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BEGINNING OF THE CIRCUIT WAR 287
Farther along the Shenley Road was built what is commonly reputed to be Britain's biggest studio, Amalgamated, which cost so much money that its promoters could not find any more with which to make films ! During World War Two it was used for Government stores, and the legend grew up that it was the studio in which no picture had ever been made. Isolated scenes for one or two films had been staged there, however. It is now the home of MetroGoldwyn-Mayer's British productions.
And so, as Elstree grew, the other smaller, outmoded studios closed. No longer did film actors journey to the Dallas Cairns studio at Watcombe, near Torquay, or to the studio at Bungalow Town, Shoreham-by-Sea, to the Prince's Studio at Kew Bridge, to the Zenith studio at Whetstone, on the Great North Road, or to the Windsor studio at Southend Ponds, Catford, or to Edgar Wallace's studio at Beaconsfield. In fact, many of the actors who used to play in them had already gone to Hollywood, Ronald Colman and Clive Brook amongst them.
Before the world went into a shambles for a second time in 1939, Elstree had substantial rivals in the vast London Film Productions studio which Sir Alexander Korda promoted at Denham (now Denham studios and part of the Rank organisation), and an only slightly smaller studio at nearby Pinewood.
J. D. Williams's reign at Elstree was not long. When the company started to flounder, John Maxwell, a Scottish solicitor who had had experience in running one or two cinemas, took over and linked its output with a chain of halls known then as Provincial Cinematograph Theatres, and now, like Elstree itself, part of the large Associated British Cinemas chain.
This marked the beginning of a contest between rival circuits for domination of Britain's screens. Maxwell was challenged by two bankers, Isidore and Mark Ostrer, who bought Leon Gaumont's share in the Shepherd's Bush studios and became partners with his former agent, A. C. Bromhead. They, too, decided to guarantee a fair showing for their output by starting a chain of halls — The Gaumont British Picture Corporation.
It would take thousands of words in which to detail all the ramifications and amalgamations of the various chains which have sprung from those two circuits. Briefly, the Ostrer interests went to J. Arthur Rank, who re-enters this story at a later stage. He had already linked with Oscar Deutsch and the latter's Odeon Circuit.