Hierarchy in the cinema (Mike Williams)

Mike Williams interviewed by Richard Wallace

Projectionist Mike Williams describes the impact of promotion on his relationships with other cinema workers.

Drinking, as a, as a projectionist there was a pub across the road run by an ex-assistant manager of the Olympia. I used to do all my drinking in there with the usherettes. And then I became a trainee manager and one evening I thought I’ll go across for a pint, just after I started as trainee manager and I'm walking down the foyer and Mr Key, the manager, “Where you going, Michael?” Said, “I'm going across for a pint, Mr Key.” “Right,” he said, “You’re not going to the Taff Vale are you?” I said, “Well, yeah.” “Oh, no,” he said, “You can't go there anymore, you have to go to the club behind.” He said, “Mention my name,” he said, “I'm a member there, they’ll serve you in there.” I said, “Yeah, but … I always go in the Taff there.” He said, “Staff go in there, you can't drink with the staff. You can be friendly with them in the cinema but you can't drink with them outside.” Sort of status quo thing, you know. And I never drank in the Taff ever again after that, shameful really. Shameful. Ah funny, they had funny, funny morals cinema people did, awfully strange.

Title

Hierarchy in the cinema (Mike Williams)

Subject

team relations
career development

Description

Projectionist Mike Williams describes the impact of promotion on his relationships with other cinema workers.

Creator

The Projection Project

Source

Interview with Mike Williams

Publisher

The University of Warwick

Date

04/12/2015

Contributor

Richard Wallace
Mike Williams

Relation

http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/7970

Format

.mp3

Language

English

Type

Sound recording
interview extract

Coverage

1956-1964

Interviewer

Richard Wallace

Interviewee

Mike Williams

Date of Interview

25/08/2015

Location

Cardiff

Transcription

Drinking, as a, as a projectionist there was a pub across the road run by an ex-assistant manager of the Olympia. I used to do all my drinking in there with the usherettes. And then I became a trainee manager and one evening I thought I’ll go across for a pint, just after I started as trainee manager and I'm walking down the foyer and Mr Key, the manager, “Where you going, Michael?” Said, “I'm going across for a pint, Mr Key.” “Right,” he said, “You’re not going to the Taff Vale are you?” I said, “Well, yeah.” “Oh, no,” he said, “You can't go there anymore, you have to go to the club behind.” He said, “Mention my name,” he said, “I'm a member there, they’ll serve you in there.” I said, “Yeah, but … I always go in the Taff there.” He said, “Staff go in there, you can't drink with the staff. You can be friendly with them in the cinema but you can't drink with them outside.” Sort of status quo thing, you know. And I never drank in the Taff ever again after that, shameful really. Shameful. Ah funny, they had funny, funny morals cinema people did, awfully strange.

Original Format

One-to-one interview

Duration

00:01:02

Bit Rate/Frequency

320kbps

Cinema

ABC (Olympia) Cinema, 67 Queen Street, Cardiff

Citation

The Projection Project, “Hierarchy in the cinema (Mike Williams),” Cinema Projectionist, accessed April 19, 2024, https://projectionproject.warwick.ac.uk/items/show/391.

Output Formats