Moodabe family
Encyclopedia
The Moodabe family is a long established Auckland family which has been associated with the development and operation of cinema in New Zealand since the 1920s.
went bankrupt in 1932, the Moodabe brothers took over O'Brien's other Auckland theatres, including the Princess (later the Plaza), the Rialto in Newmarket, and the Tivoli in Karangahape Road. These cinemas, and later the National Picture Theatre (formerly the King George), gave Amalgamated a strong base in New Zealand's largest city. However, the Civic was to remain out of their full control until 1945, when, against stiff competition from both the American companyWarner Brothers Pictures and local cinema magnate Robert Kerridge, Amalgamated obtained a 50-year lease.
, and in 1952 he was made an OBE.
JP Moodabe was almost the exact opposite of his brother: shorter still, slim and conservative, he was the financial watchdog for the circuit, perfectly balancing MJ's sometimes extravagant personality. There is no record of their ever fighting openly over a point of business, although after a disagreement JP would simply not show up at the office for a day or two. As brothers they loved each other deeply; as businessmen they respected and carried out each others' decisions. In the 1960s JP made an emotional visit to Brazil to meet one of his sisters for the first time.
, he wed Leila Dunstan Macknight (née Maher); neither marriage produced children. The Moodabes' mother, Elizabeth, died in 1973, aged 104. Michael Moodabe died in Auckland on 20 September 1975, survived by his sons; Alma had died in 1956. His brother Joseph, whose second wife predeceased him in 1976, died in Auckland on 15 February 1985.
, Auckland
and were educated at St Peter's College
. The three sons used to visit their father's office in the Civic Theatre
, Queen Street
as they grew up, all were "promised a desk in the corner of that room and their father's supervision". However, each actually began "as office boy out the back, tediously filing admission receipt dockets until they learnt to carve their own niche". They were employed in Amalgamated Theatres from when they left school in the late 1950s. On the retirement of their father and uncle, Royce became managing director and Joseph and Michael had management roles. They continued to be involved in the management of the chain from the 1960s to the 1980s. The owner of the chain, 20th Century Fox sold out in the 1980s to the Chase Corporation
and then the chain came into the ownership of Hoyts
which continued to employ the brothers in senior management positions. Royce Moodabe became general manager of Hoyts Australian circuit. He retired in 2006 after 57 years in the business. In 1997 Joe Moodabe joined Village Force Cinemas
" ... which, as General Manager, he built it into the "country's biggest cinema chain". In 2006 the chain became wholly owned by SkyCity
and was renamed SkyCity Cinemas. Joe Moodabe became executive chairman of an in-house board that oversaw developments in the cinema business, until he retired.
Business beginnings
Michael Joseph Moodabe (1895-1975) was born in Sydney, Australia, on 24 June 1895, and , after the family shifted to Auckland, his brother Joseph Patrick Moodabe (1899-1985), was born in Auckland on 19 December. The family ran a small grocery shop in Grey Street. Michael Moodabe (MJ) started as a peanut-seller and, later, a cleaner and caretaker at the King George theatre on Queen St, Auckland. He got his first big opprtunity when he was offered a partnership in 1924 in the Hippodrome Picture Company, with the title of manager and a salary of £6 10s. per week. In late 1920s, Michael Moodabe began to expand the company, assisted by his brother Joseph (known as JP), and in August 1928 Hippodrome Pictures became Amalgamated Theatres.Amalgamated expansion
When Thomas O'Brien and his beloved Civic TheatreCivic Theatre
Civic Theatre may refer to one of the following theatres:*Auckland Civic Theatre, Queen St, Auckland, New Zealand*Bedford Civic Theatre, Bedford, England*Newcastle Civic Theatre, Wheeler Place, Newcastle, Australia*Civic Theatre, Doncaster, England...
went bankrupt in 1932, the Moodabe brothers took over O'Brien's other Auckland theatres, including the Princess (later the Plaza), the Rialto in Newmarket, and the Tivoli in Karangahape Road. These cinemas, and later the National Picture Theatre (formerly the King George), gave Amalgamated a strong base in New Zealand's largest city. However, the Civic was to remain out of their full control until 1945, when, against stiff competition from both the American companyWarner Brothers Pictures and local cinema magnate Robert Kerridge, Amalgamated obtained a 50-year lease.
20th Century Fox
Late in 1936, in order to guarantee film supply, MJ persuaded the American giant Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation to buy a half interest in Amalgamated. By 1938 the company's circuit had grown to 65 cinemas, and attendances that year were said to be five million - equivalent to three visits by every New Zealander. When television came to New Zealand in 1960, the Moodabes arranged for Fox to buy the remaining half share; the latter agreed on condition that the Moodabe family remain in management control.MJ and JP
MJ was a born showman. Short and heavily built, he possessed an open, effusive personality. He was rarely seen without a large cigar ('Here, have a good cigar' was his popular greeting to smokers and non-smokers alike), and he was described as 'New Zealand's Sam Goldwyn', after the Hollywood producer known for his colourful turn of phrase. A shrewd businessman and gifted publicist, he often deliberately created queues outside his cinema to stimulate public interest in a film. On one occasion he spread a load of sand outside a theatre to publicise a western; unfortunately, when it rained cinema-goers trudged much of it inside. From 1941 to 1947 he served as an Auckland City Councillor under Mayor John AllumJohn Allum
Sir John Andrew Charles Allum was a New Zealand businessman and engineer, and was Mayor of Auckland City from 1941 to 1953.He was born in London and educated at Goldsmiths College. An electrical engineer, he founded Allum Electrical in Auckland in 1922.He was on the Auckland City Council from 1920...
