Ricardo Montalban Theater

I wasn't aware this theatre ever played motion pictures. I thought, since its inception it was a legit playhouse.

Just to add a few more pieces of the historical time line of this theatre to the above notes;

Wilkes' Vine Street Theatre opened on 19th January 1927.

It became a full time movie theater from 15th March 1931 and was re-named the Mirror Theater. This lasted until 1936 when CBS Radio took over and it became known as the Studio Theater. It was at this time that architect S. Charles Lee added a dazzling neon lit marquee and vertical sign on the front of the building and a new air conditioning plant was installed.

It re-opened as a legitimate playhouse again in September 1954 and was re-named the Huntington Hartford Theater, when Helen Hayes starred in "What Every Woman Wants".

I have run across mentions of S. Charles Lee having remodeled a "Studio Theater" on Vine Street in 1936, but thought they were mistaken, because there was a Studio Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. This clears up the mystery.

KenRoe... THANKS for the additional information. Also for the correction on the Helen Hayes play of 1954. Also did not know about the names "Mirror Theater" and "Studio Theater" during the 30s. Great information and it's appreciated.

I attended that play, but was only 4 years old at the time! I lived only 2 blocks from this theater on Vista Del Mar at the time, so we walked over to the playhouse. We often ate at the Brown Derby in the coffee shop across the street.

Also want to add that Huntington Hartford, who took over the theater in 1954 was the heir of the A & P Supermarket Chain and he spent a lot of his fortune on this and other entertainment ventures. He was not fond of the grocery business himself.

I am currently doing historic research for this theater for Nosotros, the new owners of the theater, who want to do some kind of historic display, and would apprecite any other information on this
beautiful venue.

I understand the architect Myron Hunt also designed some other significant buildings. Pasadena's Huntington Hotel, Public Library, Rose Bowl, the Huntington Library and Art Gallery in San Marino and Occidental College and the Ambassador Hotel Theater in Los Angeles.

These are the offical names that the theater has had over the years;
Wilkes' Vine St Theatre
Vine St Theatre
Mirror Theater
Studio Theatre
CBS Radio Playhouse
Huntington Hartford Theatre
James A. Doolittle Theatre
Ricardo Montalban Theatre

The new neon lit marquee and vertical sign that S.CHarles Lee designed in 1936 for the Studio Theatre only lasted a couple of years, as in 1938 a new slim plain marquee was errected when the name changed to the CBS Radio Playhouse (Pictured in the book 'Hollywood Then & Now' by Rosemary Lord PRC Publishing 2003 on page 120).

Just to point out you have a couple of the former names mixed up. It was never called Lux Radio Playhouse ('The Lux Radio Theatre' was the name of a show broadcast from the theatre which had Cecil B DeMille hosting and featured stars such as Gloria Swanson and George Raft)

For CBS Radio Theatre-this should read CBS Radio Playhouse.

In its early years, actor Edward Everett Horton starred in many productions at the theatre between March 1928 and January 1929.

I believe that in recent years it was leased to the Nederlander Theatres Org?

The Ricardo Montalban Theatre showed movies again in November 2004 when for 3 days the 1st Annual Nosotros American Latino Film Festival was held. Is the theatre fully equipped with projectors, screen and sound system now, or was this a temporary insallation?

Ken:

Do you happen to know the years during which the Lux Radio Theater was broadcast from the old Music Box (now Henry Fonda) Theater on Hollywood Boulevard? I know that the show started in New York City, then moved to Hollywood, where it was broadcast both from the CBS Playhouse and the Music Box, but I don't know which theater was used first, or for how long each was used.

Joe;
I have notes that the Music Box Theatre became a radio studio theatre in 1936, the same year as the Mirror Theatre became the Studio Theatre.

It could be that 'The Lux Radio Theatre' was broadcast initially from the Music Box, then transfered over the CBS Playhouse in 1938.
The Music Box could have become 'dark' when this happened.

I have notes on stars such as Mae West, Al Jolson, Joan Crawford, Barbara Stanwyck, Gary Cooper and Jean Harlow all gracing the stage at the Music Box Theater when 'The Lux Radio Theatre' was being broadcast.

