Golden Gate Theatre
5176 Whittier Boulevard,
East Los Angeles,
CA
90022
5176 Whittier Boulevard,
East Los Angeles,
CA
90022
22 people
favorited this theater
Showing 126 - 150 of 172 comments found
Greeting good people,
I seem to recall W.T. Grant’s being directly across the street from the Center Theatre. I should remember, since my mom worked there in the early 1960’s. My mom worked the morning shift and worked the food counter. She would make coffee for all the local store owners and employees who would need there coffee in the morning.
Does anyone recall the See’s Candy store next to W.T. Grants. I use to buy my dress shoes at Flag Brothers, next to W.T. Grants. Funny, I can’t seem to remember where I bought my first pair of “Beatle boots”; I certain it wasn’t at Buster Browns (smile!!!). Al’s Army & Navy, always seemed to have the best bargains on Levis and work clothes.
What was the name of the barber shop on Kern Ave, just south of Whittier Blvd on the west side of the street? The barber was Chicano who always played jazz music for his customers.
Speaking of the area of Atlantic Blvd & Pomona Blvd, does anyone remember the first E.L.A. “head shop” on Atantic right next to the Pomona Fwy? There used to be a Builders Emporium Store, just east of the bowling alley, close to the East L.A. Sheriffs Dept. What the heck ever happened to the Foster Freeze on Beverly Blvd close to Atlantic.
We used to buy our milk and eggs from the Reliance(?) Diary on Atlantic Blvd next to Beverly Blvd. It was one of those ever so popular drive-thru places.
Shopping at Atlantic Square was considered to be upscale from the Blvd. J.C. Pennys had the best high neck tee-shirts in the planet in the 1960’s!
Merry Christmas!
Born in East L.A.
slight correction to above reference, it was either The Kress or Grant’s Department store The Center Theatre faced. This boggles the mind. It all seems so long ago.
If I recall, The Center was located across the street facing The Kress Department store. It was located between Kern Ave. and Fetterly Ave. Remnants of the old place are hardly visible today. Last time I visited the site there was an optometrist office on the right side of where The Center Theatre entrance used to be.
Born, I remember the Vic Tanny’s and Stan’s. I graduated from Montebello High 1970. Paul, I remember the bowling alley on Pomona and Atlantic but I thought it was called Triangle Bowl. Not really sure. There was also a car wash, Gardunos and I think a National Lumber store there near the bowling alley and Kaiser clinic.
The Center Theatre was located at either 4760 or 4762 Whittier Boulevard in East Los Angeles.
Sorry, I was born in 1970.
Does anyone remember “Lucky Lanes” on Atlantic and Pomona Blvd? Caddy-corner from Pep Boys(still there today)?
Paul
The Center Theatre was located between Ford Blvd and Duncan Ave’s. How about the other questions I asked you?
I believe the bowling alley was called – “Whittier-Atlantic Bowling Alley”.
Where was the Center Theatre? Between what streets?
JDuran,I seem to remember a bowling alley in the area. Are you old enough/young enough (smile!) to recall the Vic Tenny’s Gym located just east of the Golden Gate (Atlantic Blvd). Can you recall the Stan’s Drive kiddy-corner to the Golden Gate? What year did you graduate from high school?
ELA, if you stood outside the theater the lunch counter was to the left of the ticket stand. I also recall playing pinball in a small bowling alley near the Golden Gate. It all seems like a dream now.
JDuran,
Thanks for sharing this additional piece of information on the history of one of five Whittier Boulevard Theatres",(located between Atlantic & Downey Road. We can’t forget the Strand Theatre.
Can you provide some additional details about the lunch counter such as was it to the left or right side of the Center Theater if you were facing the theatre.
On one of my last visits to Whittier Blvd I stopped at the Center Theatre (now a low end retail store). I could faintly make out the floor entrance which once had an elaborate, multi-colored pattern, design which was typical for theatres once upon a time and not so long ago.
