The Whiteinch / Scotstoun area of the city was poorly served by cinemas until 1933, when Singleton's opened the Commodore in Dumbarton Road, between Edzell Street and Primrose Street.

Designed by James McKissack, The Commodore was an L - shaped building with the entrance facing onto Dumbarton Road, and the auditorium holding 1919 people running at right angles behind a tenement block.

Preparations for the building of The Commodore included visits by James McKissack and decorator William Douglas to "all the cinemas of note in the principal towns of Great Britain" and a trip to Paris for the opening of the world's largest cinema, The Gaumont Palace.

Early plans for the cinema, abandoned in April 1932 and shown on the next page include a number of variations from the final built design.

These early plans also show the cinema name as The Broadway, a name already used by Singleton's for their Shettleston cinema. The name change to Commodore reflecting the area's rich shipbuilding heritage, or as the management put it, "the nearness of the Commodore to the docks and and the shipyards at Scotstoun accounts for such a name being given to the cinema."

The nautical theme was continued on the cinema's publicity and sailing ship motifs decorated the otherwise simple foyer.

Among the local tradesmen responsible for The Commodore's construction were John Green for building work, with terrazzo work by Toffolo Jackson, and Kean and Wordrop of Bath Street executing the tile-work.

Publicity for the opening, described the free car park, "scientific oil heating" and vacuum cleaning plant. Customers were encouraged to develop 'the cloakroom habit' for coats

and small parcels, with separate cloakrooms for stalls and balcony and women patrons were advised that there were "elaborately decorated boudoirs having dainty little dressing tables".

Although Singletons acknowledged that these features were desirable, they were also subsidiary and that "the film is the thing" and that by "careful selection of films we hope we hope to establish The Commodore as the recognised house of dependable family entertainment"

Performances were continuous from 6.15 to 10.45pm, with extended hours from 2.30 to 11pm on Saturdays and holidays. Ticket prices ranged from 3d for a child's stalls ticket to 1/3 for an adult balcony seat.

The Commodore's opening date provides something of a puzzle. A lavish souvenir brochure details programmes on December 26th, 29th, 30th and 31st of 1932 including a welcome from George Singleton, newsreels, shorts and the main feature Alias the Doctor, starring Richard Barthelmess - to add to this small mystery, contemporary press advertising gives the opening date as Monday 1st January 1933 and the first film listed was actually Shanghai Express, starring Marlene Dietrich.

Nevertheless by the first week of 1933, The Commodore was open to the public, it's green, cream and orange faience tiles and art deco twin towers a beautiful contrast to the grey of the nearby tenements.

In March 1937, Oscar Deutsch eager to expand his Odeon chain into Scotland bought three cinemas from Singletons including The Commodore which was renamed Odeon in June 1938. It finally closed as a cinema in November 1967 and after a brief spell as Bingo and a small fire, it was demolished in 1976 and the land used for flats.