…the way it used to be….
Remember what Lido Cinema used to look like back then?
the foyer
the ticket booth
A special thanks going out to Ruth Rollitt for sending us these lovely gems! 
|
||||||
28 comments to …the way it used to be….Leave a Reply |
 |
|||||
|
Copyright © 2013 Ipohworld's World - All Rights Reserved |
||||||
The bottom picture shows the 2nd class ticket booth which I had used countless times. It was on the rear right side of the building. The 2nd class entrance is just to the left of the picture, after the three picture posters.
I am surprised at the first picture as that lobby with the
arrangement of the staircases, the first 3 steps, then the bend
and the next 5 steps and another bend –> that exactly like
the lobby of Rex Ipoh and not Lido.
Perhaps Ruth must have accidentally mistaken the pictures.
Incidentally, back in 2002, Shaw Brothers had faxed a copy of
the floor plan to a friend of mine which dates back to the 50′s
and in no way does the first picture corresponds to the floor
plan.
I will scan that floor plan and email to Ian.
hi HomesickforIpoh. we look forward to you scans
Hsfipoh is fantastically right. He is so so attentively observant. Check the differences in the flooring tiles, wall curtains and ceiling designs in the two pictures. I agreed with him.
I concur with both HomesickforIpoh and Tshui. The first picture is the foyer of Rex Cinema, not Lido. The walls of Lido’s lobby is plastered with mosaic, while Rex’s lobby had wood panelling as shown in the 1st picture.
Second pix.. (Lido).. Is it not the corridor leading to the rear of the cinema where we parked our bicycles? We sometime would park our wheels opposite the cinema.. the shop house just next to Chu San coffee shop. Talking of Chu San, can anyone recall its chicken mee soup? Best in Ipoh then.
Well, what an observant gang you are. I have forwarded the floor plan scans on to Ruth and I am sure she will comment as the drawings carry her father’s name. As far as we are concerned we are delighted that we now actually have internal shots of both lobbies – 2 for the price of 1! Thank goodness Ruth has kept all her father’s photographs. I really look forward to her book on him being published.
#6 – Yes, the narrow passageway would lead to the back of the cinema where the bicycle cum motor-cycle park was. It was 10 cents and 20 cents for bicycles and motor-cycles respectively.
Is there really going to be a book about BM Iversen?!
Yess K K. There really is and hopefully it will be published soon.
Sorry, I sent the photographs from my mother’s album – she had not written which cinemas they were from – and I assumed they were all from the Lido as they were on the same page and the photographs were of the same format. Thank you to Homesick for Ipoh (so am I!) for pointing it out. I hope someone will check out the Rex cinema (if it still is there) and correct me. The Box office is from the Lido – I took a photo of the same when I last visited Ipoh. Any corrections are gratefully received. I am lucky to have so many photographs of my father’s buildings – wish they had correct captions though!
I refer to the Maggie the Cat post. The floor tiles looked the same as those at the ticket booth of this post & the dots on the walls are the same too. So its definitely Lido, but the foyer – I cant tell.
Tshui – I also remember the good chicken noodles at Chusan. In early 60s the present shop of mirrors chicken noodle seller was an apprentice there. He was very young then & a bowl at that time costs 60cents.
I wonder if anyone of you could still remember that there was a pair of crafted dragons on both sides of the wall inside the cinema hall at Rex? They even used red bulbs as the dragon’s eyes. And outside at the car park, were several stone benches.
Hi Ipohgal. the dragons must have been there LONG ago….coz I’ve don’t remember ever seeing them at Rex. probably in the 60s?
Oh yes, that was quite long ago, in the late sixties or early seventies when Bruce Lee’s kung fu movies were popular then. My dad pointed out those dragon cravings to me and said, “Loong” which means dragon in Chinese and Bruce’s Chinese name is Lee Siew Loong, loosely translate as little dragon.
Those cravings were made from wood, I think, and they are very Oriental, completed with some clouds but what I could remember most were their red eyes. I think the owner must have removed them when the cinema closed down. However, the stone benches were still there last year when I past by.
Just had a look inside Rex Furniture Gallery, and the Dragons are still there!! They must be made of plaster or cement, as the roof above the right side dragon is leaking and I can see only damage to the paintwork. If it was carved out of wood, it would have rot a long time ago. The left Dragon still looks very good. Let’s hope the whole building is left standing for a long time to come!
