Saturday, March 22, 2025

In Memoriam | Filiz Akın ( 1943 – 2025)

Filiz Akın, one of the legendary names of Turkish cinema, has passed away at the age of 82. Akın was laid to rest by her relatives in Aşiyan Cemetery. The legendary actress had been struggling with health problems for a while.Akin died Saturday in a hospital in Istanbul. “Filiz Akın, one of the rare gems of Turkish cinema has passed away at the hospital where she had been receiving treatment for some time,” the ministry said, adding that the actress had left “unforgettable marks on the history of cinema.” The cause of death was not specified.

Mavi Boncuk |

Filiz Akın (born Suna Akın, 2 January 1943 – 22 March 2025) was a Turkish actress, writer and television presenter. Known as Yeşilçam Turkish cinema's "noble, modern, urban and elegant face", Filiz Akın gained a huge fan base in Turkey.

Along with Turkan Soray, Hulya Kocyigit and Fatma Girik, Akın was considered one of the four most iconic actresses of the Turkish film industry that was known as “Yesilcam” - after the street in Istanbul where film companies were based. Girik died in 2022.

 Her journey to stardom began when she submitted her photograph to a beauty contest organized by a magazine in 1962, encouraged by the mother of a high school friend.

She won the competition and caught the attention of Turkish film producer and director Memduh Un, who introduced her to the film world. She went on to star in more than 200 movies between 1962 and 1975.

Yumurcak (1969)

Tatlı Dillim, Yumurcak, Umutsuzlar, Ankara Ekspresi, Utanç, Dağlar Kızı Reyhan and Yankesici Kız were among her most famous movies. In 1971, for her role in Ankara Ekspresi she won the best actress award at the 8th International Antalya Film Festival. From May 1962 to September 1972, she starred in more than 105 films. After appearing in 116 films Akın ended her cinema career in 1975. Together with actors Türkan Şoray, Hülya Koçyiğit and Fatma Girik, she left a mark on Turkish cinema[ and has been accepted as one of the four influential actresses of her time.

For 11 years, Akın lived in Neuilly and Bougival in Paris, and then moved to the Turkish embassy in Paris for the next four years, making her stay in France 15 years after her husband Sönmez Köksal was appointed as ambassador to France in February 1998.

In 1965, her son İlker from her first marriage to Türker İnanoğlu was born.[21] During this period the family resided at Şişli.[22] In 1974, the couple divorced after 10 years of marriage.

She is survived by her husband and a son, Ilker Inanoglu, who is also an actor.

Books about her

"Four Leaf Clover, What Was Their Magic?" , Bircan Usallı Silan, Epsilon, 2004 

"Starring Filiz Akın: Filiz Akın as an iconographic and sociological value in Turkish cinema", Pınar Çekirge, Epsilon, 2007

Akın's portraits have appeared in Atıf Yılmaz's "Hayallerim, Aşkım ve Sinema" (1990), Türker İnanoğlu's "Bay Sinema" (2004)

Agâh Özgüç's "Türk Sineması’nın Kadınları" (2008).


During World War II, Germany aims to conquer Turkey with an operation which is Ankara Express. German spy Hilda and Turkish major Seyfi engage in a dangerous relationship while they work for Ankara Express operation.

"Akın, who is remembered as one of the most elegant and modern faces of Yeşilçam, left her mark on the history of cinema not only with her beauty but also with her strong acting. The master actress, who has starred in countless films since the 1960s, has managed to fascinate the audience in a wide range of genres from romantic drama to espionage films, from comedy to tragedy."

Thursday, March 20, 2025

In Memoriam | Osman Sınav (1956-2025)

Sınav died on 20 March 2025 in Istanbul following a long struggle with cancer.

 



Osman Sınav (1956 – 20 March 2025) was a Turkish director, producer and screenwriter.

Sınav studied art and also finished courses in textile design, cinema, and television at the Istanbul State Fine Arts Academy. He worked as a copywriter from 1979–1980 and from 1980–1984 at the Grafika Lintas Advertising agency. In 1984, he founded his production company, Sinegraf. In 2012, he received a special degree in cinema and television from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University.

 

Filmography

As director

Gel Dese Aşk (2020)

Sen Anlat Karadeniz (2018)

İnadına Aşk (2015–2016)

Kızılelma (2014)

Aşk Kırmızı (2013)

Uzun Hikâye (2012)

Kılıç Günü (2010)

Masumlar (2009)

Sakarya Fırat (2009)

Doludizgin Yıllar (2008)

Pars Narkoterör (2007)

Pars: Kiraz Operasyonu (2006)

Kurtlar Vadisi (2003)

Ekmek Teknesi (2002)

Deli Yürek: Bumerang Cehennemi (2001)

Melek Hanım (2000)

Hayat Bağları (1999)

Deli Yürek (1999)

Mavi Düşler (1998)

Sıcak Saatler (1998)

Yasemince (1997)

Kralın Hayatı (1996)

Melek Apartmanı (1995)

Bizim Yunus (1995)

Gerilla (1994)

Yalancı (1993)

Süper Baba (1993)

Kapıları Açmak (1992)

Hayata Gülümsemek (1992)

Yarına Gülümsemek (1991)

Aşka Kimse Yok (1990)

Yalancı Şafak (1990)

Küçük Dünya (1990)

Hünkarın Bir Günü (1989)

Atlı Karınca (1989)

Bir Muharririn Ölümü (1987)

Friday, March 14, 2025

Recommended Article | Ankara Cinemas from Lavarla (English Text)


The cover illustration of the Ankara Cinemas Defeated by Time series was prepared by: Rüya İğit

Cinema in Ankara
Çiğdem Kaya Çayır 

"I would like to thank Murat Çayır, Seren Erciyas and Pınar Aslantaş for their contributions."

Ankara Cinemas Defeated by Time series cover illustration prepared by: Rüya İğit

Tranlated from SOURCE at Lavarla


Cinemas Defeated by Time I: 

The Birth of Cinema and the Nation

After the third gong, I am ready to move on to another dimension. Our journey will begin with the opening of the burgundy velvet curtain. The dust particles flying in the light reflected on the curtain from the very back also disperse the clouds of thought in my mind. We are on the same ship with everyone in the theater on our journey to the magical world. Although we all look at the same view, the meanings we attribute to it at the end of the journey are different. I had the chance to watch a few movies in theaters where velvet curtains or movies that started with the sound of a gong were shown. Although these do not exist anymore, I still experience similar feelings at the beginning of every movie I watch in theaters. Cinema, which is considered the seventh art, continues to add meaning to our imagination and our lives in various places. Although movie theaters in shopping malls continue to exist, other cinemas unfortunately continue to close for various reasons. With each cinema that closes, we become a little more alienated from that magical world. Of course, with developing technology, various platforms and channels bring movies to our homes. But the joy of watching a movie in a cinema and not being able to feel the unique atmosphere of the hall creates a deficiency. Now, let's take a tour where we will remember most of the cinemas that have been defeated by time but have a great place in Ankara's city memory. Who knows what beautiful stories are hidden in their halls.

The Birth of Cinema in Ankara

In our country, "National Gardens" began to be created in the early 1900s, inspired by the Public Gardens in France. The National Garden, under the shade of acacia trees, contained a theater, library and socializing spaces. It is known that the first cinema in Ankara was in the 1920s, in the National Garden (on the street from Atatürk Boulevard in Ulus to the Central Bank, across from the first TBMM and the Court of Accounts). Unfortunately, information about the first theater and cinema hall in the National Garden, where the Azm-i Milli organization staged plays during the first period of the War of Independence and which suffered three fires, is limited. Ceyhun Atuf Kansu, who remembers the movies he saw in the cinema in the Millet Garden, says the following: “…This was the movie Singer Bandit, the name of which I remember, by Richard Tauberd, a much-loved German actor and singer of the time. The subject was freedom and the action took place in the snowy valleys and humming forests of the Alps. It would be one of the first sound movies. Tauberd’s harsh northern German voice is still in my ears today. Now, in the Ulus area, where the business buildings rise, there was a Millet Garden. At one end of this garden, whose acacias shaded the station road, Ankara’s first cinema operated. Until Tauberd, I had known Şarlo, the source of our childhood laughter…” This wooden building, which has a place in fond memories and is known as the Millet Cinema, burned down in 1929. The garden section of the Millet Garden was partially closed in 1926. The remaining section was used as the “City Garden” until 1959. Today, the 100th Year Bazaar is located in the garden’s place.



Again in Ulus Square, in 1927, the Club Cinema was opened in the current Taşhan İş Hanı location. The Club Cinema started a competition among the cinemas in the city in this field thanks to the Western Electric brand cinema machine that cost thirty thousand liras. The iron and leather covered folding seats in the lower hall were called first class “Special” and second class “Duhuliye” and the price was separated accordingly. The balcony of the cinema, whose stage overlooked Çankırı Street, namely the İş Bankası side, was covered with nice red velvet seats. According to sources; the cinema had one thousand four hundred seats consisting of leather covered folding seats. The magazines published together with the cinema under the names of Kulüp Sinema Mecmuası, Sinema Alemi (Turkish and French), Temaşa Alemi, Temaşa and Ankara Sinemaları gave information about the films to be shown, the world of cinema and the news about the magazine. At the Club Cinema, where silent black and white films were initially shown on its screen, Les Misérables and Tarzan were also shown in 1933-1934, along with many other films. Later, 60 percent of the Club Cinema would be acquired by the Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company.

It is necessary to explain the importance of İş Bankası and Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company in Ankara in the thirties and forties, even if only in one paragraph. During the War of Independence, Atatürk gave the entire amount of 500 thousand liras sent by the people of Pakistan, half of which was to be given to the army and the other half to himself, to the treasury. İş Bankası was established upon his request with the 250 thousand liras returned to him after the war. Again, upon Atatürk’s instructions, Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company, which supported film and Turkish cinema management with the partnership of İş Bankası, was established in 1933. This company supported the Club, Sus, Yeni, Sümer and Ankara cinemas. It contributed to the cultural and artistic life by regularly providing films to cinemas. Later, in 1937, FİTAŞ (Filmcilik Türk Anonim Şirketi) was established in Istanbul with a similar partnership. Türkiye İş Bankası’s partnership with Ankara Sinema İşleri Limited Şirketi ended in 1982.

