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The Star Picture Theatre opened on September 28th, 1922 with Douglas Fairbanks in “The Mark of Zorro”. It was later re-named Star Theatre. In 1935 the Star Theatre was refurbished and re-opened as the New Star Theatre. Around 1938 the name was changed to the St. James Theatre.

The St. James Theatre closed in 1965, and has since been demolished.

Image - Courtesy of City of Darebin / Darebin Arts / Darebin Libraries

The Pendants and the cinema Connection

Albert Cleaves (born Albert James Cleaves, 1884–1946) was an Australian World War I veteran who was officially honoured by the Gowerville Theatre and the Star Theatres for his wartime military service.

Cleaves is recorded in the Darebin Libraries Heritage Collections as the recipient of two distinct commemorative pendants from the Gowerville Theatre and the Star Theatre. Both of these popular, historic picture houses were located in the Preston area of Melbourne, Victoria.

The custom-made pendants were gifted to Cleaves in direct recognition of his service. Local institutions and community hubs frequently commissioned such tokens to honour returning local servicemen.

Cleaves enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force during the First World War. He served as a Sapper with the No. 5 Tunnelling Company of the Mining Corps, embarking from Australia aboard the HMAT Warilda in May 1916.

Born in Guildford, Victoria in 1884, he lived out his post-war life in Melbourne, marrying in 1920 and raising a family before passing away in Caulfield in 1946.

Contributed by Greg Lynch -