbury Road, Bargoed c1905 54 6. For one day only 60 7. Pooles Colossal Myriorama 62 8. Dr Walford Bodies cures 63 9. Variety artistes, the juvenile sisters Vera and Vi 70 10. The Victoria Electric Theatre, Dowlais 76 11. Withers family members 79 12. Florence Smithson 85 13. Artists impression of new cinematograph theatre 90 14. If its pictures Clarkes the man! 98 15. A bona fide traveller 124 16. Great British Film Week 202 17. Pawnbrokers bargains and holidays at Barry Island 205 18. The first share certificate to be issued by Abertillery Theatres Ltd. 214 19. Christmas card from Julian Hodge to Alfred Withers and family 215 20. Oaklands Hall 216 21. Little A our only friend in Bargoed 220 22. Hodges corporate family tree 240 23. Cartoon that appeared in the press at the time of the sale to Rank 241 24. Advertisement for the Carlton cinema 243 25. Crowds unable to gain access to the public meeting 245 26. The New Hall Theatre ablaze 250 27. A solitary griffin on the derelict Palace cinema 254 28. The long abandoned Hanbury cinema 254 vi List of tables Page 1. Year company was incorporated 87 2. Place of abode of directors 87 3. Occupation of directors 88 4. Company ownership 92 5. Number of years companies were in business 208 vii Dedication To C. G. Evans who introduced the family to Bargoed and bestowed me with the stubborn streak that has helped see this thesis through to completion. viii Acknowledgements PROFESSOR BILL JONES for his invaluable advice, always given with a light touch. ELIN JONES - with whom I have shared innumerable notes on our parallel journeys. THE STAFF OF BARGOED LIBRARY for their generous help and for providing such a convivial working environment ix Introduction The heroes of these micro-histories the Menocchios of the cinema will be the small businessmen who acted as cultural brokers, navigators and translators of the middle ground constructing a creolized culture out of their communitys encounters with the me diated external world. Going to the movies: Hollywood and the Social Experience of Cinema 1 So domineering is the image of the cinema industry as a global phenomenon, driven by corporate giants such as Gaumont, ABC and Odeon, that the role played by the small-scale cinema entrepreneur has been all but air brushed from cinema history. And yet early cinema depended on the entrepreneurial spirit and unflagging energy of thousands of independent cinema owners, and in some parts of the country independent ownership prevailed until well into the twentieth century. This thesis explores the role played by small-scale cinema entrepreneurs in the south Wales valleys in establishing cinema as the predominant cultural medium of the twentieth century. The focus and methodology draw heavily on the new cinema history (described in more detail in Chapter One) that emerged in the early 2000s and champions a reorientation of cinema history away from a concentration on films as cultural products towards a more sociological approach that views cinema as a social institution located within specific community settings. 2 Before the advent of this new school of cinema history, the roles played by cinemas and cinema entrepreneurs within their local communities had been largely overlooked. Whilst the commercialisation of entertainment has been a feature of the leisure landscape since as early as the eighteenth century, the arrival of cinema in the early years of the twentieth century brought a considerable step change. Film had the unique ability to be replicated and reused enabling entertainment entrepreneurs to reach far greater 1 Edited by Richard Maltby, Melvyn Stokes and Robert C. Allen (Exeter, 2007). 2 One of the first compilations to be published under the banner of new cinema history was Richard Maltby, Melvyn Stokes and Robert C. Allen (eds.), Going to the Movies: Hollywood and the Social Experience of Cinema (Exeter, 2007). This was followed by Richard Maltby, Daniel Biltereyst and Phillipe Meers (eds.), Explorations in New Cinema History: Approaches and case studies (Maldon, 2011) and Daniel Biltereyst, Richard Maltby and Philippe Meers (eds.), Cinema, Audiences and Modernity: New perspectives on European cinema history (Abingdon, 2012).