The name of the Kulüp Sineması, whose shares the company acquired, was changed to Halk Sineması in 1937. Halk Sineması, which mostly screened cowboy and adventure films, unfortunately ended like the first cinema opened in Ulus, and the wooden building burned down completely in 1941. In 1942, the company opened the Park Sineması with wooden floors instead of Halk Sineması. There were cheap public matinees at Park Sineması that lasted at most one hour and twenty minutes. These matinees were usually attended by housewives, children and workers spending their lunch breaks there. In sessions other than cheap public matinees, the lights flashed three times before the films started, signaling that the film would start, and short news films called “journal” were shown. These newsreels included current local and foreign news as well as sports news. The role of newsreels in shaping public opinion was quite important in these years when television and radio use was limited. Park Cinema was closed after a fire in 1960 while the movie Revenge of the Snakes was being shown. There is another place that is remembered together with the cinema because it was close to it: Uğrak Restaurant. This restaurant, which was a type of restaurant that cinema customers would definitely go to before or after the movie and which also sold alcohol in those days, continues to exist today.

The capital of the Republic, Ankara, was trying to grow in every field, as well as in culture and art, and the people of Ankara were trying to keep up with it. In the early Republican period, almost all of the cinemas were opened in Ulus. Another cinema opened in Ulus, the city center, in 1928. It had a capacity of 800 seats. It was located behind Sümer Holding, at the corner where Denizciler Street and Anafartalar Street meet, next to Taşhan. Those who opened the cinema using a large loan from İş Bankası (known as Eskişehirliler) left the place in return for their debts when things did not go as they wanted. Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company also incorporated Yeni Sinema. Yeni Sinema, whose interior decoration was done more meticulously than the cinemas before it, also had a special lodge (Reis-i Cumhur Locası) meticulously prepared for Atatürk.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk did not withhold the interest he showed in other branches of art from the art of cinema. In 1923, he showed close interest in the filming of the film Ateşten Gömlek, directed by Muhsin Ertuğrul and adapted from Halide Edip Adıvar’s novel of the same name, and expressed his desire for a Muslim-Turkish female actor to be cast for the narrative of the National Struggle. Thus, with Atatürk’s encouragement, Turkish women were allowed to act in films for the first time under the leadership of Bedia Muvahhit and Neyyire Neyir. It is known that Atatürk appeared before the camera in 1932 for some scenes of the film Bir Millet Uyanıyor, also directed by Muhsin Ertuğrul, and made script corrections. Cemal Granda includes the following statements by Atatürk in his book The Secret Notebook of Atatürk’s Uşağın: “Cinema is a turning point in the future world. Radio and cinema, which seem like simple entertainment to us now, will change the face of the earth in less than a quarter of a century. The woman in Japan, the black man in the heart of America, will understand what the Eskimo says. In terms of preparing a single and united world, the discovery of cinema and radio, as well as events that opened eras in history such as the printing press, gunpowder and the discovery of America, will be like toys.” Atilla Dorsay’s book titled Cinema and Our Age also includes our Ataturk’s valuable views on cinema: “Cinema is such a discovery that one day it will be seen that it will change the face of world civilizations more than the discovery of gunpowder, electricity and continents. Cinema will ensure that people living in the farthest corners of the world love and know each other. Cinema will erase the differences in views and thoughts between people and will make the greatest contribution to the realization of the ideal of humanity. We must give cinema the importance it deserves.”


Fuat Uzkınay’s documentary film, which covers the events from the beginning of the Great Offensive to the liberation of Izmir and whose preparations were personally followed by Ataturk, was being re-edited and made more comprehensive by the established committee in the 1930s. When he asked Nurettin Baransel, who was in the delegation, about the fate of the documentary and learned that the completion process of the film was delayed because the scenes belonging to him consisted of still images, Atatürk’s answer was very clear: “I am alive. Since I already have all my documents, sword, boots, belonging to the War of Independence, didn’t I do my duty and mission when you called me? If I were faced with such an offer, I would gladly accept it, take part in films like an artist, and revive memories; this is a national duty. Because it will be possible to prove to the Turkish youth how this struggle was won live and leave a memory in this film.” However, unfortunately, Atatürk’s health deteriorated shortly after this speech, and this wish could not be realized. The person who filmed the funeral ceremony from Dolmabahçe to Ankara was Faruk Kenç, an important director of the 1940s, who supported his cinema education in Germany and requested a report on European and Turkish filmmaking at the end of his education.

Cinema Creates Its Own (Socialization) Rules

According to the accounts of those who lived in that period; we understand that the audience at the New Cinema, who smoked in the outer corridors or got food and drinks from the buffet during the 5-minute breaks given between the films, had a high level of respect. It is mentioned that loud talking was never done and that not the slightest incident occurred even in the most crowded sessions. The blue velvet seats, the principle of showing only foreign and subtitled films and the importance given to the comfort of the audience ensured that watching films here was seen as a “sign of exclusivity”. The fact that low-income people generally watched dubbed films at that time did not mean that the dubbed was bad or that dubbed films were always of poor quality. The dubbing artists of the period were successful people who worked hard for their jobs, such as Ferdi Tayfur - not to be confused with today's voice artist Ferdi Tayfur - who was competent in his field. Ferdi Tayfur also added an accent to the characters while dubbing the American films he dubbed, and this method was widely accepted and appreciated by the public. Altan Öymen, who watched most of the films in those years with Ferdi Tayfur’s dubbing, later stated that he did not get the same pleasure when he listened to these films with their original voices.

It was very important to attend the soirée of Yeni Sinema, where polite and stylishly dressed gentlemen and fancy and beautiful ladies were always walking along Atatürk Boulevard, greeting each other with their hats on their heads, while waiting for the film sessions. Due to the high demand of the city of civil servants, even finding a ticket for the first screenings of the films would be a big deal. In addition to the bus services, the last service was at 21:00, a special service was organized at 23:00 for those who were captivated by the magic of the films. The soirées were followed so much that each hour had its own special, familiar audience. In addition to the film screenings, the concerts given were also followed with great interest. In 1945, Safiye Ayla and her friends gave a concert first at Yeni Sinema and the next day at Sus Sinema, and people from different walks of life came together at concerts like these. There was a separate and elite culture that operated spontaneously in the New Cinema. Many cinemas were opened after him, but he lived like a respected elder whose place cannot be replaced in memories. The New Cinema was expropriated in 1956 for the expansion of Ulus Square and Anafartalar Street and the construction of Ulus İş Hanı.

In 1938, Süs Cinema was opened in a building rented by Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company next to the Children's Protection Agency in Ulus. Initially established as a 600-person children's theater within the Children's Protection Agency Complex, the cinema generally screened children's films and local films. The dancers who performed at Sus Cinema were also quite popular. This cinema, which also suffered a fire, continued its existence until 1985. After the cinema closed, the venue served as Sus Wedding Hall for a while.


Sümer Cinema was opened on Denizciler Street in Ulus in 1940. The building within the Children's Protection Agency complex was originally built as an indoor swimming pool. However, when the building could not be used by the institution for various reasons, it was rented by Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company and converted into a cinema. Since there was very little control, it was possible to stay in the cinema all day with a single ticket. In fact, sometimes the audience who paid for the ticket could not find a place to sit. Homeless and destitute people would go to the Sümer Cinema to warm up in the winter. Those who wanted to could watch a movie while sipping their alcoholic drinks. Military matinees were also held on the weekends, and there would be a large crowd of soldiers in front of the door. The customer base was also shaped according to the movies that were shown. What Prof. Dr. Necmeddin Sefercioğlu said about the Sümer Cinema shows the interaction between the customer profile and the venues: “The most interesting of the Ankara Cinemas for children and young people was the Sümer Cinema, which had an entrance from Denizciler Street. This cinema used to show adventure films with 32 parts, called all at once, with a series of punches and punches. While the movie was being shown, whistles, boos and screams would mix with each other. It was hard to hear what was being said. There were even people who threw paper airplanes with razor blades attached to the end at the screen. Some of the young people, carried away by the excitement of the movie, would get into fights with each other. I think it was because of the way the people who came there dressed and the way they transferred lice to other viewers that the cinema was called “Bitli Sümer.” Due to the change of operators, it was given the names Güneş and Yeni Sinema (different from the cinema next to Taşhan) over time. It was closed completely in 1960.

Ankara Cinemas Defeated by Time II: Kızılay

The Passion for Cinema among Ankara Residents is Increasing




View from the terrace of Kızılay Soysal Apartment building towards Kavaklıdere, Uybadin Mansion in the background. (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

Kızılay Square/ Soysal Apartment building and Uybaydin Mansion (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

In the early years of the Republic, it was considered to create an urban plan worthy of the capital. The city began to be shaped according to the project of Prof. Dr. Hermann Jansen, who won the competition organized on this subject. In the Jansen Plan, which was the first zoning plan of Ankara and covered the years 1929-1939, in addition to the planning being suitable for motor vehicles, it was aimed to create green areas and parks, and the settlement of Güvenpark and Kızılay districts was arranged. Thus, the Ulus district, which was the center of the cultural activities and passion for cinema of the people of Ankara, gradually began to give way to Kızılay. With the increase in the number of cinemas in Ankara and the many films that were screened, the passion for cinema among the people of Ankara was also growing.

The Ulus Cinema was located in the Soysal Apartment in Kızılay, named after Kütahya Deputy Ragıp Soysal. The design of the Soysal Apartment, the most modern and popular apartment in Ankara, belonged to Architect Bekir İhsan, who won the first place in the competition. The structure, which was built as a combination of four separate apartments, had a total of six floors, including a basement, ground floor, three regular floors and a terrace floor. The basement and ground floors were reserved for casinos, restaurants and shops, and there was also a cinema inside the structure. The person who opened the cinema was Sait Çelebi, who was Turkey’s first sports announcer, published the first sports magazine in our country, Spor Alemi, and pioneered the transformation of Taksim Barracks into Taksim Stadium. He would later also manage the Ankara Cinema in Sıhhiye.



