United Artists Theatre

The United Artists was the only theatre on Broadway built as a flagship house by a major studio.

It is a grand picture palace in the flamboyant Spanish Gothic style, with a dummy tower to circumvent the local height restriction of the time. The tower is a detached 50 foot high sign erected on stilts. The United Artist/Texaco building was the city's tallest privately owned building for 20 years. The theatre was financed by Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks & Charlie Chaplin whose portraits appear on the interior murals inside the auditorium. Mary Pickford, enchanted with European castles, played a major role in the design of the building. It was her favorite theatre. Gothic tracery shoots vertically up the building's facade, accented by pointed Gothic arches. Grotesqueries appear in the terra cotta ornament, depicting the film industry. The narrow lobby continues the Spanish Cathedral form, with vaults and frescoes painted by Anthony Heinsbergen.

The ornate stained glass window patterns were originally repeated in the carpet design. The auditorium drips with gothic tracery, whose dazzling effect is enhanced by tiny glass mirrors and hanging prisms. In the mid 50's, the United Artists theatre became the Downtown outlet for the TODD-AO films. TODD-AO was Mike Todd's answer to CinemaScope. The Egyptian theatre in Hollywood was Todd-AO house #2 and UA was house #3. The United Artists was the only theatre that was equipped for 70mm projection in Downtown Los Angeles. In the early 60's the United Artists theatre had a open and closed policy. During the 60's the business was more near the 6th and 7th street. During that time it became a Spanish house till it closed. Dr. Gene Scott's church returned the United Artists theatre back to it's original 1927 look.

When the United Artists Downtown Theatre opened in 1927. It had a Wurlitzer Theatre organ (opus#1731) style 260SP, in was installed 9/7/1927.

I am a union projectionist for United Artists theaters on Long Island, NY. Well, we are actually a division of Regal Entertainment Group. Anyway, when I ask other employees where the original UA Theater is, they look at me with confussion. I explain to them where it is and describe what it was like to work there, as opposed to multi-plexes today.

After 9/11 the "church" that occupies the United Artists Theater closed the theater to Broadway theater tours. I was fortunate enough to see the interior during a tour in 1995. It is a grand old movie palace.

One thing i remeber about all these old theatres are the restrooms they were huge and beautiful alomost scary. I remember this theatre looking the same as it did when i was a kid. Too bad i cant see it.

Gene Scott just died today. What does that mean for this theatre?

Hard to say. If you read the history of the "Cathedral" on their website and you didn't know any better you would think it was built as a church in 1927. Great pains are taken not to mention it was ever a theater and all of the pics on the site avoid showing the marquee or the United Artists signage. The church will not die with Scott. Did the church buy the building or did they lease it?

The obit on the L.A. Times website states that Scott was involved in Rebuild L.A. It mentions that the cathedral is housed in a historic building but also doesn't mention the theater.

I believe the church own the building. I would imagine that Dr. Gene Scott's wife will take over the Ministry for a while at least.

The church have maintained the building very well and it does look as good today as when first opened as a movie palace. I remember wandering into the lobby back in the late 1970's when it was screening Spanish language movies. There were coin-slot machines lining the walls, the place looked really dirty and run down.

I took the LA Conservancy 'Broadway Theatres Tour' on several occasions, but was only lucky enough on one occasion to get inside the U.A. Dr. Gene Scott seemed to blow 'hot & cold' with the Conservancy about allowing groups to tour the building.

When I was organising a tour of Los Angeles theatres for the Cinema Theatre Association in 2002, I was told that it would be 'touch and go' whether we would be allowed into the U.A. In the end, and with a little persuasion (and possibly because we were British and had come all that distance 'just to see that magnificent building') LOL, we got approved to be allowed in. Our guide was most friendly and charming and led us (in a group of 55 people) all around the building on a 2 hour tour.

Taking photographs was allowed, we saw a demonstation of the 'light show' which apparently heralds the start of a service at the church, in which multi-coloured beams of light are played onto the mirrors and prisms set into the ceiling dome. Our guide told us about the painted curtain which now hangs as a back drop on the stage. This was rescued by Dr Gene Scott from the Carthay Circle Theatre just prior to its demolition. We were shown the priceless collection of ancient Bibles which were housed in a room in the basement that was originally Mary Pickford's private screening room.

It would be great if the United Artist's could be opened up for other events so the general public could see inside this wonderful theatre building again (the Reverend Ike's 'church' in the former Loew's 175th St, Manhatten, NYC does from time to time).

Having heard this morning of the passing of Gene Scott, I wonder, what now for the great United Artists? The above messages have helped. I'm very glad to see so many caring people following the status of this and many other houses.

I was lucky enough as a kid to wander through the old Orpheum in Seattle as they were just beginning to strip it for demolition. I worked in the same city's Paramount in the 1970s (live concerts) and the late Music Hall (aka John Hamrick's Music Hall, Seattle 7th Avenue, etc.) in the 1980s. It was the Music Hall's final hurrah, a Vegas-type revue called 'Music Hallelujah'. A chunk of gilded plaster, handed to me by a sympathetic workman, is about all I have left, besides the memories!

