THE MUNICIPAL THEATRE
LEFT: The former Green Island Municipal Theatre, Green Island-Photograph © H. McLean, (From the booklet "Cinemas-Dunedin and Districts")

The Municipal Theatre, Green Island, was built in 1887, and situated about where the State Highway One Brighton- Abbotsford-Green Island-Mosgiel turnoff is.

The first recorded movie screening in Green Island was on October 14, 1904, by Coopers Imperial Biograph Company. Stevensons Pictures operated the Municipal from June 28, for one month; followed by Howards Pictures, operators of the Mosgiel cinema, from 10 April, 1919.

Howards were taken over by Bo-Peep Enterprises Limited, operators of the Coronation Hall, St Kilda, on 16 August, 1919. Two months later they were themselves were taken over by Provincial Cinema Company, who in turned closed the Municipal, along with four other cinemas on 29 November 1919.

The Municipal remained closed until the Green Island Borough Council reopened it on 7 April, 1934. Sessions were every Wednesday and Saturday, but were increased to include Fridays from 20 September, 1957. The Friday sessions lasted two years.

By 1959 the writing was on the wall for the old wooden building. The land it occupied was required by the Ministry of Works for the proposed Dunedin to Mosgiel expressway. The Municipal closed its doors for the last time on 23 June 1960, and over the next few months was demolished.

CIVIC CINEMA
LEFT: The Civic Cinema, Green Island-Photo © B Knewstubb

To Replace the Municipal, the Borough Council had constructed a new hall and Council Chambers. Known as the Civic DeLuxe, it was officially opened by the Mayor of Green Island, Mr J Boomer, on 25 June, 1960.

There were multi-coloured squares of red, fawn, blue and whiter on the main frontage of the Civic DeLuxe, with glass used exclusively on the lower portion of the cinema frontage. The cinema seated 505 persons on a terraced floor (the first in Otago). A 32ft by 16ft CinemaScope screen and two Baeur projectors were installed at a cost of $9,750. The cinemas first movie, "The Reluctant Debutante", was the start of daily sessions in Green Island. The cinema was reported to cost $160,000.

While Amalgamated Theatres and Kerridge-Odeon were having applications heard by the Dunedin City Council for Sunday movies, The Civic DeLuxe paved the way. Its first Sunday session was on 13 November, 1960 with "The King and I". Sunday screening took two months longer to arrive in Dunedin.

With the arrival of television in July 1962, and the drop in patronage, the Green Island Borough Council hand over control to an independent operator. Despite careful programming and the screening of specialist films, the Civic finally succumbed and closed for the final time in 1989. The theatre today is the home of Television Three and Four southern news rooms.

Date Opened: (Municipal) 14 October 1904   (Civic) 25 June 1960
Date Closed:  (Municipal)  23 June 1960   (Civic)  1989
Location:        (Civic)  Main Road.
Owners:          Dunedin City Council, leased to Television Three and Four as their southern region studios.

Taken from "Cinemas-Dunedin and District 1897-1974" by B T Knewstubb, published by Knewstubb Theatres, © Knewstubb Theatres 1974 (out of print); Updated  © Library of Cinema Research Data, 1998, a division of Knewstubb Theatres.