The Music Box Theatre returned to legitimate stage use briefly in the early 1940's when a production of "Life With Father" had an extensive run in 1942. Possibly 'dark' again until it then went over to full time movies as the Guild Theater from February 1945 when Fox West Coast Theatres took control.

Thanks, Ken. I went to a few movies at the Music Box in the 1960s, when it was called the Pix Theatre. Then, I had no idea that it had had such a long and varied career.

I also remember passing by the Huntington Hartford, and having no idea what was under that modern facade. Until recently, I was under the impression that it had actually been built from the ground up by Hartford in the 1950s.

I have just posted a fairly comprehensive history up on the Music Box Theatre page http://cinematreasures.org/theater/493/

The Huntington Hartford Theatre always looked to be a fairly drab building to my eyes, and it always seemed to be 'closed' whenever I visited LA, so I never went into it. Maybe I will have more luck on my next visit in a couple of weeks time! Last time I was there it was shrouded in scaffolding during its recent renovation.

I was also unaware this theater ever presented movies. As the Huntington Hartford, I saw Henry Fonda perform is one man show "Clarence Darrow" here. I still have the program.

KenRoe, your information is invaluable. Thanks so much for the update. When you research on the internet, sometimes you get conflicting information and gaps that you almost have to guess at. I appreciate the clarifications! I also found out that the Lux Radio program was called that because "Lux Soap" was the sponsor. By the way, I have Rosemary Lord's book, but bought it only for the older photos. Some of her information is inaccurate however and I think the modern photos do not match up to the historic ones from angle or time of day.

KenRoe, found out that the play Helen Hayes was in for the 1954 re-opening was not "What Women Want" (as I thought) or "What Every Woman Wants" (what you thought), but rather "What Every Woman KNOWS" ... I found a photo of the front of the theater on opening night ... (isn't this fun?) ...

The caption on the photo is " Opening night--celebrities and first nighters are shown arriving at the new million dollar theater, the Huntington Hartford Theater, for its premiere performance. The theater, located in Hollywood, is the first legitimate theater to open in America in 27 years. Movie fans standing in bleachers cheer as screen stars enter the lobby of the theater. Photo dated: October 2, 1954."

Here is the photo: http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036905.jpg

Christian;

Thanks for your kind remarks. It's difficult doing research from so far away (as I am in the UK), but I try my best when I am over in the USA to locate as much info as I can on theatres. I think I have exhausted my knowledge on the Ricardo Montalban for the moment though.

I remember Lux soap over here in the UK in the 1950's, in fact I think it could still be on sale in a few outlets. Of course we had the BBC which doesn't allow sponsership of its programmes, well it didn't back in the 'old days'.

I too just bought Rosemary Lord's book for the older photo's, being a 'coffee-table' type book, its not the type you pick up and actually 'read' is it!

Glad we finally got the Helen Hayes play title right! As they say 'A picture never lies'. Great photo. Thanks

This theater has it's own beautifully designed website at...

http://www.ricardomontalbantheatre.org

I have recordings of old LUX radio shows recorded at the "Music Box" from 1935 until this theater began broadcasting from l938. There is a broadcast from 1940 of "Dark Victory" with Warner Brothers star Bette Davis and co-star Spencer Tracy from MGM. In radio, the stars from different studios could do radio plays together, apparently... so the performance is first rate. Does anyone know where the last Lux Radio Broadcasts were made in 1954 and 1955, recorded? This was 2 years after Huntington Hartford took over the theater and wonder if they were still made here, or perhaps moved back to the Music Box or Vine Street theater?

I attended many live productions at the Huuntington Hartford in the 1960's. That theatre was known for its great acousitcs. There was also a great sense of "connection" between the actors on the stage and the audience. Even though it had 1200 seats, it was very intimate. There was not a "bad seat" in the house. I would love to find a complete list of the productions that played at the Hartford in the 50's and 60's Any suggestions on how to do that will be greatly appreciated.

Paul LA,CA

Christian:

I think that the Music Box had become the Pix Theatre by the 1950s, and was showing movies. I think it most likely that the last two seasons of the Lux program were broadcast from the KNX studios on Sunset Boulevard.