Thanks for the memories.
I loved the Golden Gate also but I even though less refined, The Center to me was the coolest of Whittier Blvd theaters. What was cool about the Center was the they had a lunch counter in addition to the snack bar and it served burgers and fries and the public outside of the theater could also eat fom the lunch counter as it was two-way into the theater and out on Whittier Blvd. Never saw anything like it. Of course ny biggest thrill was The Three Stooges appeared live to introduce their movie, The Three Stooges Meet Hercules. They actually walked from back of the theater down the ailse to the stage to introduce themselves. I got to shake Moe’s hand. To us little kids it may as well have been the Beatles! After going to any of the boulevard shows, me and my cousin would go to the White Front Department store on Olympic. My cousin got his first job at the Johnson’s market. I also remember seeing 13 Ghosts at the center with those cool 3-D glasses.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, man with no name. To Kern Ave. E.L.A., I recalled seeing the movie “Thirteen Ghosts” at the Center Theatre sometime in the 1960’s, man was that high tech for those days or what! We even wore special glasses to see the special effects. Two feature movies & a cartoon for .50-.75 cents.
I recall the older gentleman who used to sell peanuts or in Spanish, “cacahuates”; he used to chant the words, “cacahuatitos, bien salatitos”. This old guy was always flirting with the women both young and old.
If you e-mail me at I provide you with a funny story (In Spanish) of an older co-worker of my mother, who finally had it with this particular street vendors comments, and decided to give him a piece of her mind.
This guy was just one of E.L.A.’s many colorful characters. I somehow don’t remember street vendors in East L.A. in the 1950’s….Thank God.
Flash back, does anybody remember the old CHP office located on Goodrich near Whittier Blvd? I recently met a family member who’s husband was assigned out of this office in the 1950’s, way before the CHP moved to there office east of Garfield Ave by the Pomona Fwy.
I was recently in East Los Angeles and drove down Whittier Blvd. In the 1960’s I used to ride my mini bike down the blvd. (right up the middle of the road) to avoid being stopped by the CHP or the L.A. Co Sheriff’s. I had the displeasure of telling it to the judge on a couple of occasions in juvenile traffic court.
I bought this mini bike at a lawn-mower shop on Whittier Blvd, just east of the famous K-Mart with all the Blue Light Specials.
Thanks for the memories of E.L.A.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays to all.
While I certainly agree with Mr. Garcia’s sentiments I must disagree with his assessment that if this theater were located in Pasadena it would be redeveloped. The City of Pasadena is notorious for their indifference to saving historic theaters. So many are gone and were it not for the efforts of the Friends of the Raymond that gorgeous theater would be gone as well. A Walgreen’s? We have more drug stores than gas stations already.
I was born in E.L.A. in 1956, my parents lived on Record & Whittier at that time. The first movie I really remember going to see without my parents was The Nutty Professor starring Jerry Lewis at The Boulevard I went with my older brother.For a kid use to watching movies on a small B&W TV at home, seeing all those colors on that big screen blew me away! I also remember a time at The Golden Gate Theater I believe it was after a Frakenstein movie all the horror movie characters started to line up on stage in front of the screen. The Mummy,Frankenstein,The Werewolf etc. there must have been about 20 of them,with Frakenstein in the center.There was a pause and then an explosion like a cherry bomb.just then all the creatures started off the stage and up the aisles towards the audience. All the yelling,screaming and kids jumping over seats trying to get out is something i’ll never forget,it was a great time. I lived on Kern Ave. in the early 60’s . I remember my dad coming home from work at U.S. Rubber which became Uniroyal and now The Citidal.He put in about twenty five years there until they moved out of state.Looking out the front window on Kern Ave. you could look across that big parking that went from Kern Ave. to Ferris Ave. just past Johnson’s Market I had a lot of playing time in that parking lot. Does anyone remember that cheerful old guy that sold peanuts on the Boulevard, he wore an apron & a torn up straw hat with a mexican dollar bill taped to the front. I seen him mostly in front of Buster Brown’s. What good memories.I met my first and only girlfriend at Griffith Jr. H.S. in ‘71 she’s now my wife. What more can you ask for.Thanks to elopez & born in East L.A. you guys really got me thinking so I had to put my 2 cents in. I agree that The Golden Gate Theater should be saved, East L.A. was a great place to grow up and can still be. Saving & restoring The Golden Gate Theater would be a great start. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.
