Cinema Paulista in 1943

 

Cinema Paulista on the corner of Rua Augusta, 2751 and rua Oscar Freire, in 1943, when it was showing Walt Disney's 'Bambi'.  

1 9 7 1 - 1 9 7 4

8 August 1971 - This film was all the rage in 1971; based on a novel by Erich Segal, 'Love story' opened in the USA on 16 December 1970, just in time to be elegible for competition for the Academy Awards; it ended up winning best original score by Francis Lai.

7 April 1974 - As late as the mid-70s, Carlos Gardel, who died on 24 June 1935, was still popular enough to have his 1933 film 'Melodia de arrabal' re-released. 

Cine Apolo, rua Conselheiro Nébias, 211

Remains of what once was Cine Apolo, on rua Conselheiro Nébias, 211, in a photo shot in March 2019. 

29 October 1961 - At the same week Alfred Hitchcocks's 'Psycho' and John Wayne's 'The Alamo' premiered in Sao Paulo, Ruben Biáfora, OESP's columnist hailed 3 new Japanese releases.

Cine Apolo, opened on 7 February 1961, on Rua Conselheiro Nébias, 211, showed a Shochiku Film Festival in October 1961, with 7 different flicks: Heinosuke Gosho's 'Sonho disperso'; Keisuke Kinoshita's 'A parede invisível' and 'Nas asas da fantasia'; Hideo Ohba's 'Poesia do meu primeiro amor' and 'Orvalho na flor' plus Tatsuo Sakai's 'Acorrentados pelo amor'.

Once, after visiting my friend Ricardo Augusto Hipólito, who lived in a flat of a building on rua Aurora where Cine Aurea occupies the ground floor - we actually went down the lift together and when we turned rua Conselheiro Nébias, I noticed a peculiar parking lot which I immediately thought it had been either a theatre or a movie-theatre. I asked some people around it but no one knew anything about the past of that parking lot so I ended up letting the subject drop.

Ricardo died tragically on 2nd January 2014, so I never went back to that region again - that is until  a few years later when I started researching the Archives of newspaper 'O Estado de São Paulo' and came across this article about a Japanese movies festival held at a certain Cine Apolo, on rua Conselheiro Nébias, 211. 

Immediately the image of that parking lot came back to my mind and I made a point of going back there with a camera and try to photograph the place. And that's what I did on a day in March 2019. And here are the photos I took on that day. 

former Cine Apolo, on rua Conselheiro Nébias, 211 was turned into a parking lot.

former Cine Apolo's front on a photo taken in March 2019.

Former Cine Apolo seen from inside looking toward the entrance. The huge building in the background was where Ricardo Hipólito used to live up until the last days of 2013. 

this window on the right might as well have been Cine Apolo's projection cabin. 

3 sets of rollup doors 1940s style... just like the ones they had at Cine Marília, built in 1941.

5 decorative pieces on the left wall of Cine Apolo still shows images related to movies. 

California or Mexican landscape so common in Western movies; a cinematographer in action...

the figure holding a cane is beyond me; a movie director ready to shout 'cut'!

Cine Apolo was probably built to be a Western movie house... 

1 9 5 6 - July to December - Libertad Lamarque / Yvonne De Carlo / Anne Baxter

9 September 1956 - Argentine sensation Libertad Lamarque, (born on 24 November 1908, in Rosário) had been living in Mexico since 1947, in a 1951 Pel-Mex production 'La marquesa del barrio'.

23rd September 1956 - Cine Joia suddenly changes its programme and specializes in serials produced by Republic Pictures or Columbia (A Sombra do terror).

30 September 1956 - Sultry Yvonne De Carlo in Republic's 'Flame of the islands' (Um amor proibido) the last film she shot before she was chosen by Cecil B. De Mille to play Sephora in 'The 10 Commandments'.

30 September 1956 - Bewitching Anne Baxter in 'Bedevilled' (Dela guardei um beijo) in her MGM film before Cecil B. de Mille invited her to be Nefretiri in 'The 10 Commandments'.

30 September 1956 - Argentine-Mexican Libertad Lamarque's latest movie 'Historia de un amor' released in Mexico a few months before. The musical theme 'Historia de un amor', with Trio Los Panchos became an evergreen immediately after its release.