So, after seeing so many fine houses vanish in an uncaring Seattle, I was bowled over by LA's Broadway parade of stunning picture palaces. Haven't been there since '87, but from the Million Dollar all the way down to the UA, I thought, thank heavens that Broadway is a tad run down, otherwise these houses would not still be standing. To me the UA is the most awe-inspiring. The mass of its mysterious frontage, and that Gothic-screened water tank on the roof made powerful impressions. This was during its Latino film phase, and I didn't have time to buy a ticket just to see the interior, as I would have happily done. I was just amazied and comforted that the old babe was still there at all, given the heartless attitude I was familiar with in Seattle. Naturally, not going in has added to the building's mystique to me over the years.

KenRoe, any possibility that we can see any of your pictures of this 'Roxy of the West'?

Many thanks.

It will be interesting to see what happens -- Dr. Scott's church has a large and active congregation (I happen to know someone who's a member) and I doubt they will suddenly vanish overnight.

That part of Broadway is very interesting because it's sitting at the very edge of the garment/fabric district. There really are large number of small businesses in the area, but they're also transient in nature, opening and closing on short notice. That's contributed to leaving the area in a somewhat run-down condition because there are economic interests who don't necessarily want the area to be revitalized because the rents would go up.

This area, by the way, is also home to the old Examiner Building, designed by Julia Morgan, which has been shuttered since the Herald-Examiner closed in the late 80's.

Gooper;
I would love to share pictures with you, or any one else who cares to contact me. My e-mail adddress is on my profile, mail me and I will send you some pic's. I have 11 of them so hope you have enough space to accomodate them!

Yes, the Examiner building's turquoise-clad exterior (if I'm not mistaken) makes a compelling mate to the UA's more solemn appearance. And the lively City Library not far away enhances the neighborhood even more. Many readers no doubt know that Julia Morgan was Wm Randolph Heart's favorite architect, who got the plum job of designing San Simeon, a theatrical building is there ever was one.

Please excuse the typo in the previous message: for Heart's read Hearst's

Needleman Enterprises owned the masterlease but relinquished it in 1999 for private reasons( I suppose because they also owned the California and Orpheum theatres, along with several other properties downtown). Metropolitan then sold the masterlease out to Gene Scott, who then propmtly evicted a few hundred business owners to make way for his church. I myself had an animation studio on the 12th floor, and during my time there I explored the building and theatre top to bottom with friends and fellow animators. I even lurked about inside the hollow tower. Once , when they tore down a wall on the tenth floor to upgrade the electricals, I fished around inside several feet of wall and pulled out a full unopened can of MJB coffee, several newspapers from 1927, a brass plumbob, a can of Hills Brothers coffee filled with buffalo nickels, a book of matches, and a partial script for a movie, and five brand-new old baseball gloves still in their original boxes, one of them with a cool black and white photo pasted on the box of someone named Mordecai Brown and another with a guy named Frank Baker. One of the old-timers that had been there since the 1930s told me that there had been a sporting goods company on the 11th floor. One of my other neighbors there also told me that one of the workmen fished out three circa 1920 brass flashlights from a 9th floor wall. I really missed that place, I had great views of the Eastern building and old downtown on one side, and from my side window I could see the new skyscraper skyline. I dont know if Metropolitan sold out to Scott or what.

We also used to project movies on to walls of the surrounding buildings with one of our 16mm projectors. That was a gas, watching movies on the 12th floor wall across the parking lot. Has anyone seen the gargoyles on the building?? Many of them are movie oriented. There are several characters from drama and literature, Dickens, I believe, and several gargoyles are seen cranking the old style box movie cameras. Everyone that came to visit me was reaaly blown away by those details. Right before Gene Scot came on the scene, several of the business owners( most of them were garment industry cutters , fashion designers, filmmakers and artists), banded together and tried to obtain the masterlease, myself included,but to no avail, it was a done deal. Religion trumps creativity and art once again. Too bad. I had envisioned a colony of filmmakers and animators there.I think Charlie, Douglas and Mary would have liked that.

Dudes, that young thing was Gene Scotts wife??? Holy crap, I thought it was his daughter!!! Man, she has a really terrible singing voice! Yikes! You'd think the church would hire someone to punch up her vocals, or least equalize it or add some reverb or something. Man...its painful to watch.

Say, the script that I found had extensive notes on the last three pages which are signed , "Mack" or "Mick", and some more writing on the back page signed "Harry Edwards" and someone named "Edendale" or "Edindele". I wonder if this had anyhting to do with United Artists.

glovedude, your adventures with the UA are wonderful - the stuff of dreams. Sort of reminds me when I worked at the late Music Hall in Seattle. The backer of the Vegas-style stage show which we worked defaulted, so we, the crew, 'held' the Music Hall for a couple days, hoping to get our pay (we never did get it), but there wasn't one corner in that place we didn't explore during that time. And we thought we already knew the place! At least the great UA is still standing. Post-Gene Scott, a renaissance of sorts still might occur there. Where's Sid Grauman when we need him?

PS: what's the 'Harry Edwards' script about? Any good?

