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Author
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Topic: State Cinema, Grays Essex (UK)
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Stephen Furley
Film God
Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002
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posted 01-19-2008 11:36 AM
I visited the State several times while it was being used as 'Charlestons'. The club was located in the foyer, and the main auditorium was only normally used as a fire escape route from it, though occasional events were held. Most of these were organ concerts, but there were also a few others, including at least one boxing match.
The organ concerts were put on by the 'Friends of the State', but I'm not sure what the arrangements were with the then tenant of the building for the use of the auditorium. 'Charlestons' was quite short-lived, and when it closed these events stopped. The Friends presented at least one feature film show, and also occasionally ran short films during the organ concerts.
At this time the projection box looked just as it does on that site; there were three projectors still in place, the one nearest the camera was still carbon, and the other two were xenon conversions. The spoolboxes had been removed, and the large plates fitted in their place, as seen in the photograph. The centre projector is the one which was normally used at this time, and is a Westar; I think the far projector was another Simplex, I know that there were two of one make, and one of the other, and I think it was two Simplex. There were rollers to enable the platter to feed all three projectors, including the one which was still carbon.
The centre projector was the only one which I actually saw running. The xenon lamp in this had recently been replaced, but the screen was seriously under-lit. I think the lamp was a 2.5kW, and it really needed something like a 4k for the screen size they had there.
The Brenograph was largely operational, though I seem to remember being told that the motorised carbon feed no longer worked, worn worm gears I think. At that time one unit, the top one I think, was being used for slides, and the bottom one for effects. That would make sense, since the colour wheel us fitted to the lower unit in the photo.
The spot which can be seen behind the Brenograph is an original Stelmar, with the wires over the top to operate the colour magazine. The similar one from the other end of the box, next to the platter, had been removed, and replaced my a more modern, probably '50s, Philips one. The removed Stelmar was on the floor outside the door to the box. Most of the time during the concerts the Philips spot was used, with the remaining Stelmar only being struck up when both were required, or while the Philips was re-carboned.
I was told by the operators who were there during the concerts that there had been four projectors, and that 3-D had at one time been run with changeovers, on four machines. The fourth one which had been removed to make room for the platter was said to still be in store somewhere in the building. They also told me that the original rectifier plant was intact, and capable of being used, but small rectifiers in the projection box were in use at this time, one can be seen at the far end, and another between the Brenograph No. 1 machine.
The Compton Organ was fully operational, indeed I seem to remember that an extra stop had recently been added to it. There was a grand piano and Compton Melotone unit attached to it, and playable from the main console, though the Melotone was not totally happy at this time. See here for anybody who doesn't know what a Melotone is. There was was also a small portable Melotone organ which I believe belonged to one of the Friends, which was stored in a room in the tower, and brought out and played in the foyer from time to time. The organ console had the illuminated 'jelly mould' surround, which was fairly typical in this Country, and a quite different shape to the unique one on the Compton at the Odeon Leicester Square.
The Organ concerts were introduced by a gentleman by the name of Huw Davis, or it might have been Davies, who I think was Chairman of the Friends of the State.
There were problems with roof leaks at the rear of the auditorium, and possibly elsewhere, though the owners had carried out some repairs shortly before the building finally closed. There had also been some water damage in the toilets, though I think that was a leaking water pipe, rather than rainwater. Only the circle (balcony) was in use for the organ concerts.
If the photographs on that site are recent then it doesn't actually look too bad, considering how long it's been closed.
edit:
Another site I've just found with much more information on the Compton melotone: web page
And one which explains how it actually works: web page
[ 01-19-2008, 02:10 PM: Message edited by: Stephen Furley ]
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