I really enjoyed elopez comments dated Wed, Nov. 24th, because I along with family shopped at the same stores that are now gone. Everyone remembers the Western Auto Store across from the Boulevard Theatre, and down the street from Stones furniture by Pep Boy’s. I wish someone could tell me how old, the ice house located on Ford Blvd & Whittier Blvd. Incidently, I think the Southern California Edison office was located on Kern Ave by Whittier.
You know were you could buy a hamburger at the old Monk Uddle (?) hamburger stand by the alley near W.T. Grants or by the S.H. Kress Store,where you could catch either the Kern or Ford Bus for only a dime in the 1950’s. There used to be an old taxi cab company across the street from the Monk Uddle.
Both the Ford & Kern buses ended up at First & Rowen where you could ride the P Car (old street car)and later the No.26 bus into downtown L.A. all the way to the west side on Pico & Rimpau.
The other end of the Kern Bus line was on Whittier Blvd, across from the old Strand Theatre, now a garment factory across the street from the Calvary Cemetery.
From there you could ride the old R Car to downtown L.A. I believe the R Car was later replaced by the Rapid Transit District (RTD) No 72 bus. The R Car was the old street car that made a round turn at the end of the line to head back to downtown L.A.
My mom use to pay 5 cents to ride the Kern/Ford Bus in the late 30’s, early 1940’s. My mom worked at Home Decoraters, The Kress, W.T. Grants, and later at Dotty Dean’s, a very classy womens store next to Lerner Shops. I would sometimes get a root bear soda & a hot dog at the Grant’s cafeteria when my mom was working the fountain.
Boy I’m I old or what? One of my neighbor, Richard here in Fremont, Calif. was born in East L.A. in the 1940’s and his mother was also born in East L.A. in the early 1920’s.
If you think this is isn’t a small world another neighbor, Daniel,(younger than you know who!) attended Garfield H.S. and his mother owned several bridal shops in the area one on Ford & Whittier Blvd.
It seems to me that the answer to all our concerns about saving the Golden Gate and other old East Los Angeles icons is to have a East Los Angeles, Belvedere, Historical Museum.
Is that a great idea or what? If such a museum now exists, someone please enlighten me as to this fact.
It would be something to visit a museum where you could travel back in time and experiance the sights and sounds of East Los Angeles experiance. Just remember this my fellow freinds, before the Golden Gate Theatre or Whittier Blvd, there was the El Camino Real (The Kings Highway)now Whittier Blvd. That’s why you see the old green colored bells on the road.
This highway was built by the Spaniards that spanned the distance from Guatemala thru Mexico, and into Alta California, extending to San Francisco, San Rafael.
You know what’s amazing is that you can still actually see parts of the old road (Old Coast Highway) starting in the area of Hwy 101 in Camarillo, just to the right of the highway all the way to San Francisco.
My father was born in Guadalupe, California in 1925. My dad would share stories of traveling on the Old Coast Highway in a Model A or T Ford into Los Angeles in the 1920’s. My paternal grandfather, Pedro,and my great grandmother settled into the Central Coast area, of California, Santa Maria-Guadalupe in the early teens(1900’s).
My maternal grandfather, Jose Hernandez, was born in a area now known as Norwalk, Ca. in 1912. What’s truly amazing is that my younger sons former preschool teachers family last name is Dominquez. The Dominquez family is one of the earliest settlers in the Los Angeles area dating back some time in the 1700,s (or so). These original families were given vast title to land by the Spain and later Mexico.