Also from the LA Conservancy tour in 2001: Pickford was very involved in the design, like, micromanaging the whole thing. The Spanish Gothic style was inspired by her obsession with European castles. High up on the side walls of the auditorium are two huge, dramatic, psychosexual murals by Anthony Heinsbergen, featuring Mary Pickford as a naked angel in chains, threatened by devils with the recognizable faces of evil studio executives on the left, rescued by Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin and other UA figures on flying-horseback to the right. To say these murals are self-aggrandizing is a wild understatement. And the lobby, which looks impossibly lavish, is full of architectural trickery. Most of the materials here are also clever fakes. The marble is painted plaster. The woodwork is shaped and painted plaster. It's a regular encyclopedia of cheap architectural illusions. According to the docent the original lobby carpet was woven to include stained-glass shadow patterns – fake shadows. Pickford loved to point these things out because she knew you could let people in on the joke, and the joke would somehow still work. You know, just like Gene Scott.

Don't think this one has been posted yet:
http://www.gmrnet.com/graphics/theatr1f.jpg

CALLING ALL THEATRE / MOVIE ENTHUSIASTS!!!

T'he Los Angeles Theatre' on South Broadway, LA is playing host to the UK television show 'Dead Famous LIVE'. We are currently looking for people who would like to come along as part of the studio audience.

'Dead Famous LIVE' is a studio entertainment show all about Hollywood History and the paranormal. We will be welcoming celebrity guests on to the show and investigating famous locations around Hollywood which are rumoured to be haunted including the Los Angeles Theatre itself.

This is an invaluable chance to get access to the Los Angeles Theatre, the place where Charlie Chaplin's 'City Lights' premiered in 1931 and to have a thoroughly great day out! (And its free!!)

We're transmitting 'Live' back to the United Kingdom so expect it to be exciting and fun!

We will be filming on three days from 11th - 13th November between 11.30am - 4pm. If you are interested in coming on one or all of these days then email me for tickets!

george.hughes@twofour.co.uk

I look forward to your responses!

A William Reagh photo:

http://helios.library.ca.gov/soca/laci/1992-0417.jpg

I thought that the only theaters on Broadway that had two balconies were the Palace and the Los Angeles. (Just to be clear, I am referring to separate shelf balconies -- NOT a single shelf that is divided into sections.)

In this beautiful picture of the auditorium's side wall, it seems unmistakable that there is a separate balcony, or perhaps at least a shallower mezzanine level, under the main balcony.

http://www.forgottendetroit.com/uat/la-2.html

Can anyone confirm or deny? (And if it's not what it looks like, what is it?)

stevebob; When a new wide-screen process was installed in the 1950's, the new screen was installed forward of the proscenium. Although little damage was done to the proscenium arch, the mezzanine balcony was totally removed to accomodate a new projection booth at the rear of the stalls which gave a straight throw onto the screen.

As far as I am aware, another theatre on Broadway that had two balconies is the Arcade Theatre (former Pantages).

That is VERY interesting information, and the first I heard of it.

I found this pic on Dr. Gene's website, which seems to illustrate what you describe.

http://www.drgenescott.org/CAT92.htm

Where was the projection booth located originally?

I assume the original projection box was in the normal postion in the rear of the balcony. Unfortunately I don't have any photos looking back from the stage and can't remember if I saw any portholes in the back wall of the balcony on my last visit there.

This is a house that, sadly, doesn't seem to have a lot of "documentary evidence" that's in the public domain. Virtually all of the pics at Reverend Gene's site are meaningless because of the absence of context.

Seriously, I have a better idea of what the RKO Hillstreet looked like than the U.A.!

And, by the way, for what it's worth, I think the Los Angeles United Artists surpasses the design of either the Chicago or Detroit venue of the same name and architect.

I totally agree with that!!

The removal of the mezzanine seems like quite a radical move for basic widescreen adaptation. Anamorphic processes like CinemaScope would not have required so much (vandalistic!) remodeling. Perhaps this has already been discussed, but I wonder, is there a possibility that there was an attempt to fit the house for Cinerama? That would entail quite a bit of alteration. Grauman's Chinese across town has a very low level projection room. And S.L. 'Roxy' Rothafel had a tendency to have the projection rooms on the ground floor in his theatres. Even the mammoth Roxy in NYC had its projectors at mid-level.

And yes, I agree, the UA is nothing short of a triumph! There is something truly awesome about it, and maybe just a little bit of a forbidding quality, which only adds to the mystique. The facade looks like something out of 'Citzen Kane' - from Xanadu itself! It is an (undiscovered) national treasure. And to think that it still stands!

A remarkable, dizzying view of the UA vertical sign from far up in the building:
http://digarc.usc.edu:8089/cispubsearch/objectdetails.jsp?objectname=acsc-m821

Wow! Imagine how cool it would have been to be an employee at Texaco and seeing that sign outside your window. (Of course, during the Texaco era there was a second vertical sign on the building, too, that spelled that company's name.)

Also, I notice that the Orpheum is visible in the distance, with a rectangular marquee that predates the flamboyant neon trapezoid that we all know so well.

