History
The story of Greater Union begins in 1910, when Thomas James West established West's Pictures. Over the next three years the company merged with other existing film distributors, first becoming 'the General Film Co of Australasia', then 'Union Theatres and Australasian Films'
During the 1920s the organisation grew further, developing a relationship with Queensland's Birch, Carroll & Coyle, a brand that Greater Union maintains to this day. The Great Depression of the 1930s caused significant changes for the group. Union Theatres was liquidated, and its assets purchased by Greater Union Theatres. British Empire Films, the National Theatre Supply Co., and Cinesound all derived from 'Union Theatres and Australasian Films'.
In 1945 the Rank Organisation purchased 50% of the now stable Greater Union Theatres. The name changed to 'Greater Union Organisation', or GUO in the 1950s, a time which saw the formation of strategic alliances with Hoyts and the predecessor to Village Roadshow (1955 and 60) in order to exploit opening markets. GUO became sister chain to Odeon Cinemas in the United Kingdom and Odeon Theatres (now Cineplex Entertainment in Canada. GUO expanded by acquiring the MGM Theatres cinema chain in 1971, the Western Australia based Ace Group in 1986, and completing their acquisition of Birch, Carroll & Coyle in 1991. The majority of the GUO sites are a joint venture with Village Cinemas (trading as: Australian Theatres). In NSW, ACT, QLD, SA and WA they trade under the GU and BCC brands but in Victoria under the Village banner. GUO has since expanded into Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.AHL acquired control from the Rank Organisation in 1984, and continues to run the company today.
In 2003, AHL sold 50% of its Australian cinema operations to Village Roadshow in exchange for a partnership to form a joint venture, Australian Theatres.
The group has rebranded several of its premier Australian and New Zealand cinemas as Event Cinemas since 2009.
A recent development application to the City of Sydney for new signage for the George Street Cinemas, an expo for new employees in an area traditionally served by the Birch, Carol and Coyle brand and the launch of the V-Max brand (replacing G*MAX and including a new logo for Gold Class) was an indication that AHL planned to re-brand part of its operations under the "Event Cinemas" banner.
Event Cinemas opened at Castle Hill's Castle Towers on 20 June 2009, replacing the old 6 screen complex built in 1993. It was architecturally designed by Sydney's INDYK Architects with five auditoriums and a bar. This new location, while marketed as "completely new", is functionally identical to other "Gold Class" locations in Greater Union and Birch, Carrol and Coyle cinemas. Since then Event Cinemas has been rolled out across the nation at premier sites.
Amalgamated Holdings purchased a chain of New Zealand and Fijian cinemas from Skycity Entertainment Group in February 2010, having received New Zealand Government consent under the state's Overseas Investment Act. Event Cinemas New Zealand has previously operated as Skycity Cinemas under Skycity Entertainment Group, Village Sky City under a Village Roadshow-Skycity Entertainment Group joint venture, and Village Roadshow Cinemas under Village Roadshow ownership.
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