I have a vague memory of some mention of a CBS Playhouse being located in the Sunset Boulevard facility. It was somewhere in the History of KNX section of the station's web site. I think it was a caption to one of the pictures there (reached by a small link near the top of that page.) There is also one good photograph of the Vine Street Theater there, and another which I think is of the Music Box, but the captions of both refer to them as the CBS Playhouse.

Joe, You are most likely correct. The CBS "Columbia Square" building on Sunset Blvd. is probably the place. It is interesting that the Lux Broadcasts I have somehow stop after 1955.

Paul, I do have a fairly good list of programs that the LUX Radio Theater broadcast from the theater from about 1938-1953 on Monday nights. Among the shows I have is "Sunset Blvd." broadcast with Gloria Swanson and William Holden in 1951, a year after the movie became a hit. The stars who performed live on that stage during those years was a real "whos-who" of Hollywood history, including Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Bob Hope, Cary Grant, Rita Hayworth, Barbara Stanwyck and hundreds of others.

I also have a couple of brochures from the theater from the late 60s. I will see what I come up with. The problem with a lot of the theater's history was a fire which destroyed the Hollywood Public Library in the 1980's. The library held much of the theater's historic records.

The theater became part of James Doolittle's Greek theater group on September 21, 1964 and premiered at the Huntington Hartford with a lavish production of "H.M.S. Pinafore." I am still looking to find out when the theater was re-named the "Doolittle Theater." Does anyone know? As far as I can tell, it was sometime in the 1980s.

My copy of the Los Angeles Times Calendar section of August 24th, 1986, contains and ad for a musical performance piece called "Rare Area" appearing at the James A. Doolittle Theatre on Vine Street. I don't remember how much earlier the renaming took place, though.

It mentions in the opening summary that the theatre was often mistaken for the Hollywood Playhouse where the Hollywood Palace TV show took place. Didn't it come from the El Capitan for it's whole run?

Robert R:

The original El Capitan in Hollywood was the one on Hollywood Boulevard. Later, it became the Paramount. During part of that time, the theater on Vine Street north of Hollywood Boulevard, and which had opened as the Hollywood Playhouse, used the name El Capitan Theater. Later, the name was changed to the Palace.

Some time after that, when Disney bought and restored the Paramount, they restored the original name to it. So, the El Capitan/Paramount/El Capitan on Hollywood boulevard is not the theater from which the TV show Hollywood Palace was broadcast. The show came from the Hollywood Playhouse/El Capitan/Palace on Vine Street.

Well said, Joe! By the way, the reason the Hollywood Playhouse/El Capitan/Palace theater is not listed here at cinematreasures.com is because it was never a movie house that I could find. If you are aware if it ever was, Joe, we can add it to the database. I think it's always been a live theater, however.

No, I don't think the Hollywood Playhouse has ever shown movies. It was a live theater, a television studio, and a live music venue, and now I think it is a nightclub. That makes it the only one of the big four Hollywood stage theaters from the 1920s which never went cinematic. Someone ought to show a few films there, just so it can join the club.

Let me know about the other 3 live venues you are referring to. If one is the IVAR, I remember seeing movies there as a kid in the 1950s, but I will have to check to make sure. What are the other 2 theaters that have always been live?

The big four playhouses built in the 1920s were the Vine Street, the Hollywood Playhouse, The Music Box (later the Fox, then the Pix, now the Henry Fonda Theater) and the original El Capitan, which became the Paramount. Since the Vine Street showed movies as the Mirror in the early 1930s, the Hollywood Playhouse is the only one of the four which (as far as I know) has never been a movie house.

I do have a vague memory of seeing newspaper ads for movies being shown at the Ivar, though I've never been to that theater. The only other live theaters that I can remember in Hollywood are the Las Palmas and the Coronet. I went to a play at one of them, in the mid 1960s, but can't remember which of the two it was (it was a small theater with a courtyard entrance, on a side street just off Hollywood Boulevard- sounds like the Las Palmas, doesn't it? I can't remember where the Coronet is.) As far as I know, neither of them has ever been a movie house.

Thanks Joe! Yes, I recall the Las Palmas as well!