Here are more UA-oriented pix from the USC archive. The big Texaco sign is plainly seen in one shot. And the UA's 'cathedral crown' is also seen, with and without the 'Texaco' neon.

http://digarc.usc.edu:8089/cispubsearch/searchresults.jsp

If the previous link does not go all the way in, you can go to the USC archive search page and type in, naturally, 'United Artists'. Lots of other theatre-oriented pix in the archive as well.

One more note about the UA mezzanine issue. Grauman's Chinese went through considerable remodeling to accommodate the installation of the Cinerama clone, Cinemiracle (not worth it!). Not only was the projection room moved to the ground floor, but the great globe of the central chandelier was never re-hung. I love the wide, wide screen, but not at the expense of major items like mezzanines!

1928, the photo shows people lining up for a new Norma Talmadge movie:

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015593.jpg

Here are some other interesting photos from the LA Library:

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015594.jpg

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015620.jpg

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015623.jpg

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015617.jpg

http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015607.jpg

This is another modern view of the United Artists Theater. Caption with photo:

"The first theater constructed by the United Artists Corporation as the only major preview house located in Los Angeles rather than in New York City. Designed by the architectural firm of Walker & Percy Eisen and built in 1927 in a Spanish-Gothic style, it stands as a tribute to film stars Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and others who established United Artists".

In reference to Goober's comments on November 29..."The removal of the mezzanine seems like quite a radical move for basic widescreen adaptation. Anamorphic processes like CinemaScope would not have required so much (vandalistic!) remodeling. Perhaps this has already been discussed, but I wonder, is there a possibility that there was an attempt to fit the house for Cinerama? That would entail quite a bit of alteration". Y ou're right. Cinerama was never installed at the UA; however, in December of '55, Todd-AO was (for a simultaneous engagement with the Egyptian of "Oklahoma) brought in, and in those days, while M. Todd was still alive, these 70mm installations were mainly deep-curve and straight-throw affairs.

This is a 2006 photo of the former United Artists theater.

Here are two 1928 photos from the USC archive which I found interesting for their view of LA in the Jazz Age:
http://tinyurl.com/jxjns
http://tinyurl.com/erxyf

On the installation of Todd-AO at the United Artists Downtown (Todd-AO #3). Remember the Egyptian Theatre (Todd-AO #2) was part of the same circuit as the UA, as was the Rivoli Theatre (Todd-AO #1) in Times Square. Those theatres were operated under Magna Theatres in NYC, it was a subsidiary company of United Artists Theatres. So United Artists Theatres converted select First Run theatres to the Todd-AO format. Just like Stanley Warner had a contract for the Cinerama houses. They had the place the booth as close to the mezzanine level to get the best projection, because the original booth was one of those high angle booths. So remember on some installs seats had to be removed or closed off. Like the Fox Theatre in San Francisco (Diamond Horseshoe) because of the balcony over hang was in the picture area on those seats. There was only two Cinerama houses before the Dome was built in 1963. The Warner Hollywood (Pacific 1-2-3) and the Forum Theatre (company test house).

Here is a 1929 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/ldem9

Here is another photo of the United Artists Theater.

From March 2006:
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k79/hollywood90038/dwntwn0041mar2006UA.jpg
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k79/hollywood90038/dwntwn0039mar2006UA.jpg
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k79/hollywood90038/dwntwn0050mar2006UA.jpg
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k79/hollywood90038/dwntwn0036mar2006UA.jpg
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k79/hollywood90038/dwntwn0035mar2006UA.jpg

I worked for Dr. Gene Scott as a paid intern from 1993-96. My first year was spent as the deacon of maintenance at the UA Theater. I was responsible for the general up-keep and security of the building and Dr. Scott's priceless bible and manuscript collection. I also headed the public tour each Saturday and expidited the pre-production activities for the world-wide Sunday broadcast of Dr. Scott's teaching sermons.

I would be happy to answer any questions regarding the UA building, its systems, the bible collection, general church activities, etc.

Please refrain from inquiring about Dr. Scott's personal life--I will answer only those questions that concern his general involvement, and perhaps a few humorous anecdotes between Dr. Scott and myself.

You may reach me through this forum or at jameszerukjr@yahoo.com

I look foreward to sharing with you.

Mrs. Forsythe weighed 285 pounds when she settled back to enjoy the show...litigation ensued:
http://tinyurl.com/3dk6s6

This is a photo of a Loew's United Artists Theater. Is the photo of this theater or another United Artists Theater?

Well it's not the Los Angeles United Artists Theatre for sure. In the 1941 edition of Film Daily Yearbook it states that Loew's Inc. operates several theatres in association with United Artists Theater Circuit, which theaters are designated in the list of United Artists hodings.

There is no Loew's United Artist Theatre in that list of of U.A. holdings. So we have a mystery theatre!

I would say it is in the New York area, as the photograpgh comes from the Billy Rose Theatre Collection which deals mainly with New York theatres.

The "mystery theatre" is the what is now called the Ohio Theatre in Columbus, Ohio. You can check it out at its cinema treasures page.

