Fram Kino

Fram Kino, the first cinema in Norway, opened in 1908 . It is located at Storgata 8, in the city of Bodø, capital of Nordland county. Until 1989, it was the only cinema in Bodø, serving as a cultural hub.

History

Background

Fram Kino was established in 1908 by Ole J.B. Jørgensen. The cinema's management has remained in the Jørgensen family for four generations. Ole J. B. Jørgensen (b. 1862), Petter Jørgensen (b. 1894), Ole Henrik Jørgensen (b. 1928) and Erik Jørgensen (b. 1958) have managed Fram Kino.

Ole J. B. Jørgensen

Ole J. B. Jørgensen worked as a wagon-man transporting goods, but by the early 1900s he had established himself as a businessman. In 1908 he established his first cinema at Lodge Fram. In 1911 the cinema moved to a building leased at Storgata 8. In 1916 a portion of the family farm at Søndre Hærnes was sold to permit purchasing Storgata 8. A part of the farm was re-acquired by Ole J.B Jørgensen’s son, Petter Jørgensen, in 1933.

Lodge Farm

Lodge Farm was a base for the temperance society known as Nordens Klippe (Cliff of the North), established in 1882. They held their meetings at Tordenskjoldsgate, the first God-Templar location in the Northern part of Norway. Lodge Farm was destroyed in 1940 during World War II in the bombing of Bodø.

Originally, the cinema played silent shorts, with four to five screenings at each showing. All screenings had a live piano accompaniment. The original price for the cinema was 25 øre for adults, and 10 øre for children. The first films included comedies, such as “Liquid electricity" (Flytende elektrisitet), “Adventures of A Magician" (Tryllekunstnerens eventyr), and dramas such as “Samson and Dahlila” (Samson og Dalilla).

Petter, the son of Ole J. B., worked as a helper at the cinema from its inception, through the move to Storgata 8, and until Ole J. B. bought the building from N. Helgensen in 1916. On Dec. 13, 1924, Petter Jørgensen became a full partner in his father's company, and later purchased Storgata 8 from him. After Ole J. B. died on Dec.2, 1930, the company was acquired by Petter. Later, in 1948, Petter's son Ole Henrik Jørgensen began working at Fram Kino. After Petter's death in 1958, Ole Henrik acquired Storgata 8. On 1 January 1959, Ole Henrik's son Erik obtained his cinema engineer's certificate. He became the cinema chief when he was in his twenties.

Fram Kino during the Second World War

In the beginning of the war, the cinema was located in Storgata 8. This building was burned down by the Germans due to the new regulations regarding buildings of a certain height in the area below Kongens gate. The cinema and new cinema equipment was then moved to Folkets hus (Today Prinsens gate 15), where a temporary cinema was established. This temporary cinema was later confiscated by the Germans. Jørgensen then established another cinema in a barrack in Fredensborgveien near 13. The barrack had a capacity of 430 seats, and was in use until May 11, 1951.

Enlargement of the cinema in 1989

In 1989, the cinema was enlarged to meet the requirements of an expanding number of inhabitants in Bodø. Three theaters, one large and two smaller, were built. The large theater seated 322 persons, and the two smaller ones sat 59 persons each. The cinema remains the same as it was since this enlargement.

Now and the future

Fram Kino currently has 11 employees. The premises of the cinema are rented and Bodø Kommune owns the building. According to the cinema manager, Erik Jørgensen, they plan to expand from three theaters to four. In 2013, Erik Jørgensen and his associate Tone Furøyen, received the award “Cinema Manager of the Year”. This prize was handed out by the Norwegian Film Agency Association (Norske Filmbyråers Forening).

Special events

After the mass [...] that took place in Utøya near Oslo on the 22nd of July 2011, the cinema manager arranged a day with free entrance for everyone. This gave the people in Bodø a chance to think about something else and escape from the horrible events of Utøya.

At the premier of the Norwegian film “Pelle Politibil”, the children had a chance to meet the real police car, Pelle.

Technical installations

Fram Kino has participated in a pilot project regarding development of digital ticket systems. One of the digital ticket systems is E-Billett which was developed and supplied by Dialog.eXe (a software) . The cinema has the following digital systems: Doremi - Technical Leadership for Digital Cinema, Christie - Digital Cinema Solution, and Dolby. Due to the digital systems, the cinema can broadcast live shows such as concerts and sporting events.

Literature

  • Eivind Thorsvik, Minneboken om Bodø. Bodø, Nordland, Norge: Degaards Forlag A/S, 1956
  • Terje Gudbrandsen, Der Bodø ble til-gårder og slekter i et brennpunkt for nordnorsk historie. Bodø, Nordland, Norge:
  • Axel Coldevin, Bodø by 1816-1966. Bodø, Nordland, Norge: Bokcentralen, 1966