Ulus Cinema (Source: Ankara Cımbızcısı)

Soysal Apartment, together with the Ulus Cinema within it, had an important place in the cultural and artistic life of developing Ankara. The apartment and cinema also have an important place in the memories of a generation living their youth in Ankara. In her novel Adı Aylin, Ayşe Kulin describes the Soysal Apartment, where important figures of the period lived, as follows: “Soysal Apartment was undoubtedly the most modern and popular apartment building in Ankara, which was newly being built. It was a huge and modern building in the city’s elite district of Kızılay, facing the standing clock in the middle of the square, with four separate entrances, covering an entire block. The famous Süreyya Pavilion, Ulus Cinema and the Madam Marga Dance School, which taught ballet and rhythmic dance to the little girls of Ankara in the 1940s, were also located in this building. Soysal Apartment was a truly privileged apartment building with its pool garden where red fish swam on its terrace, a laundry drying area, a central heating system that was rare in Ankara in those years, and hot water that was provided every day…”

Güneri Cıvaoğlu, on the other hand, talks about the apartment and the cinema in his column in Milliyet Newspaper as follows: “Soysal Apartment… Ulus Cinema, a buffet, is located under this apartment… And Süreyya, the nightclub of a period… One spring, before entering the cinema, I was buying cigarettes from the buffet. We carried cigarettes in our pockets, imitating those early teenage years when our beards were just starting to sweat. While I was buying cigarettes from the buffet, something fell on my head… It jumped and rolled onto the counter in front of me. A plum… I lifted my head up. On the balcony on the top floor of Soysal Apartment, I came across a pair of large, very beautiful gray-green eyes. He was surprised by this accident. He seemed to apologize. Then… I noticed his very light brown hair, almost blond, and his beautiful face. I smiled at those who were like ‘No problem’. He smiled back. He must have been at the age of transition from childhood to adolescence. I entered the cinema, my mind was always on the beautiful girl on the balcony. I asked my friends inside. Pınar, the son of the famous soprano of the time, Belkıs Aran, knew him. Her name was Ayşe Kulin. She was studying at Arnavutköy Girls’ College.”

Sait Çelebi transferred Ulus Cinema to İzzet and Ali Cemali brothers in the year it opened. The cinema, which made its magnificent opening on January 20, 1939 with the film Lumieres Paris (Paris Lights), reached a select audience in Ankara with the quality films it screened during its existence. In addition to showing films, it also hosted concerts and other organizations attended by famous names of the period, as in other cinemas. In 1967, the three buildings of Soysal Apartment, including Ulus Cinema, were demolished and Soysal İş Hanı-Pasajı was built in its place.

Büyük Sinema - Hafta Tatili Licence Document (www.ergir.com)

Ankara Cinema, which Sait Çelebi took over the management of after Ulus Cinema, was opened in 1943 as a subsidiary of İş Bankası. It was located on the right side of the entrance from Sıhhiye Square to Necatibey Street. The total audience capacity was more than 1,100 people. Since the cinema screen was opposite the middle floor in the three-story cinema, those sitting on the lower and balcony floors had difficulty watching the movie. However, this did not negatively affect the number of viewers. After 1949, the cinema was completely operated by Ankara Cinema Works Limited Company for a while and then changed hands. Towards the end of the 70s, it surrendered to the sex movie craze. It was demolished in 1988. Ankara Passage and Balıkçıoğlu Business Center are now in its place.

Ankara-cinemas

Ankara Cinema (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

As Yalçın Ergir also mentioned in his blog, when the date was January 15, 1949, the country's agenda was stirred by the resignation of Prime Minister Hasan Saka and his cabinet. Despite this difficult environment, the opening of the Büyük Sinema was held two days later by the then President İsmet İnönü. The owners of the cinema were brothers Kazım Rüştü Güven and Hamdi Başaran. Hamdi Başaran had founded the gas company HABAŞ. His brother Kazım Rüştü Güven was known for his citrus and ice cube business in Mersin, as well as his collectorship and devotion to art. Vehbi Koç, the owner of the house on the corner where the current Divan Patisserie is located, used to tease the two brothers with whom they played bezük, saying, "One of you makes money from the air, the other from the water." Kazım Rüştü Güven was a well-known businessman in Ankara. Among his plans for Ankara was to establish a functional cultural center where operas could be performed. However, under Muhsin Ertuğrul’s guidance, he gave priority to cinema. Abidin Mortaş signed the architectural project. In the section above the cinema screen, there was Turgut Zaim and Nurettin Ergüven’s painting Çayda Çıra Oynayan Kızlar, and in the section overlooking the waiting hall of the Büyük Pastanesi, there was also a painting they had made together, Sadabad. Unfortunately, these paintings would be destroyed in a fire that broke out years later.


Büyük Sinema/ Çayda Çıra Oynayan Kızlar (Source: www.ergir.com)

The first film shown in the Büyük Sinema was Desception, starring Bette Davis. Until the last day it was closed, all films were shown in the cinema with their original sounds and subtitles. In addition to the films shown on its screen, the cinema also hosted many concerts and shows. The İstanbul City Theater staged most of its plays in Ankara here. Famous names of the period such as Vasfi Rıza Zobu, Şaziye Moral, Bedia Muvahhit, Reşit Rıza, Behzat Butak, Gülistan Güzey and stars of the theater such as Dormen Theater, Muammer Karaca, Yıldız and Müşfik Kenter, Zeki Alasya and Metin Akpınar also took the stage. The magnificent concerts given by artists such as Münir Nurettin Selçuk, Nesrin Sipahi, İnci Çayırlı, Zeki Müren, Behiye Aksoy, Dario Moreno, Cem Karaca and Barış Manço at the Büyük Sineması were creating a crowd. The situation was no different for foreign artists. Names such as Marc Aryan, Sylvie Vartan, Johnny Hallyday, Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Brubeck, Pepino DiCapri were also among the famous names who gave concerts at the Büyük Sineması. After their concerts, most of these famous names were hosted by Kazım Güven at his house on the fourth floor of the Büyük Apartman.

General view from the Grand Cinema (Source: www.ergir.com)

(Source: www.ergir.com)

In the following years, the cinema also hosted the Golden Microphone Song Contest of the Hurriyet Newspaper and the Inter-High School Music Contest organized by the Milliyet Newspaper. In addition to these events, the congresses of the Republican People's Party, the Democrat Party, the Justice Party and the Trust Party were also held here. After 1950, during the period when the Democrat Party was in power, İsmet İnönü, Adnan Menderes and Refik Koraltan were regulars of the Grand Cinema Lounge, where guests were not allowed with a ticket; while Fatin Rüştü Zorlu and Hasan Polatkan generally preferred to watch films from the balcony at the 18:30 matinee. Following the New Cinema in Ulus, the Grand Cinema also became a place frequented by state officials and leading politicians of the period. The cinemas where they chose to watch films were also in demand. Some of the films playing in the cinema were sent there to be played on the film screening machine in the Presidential Palace for Celal Bayar. The demand for the cinema was very high, but since Prime Minister Menderes did not allow it, the ticket prices of the cinema were not increased for years, and a telegram was sent to the Prime Minister for permission to increase the prices. On the first floor of the Büyük Sineması, which had Piknik, Goralı Sandviç, Özen, Boğaziçi and Kutlu Patisseries in its vicinity, was the Büyük Patisserie run by the White Russian Larissa Marika known as “Madam”. Along with other patisseries in Ankara, this was also an important social gathering place. Madam, who ran the patisserie between 1949 and 1964, was one of three Russians who left a big mark on Ankara, along with Baba Karpiç and Süreyya. Although Madam’s passing was a loss for the Büyük Sineması, she would open her own restaurant called “Madam’ın Yeri” under the İlbank Blocks in the 70s, and would always be supported by Kazım Güven and her daughter. On the second floor of the Büyük Sinema building was the “Ali Baba” pinball hall, and on the upper floor was the “Sergi Kitapevi” owned by Can Yayınevi founder Erdal Öz. In addition to Ankara intellectuals, Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoğlu also frequently came here to have his books signed.

There are so many stories about the Büyük Sinema in the city of Memur. The cinema; the long lines in front of it, the tickets that went on the black market, the audience’s “Machiniiiiiist” shouts and whistles so that the broken films could be quickly glued back together and the movie could be continued, the projection room enthusiasts, the “Frigo Buz”, the “Frukos”, the roasted chickpea-soda duo, the patisserie chats before and after the movie, this place had obviously touched the lives of many people. The Aşk Hikâyesi (Love Story) shown in 1972 was perhaps the last movie to be crowded. The last concert of the cinema was given by Alpay and Lale Akad. The cinema was rented to its former projectionist İlhami Tuncay in 1976. It was completely closed two years later and converted into the Grand Bazaar. Most traces of the cinema were lost in the fire of 1997. The Grand Bazaar, which was later repaired, currently houses jewelers and bridal shops.