, and in 1952 he was made an OBE.
JP Moodabe was almost the exact opposite of his brother: shorter still, slim and conservative, he was the financial watchdog for the circuit, perfectly balancing MJ's sometimes extravagant personality. There is no record of their ever fighting openly over a point of business, although after a disagreement JP would simply not show up at the office for a day or two. As brothers they loved each other deeply; as businessmen they respected and carried out each others' decisions. In the 1960s JP made an emotional visit to Brazil to meet one of his sisters for the first time.
Transition
In 1962 the Moodabe brothers retired from the cinema chain they had created, leaving the executive management (with Fox's blessing) to MJ's three sons, Royce, Michael and Joseph. JP's wife, Dorothy, died in May 1967, and on 29 November that year, at St Patrick's CathedralSt Patrick's Cathedral, Auckland
The Cathedral of St Patrick and St Joseph is the Cathedral of the Catholic Bishop of Auckland.-Origins:...
, he wed Leila Dunstan Macknight (née Maher); neither marriage produced children. The Moodabes' mother, Elizabeth, died in 1973, aged 104. Michael Moodabe died in Auckland on 20 September 1975, survived by his sons; Alma had died in 1956. His brother Joseph, whose second wife predeceased him in 1976, died in Auckland on 15 February 1985.
MJ's sons
MJ and Alma Moodabe's three sons, Royce Moodabe (born 1937), Joseph Moodabe (b. 1940?) and Michael Moodabe (b. 1943? died 3 September 2009) grew up in EpsomEpsom, New Zealand
Epsom is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located in the centre of the Auckland isthmus between Mount Eden and One Tree Hill, south of Newmarket, and five km south of the city centre.-Notable features:...
, Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
and were educated at St Peter's College
St Peter's College, Auckland
St Peter's College is a Catholic college for year 7 to 13 boys . The school, located in Auckland, is one of the largest Catholic schools in New Zealand and is an integrated school under an integration agreement entered into by the Catholic Bishop of Auckland and the Government of New Zealand in...
. The three sons used to visit their father's office in the Civic Theatre
Auckland Civic Theatre
The Auckland Civic Theatre is a large heritage theatre seating 2,378 people in central Auckland, New Zealand. First opened on 20 December 1929, it was reopened in 2000 after a major renovation and conservation effort...
, Queen Street
Queen Street, Auckland
Queen Street is the major commercial thoroughfare in the Auckland CBD, Auckland, New Zealand's main population centre. It starts at Queens Wharf on the Auckland waterfront, adjacent to the Britomart Transport Centre and the Downtown Ferry Terminal, and runs uphill for almost three kilometres in a...
as they grew up, all were "promised a desk in the corner of that room and their father's supervision". However, each actually began "as office boy out the back, tediously filing admission receipt dockets until they learnt to carve their own niche". They were employed in Amalgamated Theatres from when they left school in the late 1950s. On the retirement of their father and uncle, Royce became managing director and Joseph and Michael had management roles. They continued to be involved in the management of the chain from the 1960s to the 1980s. The owner of the chain, 20th Century Fox sold out in the 1980s to the Chase Corporation
Chase Corporation
Chase Corporation was a property development company in New Zealand that flourished in the 1980s, became devalued in the 1987 New Zealand stock market collapse, and is now defunct.-History:...
and then the chain came into the ownership of Hoyts
Hoyts
The Hoyts Group is an Australian company consisting of Hoyts Exhibition, Hoyts Distribution and Val Morgan.Hoyts Exhibition manages 450 screens across 40 Australian and 10 New Zealand cinema complexes; making it Australia's second largest cinema chain. Val Morgan, the cinema advertising arm of the...
which continued to employ the brothers in senior management positions. Royce Moodabe became general manager of Hoyts Australian circuit. He retired in 2006 after 57 years in the business. In 1997 Joe Moodabe joined Village Force Cinemas
Village Cinemas
Village Cinemas is an Australian cinema chain. Its Australian sites are owned and operated by Village Roadshow-Amalgamated Holdings Limited joint venture Australian Theatres. The group has rebranded several of its premier Australian and New Zealand cinemas as Event Cinemas since 2009. Village...
" ... which, as General Manager, he built it into the "country's biggest cinema chain". In 2006 the chain became wholly owned by SkyCity
SkyCity
SkyCity, originally known as the "Eye of the Needle," is a revolving restaurant situated atop the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington. It features a carousel dining floor on which sit patrons' tables, chairs and dining booths. The floor revolves on a track and wheel system, which weighs roughly...
and was renamed SkyCity Cinemas. Joe Moodabe became executive chairman of an in-house board that oversaw developments in the cinema business, until he retired.