The Star Theatre
It has been a place of entertainment for around 120 years.
We do not have a date for its original construction as a Mechanics Institute, but it is believed to be in the 1890s. It was purchased by Mr Chas H. Carter in 1910, along with the Star Bakery, which was situated at the front of the building.
Then along came Walter Nathaniel McMillan, a baker, working in the shop. He also collected tickets for the pictures being shown in the Star Theatre. Being astute, he became aware that some of the people paying to go to the pictures couldn’t pay their bread bills. Entertainment was apparently a priority, so what does a smart man do? He bought the Star Theatre in 1916.
The building remained a picture theatre until 1924, when W.N. McMillan built the Lyric Theatre on Maude St.
The Star Theatre was then used for many purposes. Several readers have told me about the Wednesday night balls in the 1940s. I’m supposing these began after their dancing partners had returned from World War II. Many ladies met their future partners at these events, and dressing for them was a challenge. Who wants to wear a gown they wore last week? Correspondence from women living at Canberra House at this time told me they borrowed one another’s dresses and frequently redesigned them. In the 1950s, there were visiting shows and our own Apex Antics. Public meetings were held there, dance classes, industrial displays and even roller skating. The supper room at the rear was also a useful venue — more dance classes, kitchen teas, 21st birthday parties, etc.
The Star Theatre was all things to Shepparton for nearly 40 years.
The Star Bowl
In 1960, some gentlemen got together to investigate the possibility of an indoor bowling centre in Shepparton. The first meeting was between Mr Stanley Moore, a director of Indoor Bowling Australia and Mr William Johns (F.C. Johns). Other interested people – and eventually directors of a new company – were Messrs Sydney McMillan, Frank Purdey, Norm McArthur and P. Feltham. There was much to figure out — for example, where the equipment came from, where their facility should be built and where their customers would come from.
However, by March 1962, the decisions had been made. The Star Bowl would be constructed on the site of the old Star Theatre and the adjoining Nicolls Furniture Shop. The premises would include an arcade of eight shops, and parking for 50 cars would be available at the back of the building.
The Star Bowl was officially opened on Friday, July 5, 1963, by Deputy Prime Minister John McEwen and was opened to the public the next day – from 9am until midnight. It operated seven days a week.
Shepparton in 1963
In the newspaper of July 5, 1963, it tells us that the Astor Dance Palais had opened, presumably because the people of Shepparton still wanted to dance and the Star Theatre no longer existed.
An advertisement for the Lyric Theatre mentions ‘Carry on Cruising’, and that to book tickets, readers should call Shepparton 2100.
Infant welfare sister Daisie Ford had retired and was farewelled by grateful mothers at the home of Mrs Gale. A note to Sister Daisie, along with gifts, said:
‘From the young — and not so young — beneficiaries and admirers of the wonderful service given by Sister Daisie during her many years in charge of the Shepparton Baby Health Centre. This acknowledges publicly her long and faithful services and expresses the sincere hope that she will enjoy many healthful and happy years of retirement, so richly deserved.’
There were some problems regarding the relocation of the Murray Goulburn Co-operative factory. And a ‘peeping Tom’ was active in two of the three commission areas.
An eloquent Alan Killigrew faced the Goulburn Valley League appeals board. Killigrew guaranteed that Roland Crosby would play in North Melbourne’s remaining nine matches. The board decided to give Roland the necessary clearance to play. Shepparton captain-coach Tom Hafey said the decision could well cost Shepparton a premiership. (It didn’t!)
Nothing quite like this
I wanted to know more about the early days of the Star Bowl, so I called a reader who, in turn, made a phone call. And within an hour, Pat Thorpe was at my front door with a large envelope full of information. We had not met previously, but Pat said she remembered my husband and I at school; particularly my husband because he was a “spunk”. I agreed but told her he played in the Victorian Schoolboys footy team, and that caught my attention.
No-one could possibly know more about the Star Bowl than Pat. She worked there for 45 years; surely that’s some sort of record. She began working the night shift on the counter and became manager of the centre in 1976.
Pat said when it opened, “It was the be-all and end-all”. And she’s right, Shepparton had not seen anything quite like the Star Bowl — and ‘everybody’ went along, to play or just to watch. I told her my husband and I eventually discovered that the game wasn’t as easy as it looked — although he was much better than I. We stopped trying.
Apparently, all over the country, interest dropped off in the late ’60s and early ’70s but picked up again towards the end of that decade. During the lean times, many centres around Australia closed. The locally owned Shepparton Indoor Bowling had sufficient faith in its decision to keep ‘the show’ going and, in fact, purchased three other centres — two in Geelong and one in Ballarat — in 1986, 1988 and 1990. Pat was in charge of all four. She said it was a challenge, but she loved it. A part of Pat’s philosophy was that regulars should be acknowledged by name — “because that doesn’t happen often enough in many businesses”.
In August 2008, the Shepparton, Geelong and Ballarat centres were purchased by the Oz Tenpin Group. And Pat took her well-earned retirement.
The Star Bowl today
Over Easter, I had a chat with Melissa Thompson, who currently manages the centre. She said Shepp had been good to the Star Bowl, and, for that matter, the Star Bowl had been good to Shepparton. Times change, and children have a great deal more choices for entertainment than they had in the past. However, indoor bowling is still great family entertainment — if you are two years old or 90.
It is particularly valuable for people with a disability, which excludes other sports. They frequently have as many as 80 children in the facility — all-abilities teams.
Melissa said the COVID-19 lockdowns affected the business quite dramatically. It was closed for 18 months, and it takes some time for a business to get back to full strength after something such as this.
Next Saturday, April 6, a music festival will be held at the fully licensed centre, starting at 4pm. Melissa is particularly excited about this event; more information is available from the team on 5821 5587.
She wanted to thank the regular customers, who are such an important part of the Star Bowl community. Melissa says sometimes, it feels like a large family.
And I would like to thank Pat and Melissa for their help with this story.
Rubbish
After Christmas, I told you I wouldn’t catch up with getting rid of our rubbish until Easter. I was wrong. I caught up two weeks ago, and everything is fine. Now I only have the gift wrapping from two birthdays, Easter egg boxes and wrappings — and a lot of disposable plates.
One of our sons has taken over as ‘rubbish controller’ — one thing less for me to think about. He came to talk to me about my system and said, “I have far more chance of understanding the equations on Oppenheimer’s blackboard than figuring out your rubbish system. I’ll design my own.” I said, “Good luck, my son!”
Until next week, may it be easy, my friends.
Marnie
Email: towntalk@sheppnews.com.au
Letter: Town Talk. Shepparton News. P.O. Box 204. Shepparton 3631.
Phone: Send a text to 0418 962 507. (Note: text only. I will call you back if you wish.)