30 September 1956 - Old-timer Edward G. Robinson's latest film 'Illegal' (Trágica fatalidade) before he played the pusillanimous Dathan in Cecil B. de Mille's 'The 10 Commandments'. Nina Foch who plays Bithia in 'The 10 Commandments' plays the leading female role here... supported by Jayne Mansfield who was on her way up to super-stardom.

14 October 1956 - Old-timer James Cagney (born on 17 July 1899, in NYC) was 56 years old when he shot 'Run for cover' (Fora das grades) in 1955; Viveca Lindfors (born on 29 December 1920, in Uppsala, Sweden) was 25 years old when she arrived in the USA in 1946; John Derek (born on 12 August 1926, in Hollywood, CA) would also appear in Cecil B. de Mille's 'The 10 Commandments' as Joshua.

stunning Viveca Lindfors was 35 years old in 1955. 

18 November 1956 - George Sydney's 'The Eddy Duchin story' (Melodia imortal) was probably the most popular film of 1956 - reviving the popularity of old-timer Tyrone Power and enhancing Kim Novak's celebrity after her success in 'Pic nic' with William Holden and 'The man with the golden arm' with Frank Sinatra. Its sound-track album shot to Number One instantly.

18 November 1956 - At Cine Ritz 'Super Man's peril' (Os perigos de Super Homem) with George Reeves. This is a compilation of 3 episodes of the TV series 'The adventures of Superman' released in 1953 in cinemas in the USA. Episode # 32 (The defeat of Superman), #44 (The semi-private eye) and #47 (The golden vulture).

Lois Lane (Phyllis Coates), Superman (George Reeves) and bad-men in 1951's 'Superman and the Mole Men'. 

George Reeves as the Man of Steel; Noel Neill as Lois Lane... 

1 9 5 6 - January to June 'Os 7 samurais' / 'Les diaboliques' / 'Rose tatoo'

29 January 1956 - Roman Vignoli Barreto's 'Chico Viola não morreu' with Cyl Farney playing late singer Francisco Alves who died tragically in an automobile crash on 27 September 1952.

15 February 1956 - Carlos Manga's 'Vamos com calma' with Oscarito, Eliana & Cyl Farney...

29 January 1956 - Akira Kurosawa's 'Os 7 Samuarais' (Shichinin no Samurai) opens at 'regular' movie-houses - instead of being shown at the usual Japanese outlets.

2nd April 1956 - Allied Artists' 'A morte do fantasma' (Tonight's the night) with David Niven, Yvonne de Carlo & Barry Fitzgerald. 

2nd April 1956 (from 'A Gazeta Esportiva) Lisboa Filme's 'Serra Brava' with Antonio de Souza, Juvenal de Araujo, Arminda Vidal & Sacramento, having originally opened in Lisbon on 13 May 1948, comes back to Cine Paratodos screen after 8 years.

8 April 1956 - Victor Lima's 'O grande pintor' with Ankito, Violeta Ferraz, Carlos Tova & Margot Morel.

15 April 1956 - Ruben Biáfora, the cinema columnist for OESP writes his review of H.G. Clouzot's seminal 'Les diaboliques'. 

15 April 1956 - The lives, loves & vicissitudes of a group of circus performers in the Argentine Pampas around the turn of the 20th century are played out in this drama with songs. According to Wikipedia: 'La cabalgata del circo' es la trayectoria de un circo criollo a lo largo de los años narrada a través de la historia de los hermanos Roberto (Hugo del Carril) y Nita Arletty (Libertad Lamarque). It was premiered in 1945, but subsequently banned by Juan Domingo Perón when he came to power. His wife Eva Duarte Perón had a minor role in it. As soon as Perón was deposed in 1955, they unburied the flick to cash in on the new times. In São Paulo it was shown at Cine Opera, a popular Spanish language outlet.

Eva Duarte (future Evita Perón) & Libertad Lamarque (future Abuela Piedad)...

3rd June 1956 - Hecht-Lancaster's 1955 production 'Marty' is back all over again after having won the Academy Awards as best picture, best actor for Ernest Borgnine, best direction and best story...