Incidently, the earliset members of the Dominquez family and other notable persons are buried at the Calvary Cementary. Across the street on Whittier Blvd (El Camino Real) is the old Jewish cemetery
known as the Home of Peace where one of the Three Stooges (Curly) is buried. Yuk Yuk Yuk (smile).
Getting back to the Golden Gate, I am an antique post card collecter and I have one of the earlist black & white post card taken in the area of Whittier Blvd & Clela (just west of the Golden Gate), circa 1920’s. For you older people(smile), you know where the old Pontiac Dealer was located.
Does anybody remember the old Chevrolet dealer which was across the street from the Atlantic pool and St. Alfonso’s Church. My granfather bought a 1958 Chev. Impala there right out of the show room floor.
I also have a post card of Garfield High School, circa, 1920’s or 30’s. My other classic post cards are of Los Angeles, Compton, Highland Park, San Pedro and Long Beach, the Pike, at the turn of the century, early 1900’s.
I am so greatful to all of you for sharing your memories.
It’s a wonderful life, Living one day at a time.
Happy holidays, Merry Christmas to all.
Thanks for the memories! Keep on sharing.
we as people should take action in try'ing to protest and save our history,whittier is'nt the same anymore'weve lost much or our history'as well as many kid’s life’s there'many gang’s have developed around our area,i myself was also running around being stupid!!!i’m 32 yrs old and have grown up,i have a family and love my children verry much'even the i have moved out,i still love east l.a,all my childhood years were spent there so it is verry hard for me to not to try to do something not to try to save our history,like they said if we were in a rich area,golded gate would be restored and saved,,,now it is us east siders to stand up for our history,and what we can to keep our old golden gate theather..i’ll call{ gloria molina}on monday…..GORF…….
Boy oh boy do I remember this Theatre and of course The Center and The Boulevard. What painful memories they bring back of my childhood! Unfortunately, The Whittier Blvd I remember lost it’s charm long ago with the passing of the fine clothing stores and Great Theatres that dotted this historic strip. The Golden Gate Theatre, I recall, was unique and beautiful. As a kid, it almost reminded me of a Castle with it’s long corridor that came in from the street where the ticket booth stood and led back inside the courtyard to the theatres' front doors and beautifully crafted front facade. It also had a charming building wrapping around the main theatre with shops in the bottom and apartments on top. At the southwest corner of Atlantic and Whittier stood its magnificent landmark tower. Incidently, the guy who used to produce Thee Midnighters, Eddie Torrez, had an apartment and office up there. The long corridor had movie posters on the side walls, I recall, and there were two corridors-one on the Atlantic Blvd side and one in front of the theatre on Whittier Blvd. I also remember the lobby which had a 1920’s art noveau shell concession stand and in the restroom they had vending machines that dispensed toys and trinkets. The theatre also had a spectacular balcony seating area and a huge screen. It was sad to see it partly demolished and abandoned. The last true majestic link to Whittier Blvd glory days were cut with it’s closure. Also gone are the fine stores that ran up and down the boulevard. Does anyone remember Curlie’s Men’s store where they displayed their fine Mens suits and overcoats in an enclosed walkway? I still vividly recall Grant’s, Kress, Woolworth, Al’s Army & Navy, Thrifty Drug Store with a cafeteria in the back that served the best pie a la mode, Toy Villa near the Golden Gate that seemed to always have what I couldn’t afford, The Record Inn, Johnson’s Market, Western Auto, Buster Brown’s, Melody Shops and Lerner’s where my Mom used to shop. Also, across from The Boulevard Theatre had this bakery that I can still remember the sweet scent till this day. I am not sure if the bakery is still there anymore. The Boulevard Theatre would only cost me 49 cents to get in. It was a bargain for two movies and cartoons. The utility companies also were located on or near the Blvd. The Gas Company was on the corner of Whittier and Mcdonnell and the Light Company was off of Whittier on Ferris Ave. Memories of that famed roadway take me back to 1970 when I was just 9 years old and flashbacks to the front marquee of the Golden Gate Theatre which was showing “The Family Jewels” and “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad Mad World”. It was truly a classic place. Now, Seeing the old Boulevard in its current state reinforces my idea that the Boulevard distinctive charm and grace is gone forever.
