Alhambra Cinema (Israel)
The Alhambra Cinema is a 1937 Art Deco style building on Jerusalem Boulevard in Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel, designed by Lebanese architect Elias Al-Mor, and original built as a cinema. It was named after the Alhambra palace in Spain.
| Alhambra Cinema | |
|---|---|
 The Alhambra Cinema in 2011 | |
| Former names | Yafor |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Art Deco |
| Location | Jerusalem Boulevard in Jaffa |
| Town or city | Tel Aviv |
| Country | Israel |
| Named for | Alhambra in Spain |
| Opened | 1937 |
| Owner | Scientology International Reserves Trust[1] |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Elias Al-Mor |
Throughout its history it has been active as an Arab cultural institution (in Mandatory Palestine), again as a cinema after the establishment of Israel, and as a theatre after 1963. In 2010 it was purchased and renovated by the Church of Scientology, and in 2012 was opened as the Ideal Center of Scientology for the Middle East.[2]
History
The building was opened in May 1937 and was one of the biggest and luxurious cinemas in Palestine. It became a cultural centre and hosted famous Arab artists such as Umm Kulthum, Farid al-Atrash and Leila Mourad.[3] Local residents, both local Arabs and Jews originating from Arab countries, came to the shows together with their families.[3]
The cinema was owned and managed by Palestinian Arabs, among them Isa al-Safri, Muhammad Abduh Hilmi, Muhammad Musa al-Husayni, Muhammad Younis al-Husayni, Muhammad Ramadan Hammu, Hasan Arafeh, Abdul-Rahman Alhaj Ibrahim, and Mughnnam Mughnnam.[4] Photos from 1937, during the Arab revolt in Palestine, show an Arab flag studded with light bulbs fitted as a permanent fixture at the top of the building's turret.
After the 1948 war it became Israeli property and reopened under the name "Yafor".[2] In 1963 it was taken over by the impresario Giora Godik who turned it into an independent theatre,[2] again under the name "Alhambra". In the late 1970s the building was largely abandoned. Until 2007 a bank used the main entrance, which faces the boulevard, as a branch.[2]
Starting in 2010 the building, affected by decades of transformations, underwent restoration and refurbishment, and in 2012 it was inaugurated as an Israeli and regional centre for Scientology.[2][1]
References
- Kalman, Matthew (11 November 2012). "Scientology comes to Israel". The Independent.
- Rosenblum, Keshet (30 August 2012). "Alhambra Cinema in Jaffa Reopens as Scientology Center". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 21 June 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
- Hilel, Maayan (2013). "Under the Radar: Arab and Jews Crossing Cultural Boundaries in Mandatory Palestine". p. 2–3. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
- "3 - الأخبار - Al-Akhbar, 9/3/1938". 8 December 2019. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
External links
- "JAFFA'S NEW CINEMA". The Palestine Post. 19 May 1937.
- Photo gallery of pre- and post-restoration Alhambra. Website of Eyal Ziv, the architect who restored the building in 2010-2012.