Grand Cinema (source: www.ergir.com)

Cinema culture is also developing along with Ankara

Ankara was developing in a way befitting the capital over the years. The people of Ankara had the opportunity to participate more actively in city life with Ulus and Ankara cinemas in the city center that shifted towards Yenişehir with the Jansen plan. In addition to open-air cinemas, everyone was in a good mood thanks to the independent cinemas that opened one after another. One of the names who criticized the films he watched one after another in Ankara in the 50s and wrote his thoughts in his diary was Nurullah Ataç, a man of emotion and thought. “He had watched Chaplin’s Limelight, and since he didn’t like sentimentalism, he wanted to “resist it, shrug his shoulders” at first, but he said he couldn’t do it. Because as he watched, he realized that he was “in front of a great artist, a great man” and he had given himself over to “the joy of this miracle” on the silver screen with great admiration. “I don’t think I’ll have time to see Limelight again,” he said. Yet he wanted to watch the film “many more times.” Another film he had watched, Pane Amore e Fantasia (Bread, Love and Dream), which was shown at the Grand Cinema, was very popular with Ataç. “The first thing he did when he got home at night after the film was to write about this Italian comedy. According to what he said, he really liked Vittorio de Sica’s acting in the film, found Gina Lollobrigida very beautiful, and especially loved the donkey in the film. He stated that he went to the movie two or three times in a row just to see this donkey, and the poor donkey's death at the end of the movie made the writer very sad." Nurullah Ataç, who generally liked to read and chat with his friends, was under the spell of cinema. On March 30, 1954, he would write in his diary: "Something happened to me this year: I started to like the cinema."

Ankara Cinemas That Have Stand the Test of Time Ⅲ: Bahçelievler and Yenimahalle

Cinemas Open One After Another in Bahçelievler and Yenimahalle

With the increase in population, new settlement areas were being created. The first constructions in the Bahçelievler district of Ankara were initiated according to the architectural plan known as the “Jansen Plan” covering the years 1929-1939. The Bahçelievler Construction Cooperative, which was established, ensured that the district was given the name we still use today. As a foreign architect/urban planner, Jansen tried to reflect the characteristics of the culture in which he was located in his plan. He approached the boundaries of the house cautiously, also taking into account social factors. Few examples of houses with large gardens built with care for privacy have survived to the present day. The area, which constitutes a small part of today’s Bahçelievler, has now become very unnoticeable when you look at a map. Because, in addition to the changes made, the district has reached six times the size of the period when it was first planned and built. With the increase in settlements in the Bahçelievler district, cinemas began to open one after another.

Yavuz İşcen’s articles on old cinemas in Ankara contain some very good information about old cinemas in the Bahçelievler district, which we will frequently include in this article. According to this information; in the 1940s, there was the Zevkli Cinema on Bahçelievler 3rd Street, right across from where the Bahçelievler Police Station used to be. Right next to it is the Tennis Club Building and tennis courts. It is known that the neighborhood youth played matches with Americans on these tennis courts, and that Beyazıt Ambar, the son of tennis coach Fuat Ambar, eventually became the Turkish champion while playing tennis under his father’s pressure. After the club closed, it was used as the “Bahçeli Gençlik Futbol Takım Kulübü” for a while, and then as a foosball hall until the year it was closed. Returning to the Zevkli Cinema, it was built as a summer cinema. Considering that the Ankara frost was very severe in those years when the climate was not so different, this idea was not very appealing for the business logic. Open-air cinemas could only attract viewers for about two months in Ankara. Despite this, the Zevkli Cinema continued to exist for a long time. Under the acacia trees, on one side there were tennis courts, sports areas for the youth of the neighborhood and sports enthusiasts, and on the other side, an open-air cinema with viewers of all ages… The Zevkli Cinema closed in the late seventies. The Retirement Fund building was built where the tennis courts were located, and the Migros Shopping Center was built where the Zevkli Cinema was located.

In the 1950s, there was another building known as the Gümüş Cinema at the intersection of Bahçelievler 7th Street and 29th Street, which served as an open-air cinema on its terrace. In the past, there were businesses known as Işık Bookstore and Gümüş Patisserie under this apartment building. It is assumed that they had the same owners due to the similarity of names. Since no records of Gümüş Cinema, one of the first cinemas in Bahçelievler, could be found for later years, it is thought that it did not last very long. Today, there are shops and fishmongers on the ground floor of this apartment building.

Renkli (Color)-1957 (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

The oldest indoor cinema in the district, Renkli Sinema, located just behind the police station on Bahçelievler 3rd Street, was opened in 1957. The names of Master Architect Naki Tınay and Architect Vedat Özsan are mentioned in relation to its architectural project. It is known that Tınay was the architect of many two-story houses in Mebus Evleri and Bahçelievler. The flower pot windows he made protruding on the side facades of the hall are considered to be one of the characteristic features of these houses, of which there are not many examples left today. The owner of Renkli Sinema was Tarık H. Koyutürk, who was doing his master's degree in urban planning abroad and was also the owner of the Ankara Çubuk Dam project. He lived in one of the two-story houses built in Bahçelievler according to the Jansen Plan. In an issue of Hayat magazine published in 1957, it was stated that the velvet curtain decorated with two swan patterns was 11 meters long and the sound system consisting of 9 speakers had a capacity of 1000 volts. We see similar socializing movements before or after the movie here. The Figaro Patisserie across from the cinema was a place frequented by students of Cumhuriyet High School, which was close to the cinema, before and after the movie. One of the most modern cinemas in Ankara, Renkli Sinema, continued its existence until 1966 under the ownership of Koyutürk. The building, which suffered a fire and was not repaired, was demolished after a while. The Bahçelievler Telekom Building is currently located on its site.

Renkli (Color) Cinema-1957 (Source: www.yavuzişcen.blogspot.com)

Perhaps the most important and most remembered of the cinemas in Bahçelievler was the Arı Cinema[1]. Located across from the National Library, at Bahçelievler Son Durak No. 169, the Arı Cinema opened in 1969. The cinema opened with the film La bataille de San Sebastian (The Balls of San Sebastian). As in the cinemas in Ulus, the films were shown here undubbed and with subtitles. Again, like most other cinemas in Ankara, the Arı Cinema hosted other concerts and events. The architectural project of the 1760-seat Arı Cinema was done by Rahmi Bediz and Demirtaş Kamçıl. The cinema consisted of three floors: a balcony, a club and a hall. The ceramic panels decorating the walls are by Prof. Dr. They were the works of Hamiye Çolakoğlu and ceramic artist Cemil Eren. Just to the left of Arı Cinema was Arılar Patisserie, another example of the close relationship between cinema and patisserie. The sections where the seats were located were entered through two different doors marked “singles” and “couples”. This situation, which was interpreted as singles and married or lovers, would continue to be the subject of discussion in other cinemas in the following years.


Ankara Senator Hıfzı Oğuz Bekata, Zeki Müren and theater artists Ayla Algan and Ayten Gökçer at the reception given in Sophia Loren’s name. (Source: www.pusulahaber.com.tr)




Arı Cinema’s opening film poster - (Source: Yavuz İşcen)

After the second ring of the gong, which rang a total of three times before the film started, the environment would begin to darken and the final seating would be completed. When you look up towards the ceiling, you would see the striking lighting system designed in the shape of a honeycomb. Arı Cinema had features and magnificence that would compete with other cinemas in Europe at the time. This situation must have been noticed abroad as well, because Arı Cinema hosted the world premiere of the film Le Voyage (The Journey), directed by the famous Italian director Vittorio De Sica and starring Sophia Loren and Richard Burton, in 1974. “On the single-channel television, everyone was in a dilemma about whether to watch David Janssen’s series The Contraband, who played the role of Dr. Richard Kimble, or to see Sophia Loren. Still, there was a large crowd in front of the cinema, accompanied by the consolation of ‘The Contraband is not escaping’.” Famous artists such as Zeki Müren, Ayla Algan and Müjdat Gezen also watched the film from the front rows with Sophia Loren at this important premiere. Yavuz İşcen, who lived through those days, recounts: “About a year had passed. I had gone to see the film ‘Three Days of the Condor’ directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Robert Redford and Faye Dunaway. The 1760-seat capacity Arı Cinema was sold out. The ticket clerk said, ‘There is only room in the first one.’ I was also undecided whether to buy a ticket or not. Because these were the cheapest seats in the cinema. When I was thinking of trying my luck at the matinee later, the clerk said, ‘My sister, even Sophia Loren watched her own movie in the first one.’”

Arı Cinema, which has an important place in our memories, continued its existence as a cinema until 1985. In 1985, it was rented by TRT for 49 years and converted into Arı Studio, preserving its architectural features. After the cinema closed, Arılar Patisserie moved to 7th Street. The Agricultural Credit Cooperatives Solidarity Union Center is located in the place of the patisserie today.

The last cinema we know of in Bahçelievler is Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema [1]. Dedeman Cinemas were known as “Akay Dedeman” and “Bahçelievler Dedeman”. They opened in 1971. Akay Dedeman Cinema was located on Akay Street. In addition to film screenings, concert events were also held. Akay Dedeman Cinema closed in the late seventies. After being used as a casino and bar, its location was converted into a hospital building.

Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema was located on Bahçelievler 3rd Street. The 1400-person capacity cinema was able to continue its existence despite the Arı Cinema in the same neighborhood. The Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema building, which closed in the mid-seventies, was used as a cultural center for a while under the auspices of one of the political parties. In later years, it was renovated and converted into Bahçelievler On Cinema. Bahçelievler On Cinema started operating in the early 2000s under the Tüze Group. It had a cafe, bowling alley and playgrounds on its lower floor. The hall used the latest cinema technology and was a new attraction center with its comfortable seats. Tüze Group became a partner with Avşar Film in 2007. However, it withdrew from the cinema sector in 2008 after the economic crisis it experienced. Bahçelievler Tüze On Cinema also closed the same year. Today, Milyon Performance Hall is located in its place.

Bahçelievler On Cinema, which opened in place of Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema (Source: emekbahceli.blogspot.com/)

The first children's cinema in Ankara started operating in 1951. It provided service in three sessions every Saturday in the Little Theater. Short documentaries, music videos and Mickey Mouse movies were shown on its screen. In addition to movies that appealed to their own age, older children sometimes went to the cinemas with their families and sometimes with their friends to escape and watch love, adventure and cowboy movies. Although children and young people were not particularly aware of the potential harms of cowboy and gangster movies, various negative effects of these movies were widely discussed and solutions were sought at the time. Muzaffer Tekel spoke about this issue as follows: “We did not yet know the shame of being enemies of the poor Native Americans with the imperial culture of the USA in those years.” In addition to being spectators, there were also child laborers working in cinemas. Cüneyt Arcayürek, who would become one of Turkey’s leading journalists in later years, said that after World War II, he worked as a lighting technician at the Halk Cinema to support his family financially, while his older brother cut tickets at the door of the same cinema. Children who worked in many jobs from carrying reels to being a movie projectionist also got to know the background of cinema. Cinema was very important for all ages and in every respect.