The Las Palmas Theatre, Hollywood is listed here on Cinema Treasures and did show movies http://cinematreasures.org/theater/2368/

Christian;
I have no records of the Ivar Theatre showing movies but let us know if you fine out more info please.

The Lux Radio Theatre used the Music Box (Henry Fonda) Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard until 1940. At that time, additional audience studios were constructed at Columbia Square on Sunset and the lease on the Music Box was not renewed by CBS. "Lux" moved to The CBS Radio Playhouse on 1615 North Vine in 1940 and remained there until 1953. CBS then moved "Lux" to Columbia Square and it emanated out of the large Studio A.

Other radio programmes that used the 1615 Vine Street location were: The Frank Sinatra Old Gold Show, The Judy Canova Show, This Is My Best, Maisie with Ann Sothern, The Colgate Theatre of Romance, The Nelson Eddy Show, The Hallmark Playhouse, The Chesterfield Show with Harry James, The Joe Penner Show, and others.

The Music Box was once again leased by CBS for radio programmes in late 1948 for a couple of years. The Red Skelton RADIO Show came from there, as did the Monday to Friday "Tide Show" starring Jack Smith, Dinah Shore, Frank DeVol and Ginny Smith.

I think some of the above comments tend to sell this wonderful building a bit short. It just so happens that the structure now known as the Ricardo Montalbán Theater is one of the most famous venues in the entire history of American radio. The Vine Street Playhouse began hosting CBS's highly-rated program "The Lux Radio Theatre" on May 13, 1940, with a production of "True Confession," starring Loretta Young and Fred MacMurray. The show remained in that venerable location (Monday nights at 9:00 ET / 6:00 PT) until May 25, 1953, with a production of "Lure of the Wilderness," starring Jean Peters and Jeffrey Hunter. During the course of those thirteen glorious years, a total of 568 broadcasts originated from The Vine Street Playhouse. The program's titular "producer," through January 22, 1945, was Cecil B. DeMille, and almost all of Hollywood's most famous stars appeared there at one time or another in their careers -- before live audiences that, each week, filled to capacity the hall's nearly 2,000 seats. This auditorium should be consecrated as a shrine to the Golden Age of Radio.

In 1943 I used to look out on Vine St. from the 4th floor window of the Taft Building at Hollywood and Vine (worked at Local Loan Co.) to watch all the girls lined up around the block to go into a Frank Sinatra broadcast. Would this have been at the Lux Radio Theatre at The CBS Radio Playhouse at 1615 North Vine ?

Hi Jeane! If your window faced Vine Street and you were looking south, towards Sunset Blvd, then you were probably looking at this theater. Looking that direction, you would have also seen the NBC studios at the southeast corner of Sunset and Vine, which also had many stars in radio broadcasts during World War 2, as well, and it's quite possible that Frank Sinatra would have performed there, as well, but if you could clearly see the front of the theater, it was the Montalban. Looking north would have afforded a view of the Hollywood Playhouse, which I believe was a playhouse in those days as well, so it doesn't seem like the venue Sinatra would have used for a wartime concert.

Thank you, Christian, for taking the time to reply. Yes I could see clearly the front of the theatre on Vine Street which was just beyond the Broadway Hollywood Dept. store on the corner. Also, from the same window I once saw a flatbed truck right below with a full band on it playing and selling war bonds. The song I remember was, "Got a Date with an Angel, Gonna Meet her at Seven, Got a date with an angel, I'm on my way to Heaven." wish I knew the name of the band. (Yes, with all this hanging out the window, I got my work done). You'd be surprised the big name stars who would co-sign loans for their poor friends. And my bos howled when he had to explain to this young girl newly arrived from Canada - who and what gay people were. Melody Lane restaurant was kitty cornered across on Hollywood Blvd and beyond that the El Capitan Theater where I saw Ken Murray Blackouts with Marie (?).

Jeane Mari: The Bruce Torrence Collection has pictures of Ken Murray's Blackouts (with Marie Wilson) at the Vine Street El Capitan. The biggest hit record of "Got a Date with an Angel" was probably the one by Hal Kemp and his orchestra, but I doubt that they could have fit onto the back of a truck.

Thanks, Joe, for that info on the Blackouts pictures. Will follow up on that.

