Wilshire Theatre

I was a student at Cal State Fullerton from 1974 to 1979. While living in the area, I went to the Wilshire Theater often. During this time, it was a revival house or art house movie theater. While it did show films such as “Pink Flamingos” and “Reefer Madness,” it also exhibited many foreign films and classic American films from the 1930s through the 1960s. On weekends, in the mid-1970s, local college students and teachers packed the place for a double-bill of great cinema. On weeknights, the place was always at least half full. It was a successful enterprise from 1974 to 1978.

In mid-1978, the original purveyors of the Wilshire as an art house sold the business to another owner. This new owner was one who had several such theaters around the Los Angeles metropolitan area. They remodeled the lobby and raised the admission prices. When it re-opened in late 1978, the schedule was more traditional Hollywood classic cinema such as “Bringing Up Baby” or “Casablanca.” Foreign films were scarce, and there were no more John Waters' flicks or midnight showings of offbeat cult films. It was around this time, when I graduated from CSUF, that I lost interest in the Wilshire. I also moved away.

When I came back in the mid-1980s, I visited the site. In 1986, the Wilshire was a Spanish-language theater. I took some photographs of it at that time, which was late ‘86 or early '87. I think that it did close for good shortly thereafter. Mind you, the theater itself was in a building that also had upstairs apartments, a bar, and a beauty salon.. Yes, inside the theater, there were the remnants of a community pool that had been converted into the theater. The balconies on each side were quite cozy and isolated. We even got away with smoking up there for a while before the fire marshal warned the management to put an end to it. I had a lot of good times in the Wilshire, although, yes, it was not a clean as it could have been. Yet, when I was in my twenties, such stuff did not bother me as much as it does now.

It does not surprise me to read that the place was torn down. Oh well, time marches on. With the advent of home video technology, the art house cinema business went bust. It is too bad. Films need to be seen on a big screen, but the convenience of a DVD and a five-pack of film noir classics cannot be beat either. So it goes. I never knew at the time I was attending pictures at the Wilshire that I was participating in a unique moment in American cultural history, that of the art house cinema. Now that I do know, I will cherish the memories for as long as I live.

I spent many a Saturday night at the Wilshire Fullerton, throwing rice and toast and doing the Time Warp. Great fun! The place was pretty well trashed so the owners (at the time, two Fullerton College film students) were pretty lenient about letting us make a mess, especially since the regulars stayed after to help sweep up. I remember the depth number marks still painted on the walls from when the place was a swimming pool. In addition to Rocky Horror every Saturday at midnight, the Wilshire was a great place to catch older and arthouse-type pics. I was first introduced to Lena Wertmuller and Federico Fellini there. They had a great frequent-users club called Celluloid Junkies Anonymous; I still have my old card somewhere, although that was over 30 years ago.

Here is a 1983 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/cgwa2d

This looks to be an interior photo shortly before the demolition:
http://tinyurl.com/yc9rwy9

Remembering my youth! First time remembering my attending the Wilshire Theater I was 8 years old. We’d just moved back to Fullerton, from Abbeville, Louisiana. The ticket price(s): $.14 = under 13; the price then ‘skyrocketed’ to $.50 until turning 18. And WOW, adults paid a whopping $.50!!! At 14, I went to work – with Kenny Blair – as an usher. Kenny and myself chagned the Marquee 3 times a week; Sunday – Tuesday, English, Wednesday was Spanish movie night, Thursday – Saturday back to English. (Our movies – usually the same ones – the “IT” theater, The Fox, were 6 months behind, because they recieved the ‘first run’ movies.) From 8 years of age my memories of the “search-light” shining out in front of The Fox are still, at 70 years of age, very very vivid. We could see them from my house which was 2 miles away… My best memory tells me that The Fox cost $.50! (maybe someone can verify/correct this) Only went one time and it still is so real. Plush “red"carpets, upstairs balconey (cost extra), expensive [for me] popcorn and coke. AND, I kissed my first girl there – as a Freshman – at Fullerton Union High School. [Back to The Wilshire]. At 8, Saturday matinee we had; 2 full movies, 3 cartoon’s, 1 ‘weekly’ Flash Gordon or ??? Cereal, and usually a Fox or Universal News highlights. Yep! All that for 14 cents. Our Mom gave my each brother and myself 25 cents which got us a movie ticket, and 2 out of three; popcorn, candy bar or soda, for just 10 cents! That left us one penny – which our Mom wanted back :)… All of this happened during the time period: 1949 – 1956… in Fullerton, California!