Well the feature playing is the Fox film "On Your Back" with Irene Rich and H.B. Warner, which was released Sept. 14th, 1930. Theres the first clue for where to look.

And it's not a Los Angeles area theatre.

Thanks ziggy. Mystery solved! The Ohio Theatre, Columbus, OH is listed in the 1941 F.D.Y. as being a United Artists Theatre Circuit theatre, operated as the Loew's Ohio Theatre.

That was fast! I compared the mystery photo to this modern photo of the Ohio Theater and it looks like a match to me. I'll post the photo of the Loew's United Artist Theater on the Ohio Theater page. Thanks for your help guys.

Lost Memory, that's an elegant frontage (of the Ohio Theatre). In my opinion, there's nothing finer than a curved marquee with white letters on black. I used to change the marquee letters on the Paramount in Seattle (during that great house's funky rock concert phase in the 70s, and with a faulty ladder, no less!), and I've always been intrigued with how the white on black letters were changed, as opposed to the later plastic hook-mount letters on rails.

That's what I like about this site: so many who are dedicated to our great movie palace heritage. The mighty UA in LA can stimulate many discussions which can go in many directions.

Has anyone contacted the New York Public Library to let them know that their photo caption misidentifies the Ohio Theatre as the United Artists? Errors such as that are pretty common on the Internet, unfortunately. Not every institution will respond to notification about mistakes on their websites, either. The Library of Congress website has never corrected any of the caption errors I've told them about, but the L.A. Public Library has corrected several such errors in their on-line photo collection after I've informed them about them by e-mail. I've never contacted the New York library, so I don't know if it would do any good or not.

I sent an email to the NYPL. Another mistake was a theater photo labeled as being in Massachusetts when the theater in the photo was actually located in Pennsylvania. I have not received a reply and the library has not corrected the errors. If anyone else wants to contact the NYPL about the Loew's United Artists photo error, you will find contact information on their website at the photo link posted on May 1, 2007 at 1:17pm.

The United Artists is the nearest theatre in this night photo of Broadway north from 11th Street during the parade celebrating the arrival of electricity from Boulder (now Hoover) Dam, 9 October, 1936.

They didn't hesitate to waste that electricity once they got it, apparently.

Here is a photo from the LOC. I've had a problem before with these links failing. Hopefully that has been fixed:
http://tinyurl.com/2tf9le

They've taken Dr. Scott's name off the marquee, which makes sense. There is a large ad, very faded, on the back wall. I took some pictures. They also have the two "Jesus Saves" signs that used to be on the Church of the Open Door over by the library.

The Ohio Theatre in Columbus OH opened on 1928 as Loew's and United Artists' Ohio Theatre. It remained under this banner until the mid 1950's when it became just Loew's Ohio. Other theatres developed jointly be the Loew's and UA chains were the Broad Theatre, also in Columbus; the Loew's and UA Theatre in Louisville, now called the Palace; and the Penn Theatre in Pittsburgh (now Heinz Hall). If you know of others, I'd love to hear about them!

This theatre was not one of the UA/Loews operations. It was part of Fox West Coast Theatres / UA chains during that time frame.

Here are some July 2007 photos:
http://tinyurl.com/2djmzs
http://tinyurl.com/223c4f
http://tinyurl.com/2av4up
http://tinyurl.com/2hzwhg
http://tinyurl.com/2zf5dh
http://tinyurl.com/28guxe
http://tinyurl.com/yvpvb3

This church was behind the LA library on Hope Street. It was replaced by an office building. The "Jesus Saves" signs were attached to the UA when it became a church:
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics41/00040103.jpg

The adult entertainment billboard right next to the UA in Ken's first July 2007 photo is pretty funny. I wonder what the church officials think of that?!?

Take your pick, salvation or damnation, all accessible by freeway.

Here are the united artists plugging the opening of their theater:
http://tinyurl.com/3x3clv

Here are some photos from the USC archive. Some were posted before, but the USC link has been changed:
http://tinyurl.com/2erugt
http://tinyurl.com/2yyxhy
http://tinyurl.com/2bu8w3
http://tinyurl.com/27gczv
http://tinyurl.com/28r4tg
http://tinyurl.com/yuarf3

In ken mc's photo of some of the united artists plugging the UA theatre, I recognize Mary Pickford, Doug Fairbanks, and D.W. Griffith, but does anyone know who the other two are? The man in the upper left (either an actor or the head usher!) looks a bit like Lionel Barrymore (?), while the other strikes me as a money man/producer. Chaplin must be late.

John Barrymore is at the top left. I don't know who the man on the bottom left is.

Thanks, Ken. I knew there was a family resemblance there.

Glad to see the mighty UA still looks largely the same outside since the last time I was there in 1987, pre-Rev. Scott.

Here is a June 1953 ad from the LA Times:
http://tinyurl.com/34z3w2

That's not John Barrymore on the top left of the picture.

If not JB, I wonder who? Doug Jr. would have been too young...

The other man on the left with the hat looks like Cecil B. DeMille.