Hi Jeane, I was raised only a few blocks away from 1951 until 1958 on Gower Street. My mom was a disc jockey for radio KMPC, which was a music station in those days and she sold records at Wallach's Music Store at the corner of Sunset and Vine. In those early 50s days, we used to walk the 2 blocks at midnite, when mom got off work and dine at the Brown Derby Coffee Shop. The chicken noodle soup was amazing. We also ate at Nickodells restaurant on Selma and Argyle, which was always a treat. I remember the Taft Building in those days, because the big Rexall Drug Store was located on the corner of Hollywood and VIne Streets and there was a HUGE sign on the roof for Miller Highlife Beer that appeared around 1952 or so.

Here is a photo of the Taft Building in 1945...
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics16/00007765.jpg

Here is a photo of the Taft Building about 1958...
http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics03/00011282.jpg

Great memories!

While the Huntington Hartford was definitely a legit house all throughout the 60s they did, in fact, show one motion picture - Long Day's Journey Into Night.

In regards to the Hollywood Playhouse: No it was never a motion picture theatre, however, it did (and still does) have a projection booth and at one time had two projectors that were removed in 1981 when the building was remodeled and transformed into THE PALACE - a concert venue and nightclub. I have worked there on and off in the eighties and again in the late ninties thru now. While there The Palace has shown some films as special events, though nothing truly notable: Premier of Eurythmics documentary and a private screening of Disney's Beauty and The Beast for all the staff that worked on the film along with a viewing of the Academy Awards as that film was nominated for best film.
PS - The Playhouse was renamed several times through it's life, which may account for some confusion of some other thatres: Hollywood Playhouse, WPA Federal Theatre, The El Capitain (interesting footnote), The Jerry Lewis Theatre, The Hollywood Palace, The Palace, Avalon.

Here, from the USC digital archives, is a 1930's photo of Vine Street showing this theatre when it was called the Studio.

And, from the L.A. Public Library, a dramatic night shot taken when it was still called the Vine Street Theater.

Here is a recent photo of the Ricardo Montalban Theater for comparison.

Kind of off topic, but can someone help me out with a defunct restaurant that I believe was in the Taft building? I think it was called Aldo's and was on the bottom/street level. Anyone remember exactly where it was or better yet an address. Think this would have been 1960 or so.

Here is a photo of the Mirror from the early thirties:
http://tinyurl.com/ynury7

Ladies of the Jury with Edna May Oliver was released in February of 1932.

Jeanne and Christian both speculate that Frank Sinatra performed in the Vine Street Playhouse during the war, and indeed that is the case. For Lux Radio Theatre, he starred in "Wake Up and Live" on February 21, 1944, and appeared as an intermission guest during "Magnificent Obsession" on November 13, 1944. Following the war, he starred in "Anchors Aweigh" on December 29, 1947, and in "The Miracle of the Bells" on May 31, 1948.

Michele: Almost all of the ground floor of the Taft Building was occupied by a Rexall drug store in those days. I remember a coffee shop called Aldo's in the neighborhood, but I can't recall exactly where it was. It was supposedly at Aldo's that Cher first met Sonny Bono in 1963. I don't know if Cher would remember exactly where Aldo's was or if she's suppressed that knowledge.

Oh, wait. The L.A. library website now has some street directories of the era available on-line. OK. Aldo's is listed in the 1960 directory as having two locations on Hollywood Boulevard: at 6413, which would have been just east of the Warner Cinerama Theatre; and at 6721, almost directly across the street from the Egyptian Theatre. I don't know at which of these locations Cher met her diminutive destiny.

The 1960 directory lists another Aldo's at 7369 Melrose, but I have no memory of that location at all.

According to the Ricardo Montalban Theater website, there should be aka names of Doolittle Theater and Huntington Hartford.

Yes, it was the Huntington Hartford Theatre for some thirty years, from 1954 until at least 1984, longer than it bore any of its other names. It was Hartford who caused the original facade to be stripped away and replaced with the bland exterior the building wore for most of its history. The interior was gutted at that same time. The current facade is more a homage to than an actual recreation of the original that was lost to Hartford's remodeling. For all practical purposes, none of Myron Hunt's original work on the Vine Street Theatre remains.