A Look at the Cinemas in Yenimahalle

While we are talking about old neighborhood cinemas, let’s not skip visiting Yenimahalle. We know that there were many cinemas in this district, especially in the 60s. There was the Yılmaz Open Air Cinema at Yenimahalle 8th Stop. Due to the difficulty of finding new films, films left over from the winter were usually shown. But the public's interest was still high. There was the Alemdar Cinema on 5th Street. The lower floor of the building was used as a closed cinema, the middle floor as a wedding hall and the terrace as a summer cinema. Foreign films were usually shown at the Alemdar Cinema. Later, this building would be used as the Alemdar Business Center and the cinema as a wedding hall.

Yenimahalle Alemdar Cinema (Source: sinasiyuksel.com)

There was the Seyran Cinema on Serdar Street. Local films were also shown at the Seyran Cinema. In the summer, the neighborhood would dive into other worlds with their sunflower seeds and chickpea sodas in their hands in the warm atmosphere of the wooden chairs of the open air cinemas, and in the winter, in the velvet seats of the closed cinemas. We also know that there were also the Güneş Cinema and the Akın Cinema in Yenimahalle in those years. However, unfortunately, they all lost their lives to time.


I would like to thank Cem Dedekargınoğlu for his contribution

Ankara Cinemas That Have Fallen to the Test of Time IV: The Era of Detached Apartments with Cinemas

Although most people are used to cinemas in shopping malls today, some Ankara viewers continue to be loyal to street cinemas. Enjoying a movie in a theater where there is no smell of food and no sound of the movie is mixed together provides a much more special experience. In this way, deep bonds are established between moviegoers and these independent cinemas. Over the years, a similar intimate bond was established between Ankara moviegoers and Kızılırmak Cinema. The cinema located on Kızılırmak Street in Kızılay started operating in 1960. At that time, it was opened for the use of those living on American bases in Ankara. The cinema would mostly show films with American nationalist themes during the weekdays, and the hall would be used as a church on the weekends. Kızılırmak Cinema was opened to the public after renovations in the 1970s. Over the years, the cinema tried to preserve its historical elements as much as possible. Many objects in the foyer section, from the poster frames to the marble on the floor, were preserved as they were. This classic-style cinema received a Cultural Initiative Certificate from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The cinema, which is also supported by Eurimages (European Audiovisual Works Support Fund) established to develop European Cinema activities, has been operated by the same family that has owned the property for three generations.

Kızılırmak Cinema

In the early years, there were no films to be shown. For this reason, the cinema deviated from the mainstream and turned to non-American films, creating its own alternative cinema audience. The cinema generally focuses on screening European and Independent Cinema examples and films that did not have the chance to be released. Kızılırmak Cinema also supports many festivals by hosting them. Some of these are: International Flying Broom Women's Film Festival, Human Rights Cinema Days, Workers' Film Festival, Ankara Film Festival and Travelling Festival. Films were shown all day long at the film festivals in the late 90s. The loyal festival followers who came to the movies almost never went home and watched films all day in their most comfortable clothes and ate the food they brought from home. Today, Kızılırmak Cinema is still being kept afloat by its loyal audience. It was on the verge of closing last year, but it has since reopened. Independent cinemas already had many problems, such as pirated CD and DVD production that started in the 2000s, monopolized film distribution, the abundance of shopping mall cinemas, the differentiation of the culture of watching movies, and the spread of digital cinema platforms. Although it is thought that their situation after the pandemic will not be very encouraging, it is hoped that Kızılırmak Cinema will be a place frequented by cinema and art lovers in Ankara for many years to come.


One of the most preferred cinemas by Ankara moviegoers was the Metropol Cinema on Kızılay Selanik-2 Street. When passersby looked at the movie posters at the entrance of the cinema, they would often not be able to turn away the host who invited them in and would be caught up in the magic of the cinema without even thinking about it. However, this is now a thing of the past. Because; while the article on Ankara cinemas that have been defeated by time was being prepared for publication, the Metropol Cinema could not withstand the pandemic conditions and closed its curtains. The TMMOB Chamber of Mechanical Engineers Education and Culture Center is currently located in its place. Of the cinemas that we can now describe as independent cinemas in Ankara, only the Kızılırmak Cinema and Büyülü Fener Cinemas remain.







(Source: metropol-sinemas.business.site)

(Source: metropol-sinemas.business.site)

“Old cinemas in Ankara” is a vast subject. But when this subject is discussed, Kavaklıdere, Talip, Menekşe, Çankaya and Nergiz Cinemas, which come to mind almost everyone, have one thing in common: They are all ‘Cinema Apartments’ and their architect is Nejat Tekelioğlu. Architect Nejat Tekelioğlu and one of the mayors of Ankara, Architect Vedat Dalokay, had a professional partnership between 1958 and 1968. After the partnership, Tekelioğlu focused on his own projects and thus Ankara’s cinema apartments emerged. Known for making paintings and sculptures, being interested in literature and writing poems, Tekelioğlu and his mixed-use cinema apartments would add color to the cinema life in Ankara for many years.

Cinemas, which are Ankara’s cultural and entertainment venues, first shifted from Ulus to Kızılay, then to other districts and then to Kavaklıdere. Initially designed as Nergiz due to the Nergiz family who owned the building, the cinema was later named Kavaklıdere Cinema. Kavaklıdere Cinema, located on the ground floor of the nine-story Başkent Apartment on Tunalı Hilmi Street in Kavaklıdere, met its audience in 1969. Its two-story hall was divided into four halls in the following years. Kavaklıdere Cinema provided Ankara residents with many memories for many years. It hosted festivals. After 1991, Denk Agency, which also owns Büyülü Fener Cinemas, took over the management of the cinema. Kavaklıdere Cinema, an indispensable stop for festivals, attracted attention with its “night cinema” and “first children’s cafe” applications. The cinema was also supported by Eurimages-Europa Cinemas, an affiliate of the Council of Europe, for showing quality European and Turkish films. It received the Mass Communication Award given by the Ankara Film Festival in 1999 for its contributions to the viewing of quality cinema. However, these could not prevent its closure and Kavaklıdere Cinema also closed its curtains in 2007. Although Kavaklıderem Association tried to reopen it in the past, it can now only greet people passing by with its sign.

Kavaklıdere Cinema in the 70s (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

Kavaklıdere Cinema (January-2020)

Talip Cinema, one of Tekelioğlu's apartment buildings with cinemas, was also located on Tunalı Hilmi Street. The apartment was designed in 1969. In order to make room for the shops and the cinema, the entrance of the nine-story building's residential floors was arranged in a way that would take up less space. This arrangement reflected the characteristic feature of apartment buildings with cinemas. You would go down to the basement by passing between the apartment entrance and the shops, and from there you would enter the cinema. Talip Cinema added value to Tunalı Hilmi Street, where it is located, together with Kavaklıdere Cinema for thirty years. In addition to showing films, Talip Cinema also hosted theater shows and various concerts. For example, in 1993, the Ankara leg of the 'Cursed Concerts' organized in Istanbul for metal music lovers was held at Talip Cinema. During the concert, a fight broke out between young people and the environment was calmed down by police intervention. Talip Cinema was also one of the cinemas that lost the life of time. Although there is a parking lot in its place now, the ceramic wall coverings from the time it was built are still on the walls.

Talip Cinema wall coverings (February-2021) | We would like to thank ceramic artist Özgür Ceren Can for his consultancy in defining the wall coverings.

Çankaya Cinema in Chile Square and Nergiz and Menekşe Cinemas on Menekşe Street were other examples of Architect Nejat Tekelioğlu's cinema apartment concept. Çankaya Cinema was opened in 1967 by Mehmet and Refik Erdoğan brothers. The second President İsmet İnönü also attended its opening. With a seating capacity of 850 people, it embraced theater plays as well as film screenings. Devekuşu Kabare, Kent Oyuncuları and Haldun Dormen met theatergoers on this stage. The cinema operated in an area of ​​1500 square meters with a balcony floor and a large foyer until 1987. After being rented out, the cinema was used as a disco, restaurant and then Çakıl Gazinosu over the years. However, there was a pleasing development last year. The venue returned to the culture and art scene under the name “Çankaya Sahne” and opened with the play Socrates’ Last Night on October 4, 2019. The words of Çankaya Sahne’s General Art Director Mehmet Atay are very meaningful: “This is a venue that brings back different moments in many of your memories. Several generations experienced different voices, different visuals and excitements here. Those who created this venue as a cinema may not have been able to experience continuity in their dreams due to the reflection of the crises our country is experiencing on art, but they prepared the ground for it to continue its life as an art center because they wanted the lyrics, musical pieces and film frames embedded in the walls and stairs of the venue they meticulously built to always remain fresh in memories. We are proud to bring together this cult venue, which will almost be remembered with its name, with an artistic energy after many years. We set out alone, but we are sure that you will not leave us alone.”

Çankaya Cinema (Source: www.ayrancım.org.tr)

Nergiz Cinema was located in Nergiz Apartment, built in 1967 on Menekşe-1 Street. In the seventies, Nergiz Cinema usually screened family and adventure films. In the early nineties, despite the discomfort of watching the film from a chair, the long queue for the film Rambo-3 was worth seeing. In addition to showing films, the cinema also opened its stage to theater and other cultural and artistic events such as Devekuşu Kabare. However, it could not hold on for long as interest in cinema decreased over the years. This cinema, which is from the pocket cinema school, started to screen only erotic films in its last years and then closed.

