A resident is asking the Berkhamsted community to help in delving into the past of the beloved Rex Cinema.
Jennifer Pendleton has been working on a historical book on her grandfather Samuel King, the man responsible for the opening of the Rex Cinema in 1938.
Speaking to BerkhamstedNews, Jennifer said she wanted to find out more about her grandfather’s legacy in setting up the chain of Shipman and King cinemas, alongside Alfred Shipman.
She said: “He built this chain of cinemas from a very poor beginning as the son of a Jewish immigrant, so it is a wonderful rags to riches story
“I wanted to really devote some time to understanding how he did that and it has led me to try and explore as much as possible about the remaining cinemas.
“The fact the Rex still exists and is such a fantastic example of the art deco interior, led me to put something on Facebook to see if I could find people with memories of the original place
“I want to know about people who went to the cinemas but particularly people who might have worked there and what it was like to work for Shipman and King.”
If you think you might have some information to share about the cinema email jbking.10@gmail.com
Picture credit Archive of the late Peter King
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