On
27 August 1937, Max Kirchberg welcomed the guests in the name of the
owner Wilhelm Wortmann to the opening of the Capitol cinema in the Saxon town Döbeln. The cinema was built by Arthur Wenzel and had 651 places in one hall. It closed in 1999. Today it is a cultural heritage monument and used as a paramedical house and doctor's office.
Jens Michalski wrote a book about cinemas in the district Döbeln in the years between 1945 and 1990 ... und nächstes Jahr wie jedes Jahr. It is the best book about managing of cinemas in socialist times, I know. Michalski writes knowledgeable about the state and central administration and distribution of films and cinemas, the shortage of building material, what the administration wanted and what the audience wanted. And between them the cinema people with enthusiasm and sometimes more fantasy than allowed ...
The advertised movie Kampf um Deutschland is an East German documentary about the fight of communists against fascism between 1930 and 1945 and building a communist Germany after 1945. And all in CinemaScope.
The movie directed by Joachim Hellwig and had premiere on 7 October 1963 - the 14th annivarsary of the establishment of the German Democratic Republic. The premiere night was not in this cinema (it was still a building site), it was in Filmtheater Kosmos in Berlin.
The postcard is from 1964. It is a good view of the cinema and its unique architecture. It was published by PGH Film und Bild in Berlin-Friedrichshagen.
The poster was designed by Jürgen Großmann.
What an interesting postcard!
The photo was made in February 1912 in Luxembourg. It shows Marie-Adélaïde, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg (1894-1924) with her mother Marie Anne (1861-1942). It is a sad way for the women: It is the funeral of father and husband Grand Duke William IV (1852-1912).
They are just in front of The Royal Bio Co. This cinema opened in a hall of the Hôtel de Luxembourg in 1907, and was managed by the owner of the hotel Nicolas Medinger and his son Félix. They later named it in Medingers Kinematograph. It had 350 places and closed in 1912.
Félix Medinger also made little movies of Luxembourg and showed them in his cinema. Above them there is also a movie about the statutory power of the new Grand Duchess on June 18, 1912. He showed this movie at The Royal Bio Co. already on June 22, 1912. The Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde went to this cinema with her mother and her five sisters to see this movie on June 25, 1912.
Félix Medinger was a clever business man. I am sure the photo in front of the cinema was his idea. Even there is written the name of the photographer at the left corner: P.C.Schowen (or something like that).
There is a really interesting book about the history of cinemas in Luxembourg: D'Stater Kinoen. Eine Kinogeschichte der Stadt Luxemburg by Paul Lesch. Reading this book is like a journey to this city.
The postcard shows a photo from 1938 and is used as an adcard for the Tilsiter Lichtspiele today. This cinema opened in 1908 and named after the street, where it was located - Tilsiter Strasse. In 1908 Tilsit was a West Prussian town and belonged to Germany. Tilsit was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1945. The town was then named Sovetsk in honor of Soviet rule. The street Tilsiter Strasse changed its name to Richard-Sorge-Strasse after the undercover German journalist and Soviet military intelligence officer Richard Sorge (1895-1944) in 1969. But the cinema closed in 1961 and the machines went by Soviet officers to Sovetsk (!).
The cinema was reopened in 1994 and has today two rooms with 66 and 25 places, a miniplex. Look at Kinokompendium for pictures.
The wonderful old photo shows advertising for these movies:
Another postcard from Kino International. It is a very interesting postcard, because the theatre was opened with the advertised movie Optimistische Tragödie / Оптимисти́ческая траге́дия / An Optimistic tragedy, a 1963 Soviet movie by Samson Samsonov.
Unfortunately it isn't a photo from the grand opening premiere on November 15, 1963. I found at Bundesarchiv a picture from this event with flags in front of the cinema and at this postcard there aren't flags.
Postcard is published by Graphokopie H. Sander KG in Berlin.
The poster was designed by Klaus Wittkugel. The typeface on the Café Moskau opposite the Kino International was also designed by him.
The postcard shows Bánffy Palace in Cluj-Napoca, the second most populous city in Romania. Bánffy Palace built between 1774 and 1775 by Johann Eberhard Baumann for count György Bánffy. The National Museum of Art has located in this building since 1951.
I don't know much about this cinema. You can see the name Capitol over the entrance. It opened in the 1920ies and closed in 1974. The cinema occupyed the inner yard of the palace - maybe an open-air cinema?
The postcard is a reprint of an old photo, I got it with Postcrossing. Vielen Dank, Beate!