I believe that's John Barrymore at top left, in costume for UA's "Tempest." The man in the hat at bottom left is probably Joseph Schenck, president of United Artists Corporation and also of the separately owned United Artists Theatre Circuit. Chaplin probably isn't in the photo because he disapproved of UA running theatres. Schenck went ahead with the idea, but UATC was financed by selling stock to the public and was never owned by UA. Pickford, Fairbanks and Griffith as individuals may have purchased some stock in UATC, but UA had no corporate ties to UATC.

Indeed, Barrymore's Ruritanian (well, Russian, actually) costume in the group portrait links with a photo from 'Tempest' (1928), seen at IMDb. The picture obviously played at the UA, but did it open the house, I wonder? Surely a 'Pickfair' picture had that honor.

Warren, thanks for the Joe Schenck/UATC info. Schenck was one of the most colorful personalities in Hollywood. The guy did it all.

"Tampest" wasn't releaed until May, 1928, so it couldn't have opened the United Artists Theatre. Joe Schenck was also producer of that movie through his Art Cinema company, which used United Artists for distribution...I believe that Joseph Schenck became the largest individual stockholder in United Artists Theatre Circuit, owning enough shares to control the company. When Schenck left UA to form 20th Century-Fox with Darryl Zanuck, he began expanding UATC by buying conrol of theatres that had belonged to the bankrupt Fox Theatres.

An old post card DEPICTING the UNITED ARTIST THEATER ON Broadway.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2043/1595069452_538913ce59_b.jpg

The United Artists Theatre opened on 26th December 1927 with Mary Pickford & Buddy Rogers in "My Best Girl".

The introduction is another example of claptrap by its author, who apparently believes that United Artists Corporation and United Artists Theatres were part of the same company. They weren't. Nor was United Artists Corporation one of the defendants in the federal government's anti-trust suit against some of the major movie companies. To say that "the theater and UA went their separate ways" as a result of it is ludicrous.

Well, that's the internet for you. You can't believe everything you read. However, verification leads to more research.

Just some thoughts:

I think that the name association throws people, so they make assumptions. Theatre ownership in the US is about as complicated as business gets, with more name changes than Zsa Zsa Gabor marriages. Though many of the big chains had/have studio names mixed in, any direct connection was fleeting in most cases. I remember that the Paramount in Seattle (which I naturally thought was owned by Paramount Pictures) was operated by Fox Westcoast at the time, and many a big 20th-Fox picture played there. I quickly learned about the early 50s studio/theatre chain bust-up, and how, since that time, nothing in that sense can be taken at face value. But of course, as Warren points out, the studio/theatre relationships have always been messy. I was always impressed by the Walter Reade chain,(mostly in NYC, but saw one in Vancouver BC), though films released by Reade's distribution division, Continental, did not necessarily play there, although I think the Russian 'War and Peace', distrib by Continental, played at the DeMille or Ziegfeld in NYC. I know I could look that up for sure, but I'm not quite that ambitious right now!
Another example of mix and match: on the post card linked above, the 'Texaco' sign up on the UA's water tower grille. Chief tenant of the office section of the building gets that privilege, I guess? It would have been cool to see 'United Artists' glowing up there.

Warren, some of these introductions were re-edited by the staff of this site and some of it was not written by the author. I have had many of my intros rewritten on this site. So you should take your attack to some one else.

This question is for Warren and William. How long did the Downtown theatres such as the United Artists,Orpheum,State,Los Angeles,Warner,etc play exlusive runs.I know they often played with Hollywood Blvd and some of the Wilshire Blvd theatres. When did this come to an end and people from the burbs stopped going Downtown.LA was different than most large Cities having a few entertainment zones such as Hollywood Blvd,Downtown,Wilshire Blvd and later Westwood.It would be interesting to see when each of the large Downtown theatres played there last exclusive run and became a theatre for the large Hispanic population which carried these theatres into the 1980's.brucec

Brucec, Most exclusive runs happened in the 30's to 40's. Like many large cities it was the 1950's that it all changed in Los Angeles area. The chains would book a Downtown run and play it with their Hollywood house. Since the studios put out many pictures during this time. Many of the theatres did not play really long runs. When Downtown died those booking went to the Beverly Hills houses till the mid 70's and then to Westwood till the early 90's. The large chains started dumping their Downtown locations in the early 60's. During that time National Theatres were dropping many of their large downtown area houses around the country. In Los Angeles Metropolitan Theatres picked up the leases on the former Fox West Coast houses and former UA and Warner and RKO houses in that area. So at one time they ran almost every house along Broadway till the mid 80's. Those houses ran full during that time. The late 80's it all changed and they closed up and were changed into retail. Their last exclusive would have been in the mid to last 1950's. to early 1960.

Here is an April 1929 ad from the LA Times:
http://tinyurl.com/26kr3f

Coquette with Mary Pickford and Johnny Mack Brown was released on April 6, 1929.

Just before the theatre opened in December, 1927, an artist from the Los Angeles Times did this cross-section sketch showing the main areas. The entrance on South Broadway is in the upper right hand corner of the sketch:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/ua1927a.jpg

Here are two 1934 ads for Grauman's United Artists:
http://tinyurl.com/2ucbu4
http://tinyurl.com/2w4tac

Gallant Lady with Ann Harding and Clive Brook was released in January of 1934.