After reading many of the wonderful stories of the Golden Gate
theatre it is trajic to know the following. Many of you including myself a local city planner and resident of ELA the historic theatre will be turned into a walgreens drugstore. It is ubaurd at what is going on in our community. Where is the social reponsiblity in our city officials. I know for a fact that if this was San Marino or
Pasadena the Golden Gate theatre would be redevelpoment for the community to embrace instead multi-million dollar developers are going to remake the golden gate theatre a drug store. This is a slap in the face in the community all for the sake of making money and not to protect the social fabric that makes ELA what it is. I urge you to please call Gloria Molinas office and the LA conservancy to protest this development. The following is a taken from the LA conservancy website.
Ron Garcia
GOLDEN GATE THEATRE
The 1927 Golden Gate Theatre, one of Los Angeles' most significant neighborhood movie palaces, is in escrow for purchase by a private development firm. The new owner, the Charles Company, intends to remove most of the theater’s interior features to accommodate retail use, most likely a Walgreens Drug Store. The 1,454-seat theater, at the prime corner of Whittier and Atlantic Boulevards in unincorporated East Los Angeles, has sat vacant for over a decade and has been repeatedly threatened with demolition. The theater, in the Spanish Churrigueresque style, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The theater was built by developer Peter Snyder, known as the “Father of the East Side” and its architects were William and Clifford Balch, who were also involved in the design of the El Rey Theatre on Wilshire Blvd. and the Fox Theatre in Pomona. The Vega Building, the historic retail building that once wrapped around the theater, suffered damage from the Whittier Earthquake and was demolished in the early 1990s. The Conservancy will be working with the new buyer, as well as County Supervisor Gloria Molina’s office, to seek retention of the theater’s historic interior features, such as the proscenium, lobby, clamshell-shaped concession stand, and mezzanine level, while encouraging a positive reuse of this long-vacant historic property.
hello people,well im still overwellemed on how many of us, are now intristed in our past history, of east los angeles,i myself was raised in east l.a maravilla,im 32yrs old and still remember,all the good old times i had as little kid, Boulevard,was the first movies,were i got to see my .1st. bruce lee movie,i even seen E.T,there…Alameda,was the spanish movies,i also got to sneak up to the upper level seating,it was always off limits,but you know living in east l.a and being a little kid' we explored,hahahahaha..well i’m telling you something some us would'nt have known,..damb… those were the good old days,..now the Golden Gate,well i myself was attended it many times,now it hurts see'ing it look the way it sits today,,i went by there yesterday,i guess they are going to start restoring the place,which its all good, i dont live in east l.a,anymore but all my familly still lives there, i go by there all the time,,,oh and yes, i do' remember PAP.N.TACO,, THE CHILI BEAN BOWL was the best…….GORF… i love east l.a………
I too remember the Golden state Theater, along with the Boulevard theater and the Alameda theater. I am 29 years old and remember going with my friends at at age 10 to watch the goonies. I also remember going with my parents and I sure got a kick, when the cartoons would come on. I also rember how looking for parking was tough. I remember the balcony was closed off but my friends and I would sneak up. Does any one remember Pupn Taco on the corner of Goodrich and Whittier Blvd? it is now a Taco Bell.
I hope they restore the building. A few weeks ago a drove by and saw security guards and thought oh no its demolition time, so I stopped and asked they said no they were not there to tear it down,they were there to film a movie scene.