E.T. ticket quoue-1984 (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

The Menekşe Cinema, whose architectural project was prepared by Nejat Tekelioğlu and Özdemir Çakıner in 1966, was located in the Orkide Apartments, a little below the Nergiz Cinema, close to the Modern Bazaar. The Menekşe Cinema was an important cinema until the late 90s. Here, emotions and cinema lived together. In the last scene of a hard-hitting movie, when the protagonist gets beaten up a bit and then gets up with a big comeback and kicks his opponent for the first time, the whole theater gets excited with an excitement resembling a Mexican wave, saying, “This is it.” The children who entered the movie Big Trouble in Little China, directed by John Carpenter, were enchanted by that fantastic movie, held their elders’ hands at the end of the movie and ate their fill at Konya Mutlu Kebap on Sümer Street, are now in their forties. Menekşe Cinema, after it was closed, became an art center used by private theaters in the following years.


“Love Story” movie is shown in Kavaklıdere and Nergiz Cinemas-1970 (Source: yeşilçam cinema/twitter)

As stated in the article by Assoc. Prof. Umut Şumnu; “The apartment buildings with cinemas designed by Architect Nejat Tekelioğlu in Ankara are important examples of civil architecture. They are all important elements of our city memory. These apartments are an architectural heritage that should be protected and preserved both in terms of the stores and cinema spaces on their lower floors, the apartments in the apartment block, the information they provide about the housing policy of the years these apartments were built, and the original design approaches and architectural details in all these spaces.”

Another apartment building with a cinema in Ankara; Karınca Apartment and Karınca Cinema was located at number 70 on Esat Street. Karınca Apartment was designed by Architect Fehmi Doğan and Architect Mehmet Ünal. The architectural project was approved in 1967 and the building was completed in 1969. With a renovation in 1977, the use of the cinema was changed according to the need. The entrance to the cinema was taken from Esat Street, from the middle section of the building and connected to the foyer with the entrance hall. The entrance to the balcony part of the cinema hall was from the foyer. The hall was reached from the foyer by a staircase. In a new foyer created in the basement where the hall was located, the staircases at both ends of the building were directed to the cinema exits at both ends of the building. This single-screen, high-ceilinged, red velvet-curtained cinema was also closed. Karınca Pasajı continues its life. It is known that there were also Dilek Cinema and Ferah Open Air Cinema on Esat Street, but they did not survive to the present day.

In the past, some of the rising scenes of the films or the endings, if they were pleasing, were applauded by the entire hall. Even if the film crew was not aware of this, the satisfaction felt with what was watched was shown by applause. When there was a technical problem, shouts of ‘Hoop Makiniiiissst’ would be heard. There would be a state there, independent from the outside, close to the magical world of what was being watched. Unlike the cinemas that were entered mostly to pass the time, the culture of watching movies more carefully, on time, without disturbing anyone, and respectfully and quietly was widespread.

Zamana Yenik Düşen Ankara Sinemaları V: 

Sinemanın Büyüsü Tüm Şehri Sarıyor

When you look at old Ankara photographs about cinema, a very memorable frame stands out. In the photo taken in the sixties, there are people forming a long queue in front of the cinema. That cinema is the Gölbaşı Cinema in Demirtepe, and the long queue is the line for the movie Hancı starring Turgut Özatay and Aysel Tanju, which was playing at a sold-out box office. The photo shows how cinema touched people's lives in those days and how much interest the public had in cinema. Gölbaşı Cinema continued to attract attention for many years. It especially hosted festival films and quality European films for a while. It was a very respectable cinema. However, as we approached the present day, this cinema also bowed to the known reasons and closed its curtains. The Telecommunications Authority building currently stands in its place.

The physical conditions of As Cinema, located under Gölbaşı Cinema, were not as good as Gölbaşı Cinema and it could not survive to the present day. Kerem Cinema, right next to it, failed to succeed in the sector and switched to showing erotic films and then closed. Eti Art Center mainly screened art films. It ended like Kerem Cinema. In the 70s, Maltepe, which was neighboring Demirtepe, had Maltepe, Alemdar, Başkent, Bulvar, Mini and Burç cinemas. It is really remarkable that there were so many cinemas in these neighborhoods in those years. In the place of these cinemas, there are now wedding halls known by the same names.


Gölbaşı Cinema (Source: Ankara Cımbızcısı)


Maltepe Alemdar Cinema (Source: Ankara Antoloji)

One of the cinemas that is most remembered is Akün Cinema. The cinema opened its curtains on May 1, 1975 with the excitement of Hababam Sınıfı. The Hababam Sınıfı movie was shown for 26 weeks. Akün culture had a special place for the people of Ankara. Akün Cinema was preferred due to its modernity, original decor, comfortable and large seats, and the screen where the movie could be watched beautifully from every angle. Akün Cinema, which has a capacity of 911 seats, did not divide or spoil the only movie theater it had while it was open. With its wide-stepped outdoor stairs where you can sit and its imposing stance, it has also become a meeting point for many people. This beautiful cinema, which was the only place where ‘frigo ice’ was sold, managed to survive for 27 years despite everything. Haldun Armağan describes Akün, which has lived as a cinema for a quarter of a century, as follows: “Cinemas like Akün, which have now transformed into completely different places, were examples of architectural styles with their independent identities. However, Ankara has lost Akün Cinema, which was an example of neo-classical architecture and was built with aesthetic care from the ceramics in its foyer to the ceiling decorations. If the State Theaters had not bought Akün, it would have been a shopping mall.” Akün could not withstand the other cinemas with multiplexes and the economic crisis it was experiencing. Akün Cinema showed Hababam Sınıfı, which it showed to its audience on the day it was born, as its last film on the day it died. After this sudden closure, which shocked us all at the time and made people cry in its last session, the venue was transferred to the State Theaters and met with theatergoers under the name “Akün Sahne” 2 years later. It had only been 11 years since it was converted into a theater when it was decided to sell it. After 2013, the Akün Stage was put up for sale by tender five times, along with the Şinasi Stage. It could not be sold for a while because it was offered below its value. During this process, the idea of ​​selling these two stages for other purposes was repeatedly protested and tried to be prevented by art lovers and civil society organizations in Ankara. In 2014, the buildings where the stages were located were purchased by businessman Ahmet Meriç. The fears did not come true and fortunately, these two stages continue to be among the most important venues of Ankara's cultural and artistic life today.

Akün Cinema (Source: www.ntv.com)

There is another venue that saddens us with its signboard, like Kavaklıdere Cinema: Mithatpaşa Show Center. Despite its uncomfortable seats, it was a preferred cinema by the audience due to its affordable ticket prices. It closed in the early 2000s. With its old, yellowed movie posters and sign, it is waiting to return one day.



Mithatpaşa Show Center (November/2020)

We should not forget the Ziraat Culture Center above Mithatpaşa Street. In 1995-1996, I watched many good movies, such as Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, with invitations brought by our neighbor who worked at Ziraat Bank. As far as I know, this centrally located cinema could only be visited by invitation. I remember that whenever I went, the hall was very crowded. With the renovation of the cinema hall belonging to the General Directorate of Ziraat Bank, the venue was transferred to the State Theaters in 2015 and is still one of the most preferred stages.



Ziraat Culture Center (Source: www.ankabar.com)

The Ankapol and Megapol cinemas affiliated with the Tüze Group were also well-known cinemas. The Ankapol Cinema was opened in 1997. It stood out with its “Cinematek” identity. It usually screened select European films and festival films. It was very enjoyable to watch movies from its balcony. After the Tüze Group, the cinema was operated for a while by the Ankara Cinema Culture Association, but it was sold in 2008 due to the debts of the owner Tüze Group. The Jolly Joker Performance Hall is currently located in the location of the cinema.

The Megapol Cinema was also located on Konur Street. It had three small halls: red, blue and green. In the late 90s, it became indispensable for the students of the university preparatory schools in the area. Although it received support from students, this was not enough and Megapol Cinema also joined the list of cinemas that were closed.

Megapol Cinema (November/2020)

Derya Sineması (Kaynak: Antoloji Ankara)

Derya Cinema located on Necatibey Street was another cinema that is etched in memories. Although it was not as popular as other cinemas closer to the center in the mid-seventies, it was a place loved for the quality films it screened and the concerts held on its stage after the eighties. It had a peaceful atmosphere with its large hall and balcony. I remember watching many films at Derya Cinema, especially in the nineties. These were the years when shopping mall cinemas were not yet everywhere, seating was indicated with lanterns and the attendant holding the lantern was tipped. It was very difficult to find a seat at the screenings for some films. For example, we had a hard time finding tickets for Titanic and watched the film very intimately with the people sitting on the stairs. We also lost Derya Cinema due to the problems of the cinema sector and the inability to keep up with technological developments. It was purchased by the Chamber of Civil Engineers in 2005, together with the eight-story building it was located in. The location of the cinema is used as a multi-purpose conference hall within IMO.

The Bati (Western) Cinemas were located on the Kızılay road, in a location frequently seen on Atatürk Boulevard. Unforgettable films were shown on its screen. The movie Braveheart attracted a lot of attention when it was released and stayed on for about a year, causing “Victory Week” posters to be hung outside the cinema. It was operated by the operator of Derya Cinema for a while. It also hosted the Gezici Festival in 2009. Although the Western Cinema in the Western Passage was closed, its sign and posters of old films were not removed for a long time. It tried very hard not to close, but unfortunately it could not escape this fate.


Bati Cinema Entrance-1980s (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

Panzers in front of the Bati Cinema-Atatürk Boulevard after September 12 (Source: Antoloji Ankara)

Apart from these; In the Abidinpaşa district, there was the Türkiş Open Air Cinema, in Cebeci, next to the Faculty of Law, there was the Sun (Elvan) Cinema in the same neighborhood as the Site Cinema, while proceeding from Cebeci to Hamamönü, there was the Cebeci Cinema, which generally showed foreign films, and the Melek Cinema in Cebeci Dörtyol, which showed local films, the Uzay Cinema, which was built later than the others and looked more modern, right next to the Melek Cinema, Saray Cinema, which was close to the maternity hospital and generally showed local films, the İnci Cinema near Kurtuluş, the Konak Cinema on Kurtuluş Umut Street, Sinema70 and Cep Cinema behind Güvenpark.