I wasn't aware that Sid Grauman was involved with the UA. Perhaps in company name only?

Another example of a tangled ownership history?

A majority of the United Artists theatres were operated in conjunction with other theatre chains during this time. During the early 30's the UA had ties to the Publix Theatre chain.

And the Fox West Coast chain too.

Interesting. To me, everything about the UA seems very 'Grauman-ish' in its' class and style. I have to rate it on the same quality level as Sid's late and lamented Metropolitan (aka: Paramount) - which I never saw, but can only dream about.

This is a 1931 ad. If anyone has heard of "Magnifilm", let me know. Perhaps it was an early version of Cinemascope:
http://tinyurl.com/27fmte

The Bat Whispers with Chester Morris and Una Merkel was released in November of 1930.

Here is some information about The Bat Whispers and "Magnifilm".

Let's not overlook the Charlotte Greenwood comedy, "Girls will be Boys." That must have been interesting.

Interesting article. Thanks.

As as child in the late 70's I remember being taken to this theatre to watch spanish language movies. Can someone tell me if they remember the names of the movie stars pictures that hung on the inside entrance of the lobby. There was this one lovely picture in particular of a movie actress that I would always look up at and admire each time I was there. Does anyone know who she is?

I worked as an usherette, in 1950 or 1951, at the united artist theater for the premier of Quo Vadis. I had all the dialogue memorized from hours of standing in the isles waiting to guide/seat the patrons. We had our uniformes custom made for the grand ocassion. I especally loved Peter Ustinov in the role of Nero. It was my first job in the world.

pper would the actress's name be Maria Felix?

letha, didn't Quo Vadis have a premiere at the UA Four Star Theatre too?

Letha, what a spine-tingling experience! Were the stars at the UA? 'Quo Vadis' holds up extremely well today. Director Merv LeRoy, after a special screening in San Francisco (his home town), went out of the theatre alone and shed tears, as he had sold papers on that very street as an impoverished victim of the '06 earthquake. A very 'Hollywood' moment. The ambiance of the UA would have been perfect for that masterpiece of an epic. Ustinov always steals the show, i.e. 'Help me, Acte!'

Here is a 1931 photo from the LAPL. "Bat Whispers" is playing:
http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics44/00071989.jpg

The Bat Whispers with Chester Morris was released in November of 1930.

From Saturday:
http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff204/hollywood90038/UnitedArtistsFeb16200806.jpg
http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff204/hollywood90038/UnitedArtistsFeb16200807.jpg
http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff204/hollywood90038/UnitedArtistsFeb16200809.jpg

Does the church ever use any of the neon signs?

Close-up of the vertical sign:
http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff204/hollywood90038/UnitedArtistsFeb26200803.jpg

Here is a March 2008 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/23h6kv

I'm looking for hi-res shots of the UA building with the Jesus Saves signs or even the signs alone for use in my book L.A. Bizarro, and will provide photo credit(s) accordingly. If you have any worthwhile shots you can contact me at labizarro at gmail dot com. Thanks!

Back in November of 2005, there was a discussion about the 1950s era remodeling of the U.A. to accommodate 70mm projection. I've finally come across this picture on the Internet showing the position of the new projection booth and the remains of the mezzanine section, which was closed off by a curtain.

It looks as though the mezzanine remained intact, though the decorative detailing along its front was been removed. My guess would be that the mezzanine seating was abandoned not because of the space needed for the projection booth, but because the new screen was taller than the earlier one and its upper area would not have been visible to patrons seated in the mezzanine.

The photo is among many to be seen at this Los Angeles Movie Palaces page.

Incidentally, some time ago I saw one of those 1950s teen exploitation movies consisting of a threadbare plot and loads of music performances by early rock'n'roll artists (it may have been the 1956 release Rock, Rock, Rock, though I can't swear to it), and I'm pretty sure the inevitable "Big Rock Show" scene was filmed in the U.A., probably just before the remodeling was done. There were only a couple of shots showing the auditorium, but that C. Howard Crane Gothic style was recognizable, and it was used in only a few theatres. The L.A. theatre would have been the most likely to show up in this movie, with the Detroit U.A. a close second.

That is a sweet web site.

Thanks for the photo, Joe.

Two recent (July 2008) photos can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/achangeinscenerymovies/2762804891/
and here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/achangeinscenerymovies/2763648846/in/photostream/

Here is a photo taken yesterday:
http://tinyurl.com/3kajc9

Lookin' GOOD!

If I were Paul Allen (or equivalent), I'd cut out a check right now to purchase the place outright, so that restoration could start tomorrow!

Cost? No man can say. But it would be WORTH IT.

Here is an undated interior photo from the LAPL. I have not been inside this theater yet, so one of these Sundays I will have to get religion and give it a try.
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015618.jpg

This goes to Joe's June 19th comment about the new booth install. In the first comment way back in 2002. It talked about the Todd-AO process at the UA Downtown Theatre. That is when the new booth was installed in the theatre. You could not project the new format well at an extreme angle of the old booth.