Thank Charlie, dedicated to Iph’s heritage as always. Pity we don’t have 10,000 others like you.
felicia must be too young when she last visited Rex. The dragons have always been there. I don’t remember they were ever missing.
“Tale (tail, hahahaha) of the Missing Dragons” by Felicia!
You were not looking out for the dragons Felicia, only had eyes for the actors in the movies then. Hahahaha.
Just hit a funnybone! Cheers, Felicia, maybe you went in when the lights were out or went in with you boyfriend (so no eyes for anything else).
The dragons were prominent in the cinema and were hard to miss. Their fiery eyes were made of light buibs. When the cinema lights went off for previews and ads, dim yellow lights were left shining on the dragons, making them menacing. When the movie began, all lights went off, but the dragons were still visible with the light from the screen. As they were on either sides of the screen, the screen light, shining from their sides, dimly lit their contours. That was equally menacing and a little scary.
NCK and Valiant Knight……i’m an 80s kid
so, i don’t remember seeing the dragons (hahaha…..)
Born in the 80′s? It’s good to be still young. Time doesn’t wait and will not return.
I went for a walkabout today along the coffin street to the Rex Theatre. Sadly, at least three of the old shophouses (opposite the funeral parlours) have been burnt out. Walls still standing but roofs gone.
However the reason for my trip was that Ruth had asked me to ascertain with my own eyes that the top two pictures above are truly the Rex. Indeed they are for although the fluted pillars and decorative wall coverings have been plastered over there is absolutely no doubt that the photos are the old Rex lobby. Gone are the Iversen art=deco touches and replaced with white plaster. Such is our modern world with little or no taste for eye-soothing design.
I also had a look at the famous dragons but that is another story.
Hi Ika,
Glad to learn that you are currently in Ipoh and had taken
a walk around Rex. Please can you also take a walk around Lido
and update us on the status of Lido after the fire. I hope they
repaired the roof. If possible, maybe you can peek through the
gates or doors on the side or perhaps ask the next door French Hotel
owner for permission to go up and look at Lido’s roof.
I am sad and curious.
Thanks.
Hi Homesick, I am almost always in Ipoh as I live here permanently and have done since 1999.
I can certainly try another walkabout for you. I shall let you know when it is done.
OK Homesick, I did the second walkabout of today and actually managed to get inside the Lido. It is pretty bad internally with water and charred timber around much of it. Not much of a place for an afternoon walk. There are a couple of local workers there but they do not seem to be doing much and there has not been any attempt at repairs yet. I would guess up to one quarter of the roof has gone and that it may need a new roof altogether when they start to take it to pieces. If you go to our Facebook you will see an album of what it is like right now. It is a sad sight!
Thanks Ika for the update. Would you mind posting the pictures
here. This is awfully sad. I wonder why there has not been
attempts to repair it. If they continue this way, it is not good.
It makes it seem like the fire was intentional.
Afterall, the fire brigade is only five minutes away.
Why don’t the workers call the fire brigade immediately rather
than waited a while for so much to burn.
From my observations, fires usually happen when a place is
occupied and that the electrical circuit breakers are overloaded.
If a place is vacant and renovation work is being done, I would
hope and assume that these are qualified licensed contractors who
should know what they are doing.
It wasn’t like some layman not knowing what they are doing and
caused a fire.
I smell something fishy here. What do you guys think about this?
It is so sad and unbelievable.
As confirmed by Ika the top two photos is the lobby of REX,each of these photos were taken from the angle of the right and left side as one was facing the thearte entrance. You will notice that there are steps to go to the RESERVE CLASS seats one storey up.. When you get to LEVEL one there is actually a BAR that serves drinks and lovely tasty cup cakes and a few other simple snacks. One can have drink and snack before and during the movies.. Quite relaxing place before ths days of coffee house in Ipoh.. On the first photo you will notice the metal railings on the ground floor that is the Q barrier to the window to purchase RESERVE CLASS seats….Can anyone of you remember watching a movie and also live on stage performance by the THE FALCONS after the movie..Can still remember the tune APACHE being played on stage..