Pantages Theatre

Associated Press, August 10, 1929)
Alexander Pantages Involved with 16 Year-Old Dancer at Los Angeles.

Los Angeles, Cal., Aug. 10. â€" (AP)â€"Alexander Pantages, millionaire theatre magnate, today was charged with two offenses against a 16-year-old dancer, Eunice Prince, in a complaint issued by District Attorney Buron Fitts. Pantages' attorneys immediately announced they would institute habeas corpus proceedings.

Los Angeles, Cal., Aug. 10. â€" (AP) â€" Alexander Pantages, millionaire vaudeville theatre operator, was in the city jail today, charged with suspicion of committing a statutory offense against Eunice Pringle, 16-year-old dancer and daughter of a
Los Angeles physician.
Miss Pringle, who graduated from high school last year, the youngest in her class, and entered the University of Southern California, was placed in the custody o£ juvenile authorities after she had told the police that Pantages had attacked her.
Pantages was taken into custody yesterday when the girl ran out of his office screaming, her clothes disarranged.
One witness to the occurrence said Miss Pringle fell fainting out of the theatre magnate’s office. Other witnesses declared the clothing of both Pantages and the girl
was torn and disarranged. Several persons reported hearing the girl’s screams emanating from Pantages' office.

Denies Girl’s Charges.

The theatre magnate denied the girl’s charges and hinted that it was a “frameup.” He told police he had booked Miss Pringle two weeks ago for a dancing act, but that she
had proved a failure. He said she had frequented his office for two days, begging for another chance.
Pantages declared Miss Pringle asked him for an interview yesterday afternoon. After a preliminary conversation he said, she leaned close to him and said, “I’ll make you
take my act.” Pantages asserted the girl then pushed him into another room and ran down the hall.
Fred Weise, who was in the hall, told officers he heard the girl screaming and saw Miss Pringle emerge from Pantages' office with the theatre magnate chasing her. Weise
said the clothing of both Pantages and Miss Pringle was in disarray.

Got $15,000,000 Recently.

Chief of Detectives A. E. Taylor said Pantages told him that Miss Pringle, realizing she was not to be re-employed, forcibly removed his coat and then tried to tear the remainder of his clothing into a state of disarray.
District Attorney Buron Fitts said a formal complaint would be issued today, pending which the wealthy theatre operator was to be held in jail. Pantages recently sold six of his theatres to the Radio-Keith-Orpheum circuit for a reputed price of $12,000,000. This week he sold two others to a Hollywood corporation for $3,000,000. Pantages' wife, Mrs. Lois Pantages, is scheduled to go on trial here Sept. 2, on charges of second degree murder, resulting from the death of Joe Rokumoto, a Japanese, following the collision of their automobiles.

Thanks so much guys for putting these pictures on,what a lot of rich history.

Here’s a photo from Christmas Day 2007 that I recently featured on my blog:
Nothing Dies With Blue Skies.com- Pantages

Re: the All About on August 28th. The doors open at 10, the event starts at 10:30 a.m. As well as the history presentation, there will be an extensive tour of the theater.

nice. so does the theater now just show old movies? is that the ‘43 phantom with claude rains they are showing?

DOCUMENTARY ON CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD CINEMAS – Lookn for interviewees, photos, videos of old hollywood

Hello,

I’m and independent filmmaker working on a documentary about old movie theatres in hollywood (Iris, Warner, Pacific, Hollywood, Vogue, Grauman’s Chinese, Egyptian etc..) that have had an impact on the hollywood community, both as a symbol of Hollywood as well as the historical and heritage effects it has had on “hollywood” as an industry. We are profiling theatres that are currently functioning as well as the obsolete. If you worked in these theatres back in the day (during their highlights) and have interesting stories to tell, photos to show, video to talk about I would like to hear from you. Many older movie houses are being demolished due to new developments and it is important to help future generation know and understand how these movie palaces have helped shaped the Hollywood we know today. If you have any photos or videos with personal stories you’d like to share, please contact me (323) 876-0975 – – You must owns the materials you are willing to share (taken the picture- recorded the videos, written the letters, etc…)

If you do have materials you’d like to send that may help in accurate information, you are welcome to send it to me.

Jorge Ameer
Classic Hollywood Cinemas
Box 3204
Hollywood, California 90028

View link

ken mc: The undated photo from your post of Mar 21, 2009. Looks like it’s from 1930 the film was Clara Bow in “True to the Navy” (1930) from Paramount. With Slim Martin as the Orchestra leader on the bill. On Imdb and Film Daily shows a release date of May 25th. 1930. Which predates the theatres opening date. They had to have played the film after the opening attraction engagement.

Your post from May 14th. 2009 has “The Big Pond” (1930-Paramount) as the featured film. That film too has a predate issue for this theatre, it was released May 3rd, 1930.
These films may have released alittle later or were move-overs at the time.

Here is a February 1959 ad from the LA Times:
http://tinyurl.com/lbmoq3

Here is a color photo from Life, dated 1954:
http://tinyurl.com/lqyulz

Nice shots. I am going to show there tomorrow night, so maybe I can take some interior photos.

I had the great fortune as a writer to get press passes for the initial run of the original Riverdance when it premiered at the Pantages back in the mid-90’s. The tickets were worth $65 each and I had my nine years old daughter with me. We didn’t have much money as I was enrolled back in college so the temptation to sell the tickets was great, yet the integrity of the trade as a writer, meant the pen was mighter than the dollar, so we went to see Riverdance and it was incredible. Everytime I saw Riverdance over the years, I always remember how special it was being at the Pantages.

I bought tickets today to see Fiddler on the Roof with Topol next month. Topol was the star of the film version in the late sixties. Should be a great show.