This is a November 2008 photo.

It is one of the three most completely intact of the theaters of South Broadway along with the Los Angeles and Orpheum palaces.

Here is an item from Boxoffice magazine, June 1962:

LOS ANGELES-The downtown United Artists Theater has been closed by UA and turned back to Joseph Schenck Productions, owner of the building. The house, closed for several years, was reopened last October by UA.

This was reported in Boxoffice in October 1961. As you can see by the post immediately above, the experiment with Spanish films only lasted about nine months.

LOS ANGELES-United Artist's 1,500-seat theater at Ninth and Broadway has reopened under a new name, the Alameda. The house will present first-run Mexican features, and stage shows are contemplated after the first of the year.

This was in the LA Times on October 24, 1931:

Plans have been completed for the erection of an elaborate theater marquee at the United Artists. This new improvement is to be installed by Friday when Ronald Colman's new picture, "The Unholy Garden" is scheduled to open.

The new canopy sign will strike a new note in this type of architecture, it is said, being all in one color and being lighted by a combination of neon tubular and flasher incandescents.

Eddie Cantor's latest comedy, "Palmy Days", which started its third week at the United Artists yesterday, will have its final showings Thursday.

In January, 1931, the United Artists was one of about twenty theatres around the nation that presented the wide-screen version of "The Bat Whispers." The original 65mm camera negative was reduced to a 35mm print and projected in a system similar to "Magnascope," with a screen ratio of 2:1. The supporting program of short subjects was shown in standard 35mm. During intermissions, Gaylord Carter played the organ. All for 35 cents until 1:00PM.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/uabat.jpg

Here is a 1983 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/dz7wd6

"Coming Soon-Menudo the Film":
http://tinyurl.com/d6ljdh

With regard to ken mc's posts of January this year, I do recall the United Artists being called the Alameda for a while around 1961-1962. I think it was after it closed again that the Alameda name was moved to the United Artists in East Los Angeles. I guess UA wanted to get their money's worth from that expensive signage.

Here is a photo circa late 1930s from the USC archive:
http://tinyurl.com/d99wln

Here is another 30s photo from USC:
http://tinyurl.com/cp7tzg

Here is a view from 1939:
http://tinyurl.com/c9ce4o

1982 Photo

another close up of the old united artists theatre can be seen here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/petewilsonphotos/882956188/

I used to work across the street around 94 or so. I could swear it used to have Love Connection on the marquee, I had assumed they did the taping of the show there... Am I remembering this wrong?

I think it has been a church since the 80s. Never saw it used for taping, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen. Maybe the church rented out the space to make some money.

I think the old Love Connection show taped at a studio on Vine Street between Sunset and Selma on the west side of the street. There was a fire in that building.

Does anyone have current pictures of the interior? I live nearby (so I know what the outside looks like...Duh) and I've tried EVERY excuse in the book---I'm a USC student doing research, I run an LA history website, I'm a photographer---but those damn fundamentalists weirdos won't let me in for a little peek.

If they've ruined it like those morons at the State have, I'll go absolutely nuts!

Isn't it open for services on Sunday mornings? I assume you can just walk right in at that time. Eleven a.m., I think.

If you go to http://www.pastormelissascott.com/ you can make reservations for the Sunday service. There is also a schedule for the tv broadcasts during which the cameras will pan the auditorium so you can get an idea of what it looks like. During the time that Gene Scott was pastor much restoration was done and the theater is in excellent condition. By the way, I wouldn't call them funamentalist weirdos although they do march to their own drummer.

The executive director of LAHTF attends services there and he says that they've done a great job of preserving the theater (including murals of UA's founding members). He's also working to get us in there for an "All About..." tour.

And Chas is right: you have to make a reservation before you're allowed in for service.

Here is a 2005 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/mqccxp

This is a 2009 exterior photo.

Well, good to hear they haven't painted over everything like the church at the State has.

Layers of paint can be removed.

Here are some photos taken today:
http://tinyurl.com/q5pzeb
http://tinyurl.com/rdk7ez
http://tinyurl.com/plfp3a
http://tinyurl.com/o32pnm
http://tinyurl.com/otcrcr
http://tinyurl.com/o86udz
http://tinyurl.com/olyx5g
http://tinyurl.com/p2o3yc
http://tinyurl.com/r7xow9

Here is a 1932 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/n4aqa2

Very cool site.Lots of history there.

Thanks for all the great photos and history - both true and anecdotal. As a regular attendee of Sunday services, I can recommend the experience. Pastor Melissa Scott is a gifted teacher and her hour-long "classes" about history, language, and the Bible are interesting, whatever your beliefs - or lack thereof. The UA is maintained meticulously with TLC. When you attend, you'll understand the need for the church to have its high level of security. The Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation posted 9 minutes of video footage shot of the theatre interior during the late '80's. You can find that at www.youtube.com\lahtf With Pastor Scott's approval, the LAHTF is planning an All About docu-tour and history presentation at the UA in early 2010. Along with Grauman's Million Dollar, the UA is extraordinary in just about every way.