Melek Cinema-Cebeci Dörtyol/1965 (Source: Ankara Antoloji)

Cebeci Cinema-1980 (Source: Ankara Cımbızcısı)

Arzum Open Air Cinema at the Keçiören Mecidiye stop; Cem Cinema, Şato Cinema at the Gazino stop; an open air cinema at the Yakacık stop; In Kavaklıdere, there was the Hanif Cinema, Yeni Ulus Cinema, Ses Cinema and Lale Cinema; in Ulus and Dışkapı, there were the Stad, Nur and Atlas Cinemas; in Aydınlıkevler, there was the Süreyya Cinema; in Çankaya Yıldız, there was the Yıldız Cinema; in Seyranbağları, there was the Seyran Open Air Cinema; in Altındağ, there was the Altındağ Open Air Cinema; in an area opposite the Ders Aletleri Yapım Merkezi in Gazi Mahallesi, there was the Ümit Open Air Cinema. 

Altındağ Open Air Cinema (Source: Ankara Tıpızcısı)

Altındağ Open Air Cinema (Source: Ankara Cımbızcısı)


CONCLUSION

Çiğdem Kaya Çayır 

"I would like to thank Murat Çayır, Seren Erciyas and Pınar Aslantaş for their contributions."

Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoğlu expresses the effect of the films shown in the Ankara novel and the current affairs films before them as follows: “Cinemas […] had now given up on making vulgar, vulgar and tasteless films that appealed to the lower emotions of the people and always tickled the animal side of humanity, and instead they had started making satirical and epic films that served national causes. The people watched these with the same interest and concern, and they knew how to cry and laugh while watching them as much as Greta Garbo cried for her lovers or Charlie Chaplin laughed at his falls and rises. Especially the national current affairs films that showed the draining of a swamp somewhere in Anatolia, the operation of the first train on a new railway line or the cotton from the Seyhan field coming to the Kayseri cloth factories and coming out of there in the form of white calico or colored calico, made the cinema atmosphere ring with applause and shouts of joy.”

Ankara Republic Boulevard-1937 (www.eskiturkiye.net)

After the foundation of the Republic, the cinemas that were opened one after another in Ankara, the capital, to support the cultural development of the people and the country, realized the cultural revolution that was expected of them. These cinemas did not only show movies, but also welcomed activities such as theater plays, cabarets, musicals, concerts, etc. As a result, the increasing knowledge of the people created an intellectual city. Perhaps the intergenerational heritage that resulted from all of this brought the concept of “Ankara audience” to these days.

According to sources, there were around two hundred cinemas and open-air cinemas that opened and closed in Ankara from the 1920s to the 2000s. If only we had a time machine and could visit the magical atmosphere of all of them, even if only for a single movie. Preparing an article about cinemas that have been defeated by time was a saddening experience. There are always ‘if onlys’ after those who have left, and I also have ‘if onlys’ about these closed cinemas. I have watched many films from the cinemas that have been defeated by time that were still standing. But I wish I had more chance. The structures and cultural and artistic movements that are engraved in the memories of those people, along with their people, form an important part of the city's spirit. Ankara is very special to me, as it is to many people living here. Because I spent a large part of my life in this city. The important moments of my personal history and the things I remember are hidden in this city where I live. That's why my eyes look for old shops, bookstores, cafes, cinemas and other structures on the streets I walk. The reminders of the roads I walk on are saddening. Sometimes the roads lead to friendly conversations at Blues, Gölge or Sinema Bar, sometimes to Pizzeria, Net Piknik or Ofis Piknik, and sometimes to the movies I watched at Derya, Kavaklıdere or Akün Cinema. Although cinemas have been defeated by time, they are buried in people's memories along with other venues that have closed.

With the hope that the other values ​​remaining in the city will no longer be defeated by time, will not remain only in our memories and will always be before our eyes...

CREDITS

The cover illustration of the Ankara Cinemas Defeated by Time series was prepared by: Rüya İğit

"I would like to thank Murat Çayır, Seren Erciyas and Pınar Aslantaş for their contributions."

SOURCES


Ankara Sinemaları Tablosu

Tabloda eksik kalan kısımları okurların desteğiyle tamamlamak isteriz. Katkılarınız için editor@lavarla.com adresine mail atabilirsiniz. Teşekkür ederiz.

SinemaAçılış TarihiBulunduğu Yer
Millet Bahçesi Sineması1920..Millet Bahçesi içerisindeUlus
Kulüp Sineması1927Ulus
Yeni Sinema1928Ulus
Halk Sineması1937Eski Kulüp Sineması’nın adı değiştirilerekUlus
Sus Sineması1938Ulus
Sümer Sineması1940Ulus
Park Sineması1941Yanan Halk Sineması’nın yerineUlus
Ulus Sineması1939Kızılay
Ankara Sineması1943Sıhhiye
Büyük Sinema1949Kızılay
Zevkli Sinema1940..Bahçelievler
Gümüş Sineması1950..Bahçelievler
Cebeci Sineması1950Cebeci
Nur Sineması1952Dışkapı-Ulus
Renkli Sinema1957Bahçelievler
Kızılırmak Sineması1960Kızılay
Menekşe Sineması1966Kızılay
Nergiz Sineması1967Kızılay
Çankaya Sineması1967Şili Meydanı
Arı Sineması1969Bahçelievler
Kavaklıdere Sineması1969Tunalı Hilmi
Talip Sineması1969Projelendirme yılı, açılış yılı bulunamadı.Tunalı Hilmi
Karınca Sineması1969Küçükesat
Dedeman Sineması(Bahçelievler)1971Bahçelievler
Dedeman Sineması (Akay)1971Kızılay
Akün Sineması1975Atatürk Bulvarı
Ankapol1997Kızılay
On Sineması2000Eski Dedeman Sineması’nın adı değiştirilerekBahçelievler
Metropol Sineması
Yılmaz Açıkhava Sineması?Yenimahalle
Seyran Sineması?Yenimahalle
Güneş Sineması?Yenimahalle
Akın Sineması?Yenimahalle
Megapol?Kızılay
Dilek Sineması?Küçükesat
Ferah Açıkhava Sineması?Küçükesat
Derya Sineması?Sıhhiye
Ziraat Kültür Merkezi?Kızılay
Mithatpaşa Gösteri Merkezi?Kızılay
As Sineması?Demirtepe
Kerem Sineması?Demirtepe
Gölbaşı Sineması?Demirtepe
Maltepe Sineması?Maltepe
Alemdar Sineması?Maltepe
Burç Sineması?Maltepe
Başkent Sineması?Maltepe
Bulvar Sineması?Maltepe
Mini Sinema?Maltepe
Eti Sanat Merkezi?Demirtepe
Melek Sineması?Cebeci
Batı Sineması?Kızılay
Türkiş Açıkhava Sineması?Abidinpaşa
Sun (Elvan) Sineması?Cebeci
Site Sineması?Cebeci
Uzay Sineması?Cebeci
Saray Sineması?Cebeci(Doğumevi yanında)
İnci Sineması?Kurtuluş
Konak Sineması?Kurtuluş
Sinema 70?Kızılay
Cep Sineması?Kızılay
Arzum Açıkhava Sineması?Keçiören
Cem Sineması?Keçiören
Şato Sineması?Keçiören
Yakacık Açıkhava Sineması?Keçiören
Hanif Sineması?Kavaklıdere
Yeni Ulus Sineması?Kavaklıdere
Ses Sineması?Kavaklıdere
Lale Sineması?Kavaklıdere
Stad Sineması?Dışkapı-Ulus
Nur Sineması?Dışkapı-Ulus
Atlas Sineması?Dışkapı-Ulus
Süreyya Sineması?Aydınlıkevler
Yıldız Sineması?Yıldız-Çankaya
Seyran Açıkhava Sineması?Seyranbağları-Çankaya
Altındağ Açıkhava Sineması?Altındağ-Çankaya
Ümit Açıkhava Sineması?Gazi Mahallesi-Beşevler

KAYNAKÇA

Ali Esat Bozyiğit, “Eski Ankara Sinemaları”, Kebikeç Dergi, Sayı 9, 1999.

Burcu Bilgin, “Sinemalar tarih oldu“, Hürriyet, 26 Temmuz 2007.

Ekin Taneri ve Ayberk Boztepe, “Samimiyetin Adresi Olan Sinema: Kızılırmak”, Bilkent Post, 6 Mayıs 2016.

Görkem Barındık, “Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ve Sinema (19 Mayıs özel)“, Sinetürkiye, 2019.

Gülseren Mungan Yavuztürk, “Ataç’ın Ankara’daki Sinema Günleri”, Ankara  Araştırmaları Dergisi, s. 180-188, 2016.

İbrahim Demirkan, “Ankara Sinemaları“, Tercümanı Ahval, 7 Ekim 2015.

Semih Gökatalay, “Erken Soğuk Savaş Ankara’sında Sinema Kültürü”, Ankara Araştırmaları Dergisi, 2019.

Suavi Aydın, Ömer Türkoğlu, Kudret Emiroğlu, Ergi Deniz ÖzsoyKüçük Asya’nın Bin Yüzü: Ankara, Dost Kitabevi Yayınları, 2019.

Umur Gerenli, “Şimdide saklanan bir geçmiş: Kızılırmak Sineması“, Haber Ne Diyor?, 16 Kasım 2019.

Umut Şumnu, “Nejat Tekelioğlu’nun Sinemalı Apartmanları: Talip ve Başkent (Kavaklıdere)”, Ankara’da İz Bırakan Mimarlar: Vedat Dalokay ve Nejat Tekelioğlu, Koç Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2019.

Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoğlu, Ankara, İletişim, 2004.

Yaşar Sökmensüer, “Hababam merhaba Akün, hababam hoşçakal Akün“, Hürriyet, 23 Temmuz 2014.