3rd June 1956 - Portuguese movie 'O grande Elias' at Cine Paratodos. Released originally in 1950. Wikipedia says: 'O grande Elias' é considerado um dos últimos grandes sucessos do auge do cinema português, sendo ainda bem popular em Portugal hoje, assim como outros filmes de sucesso do ex- ator da UFA Arthur Duarte. 'Panther girl of the Kongo' is the Republic Serial at Cine São Bento. 

 

 

10 June 1956 - Tennessee Williams' 'Rose Tatoo' (A Rosa tatuada) finally opens at Cines Art Palacio and Opera. Anna Magnani won an Academy Award for her role. 

1 9 5 4 - January to June - 'Nem Sansão nem Dalila' / 'Gycklarnas Afton' / 'Shane'

3rd January 1954 - a 1938 Portuguese production 'A Rosa do Adro' is back at Cine Paratodos with Maria Lalandre & Oliveira Martins directed by Artur Duarte.

27 December 1953 - 1952 Warner Brothers' remake of 1929 'The jazz singer' (O cantor de jazz) - now the hero (Danny Thomas) has been fighting commies in Korea. I wonder what sort of role did marvelous Peggy Lee play in this obviously forgettable flick.

3rd January 1954 - movies dealing with Africa and its wildlife had been popular since the beginning of Hollywood mode of mass production. Johnny Sheffield who started as Boy at Johnny Weismüller's Tarzan movies graduated as Bomba - a half-savage teenager who goes around half-naked which was sure to be popular with the crowd. 1951's 'The lion hunters' (Caçadores de leões) was Sheffield's 5th time as Bomba... he would still make another 7 more flicks as Bomba.

17 January 1954 - at Marabá & Ritz 1952's 'Balança mas não cai' with Paulo Gracindo playing the rich cousin & Brandão Filho playing the poor relation; singers Marion and Rogeria do the musical numbers; at Cine Jussara Mexican bombshell Miroslava plays 'Mulher da rua' (Street woman) for the 4th week.

7 February 1954 - legendary Atlantida company's 'super-production' 'Nem Sansão nem Dalila' (Neither Samson nor Delilah). See the schedule followed by the movie cast: Oscarito, Eliana, Fada Santoro, Cyl Farney, bad-man Renato Retier & director Carlos Manga who would be at the premiere in person at various theatres in town: on Monday, 8 February 1954 they were at Cine Cruzeiro in Vila Mariana at 8:00 PM; at Cine Art Palacio on Avenida São João at 8:40 PM and Cine Opera on Rua Dom Jose de Barros at 10:20; on Tuesday, 9 February 1954 the cast would travel even further distances for they would be at Cine Nacional in Lapa at 8:30 PM, then hurry up to the other side of town: Cine Universo - the largest movie-house in town - at 10:00 and then back downtown at Cine Art Palacio half-an-hour later at 10:30 PM.

21st February 1954 - at Cine S.Bento a Bomba flick 'Caçadores de leões' plus a 1947 Argentine production 'La cumparsita' based on the famous tango, starred by Hugo del Carril; a recent Republic serial: 1952's 'Zombie of the Stratosphere' (Zombie da estratosfera) which was intended to be a follow up to 1950's 'Commando Cody' featuring the rocket-powered flying jacket & helmet introduced in 1949's 'King of the Rocket Men'. Instead, for reasons unkonwn, the hero was renamed Larry Martin. This serial is best remembered today as one of the 1st screen appearances by a 21-year old Leonard Nimoy who plays Narab, one of the three Martian invaders.

Leonard Nimoy & an unnamed fellow-actor playing evil-doers... 

Nimoy as Narab, a Martian invader who wants to H-bomb the earth to get it out of the Sun's orbit.

21st February 1954 - As the Sao Paulo International Film Festival went on - from 12 to 26 February 1954 - the Motion Picture Association of America did their bid and showed as many American movies as possible in the least stretch of time: at Cine Arlequim on Avenida Brigadeiro Luiz Antonio, 1.401. Cine Arlequim would close its doors in the late 1960s and be turned into TV Bandeirantes auditorium and it ended up as an evangelical church in the 1990s.

1st March 1954 - Atlantida presents 'Carnaval em Caxias' with Jose Lewgoy topping the bill with singer-actress Doris Monteiro and show-girl turned comedian Consuelo Leandro in a supporting role. Musical numbers galore with Linda Baptista, Dircinha Baptista, Nora Ney, pianist Bené Nunes, Nelson Gonçalves, Jorge Goulart, Carmelia Alves etc. 

