Cumnock

A current rear view of the auditorium exterior is

Cumnock Picture House was one

of two cinemas owned privately by a Mrs Ward, who had inherited them

from her father (the other was in Auchinleck). Cumnock was the first purpose built

cinema in the area, opening around 1913 (although some sources suggest as early as 1910). It had

400 seats on a single level. In 1973 it converted to bingo and cinema,

before finally closed as a cinema 1980. The building survives to this

day as a bingo hall.

Originally

advertised for both cinema and Vaudeville, it looked like a

barn with the original frontage comprising a neat three-sided shaped

sandstone façade with two circular windows on either side of a

large

curved top window.

The projection room started life as a separate add-on room on the roof

of the original entrance frontage. Access to the projection booth was

via a ladder through a hatch in the ceiling of the foyer. In 1920 the

original projector was replaced with two all electric

projectors. These were supplied with all their electricity needs from a

generator situated at the back of the building.

In the thirties the building

had a major refurbishment…

A current rear view of the auditorium exterior is

Cumnock Picture House was one

of two cinemas owned privately by a Mrs Ward, who had inherited them

from her father (the other was in Auchinleck). Cumnock was the first purpose built

cinema in the area, opening around 1913 (although some sources suggest as early as 1910). It had

400 seats on a single level. In 1973 it converted to bingo and cinema,

before finally closed as a cinema 1980. The building survives to this

day as a bingo hall.

Originally

advertised for both cinema and Vaudeville, it looked like a

barn with the original frontage comprising a neat three-sided shaped

sandstone façade with two circular windows on either side of a

large

curved top window.

The projection room started life as a separate add-on room on the roof

of the original entrance frontage. Access to the projection booth was

via a ladder through a hatch in the ceiling of the foyer. In 1920 the

original projector was replaced with two all electric

projectors. These were supplied with all their electricity needs from a

generator situated at the back of the building.

In the thirties the building

had a major refurbishment including a rebuilt new front façade,

that incorporated old projection room and covered the whole front of

building. New Projectors (Kalee 11’s with sound on disc) were also

installed at this time. These were supplied with both small screen and

wide screen lenses, so they were able to show all the latest films,

newsreels, and gazettes in colour, as well as the old silent films. It

is unknown when they were modified for optic sound.

In 1949, as things improved after WWII, the systems were re-equipped,

this time with the Kalee KT21 fully enclosed projector with total fire

fighting ability. Westrex sound system, Kalee 60w amp and Westinghouse

80Amp arc rectifier were also installed. In 1956 these were modified to

handle Cinemascope. The Kalee 21’s stayed in service till the end of

the cinema shows in 1980.

In the early 1960’s a completely new three coloured vertical stripe

asbestos type cladding was put on the upper half of the façade;

the lower half being painted with horizontal stripes. It is this

decoration that is still visible on the exterior today.

The interior changed little over the years, and was all on one level.

What was called the balcony consisted of the top 12 rows of seats above

the cross aisle and separator towards the projection room. Access

was from two side door entrances, whilst the two hallways continued

into the stalls.

The stalls were two blocks of seats with a central aisle, and separated

from balcony by a wooden separator and a row of seats. The front stalls

were 6 rows of seats with wooden backed separator.

The interior had fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling for bingo but

all other original décor still exists.