X 1 & 2 Theatres
5959 Hollywood Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
5959 Hollywood Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
12 people
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Showing 26 - 46 of 46 comments
All three theatres were very close together, but I don’t think they were all open at the same time. I’m pretty sure the Hawaii closed a few years before the building the X 1&2 was in was converted into a theatre. I can’t remember what was in that building before.
So Left to right on Hollywood Blvd, there was the World, X1&X2 and the Hawaii, all on the same block? amazing. Now this area is a total eyesore. It’s hard to imagine people flocking to this part of Hollywood blvd. for one theater let alone three.
shatter: The World was in the dark building at far left, beyond the parking lot you can see in the first of the three pictures hollywood90038 linked to above. If you look at the third of the three pictures, you can see a corner of the building where the Hawaii Theatre was located, just past another parking lot east of the Florentine Gardens.
where exactly was the World theater in relation to the X1&2?
I used to go to this theater back when Johnny Legend and Eric Caiden of Hollywood Book and Poster ran it as the “Hawaiian Gardens” in the early ‘90s, for about 6 months or so. I was under the impression (I think Johnny told me this) that the people from Florentine Gardens owned it. They would share the parking lot. There were some amazing double and triple, and maybe even quadruple bills — strange exploitation films like “Switchblade Sisters” and “Let me Die a Woman.” It was a pleasure to attend this theater every weekend. Unfortunately not enough filmgoers were into this and I think it folded after a few months. The manager was some nutcase named Dale who gave Johnny a hard time and had no apprectiation for either the films or the fans. Once, I started asking him a question and before I uttered three words he said, “no, no…no, NO!”…JERK.
It’s the Republicans, Robert.
I wonder why my above introduction was edited after all this time?
Thanks, Christian,
I took the picture. I am the webmaster for http://www.myhollywoodstar.com I used to go to that theater in the 1980s when they had double features. I also worked outside the building as an movie extra. That was probably an episode of Hollywood Beat.
I worked with Johnny Legend in Bug Buster. There is a scene with the band, Trailer Park Trash. That is Johnny and Melba Toast on vocals. Johnny on sax. Myself on keyboard and a drummer.
I believe that theater is near the Free Clinic. It has been empty for a long time.
Tom Willett
I found a great current photo of this theater….
http://www.myhollywoodstar.com/Emptyshowx.jpg
The theatre just west of this would have been a better choice for a revival house. The old World Theatre (formerly the Marcal Theatre) on Hollywood Blvd..
View link
This picture shows the X in it’s glory days
This would make a good revival house.
What condition is this place on the inside?
I’ve always heard Johnny Legend and others refer to this theatre as the “Hawaiian Gardens” (which always threw me because this place is nowhere near the actual L.A. suburb of Hawaiian Gardens). I suppose that was a tie-in to the popular Florentine Gardens nightclub next door.
Now that there is a dustup involving the city wanting to seize the Florentine Gardens property for a new fire station, does anyone know if that would include this building as well?
The giant X was almost a landmark, a symbol of the crazy 70’s when porn co-existed beside studioe releases.
Any idea what condition the X 1 & 2’s interior (and, for that matter, the exterior) is in?
Yes, is the giant X still there?
Is this the theatre which had a huge neon “X” outside?
In the early ‘90’s, cult musician/wrestling promoter/Andy Kaufman collaborator Johnny Legend presented movie events on one of the screens of the X, which I believe was renamed the Hawaiian Gardens to tie in with the Florentine Gardens nightclub that was next door. Legend says that at least once, the manager of the place got violent with him, which explains why his movie nights did not go on for very long.
At last look, the building is still standing, if someone felt brave enough to give it another go. No clue on who owns the property though.
This theatre is located at 5959 Hollywood Boulevard.
Exterior of theater and ticket booth can be seen in the 1981 film Exhausted(which PT Anderson used as his inspiration for the 1997 film Boogie Nights). Carlos Tobalina also ran the Mayan theater as an XXX house in the 1970’s.