At present I'm reading the first part of the biography of Welsh playwright and actor, Emlyn Williams, (pictured above) titled George, which manages to evoke quite a few memories in yours truly, even though my younger life started many years after his did for he entered this world in November 1905, whilst I waited until August 1943.
As a schoolboy the young Emlyn Williams --- a quiet, bookish, child, had a vivid imagination that led him on the flights of fancy that would lay the foundation for honing his skills as a dramatist and actor, both of which he excelled at. One of his joys in life was to visit the cinema, and by the time he was at school in Holywell he was going to the cinema twice or three times a week, soaking up the atmosphere to the extent that he would often carry the characters and the plots in his head, later imposing them on the more mundane moments of his life.
How well I recall going to the Gaumont Cinema in Chippenham, Wiltshire, on a Saturday morning when I was a boy growing up in the 1950's. A return bus fare from Corsham, almost five miles away, was 4d, and the cinema cost 6d downstairs (where I always sat) and 9d upstairs. We would sing the Gaumont song, 'We come along on Saturday morning, greeting everybody with a smile! Smile! Smile! . . .' and you got in free if it was your birthday. I think some children had two or three birthdays a year in order to avail themselves of this particular benefit! The remaining 2d of your pocket money purchased a few sweets! Aah! The days of our youth . . . what memories they can evoke!
I usually went on my own rather than as part of a group, and yet once there it seemed that we were all part of one big group. The programme in those days was pretty extensive usually starting with a cartoon such as Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny, moving on to the next instalment of Superman and often a cowboy film as well. What tremendous value for money we got!
Just as Emlyn Williams recalls in his biography, I too remember the sense of escape from the mundane that the cinema afforded. Blessed with a good imagination it was easy to transport oneself into the make-believe world of the cinema characters, living out their lives long after you had left the cinema itself. Many years later I would put this to good use when I 'trod the boards' in so many plays, including one of Emlyn Williams' play, Night Must Fall.
Of course, I believe that having a good imagination is essential if you are to achieve any measure of success as a writer, whether as a poet, novelist or playwright. Perhaps the only area of authorship where a vivid imagination would be a hindrance is that of the writers of fact rather than fiction, for to attempt to produce nothing but facts would be in danger of being coloured by an over-active imagination! Certainly, I consider that the measure of my own achievements as a poet, songwriter and author of many magazine-style articles, owes much to the manner in which my young mind soaked up the world of the cinema when I was a child, as well as the world that I populated via my imagination.
What about you, dear reader? Have I managed to evoke any special memories for you in today's post? I hope so!
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