Roscoe Cinema

[ukelele lady]

To me and my friends the Roscoe was the original bug hut. If you were out with a boyfriend or girlfriend

you went to the Oxford where it was posher and had double seats.

The Roscoes balcony consisted of six steps up, along a runway then five steps down. You couldn't hear the

film for the noise, the kids would be climbing over the seats, but I've had some happy times in there.

I use to go and see Roy Rogers films there and my mam used to tell me he kept his horse Trigger

in a stable round the back of the cinema. Of course me and my friends went to look. . . likely story.

Although a true story is a great aunt of mine used to clog dance [CLOG DANCE!!] on the stage there

before it was a cinema. Happy days.

[Guest Old Canny Street Kid]

To me and my friends the Roscoe was the original bug hut. If you were out with a boyfriend or girlfriend

you went to the Oxford where it was posher and had double seats.

The Roscoes balcony consisted of six steps up, along a runway then five steps down. You couldn't hear the

film for the noise, the kids would be climbing over the seats, but I've had some happy times in there.

I use to go and see Roy Rogers films there and my mam used to tell me he kept his horse Trigger

in a stable round the back of the cinema. Of course me and my friends went to look. . . likely story.

Although a true story is a great aunt of mine used to clog dance [CLOG DANCE!!] on the stage there

before it was a cinema. Happy days.

I remember the Roscoe very well from the early 1950s. Among the films I recall seeing there was an early Martin and Lewis comedy, and a film starring Doris Day and Danny Thomas called "I'll See You in My Dreams", which was a biog of the songwriter Gus Khan. Off hand I can't remember the name of the Martin & Lewis film, but I do recall that Donna Reed was in it, and Dean Martin sang That's Amore.

I have never seen a decent picture of the Roscoe, and it is probably fair to suggest that it is one of Sheffield's most forgotten cinemas.

[Guest Old Canny Street Kid]

I remember the Roscoe very well from the early 1950s. Among the films I recall seeing there was an early Martin and Lewis comedy, and a film starring Doris Day and Danny Thomas called "I'll See You in My Dreams", which was a biog of the songwriter Gus Khan. Off hand I can't remember the name of the Martin & Lewis film, but I do recall that Donna Reed was in it, and Dean Martin sang That's Amore.

I have never seen a decent picture of the Roscoe, and it is probably fair to suggest that it is one of Sheffield's most forgotten cinemas.

I believe the Roscoe started out in December 1910 as the People's Electric Palace, but the original building was eventually superseded by new premises which came into being sometime in April 1922.

The Roscoe survived as a cinema until April 1962, and was later a bingo palace. The area where the Roscoe stood had changed almost beyond recognition, and today it is difficult to tell eactly where the cinema was.

Anybody remember the name of any of the cinema's managers?

[Guest tsavo]

I believe the Roscoe started out in December 1910 as the People's Electric Palace, but the original building was eventually superseded by new premises which came into being sometime in April 1922.

The Roscoe survived as a cinema until April 1962, and was later a bingo palace. The area where the Roscoe stood had changed almost beyond recognition, and today it is difficult to tell eactly where the cinema was.

Anybody remember the name of any of the cinema's managers?

Apart from a 12 year break between 1924 and 1936, the Roscoe had only one manager up to the 1950s, William Dodson Twigg.

more info here: http://www.sheffieldhistory.co.uk/forums/i...40&start=40

[Guest tsavo]

The Roscoe Picture Palace, Shalesmoor. - originally The People's Elactric Palace.

http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/pi...ff.refno=s19314

Originally called The People's Electric Palace it was established in a converted industrial building and opened in December of 1910 but within a short time became known as The Roscoe. The New Roscoe was opened in April of 1922 using the same building on Infirmary Road as a stop gap until a new cinema could be built. Unfortunalty, the city council's emergency powers forbidding the building of anything but new housing were invoked, and this would cause a delay until November of 1921 when a new building was consrtucted alongside the original which remained open until mid January of 1922.

Seating capacity of the new hall was around 900, including the balcony. The main entrance was at the proscenium end of the building. The first manager was William Dodson Twigg who apart from a break of 12 years from 1924 to 1936, would continue in post until his death in the early 1950s.

Sound was introduced in October of 1930 with a Symplaphone system, a unique choice in the city. It would be replaced in 1938 by a British Thompson Houston system. In 1931 extensive redecoration and seating had been carried out by Friese Green's. This work was completed within ten days and did not affect the normal running of the hall. A novel feature of the redecoration was the introdution of a Japanese rockery garden in what had been previously been the orchestra pit.

1952 brought Sunday opening for the first time. The curved wide screen needed for CinemaScope presentations was installed in July of 1953, but CinemaScope with stereo sound was not screened untill September of 1955. This involved the removal of some of the front stalls seating.

The cinema was closed on 23rd September 1961 just a few weeks after the introduction of Saturday bingo. It reopened after a fortnight when Kenneth Kerner took up the lease of the cinema with bingo on Wednesday evenings. It finally closed as a cinema on the 22nd April 1962 with the complete changeover to bingo.

Info: Sheffield Cinemas.