Bloglar ve Websiteleri

Sivil Mimari Bellek Ankara 1930-1980
Ankara’da İz Bırakan Mimarlar
AnkaBar
Ankara Cımbızcısı
Antoloji Ankara
Emek-Bahçelievler Eski Dostlar
İlgilik
Haldun Armağan  
Kamera Arkası
Karşı Açı
Sinan Akbulut
Şinasi Yüksel
Yavuz İşcen
Yalçın Ergir
wowturkey.com
Wikipedia
Büyülü Fener Sinemaları

Fotoğraf Açıklamaları ve Kaynakları

Foto-1:  Millet Bahçesi Sineması (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-2: Millet Bahçesi ve içindeki sinemanın yeri-1935 (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-3: Kulüp Sineması (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-4: Bilet ve İlanlar (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-5: Yeni Sinema (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-6: Sümer Sineması şimdiki hali ve ilan (Yavuz İşcen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-7: Ulus Sineması (Ankara Cımbızcısı)
Foto-8: Kızılay Soysal Apartmanı terasından Kavaklıdere yönüne bakış, arkada Uybadin Köşkü (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-9: Kızılay Meydanı/Soysal Apartmanı ve Uybadin Köşkü (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-10: Ankara Sineması (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-11: Büyük Sinema-Hafta Tatili Ruhsat Teskeresi (Yalçın Ergir, www.ergir.com)
Foto-12: Büyük Sinema/Çayda Çıra Oynayan Kızlar (Yalçın Ergir, www.ergir.com)
Foto-13: Büyük Sinema genel görünüm (Yalçın Ergir, www.ergir.com)
Foto-14: Marc Aryan Büyük Sinema’da verdiği konserden çıkışı Kazım Güven’in evinde (Yalçın Ergir, www.ergir.com)
Foto-15: Büyük Sinema Genel Görünüm (Yalçın Ergir, www.ergir.com)
Foto-16: Renkli Sinema-1957 (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-17: Renkli Sinema (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-18: Arı Sineması’nda oynayan ilk film San Sebastian’ın Topları afişi (Yavuz İşcen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-19Le Voyage (Yolculuk) filminin Arı Sineması’ndaki galası/1974 (www.pusulahaber.com.tr)
Foto-20: Arı Sineması’nın yerine açılan Arı Stüdyosu (Yavuz İşçen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)

Foto-21: Bahçelievler Dedeman Sineması’nın yerine açılan On Sineması, (emekbahceli.blogspot.com)
Foto-22: Yenimahalle Alemdar Sineması (www.sinasiyuksel.com)
Foto-23: Yenimahalle Seyran Sineması (www.sinasiyuksel.com)
Foto-24: Kızılırmak Sineması (Pınar Aslantaş)
Foto-25: Kızılırmak Sineması (Pınar Aslantaş)
Foto-26: Kızılırmak Sineması (Twitter/Ankara Apartmanları)
Foto-27: Metropol Sineması (www.metropol-sinemas.business.site)
Foto-28: Metropol Sineması (www.metropol-sinemas.business.site)
Foto-29: Kavaklıdere Sineması, 70’li yıllar (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-30: Kavaklıdere Sineması, Kasım/2019 (Yazara ait)
Foto-31: Çankaya Sineması (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-32: Talip Sineması Duvar Kaplamaları Şubat/2021 (Yazara ait)
Foto-33: Çankaya Sineması (ayrancım.org.tr)
Foto-34: Nergiz Sineması-Nergiz Sineması önünde E.T. kuyruğu, 1984 (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-35: Kavaklıdere ve Nergiz Sinemalarında Love Story filmi gösterimde (Twitter/yeşilçam sineması)
Foto-36: Ulus Sineması-ilan (Yavuz İşcen, yavuziscen.blogspot.com)
Foto-37:Çankaya ve Gölbaşı sinemaları ilan (ayrancim.org.tr)
Foto-38: Sinema salonları gazete reklamı (Ankara Cımbızcısı)
Foto-39: Gölbaşı Sineması (Ankara Cımbızcısı)
Foto-40: Maltepe Alemdar Sineması (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-41: Akün Sineması-veda bileti (www.kameraarkası.org)
Foto-42: Akün Sineması (www.ntv.com)
Foto-43: Mithatpaşa Gösteri Merkezi- Kasım/2020(Yazara ait)
Foto-44: Ziraat Kültür Merkezi (www.ankabar.com)
Foto-45: Megapol Sineması-Kasım/2020 (Yazara ait)
Foto-46: Derya Sineması (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-47: Derya Sineması (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-48:Batı Sineması girişi, 1980’li yıllar (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-49: Batı Sineması önünde panzerler-Atatürk Bulvarı 12 Eylül sonrası (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-50: Melek Sineması-Cebeci Dörtyol, 1965 (Antoloji Ankara)
Foto-51: Cebeci Sineması, 1980 (Ankara Cımbızcısı)
Foto-52: Altındağ Açıkhava Sineması (Ankara Cımbızcısı)
Foto-53: Ankara Cumhuriyet Bulvarı-1937 (www.eskiturkiye.net)


NOTES

[1] SOURCE

Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema

Dedeman Cinemas, known as “Akay Dedeman” and “Bahçelievler Dedeman”, opened in mid-1971. Akay Dedeman was located on Akay Street in Bakanlıklar district and had a capacity of 1500 people. In addition to movies, concerts were also frequently held here. I remember Edip Akbayram, Nilüfer and Cem Karaca concerts. Among the movies I watched in this cinema, I was very impressed by Stanley Kubrick’s “2001 A Space Odyssey”. The crowd at the door is still in my mind. Akay Dedeman Cinema closed after the mid-70s. Its location was first converted into a casino, then a bar and finally a hospital building.

Bahçelievler Dedeman Cinema, located in Bahçelievler, had a capacity of 1400 people. The cinema, located at Bahçelievler 3. Cadde No: 38-41, managed to maintain its existence for a while despite opening during a crisis in the cinema sector and having a strong competitor in the same neighborhood, Arı Cinema. I remember trying not to miss the movies that came to this cinema. In fact, one time Levent Kırca came to watch a movie with a friend and coincidentally sat in the seat in front of me. I don’t remember the exact date the cinema closed. It must have been in the mid-70s. The cinema building remained closed for a while. It was used as a cultural center affiliated with the MHP for a while. After it was closed in 1980, the cinema building remained empty for a long time. It was later restored and reopened in the early 2000s under the name Bahçelievler On Cinema. Bahçelievler On Cinema, which had a bowling alley downstairs, didn’t last long either. Tüze Group, which also owns many cinemas in Ankara and all over Turkey, bought this place and started operating it under the name Bahçelievler Tüze On Cinema. Tüze Group became a partner with Avşar Film in 2007. However, after the economic crisis, it withdrew from the cinema sector in 2008. Bahçelievler Tüze On Cinema was also closed in the same year.

[2] SOURCE

Not only Ankara’s, but Turkey’s largest cinema

From 1920, when the first cinema opened in Ankara, to 1969, when Arı Cinema opened, the city’s largest and most modern cinema was undoubtedly the Grand Cinema in Kızılay. This reign of the Grand Cinema with a capacity of 1550 seats continued until the opening of Arı Cinema with 1760 seats in 1969.

The architectural project of Arı Cinema was made by Rahmi Bediz and Demirtaş Kamçıl, two of the well-known architects of the period. The project, which was approved in 1968 and registered by the Ankara Branch of the Chamber of Architects in the same year, bore the signature of Yılmaz İnkaya as the secretary member. The architectural office founded by Rahmi Bediz and Demirtaş Kamçıl in Ankara in 1952, carried out many projects that we know closely until 1980. These include the Israeli Houses, MTA, TPAO, TRT General Directorate building, French Culture, And Bazaar, Onur Bazaar, Moda Bazaar, Soysal Han, Kuğulu Arcade and Arı Cinema.

The Arı Cinema building, which was built on a construction area of ​​12 thousand square meters, had the Arılar Patisserie with its rich variety and seating area just to the left of the entrance. Those who wanted could spend time here until movie time and eat and drink something. Arı Cinema was notable for its interior arrangement as well as its complex architectural design. The cinema had 3 floors called Balcony, Club and Hall. The entrance to the cinema was made from a front section where the ticket booths and film promotion boards were located. The wooden tray with two rotating compartments at the ticket booth was quite new for us. You would put money in one compartment and the ticket attendant would put your ticket in the other compartment. When the tray was turned, the money and ticket would switch places. Thus, after purchasing your ticket, you could enter the cinema from the middle floor called the club.

Ceramic panels adorned the walls at the entrance of the cinema and in the foyer. The panel at the entrance of the cinema was the work of Prof. Dr. Hamiye Çolakoğlu, while the others were the work of our ceramic artist Cemil Eren. There were two small pools in the foyer, one in the club and the other in the hall. Since these pools were filled with shiny pebbles and covered with a transparent plastic material, the pool looked like it was full of water. I don’t think there is anyone who hasn’t tried to touch these stones after going to the Arı Cinema. The sections where the seats were located were entered through two separate doors marked “singles” and “couples”. The issue of singles and couples had been interpreted as singles or married and lovers for many years and made into a joke. Right behind the doors, there were thick burgundy velvet curtains to prevent light from seeping through from the foyer.

The gong would ring three times before the movie started. After the second one, the lights in the hall would gradually dim and change color. There was a very different and interesting lighting system on the ceiling of the hall, consisting of panels placed in a way that reminded us of honeycombs. Watching the honeycombs change color was an event in itself. Then, the large honey-colored curtain with the Ziraat Bank logo on it would slowly open and the film would start. Before the film started in the Arı Cinema, an advertisement for Ziraat Bank and a news clip prepared by the same bank would be shown. The background music for the advertisement and the news clip was Gioachino Rossini’s ‘Sevil Baby Opera’ overture. This music had become so ingrained in our ears that even today, when I hear it somewhere, I immediately think of Ziraat Bank and Arı Cinema.