Starlight Read Free

with a paper in her hand. She had a mass of lightly bleached blonde hair and round blue eyes, and as she gave them all a beaming smile, Jess remembered her.
    â€˜Good morning, ladies, and welcome to the Princes Street Picture House. I’m Sally Dollar, in charge of the box office, which is in the foyer behind me – perhaps some of you’ve seen me before, on visits here?’
    Oh, yes, Jess thought, she’d seen her before, when she’d bought her ticket, and had always thought how pleasant she looked in her little glass office.
    â€˜But you’ll be interviewed by Mr Hawthorne, the manager,’ Miss Dollar was continuing. ‘In alphabetical order, so you’ll know where you stand. Now, is everyone here?’
    Checking them off on her list, Miss Dollar told them that she’d first be giving them a quick tour of the cinema, and then there’d be a cup of tea or coffee in the Princes Cafe and Tea Room if they wanted it.
    â€˜If we want it?’ the girl next to Jess murmured. ‘I’m dying for a cup already!’
    But Jess was more interested in the tour, and as Miss Dollar called out, ‘This way, ladies!’ was the first to follow.
    From the vestibule they moved into the foyer, familiar to Jess, of course, from her many past visits. Here was the box office itself, focus of interest for the girls, of course, though it was no more than a small glass-walled office with a couple of seats, and a counter with ledgers and files and the machine that dispensed the tickets. When everyone had had a brief look, Miss Dollar drew their attention to the foyer’s marble flooring, decorative pillars, and the fine plasterwork of the ceiling cornices, all features in fact of the classical style of the whole cinema.
    â€˜And all costing a packet, as you might expect, when the Princes was built in 1912,’ she added. ‘But money seemed no object then. Later on, when the talkies came in and the old piano for the silent films went, they bought a grand cinema organ – and how much that set ’em back, I couldn’t tell you.’ She gave a chuckle. ‘But maybe you ladies will be more interested in the photos of the stars? They’re all here, you know, round the walls.’
    And so they were, as the girls exclaimed. Clark Gable, Henry Fonda, Charles Boyer, Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich – oh, all of ’em. Weren’t they terrific?
    â€˜Charles Boyer’s on this week, in Algiers ,’ one of the girls murmured. ‘Och, he’s so gorgeous, eh? That French accent!’
    â€˜Want to see the picture, then?’ another girl asked.
    â€˜You bet! And Jezebel – that’s coming soon.’ The first girl sighed. ‘With Henry Fonda. He’s gorgeous, too. So stern!’
    â€˜Sorry to interrupt, but we’ll have to move on,’ Miss Dollar said cheerfully. ‘This way to the auditorium. No Charles Boyer on at the moment. It’s always like a church at this time of day – nobody around but the cleaners.’
    They saw everything, from the cleaners at work in the hushed auditorium with its great Wurlitzer organ, to the staffroom and offices and the projection room behind the circle, described by Miss Dollar as the hub of the whole place.
    â€˜All very technical up here, as you can see, but everybody at the Princes has to have an idea of how things work. We all have to muck in, you might say, from time to time. One big happy family!’
    At the looks on their faces, she gave another chuckle.
    â€˜But no need to worry. You’ll no’ be having to show the films. Sorry our projectionist is out just for the minute, or he could’ve said a few words. As a matter of fact, he’ll be interviewing himself today – needs an assistant.’
    â€˜Did you say we were to be seen in alphabetical order?’ Jess asked, as they all trooped along to the cafe that was as elegant and gracious as everywhere