Built on the site of an old fuel depot in Hobart's north, the original cinema opened in 1913
After decades of fluctuating fortunes, including the arrival of television, the cinema was bought by the government in 1974With big plans for refurbishment, he bought the run down State Theatre in North Hobart in 2002. Now at 71, Mr Kelly is bowing out, selling a highly successful business which is at the heart of the inner-city suburb's regeneration.
"It's just so big now for an individual like me to run it … it is quite frankly beyond me," he told ABC Radio Hobart. The business, which screens arthouse offerings as well as the occasional blockbuster, has been sold to American cinema chain Reading.
Well may you say god save Netflix, but nothing will save this cinema.