The Doolittle name was in honor of James Doolittle, an impresario who for many years programed the Greek Theatre in Griffith Park, and then programmed the Hartford itself for a while starting in the mid-1960s. I think the theatre was called the Doolittle for about a dozen years.

Also missing is the one aka under which this house operated exclusively as a movie theatre, the Mirror Theatre. I'm sure that Lux Radio Playhouse was not an actual name the theatre itself bore, but was merely the name of one of the programs CBS broadcast from the house during its years as the Studio Theatre (another missing aka) and then as the CBS Radio Playhouse (not CBS Radio Theatre.)

For a full list of the theatre's names in sequence see Ken Roe's comment of January 1, 2005 above.

Joe, I posted a photo of the Mirror on November 8.

Maybe the name was just added because an aka name of Mirror is at the top of this page now along with Huntington Hartford and Doolittle.

Or I might have overlooked it, since I keep forgetting to enlarge the page in my browser when reading that pale text (I wish it had a "darken" function as well as the enlarging function.)

The 1930s photo I linked to on October 12, 2006, showing the theatre when it was called the Studio, has vanished from the USC digital archives altogether. Maybe the archives lost track of it when they were redesigning their website. Fortunately, there's still a photo from the L.A. library showing the theatre's marquee when it was called the Studio. It's essentially the same as the Mirror marquee in the picture ken mc linked to on November 8 of this year.

This creates a bit of a problem with the time-line of the theatre.
S. Charles Lee's plans for remodeling the Mirror into the Studio, including adding a new marquee, were announced in 1936, and it looks like this marquee already existed by 1936. So did Lee not design a new marquee after all, or was the rather austere CBS Radio Playhouse marquee the one he designed in 1936, or do we just not yet have a photo of his short-lived marquee?

Thank You Joe V.
After your knowledge of Aldos, I looked it up in the LA library directory. I'm quite sure it was the 6413 Hollywood Boulevard location...I remember Coffee Dan's and Woolworth nearby. My father worked for KFWB which was a few doors down. We went to Aldos often, and late 62 to 63 would have been the time period. Funny you should mention Sonny Bono as I completely recall him. He must have been doing promo work, my father knew him well and he definitely did stand out. He dressed pretty funky for the times. Not long ago, I was in a bookstore where I live now in the midwest, and ran accross a book Cher had written a while back. Sure enough, she met Bono at Aldos and described him as the strangest man she had ever seen (though she was totally attracted to that aspect of him). I was intrigued, so I looked up Bono in that same 1963 directory. He lived at 7237 Franklin Avenue #1. This would be the apartment Cher talked about in her book. She moved in with him not long after they met. Strictly platonic at first, as she needed a place to stay, but eventually it became a romantic relationship. Interesting. Wonder if that building he lived in still exists? I know Franklin Ave. was and still is sprawling apartment complexes. Anway, thanks for the info. I had fun researching this...wish my father were still alive and I could talk to him about my findings. I guess I wasn't too far off, at least in the vicinity. Not bad for a 10 year old mind at the time.

Oh, being a big 60's music fan, this must have been around the same time (1963) that Sonny Bono went to work as Phil Spector's Go-Fer/Assistant while they recorded at Gold Star on Santa Monica Boulevard. Now I KNOW that Gold Star must be long gone by now.

Here are some March 2008 photos:
http://tinyurl.com/37pjoh
http://tinyurl.com/2oa53j
http://tinyurl.com/3c2rpq

Here are more LAPL photos:
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036930.jpg
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036931.jpg
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036932.jpg
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036933.jpg
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics34/00036934.jpg

This is a September 2008 photo.

Here is another September 2008 photo.

Here is the corrected link to the great photo of the theater as the Studio from the USC archive.

Here is the metadata and description of same photo.

I'd like to shoot a current photo (for a then and now) from the same spot, since the Montalban, Broadway Hollywood and Taft buildings are all still standing.

Do you see the Vine Street Brown Derby across the street? I actually ate there just before it burned down in the mid 80s. The place was pretty shabby by that time.