7 March 1954 - at Cine Sao Bento a Republic Pictures double-feature: 'Flame of Barbary Coast' (Cidade dos bárbaros) a 1945 western  with John Wayne & Ann Dvorak; 1944's 'The lady and the monster' (Noite de pavor) a horror movie with Vera Hruba Ralston & Erich von Stroheim; to top it off a 1937 Republic serial: 'Dick Tracy, o detetive' (Dick Tracy) starring Ralph Byrd.

  

28 March 1954 - a little known company Iris Filmes presents 'Paixão tempestuosa' with Jardel Filho and TV pioneer actress Vida Alves. Not much is known about this production. 

Vida Alves & Jardel Filho.

18 April 1954 - at Cine S.Bento a 1946 western 'In old Sacramento' (Destino marcado) with William Elliott & Constance Moore; 'Castelo do monstro' with Erich von Stroheim and a 1940 most excellent Republic serial: 'The mysterious Dr. Satan' starring Eduardo Cianelli as the fiendish Dr. Satan, handsome Robert Wilcox as Bob Wayne and the Copperhead, Ella Neal as the engenue and C.Montague Shaw as the inventor of a remote-control device stolen by Dr. Satan's gangsters. 

9 May 1954 - 1951's 'Hurricane Island' ('Tufão') with Marie Windsor aka as Queen of Bs & Jon Hall plus 1945's 'A thousand and one nights' (Aladin e a princesa de Bagdad) with Cornel Wilde plus 2 more chapters of the Republic serial 'The mysterious Dr. Satan'.

Phil Silvers & Cornel Wilde in 'A thousand and one nights'.

23rd May 1954 - Swedish sensation Ingmar Bergman's 'Noites de circo' ('Gycklarnas Afton' or 'Sawdust and tinsel') that was initially chosen to open Sao Paulo's International Film Festival but was boycotted by the American delegation which made the Festival organizers replace it with 'The Glenn Miller Story' - is finally released commercially at Cine Jussara which didn't bode well. You see, Cine Jussara was considered a 'tainted' movie-house due to most of its films dealing with sex & other forbidden subjects; women (and virtuous men) would avoid the place like the plague.

Harriet Andersson

30 May 1954 - Vera Cruz comedy 'É proibido beijar' (Kissing not allowed) starring Tonia Carrero, Mario Sergio, Ziembinski, Inesita Barroso, Otelo Zeloni and Renato Consorte.

6 June 1954 - Cinemascope in all its splendor in 'The command' (Sob o comando da morte) with Guy Madison, Joan Weldon at Cine Bandeirantes.  

12 June 1954 - George Stevens' 'Shane' translated quaintly as 'Os brutos também amam' (Rough men also are capable of loving) which had been premiered during Sao Paulo's Film Festival in February is finally released commercially. Jean Arthur was 52 when she was chosen for the part by director George Stevens. Miss Arthur hadn't been in a film since 1948 and it ended to be her last performance in the movies. She'd been Stevens' choice because he had directed her in 'The talk of the town' (1942) and 'The more the merrier' (1943). 

27 June 1954 - Alex Viany's 'Rua sem sol' (Sunless street) is an almost utterly forgotten film; three outstanding Brazilian women are featured: Glauce Rocha's first movie starring role, Doris Monteiro who was more of a singer but kept her acting option strong and finally 1954 recording sensation Angela Maria who sings 'Vida de bailarina', probably her best recorded song ever plus 'Rua sem sol' the movie-title.  

27 June 1954 - Cine S.Bento sometimes went as far back as the 1930s: 'Terra de ninguém' (Somewhere in Sonora) was a 1933 pre-Code western with a 26-year-old John Wayne; 'Morto ambulante' (The walking dead) was released in February 1936 with Boris Karloff now at Warner Brothers doing his usual thing; the most recent release in the programme was a 1953 Republic serial: 'Jungle drums of Africa' (Tambores feiticeiros) with Clayton Moore & Phillys Coates. Moore had played The Lone Ranger from 1949-1951 and as a TV series from 1954-1957.

Boris Karloff does 'The walking dead' in 1936.

John Wayne stick 'em up in Sonora in 1933.

Clayton Moore fights the witch doctor in Kenya in 1952.