NEW CLUB OPENS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 49, 13 November 1946, Page 5

NEW CLUB OPENS

YOUNG NEW ZEALANDERS

SUCCESSFUL AFTERNOON

In conjunction with theatres . ity sixty other towns in New Zealand, the opening day of the Young New Zealanders’ Club took place in Whakatane last Saturday afternoon. Well over 200 kiddies assembled at the Grand Theatre, and a programme of pictures, novelties, competitions, community singing, items and Club work lasting for some three hours was presented. The Manager, Mr Russell Chapman, acted as Club leader, and conducted the opening in an excellent manner, appropriately introducing the foremost aim of the Club: Mutual friendliness, national, and international brotherhood. He outlined the style in which the •Club would function, and the procedure which would be followed ■each Saturday afternoon, and after the National Anthem had been sung, / he introduced the first of the programme of novelties, a Scavenger Hunt. It was a delight to watch the ripple of excitement and anticipation run through the audience of eager kiddies as the various items which would entitle them to a bar. of chocolate, an ice cream, or a liquorace strap, were feverishly 'sought after. On one aisle, for instance, a piece of string, was the qualification for a prize, and as pockets Were emptied and the usual assortment of oddments a boy collects hastily turned over, several hands shot up and waved, excitedly. Yes, they had a piece of string. All sorts and kinds of articles were asked for: a pencil; a hairclip; a watch; any child with glasses; ;any girl whose name began with ‘G’; at each query, a tro.upe of kiddies hastily made > their way to the' stage to receive their prizes,. There were lucky tickets too. Any ticket ending in ‘3’ was sufficient to win the holder an ice cream, whilst if it ended in ‘s’, a bar of chocolate was forthcoming. The picture itself, round w T hich a large part of the programme was 1 built, was entitled ‘The Story Of liili Marlene’, and concerned the true story behind the famous song of the Second World War. It was a short subject lasting, half an hour, and was an ideal one to exemplify the theme of International Brotherhood. Outlining to his erirapt audience, further details of the Club, Mr Chapman emphasised that it was not in competition with any other Youth organisation, but was something entirely apart, in which every child could take part and benefit from, as distinct from other activi-

ties. There should be nothing but smiles from one member to another, ■and no malice should be borne towards any other boy or girl regardless of creed or nationality. Funds from the Club, he said, would be

saved for the benefit of members, who, from. time to time would have the opportunity of attending picnics, health camps, and other organised •activities. There were also many rsmall privileges to which members were entitled, and which would be exercised to the full. A competition, which he outlined

apeared to particularly interest the

children, who by this time, were quite relaxed, and ready to enter wholeheartedly into the proceedings. It was divided into two parts: The first entailed writing an, essay on the opening of the Club, and the alternative required a drawing of

any of the Walt Disney cartoon characters. Prizes would be...awardcd in the form of savings bank credit certificates. The programme continued with the community singing of ‘Lili Marlene’, led by Miss Dorothy Stewart, and the special Club song, from words flashed on the screen. Badges were handed out to those members who had already enrolled, and membership forms were distributed to the remainder who without exception, wished to join the Club. A further period was allotted to items rendered by the kiddies. There was no lack of talent, a la'rge section of the theatre wishing to

perform. As it was, time permitted of only four items, but these were 'all of excellent quality. The performers were ail young; one lad who sang ‘Goodnight Wherever You

Are’, in a very soul-embracing manner, could have been no more than 10 years of age at the most. A quartet of Maori girls vocalised ‘Senti-

mental Journey’, whilst another Maori youngster crooned (yes, actually crooned) ‘I Had The Craziest Dream’ in an almost professional voice. One point notable was that all performers sang popular songs. The period of stage presentations

-concluded with a poem from another small girl entitled ‘The Green-

stone Tiki.’ The popularity of the items was undoubted, and further applause was given as each of the performers was handed a bar of chocolate as a reward. The remainder of the programme consisted of a long cartoon which featured Popeye as Aladdin, and the afternoon ended on a happy note, as Popeye won the Princess’ hand, slew the villain, set the geni free, - and lived happily ever after.

The Club is under the sponsorship of Kerridge-Odeon Theatres.