TCL Chinese Theatre
6925 Hollywood Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
6925 Hollywood Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
159 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1,201 - 1,225 of 1,670 comments
It was a real zoo here last night. The new wax museum was open next to the theater, and a lot of people were congregating around Michael Jackson’s star. Plus the Harry Potter movie was playing. It does seem like the costumed characters are stating to overrun the tourists, there must have been thirty of them out there yesterday.
Okay, so when you’re talking about the organ, you mean the pipes and equipment, not the console. Thanks.
The downtown Metropolitan referred to above by Ken, is listed herein as the Paramount, /theaters/495/
and perhaps after the Carthay Circle, might be considered the worst demolition loss of historic Los Angeles cinemas.
The console of the Wultitzer organ was in the center of the orchestra pit, so could be seen by the audience. The organ chambers were located in the ceiling, above the proscenium. To allow sound from the instrument into the auditorium, there was a tone chute, which allowed the sound to emit through the massive grillework above the main ceiling chandelier, giving an effect of the music seeming to ‘float’ over the audience.
A similar set up was also at two other Grauman theatres, the Metropolitan in Downtown, and the Egyptian along Hollywood Bouelvard.
So, Roger, the audience couldn’t see the organist performing?
To answer Jloew’s comment regarding the boxed space that is above what used to be the stage at the Chinese. That boxed space is standard fly space that most older theaters have. The organ was forward of that space. There is space between the ceiling and the roof of the Chinese and the organ was in that space located in rooms that were built to house the organ.
The ticket stubs I have don’t say Aud 7 on them, they just say Graumans.
I don’t think we need a seperate page. There’s an escalator and stairs that goes from the Footprint Forecourt up to the entrance of the multiplex. At the boxoffices (in the multiplex lobby and down on Hollywood Blvd) you can buy a ticket to a movie playing in Graumans or the multiplex. In fact, when you buy a ticket to Graumans the ticket says ‘Auditorium 7’ I think doesn’t it?
I’m not opposed to a separate page, but I can see where someone new to the site is going to see Mann Chinese and start posting items about the older theater. There’s going to be a lot of mixed up comments.
I don’t follow; why shouldn’t the Mann Chinese 6 have its own page? It is (and was constructed as) a separate theater (though in an adjacent building) with its own entrances and box office, and opened after the Grauman name was restored to the classic Chinese. It isn’t like the two cinemas that were once next to Grauman’s that operated as Grauman’s (Mann’s) Chinese 2 and 3 until they were torn down for the complex next door. The matter isobviously up to the moderators, but I think a separate entry is called for; the headnote could clarify any connection to to Graumann’s Chinese, but I really see very little.
I disagree, Mark. I think if you split up the listings the comments are going to be intermixed anyway. I am having some problems with the theaters that have megapages, which may be my computer. I wonder if there’s a way to add a second page to a theater which may make it easier to load.
correct. really there should be 2 separate listings: 1 for Grauman’s Chinese and the other for Chinese 6
The pictures above appear to be not of Grauman’s Chinese, but of Mann’s Chinese 6 which opened as a part of the Hollywood-Highland complex which includes the Kodak Theater.
Nice photos. You should send them to Cinematour
At least the Chinese has booked something to see. Subpar bookings lately as most film go to the Arclight
Isn’t it a crime to not have seen a show at the Chinese? It ought to be…
Took my film club to see Harry Potter on 7/18 (Saturday night 7:00 PM show). House was 80% or so full. A couple of guys had never been here before – needless to say, the sound/screen/picture/decor blew them away.
This is a 1928 newspaper ad:
http://tinyurl.com/ltuqrk
Strange not to see the name of the current feature in that photo. The Chinese usually had big elaborate displays of whatever movie they were playing.
Here is a 1947 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/mpnhs6
Thanx, Roger, for your info on the remodeling. I toured the backstage area of the Chinese 25 years ago—-there was no stage left after the Cinemiracle renovations. It had been gutted right to the rear stage wall. I wanted to be sure the 32' diaphone pipes housed
above the stage, had been removed. They had. The organ went to St. Finbar’s church in Burbank. Console then went to David Packard where it now controls the Stanford Theatre Wurlitzer in Palo Alto, CA. Organ was installed in the Chinese dome—-looks like a steel beam
goes thru that area now. From the outside, you can look up on the roof and I’m guessing that boxed area housed the organ. I suppose owners had to earthquake-proof in that the theatre is brick. That beam thru the roof housing must have been added for bracing.
In answer to jloew’s question about a Wurlitzer console in the pit at the Chinese. The Chinese underwent an extensive remodel in the late 1950’s for the installation of Cinemiracle. The projection booth was moved to the orchestra level at the back of the theater. The front of the stage and the proscenium arch was ripped out along with two of the stone columns to the left and right of the stage and a 120' screen holder was installed where the stage once was. I believe the organ was removed at this time as part of the remodel. The pipes for the organ were above the stage and were ducted so that the sound came from the main chandelier.
The Chinese can be seen on news broadcasts all over the world tonight. Michael Jackson’s star on the Walk of Fame is right in front of the forecourt. Fans are leaving behind flowers, tributes, etc.
Harry Potter tickets are on sale now for July 15. But yeah, Arclight is pretty much getting everything; next week Public Enemies and Ice Age, and probably Bruno the week after. I wonder how many people are showing up for Imagine That? How sad the theatre will be pretty much showing empty performances until the 15th. How great would Public Enemies have been in the Main Theatre for the 2 weeks before Potter? Something is wrong here.
And after its brief return to showing hit titles (Fast and Furious, Obsessed, Wolverine, Terminator Salvation), the Chinese is back to running flops again. Right now, they have Imagine That in Week 3.