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Cathay Building

Cathay Building, located at the foot of Mount Sophia, on Dhoby Ghaut in the Central Region. The Cathay Building used to house the popular Cathay Cinema and standing beside it was an office-tower block owned by Cathay Organisation. The Cathay Organisation was once owned and led by late Chairman Dato Loke Wan Tho. Once the tallest building on the island, Cathay Building is bounded by Dhoby Ghaut, Kirk Terrace, Handy Road and Sophia Road. The Cathay Cinema was opened in 1939 while the main building block was completed in 1941. It served as the 'brain centre' for the colonial masters before and after World War II; functioning similarly for the Japanese forces during the Japanese Occupation (1942-1945). Cathay Building is not only known for its popular cinema, but the building also housed the well-known Cathay Hotel and Cathay Restaurant.

History
At the foot of Mount Sophia (Bukit Seligi) on Dhoby Ghaut once stood a Victorian-style building which housed the family of prominent businessman Teo Hoo Lye. Its ground floor was occupied by Louis Molteni's bakery and confectionary. This building, which had stood for more than 40 years, was demolished in about 1934. The property was purchased by the Loke family in 1937 and the land cleared for the construction of Cathay Building. Headed by the visionary Chairman Loke Wan Tho, Cathay Organisation with its flagship Cathay Building and its Cathay Cinema were built to spearhead the budding local movie market. Dato Loke Wan Tho died in an aircrash in Taiwan on 20 June 1964, although Cathay Building run by Cathay Organisation and owned by the Loke family descendants continued to stand along Bras Basah Road until the 1990s.

Description
Sitting on a solid rock foundation on the slopes of Mount Sophia, the 16-storey Cathay building designed by architect Frank Brewer, cost S$1 million to build and was the tallest building (measures 83.51 m from Dhoby Ghaut to the top of the building's water tower) in Singapore for 23 years, until the Asia Insurance Building was completed in 1954. The cinema, located in the front block, was the first section to be completed in 1939.

The Cinema
The 1,321-seat Cathay Cinema with black marble pillars, green tiled floors and gold ceilings opened on 3 October 1939. It was the first public space to be airconditioned in Singapore. The premiere movie screened here was "Four Feathers" which starred Ralph Richardson and C. Audrey Smith. The band from the 2nd Battalion (North Lancashire) Royal Regiment performed before the 9:15 pm movie premiere. The Cinema has screened some of the greatest movie-blockbusters including the longest running, "Ten Commandments" "Gone with the Wind" and the "Sound of Music"

The Main Building
While the Cinema opened, finishing touches were being put on Cathay Restaurant located in the front block on the fifth floor. It was opened in early 1941. Above the cinema and restaurant stood the main block, which had a total of 80 apartments and was completed in August 1941. Unfortunately the war transformed the building into a control centre, and it did suffer destruction. On 9 January 1954, Cathay Hotel opened with 60-rooms, eventually expanding to 170 rooms. The hotel, one of the prime meeting places for celebrities, tourists, and families, had a restaurant and nightclub, swimming pool, reception area and shopping arcade. A subsequent glut of hotel space led to its closure on 30 December 1970. By July 1974, the hotel's 10-floors were converted into office premises, with the filling in of all the balconies and bay windows. It was the headquarters of the Cathay Organisation until just before its demolition.

World War II
By early December 1941, Cathay cinema remained one of the few places for relaxation in those anxious times, screening movies despite dwindling audiences. With the war imminent, the main building was rented out to the government and the British Malaya Broadcasting Corporation. A total of five floors were occupied by broadcast studios and administration, two floors for the Ministry of Economic Warfare, while the Royal Air Force occupied two rooms on another floor. It became the 'brain centre' for the colonial masters. During the initial air-raids and before the 'Fall of Singapore' in World War II, the building's ground floor was used by nearby residents as an air-raid shelter. On 8 February, when the Japanese accelerated their attacks on Singapore, Radio Malaya actively broadcast updates on enemy advances from their studios here, at Cathay Building. In February 1942, it has been estimated that the cinema was hit by at least 14 shells, with one striking on 15 February after noon, killing a few Australians who were in the hall at the time. The cinema hall was then being used for shelter and refuge. Singapore fell into enemy hands that evening.

During the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese Broadcasting Department moved into the readily available Radio Malaya "broadcasting facilities" and began Radio Syonan's transmissions from here, in March 1942. Later their Propaganda Department Headquarters and Military Information Bureau were stationed here too. The restaurant became the dining room for Japanese Military officers stationed in the building. Occasional movie screenings were held for the public but these films were from existing stock from the storerooms. The 4th floor preview theatre screened American movies exclusively for Japanese Officers. The horrific sights outside Cathay Building during this grim time, were human heads stuck on poles, these were beheaded looters and other victims on a "clean-out" by the Japanese military.

Liberation
When war was over, old staff were rounded up to help open the cinema again. At 3 pm, on 23 September 1945, the public saw its first post-war movie "Desert Victory". With the Pavilion and Alhambra Theatres reserved for the services personnel, and Capitol out of action because of a fire, Cathay was the centre for film entertainment in post-war Singapore. When the island was returned to the British, Cathay Building became the headquarters for Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander, South-east Asia from November 1945 to November 1946. Cathay was also the headquarters of Governor General, Mr Malcolm MacDonald, Special Commissioner Lord Killearn. Other occupants included the Far Eastern Disposal Board and the British Malaya Broadcasting Corporation which resumed broadcasts on the demise of Radio Syonan. Also here were the Navy Intelligence Branch and the American Club (1946-1953). The colonial establishment was very comfortable in the building, and Cathay Organisation had problems vacating its tenants, but founder/chairman Loke Wan Tho soon regained control of the building. On 2 May 1948, Cathay Restaurant re-opened, and by September 1951, the food outlet was converted into a Chinese restaurant, serving Cantonese cuisine. In the 1960s, Frank Brewer's facade design, of distinctive overhangs above the windows, was replaced by a metal cladding. In 1972 the British Council offices were in units 309 and 310.

Annexe Building
A 12-storey annexe building, with 7 levels of car park on Handy Road, opened on 14 May 1970; and the other five-floors above are the luxury Cathay Apartments, accessible from 20 Mount Sophia, completed in November 1971.

Picturehouse
A new building extension was added on the site of the old carpark next to Cathay Building. It housed a restaurant and a new small-capacity cinema called "Picturehouse" which specialised in less commercial art films. It was opened on 17 November 1990, with an initial ticket-charge of $6 per person.

Redevelopment


Subject
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Historic Buildings
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Commercial Buildings
Events>> Historical Periods>> World War II and Japanese Occu[ation(1939-1945)
Historic buildings--Singapore
Motion pictures Theaters--Singapore
Arts>>Architecture>>Public and commercial buildings
History>>Asia>>Southeast Asia>>Singapore
Business, finance and industry>>Industry>>Leisure and entertainment

Librarian Recommendations
>> Loke Wan Tho


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