On August 8th, 2008, The Montalban became the temporary home of Nike Sportswear's unique retail and special events theatre. As part of this theatre has been cleaned, painted and upgraded. New sound and lighting as well as 35mm film and HD video projection have been installed. A massive 55x26 screen recovered from one of San Diego's single screen theaters, most likely the Valley Circle, was installed in The Montalban. Artist Geoff McFetridge was commissioned to create large scale murals on the roof and south side of the building and installed a unique wallpaper motif in the second floor mezzanine room.

From a press release: Margarita Cannon, the theater’s creative director explains, “One of the great challenges in having a landmark theatre is reversing the aging process. Nike Sportswear brought in ideas and artists, and now the Montalbán has new life to share with our community.”

Movies came back to the Montalban in a major way with weekly Cinema Tuesdays series, which features premieres, advance screenings and sneak peeks of innovative films from around the world:

12 Aug 2008 … BEAUTIFUL LOSERS (LA PREMIERE)
19 Aug 2008 … TOKYO OLYMPIAD
26 Aug 2008 … ASSASSINATION OF A HIGH SCHOOL PRESIDENT
09 Sep 2008 … SUKIYAKI WESTERN DJANGO
09 Sep 2008 … 3X3: THE WINDRUNNER SHORTS (WORLD PREMIERE)
23 Sep 2008 … MEGUNICA (U.S. PREMIERE)
30 Sep 2008 … ROCKNROLLA
07 Oct 2008 … ASHES OF TIME REDUX
14 Oct 2008 … LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
21 Oct 2008 … SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK
28 Oct 2008 … PART OF THE WEEKEND NEVER DIES (U.S. PREMIERE)

Do I have to buy the shoes if I go to the movie?

Here is that 1930's photo side-by-side with present day Vine Street (October 2008). Unfortunately the W Hotel construction and billboards obscure the buildings somewhat. My photographer tried her best to get a similar angle.

And no Ken shoe purchase is not required.

Special film screenings have been extended through the end of the year.

31 OCT 2008 … JUSTICE: A CROSS THE UNIVERSE (L.A. PREMIERE)
11 Nov 2008 … CHRISTMAS ON MARS: A FANTASTICAL FILM FREAKOUT FEATURING THE FLAMING LIPS (L.A. PREMIERE)
18 Nov 2008 … TIMECRIMES

This is a November 2008 photo.

The theater was showing a boxing match last night:
http://tinyurl.com/6kzo7c
http://tinyurl.com/6lxalt
http://tinyurl.com/6oaof8

Some additional photos here:
http://tinyurl.com/675yv5

Here is part of an LA Times story dated 7/10/53:

CBS-RADIO THEATER SOLD TO HARTFORD

Co;lumbia Broadcasting System announced sale of its CBS-Radio Theater at 1615 N. Vine Street to Huntington Hartford III, food chain heir, for a figure in excess of $200,000. It was understood that Hartford acquired the theater-scene of many radio shows since 1936-as a legitimate stage theater and theater workshop.

Formerly known as the Vine Street Theater, the house was acquired by the radio network in 1936 and was operated by the Vine Street Realty Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of CBS.

Here is an interesting photo from the LAPL, although no date is given. Al Levy's Tavern is to the right of the theater. The tavern is long gone, just a parking lot now.
http://jpg1.lapl.org/00079/00079164.jpg

That is a gem.

Here is a recent close-up photo.

My Dad grew up in this neighborhood, living in the Manson Apts on Hudson between Selma and Hollywood Blvd from ca. 1936 through the late 1940s; Hollywood High School class of 1952. Anyway, he worked in TV and radio as an engineer and program director for years. In the 1970s he was leafing through a photo history of Hollywood and came across a photo that amazed him: this view of Vine Street and there he was walking down the street with his Mother. He instantly knew it was him because he is wearing his favorite cowboy outfit (with chaps) and remembers the white dress and hat his Mother had on. Also, subtle indicators like body language and having walked down that street back then a thousand times.


Based on the tenure of the CBS Radio Playhouse I estimate the photo was taken between 1936 and April 1938, when KNX moved to Columbia Square.

This is a 1957 item from the LA Times. Unknown if the audience gave Mr. Jones a hand following the incident.
http://tinyurl.com/lf6k8l

Another informatibe story.

Make that "another informative story".