Boy it would be great to see the Golden State restored! I bet it can be a major attraction if restored right and used appropriately maybe for movie premier. lets role out the red carpet once more. Does any one know who I can write to for information concerning the Golden State Theater.
i love east l.a
my mother and my younger brother would walk from broklyn down to whitier blvd for saturday shopping. I vividly remember the Buster Brown shoe store because that was where mom had to buy our shoes for some reason, but my favorate always was the sidewalk preacher on the corner preaching the coming of christ at the top of his lungs. I remember seeing a promotional poster of The Exorsist which for some strange reason explained the preacher on the corner. My favorate weekend was 1977 when I finally nagged my mother enough to take us to see Star Wars. Im thirty 33 years old now and live in Lebanon tn. I often drive down through the square of historic Lebanon Tn where there on the corner is an old theater rundown and waiting for somebody to resurect a bit of the past. Im told somebody is leasing this theater for a posible restoration which is a wonderful thing. Its a shame sombody didnt restore The Golden gate theater, this theater takes me back to Blvd nights, crusing, Suspiria, and not too long ago Victory Chapel church. Which brings me back to that street corner preacher, preaching hope when it seemed there was none.
Scaffolding surrounds what’s left of this building. I fear demolition has begun.
Thank you for sharing your Golden Gate theatre and East Los Angeles experiance. I thought no one else was interested in old theatres such as the Golden Gate theatre. I just attended two back-to-back family reunions in Bakersfield & Alhambra California.
I was pleasently surprised to learn that my cousin, Christina was a ticket cashier at the Boulevard Theatre, just west of The Golden Gate. I shared how special it was as a child to buy a ticket and seeing the ticket dispensed from beneath the highly polished ticket counter by the cashier.
Several years ago, I was at an antique fair in Alameda (Oakland area)California, when out of the blue, there was one of the old theatre change machines for $100 dollars; darn I should of bought it…(sound familiar). I was told the coin machine was from the old Alameda Theatre.
The coin dispenser was the one that returned the customers change that rolled down a slide into a round coin receptacle holder.
Funny, how I really admired the theatre ushers and cashiers. The theatre ushers were dressed in black dress pants, black dress shoes, white shirts, black ties and red jackets. To think that we (customers)were actually escorted to our seats by the theatre usher with a flash light is unthinkable in this day and age.
Theatre ushers were respected and not to be taken lightly. I know from personal experiance, my buddy and I were promptly escorted out of the Boulevard Theatre in East Los Angeles in the very mid 60’s for whispering to one another despite a previous warning by the usher. I took a huge financial loss of around $1.25.
I think back to those days and remember a time when you would never seeing anyone talking on there cell phones (they didn’t exist), kids running up and down the aisles, people with their feet up on the seats (unthinkable)or other rude behavior.
My boys are amazed about the “old days”, when you could buy a theatre ticket for $1.00, watch two movies, a cartoon and have someone playing an organ.
I worked as a gas station attendant in East Los Angeles, for the Hudson Oil Company, formerly located on 3rd Street and Humphreys Ave in the mid 1960’s, the gas was around 14-15 cents a gallon.
Even though it was a less expensive gas station (we didn’t sell tires, or performed other services such as oil change) compared to Shell, Chevron stations. I still pumped your gas, checked your hood, which included the radiator, battery, oil and transmission fluids. I would also clean “all” your windows and tire pressure as part of our service.
I rarely recieved any tips since management discouraged the practice of being tipped by the customer. To think that you should tip someone, and I do for selling you a cup of “regular” coffee at a Starbucks just blows me away.
You would never, ever, see a women (out of respect), an elderly person pumping their own gas. No way, no how. I’m 51 years of age and remember paying ten cents to ride the bus or street car and using a public phone for only a dime. Boy am I old or what! (smile)My dad would by a cup of coffee for only a dime (no not vanilla nut!)just regular coffee.
Thanks for the memories.
Anthony
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