Regent Theatre
448 S. Main Street,
Los Angeles,
CA
90013
448 S. Main Street,
Los Angeles,
CA
90013
14 people
favorited this theater
Showing 51 - 75 of 137 comments
I always right click and open in a new window…let me know if that works for you
Vokoban, the LAPL database is acting up again. When I click on article, the whole page disappears. Let me know if you’ve experienced the same. Thanks.
The Regent (operating as the National) and the Banner were certainly both open at the same time in 1915, according to the Times article from that year Ken cited on July 2, 2007. We know that the Banner has been at 458 S. Main in recent times (I saw it there myself.) The questionable caption (almost certainly containing an error in the address) cites events from 1918 and (presumably) 1922.
But, while there are sources from before 1918 and after 1922 proving the Banner to have been located south of the Regent at those times, this information does not preclude the possibility of the Banner’s owner having gotten hold of the lease on the National, moved his operation there for a few years, and then, due to another reversal of fortune, having to return his business and its name to its previous location.
Signage of theatres was usually of a sort easily moved in those days. Due to shadow in this 1920s photo, the Banner’s signage can barely be made out, but it looks like the same small board (minus the neon which was obviously added later) seen in this night view from 1965. The Regent, though, had a spiffy little marquee in the 1920s (on which the name is not readable in this view, alas.)
So, while it seems most likely that the caption writer (or the source the caption writer used) got the address of the Banner wrong, none of the evidence at hand is conclusive. That’s why I suggest checking a city directory from about 1919-1921. If the directory shows that the Banner was not at the Regent’s address, or that the National or Regent was at the Regent’s address, then the caption is certainly wrong. Ads from the period showing addresses for either theatre would do as well.
You can clearly see on this overlay that the Banner was a few doors south of the Regent where the parking lot is located now. Both say ‘moving pictures’.
View link
I don’t think the Banner and Regent were the same. There are too many articles naming them separately in the same time period. Plus, the Banner was there earlier. The Regent was operating at the time of the 1955 article. Here are a few from the Banner page:
(Jan 1, 1937)
Harry E. Ransome, who opertated the Banner Theater at Fifth and Main streets up to 1913, asserted that Los Angeles had grown so that if he had been dropped somewhere without anybody to show him around that he would have become lost.
(March 27, 1955)
Workmen uncovered the relic when a new front was constructed on the Banner Building in 1952. The machine (1 ½ ton music box organ) was in sad condition. Rats had made a home in it, hundreds of feet of rubber tubing had disintegrated, moths had eaten the felt, and the electric motor, colored lights and other parts had vanished.
I wondered about the caption myself. The address for the Banner on its CT page is 458 S. Main, but I suppose it’s possible that the Regent was once called the Banner. Theatre operators would sometimes take the name with them when they moved to a new location (Woodley’s Optic, for example), especially in the early days.
Incidentally, the assessors information for the Regent building gives a construction date of 1914, so the caption can’t be referring to an earlier building at the same address. I guess somebody should check the city directories from the era.
I don’t think the caption is correct, as the Banner was a few doors south. It’s possible that the Banner was an early name for the Regent, but I haven’t seen any evidence to that effect.
Here is a 1967 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/yr6687
They still have the sheet metal over the marquee panels. I’ve been waiting for some progress on that, but nothing yet.
Maybe they are going to knock out the side walls above the lobby/ticket booth area where the projection room and storage area are located. I think the adjoining stores on either side have upstairs. I was up in the projection room area and there’s barely enough room to turn around.
That’s going to be a little crowded. Thanks for the information.
The gate was up when I drove by this morning. Anybody know of any upcoing events?
Here is a recent LA Times blog:
http://tinyurl.com/2m6tv9
Tom Gilmore owns the property now and plans to turn it into a live music/theater venue. The seats were removed long ago but the theater isn’t gutted. The floor is still sloped and all of the details are still in the ceiling although they have been painted white. Apparently, the molding and details that have been damaged over the years are being recast to match as close as possible. The amazing thing is that if you get a chance to go upstairs you can see the original nickelodeon style brick arch behind the 40’s exterior remodel.
The Regent Theatre was open during the Los Angeles Conservancy’s recent Mainly Main tour. The auditorium is completed gutted as is most of the lobby. However, no one seemed to have any answer as to what the theater will be used for in the future.
The marquee looks exactly the same as it appears in movies from the 40’s. I doubt it was replaced since then. It looks pretty worn but is supposedly going to be restored soon.
Does anyone recall when the Regent Theater’s facade was remodeled to its present state? It dates to at least 1973. Perhaps a remodel after sustaining damage from the Sylmar earthquake?
The original was quite elaborate, with white terra cotta and arched windows.
The Regent has a new coat of yellow paint. I imagine they may try and get the marquee operational in the near future, if only to use it for special events. It would be nice to see the marquee lit up.
Does anybody know which theater would be at 4th & Spring with Gore’s name attached also? Could it be the Hotchkiss?
(June 29, 1921)
Gores’s Capitol Theater-Spring and Fourth
“Zig Zag Land"
Armstrong’s Baby Dolls
Friday Nite: Chorus Girls' Contest.
I think Tom Gilmore owns it or at least has the lease on it.
Does anyone know who to contact, to rent the Regent Theater to stage a theatrical performance?
The Main Street Regent was the National as of 6/30/15. A story in the LA Times describes a fire at a business at 454 S. Main. The fire put out moviegoers in the Banner to the South and the National to the north.
ken mc: I’m thinking that maybe the Spring Street theatre was the one called Gore’s Regent. Your earlier reference (in your comment of May 29) to Gore’s Regent was published in 1920, and now there’s an ad for a Regent Theatre on Spring Street in 1925. It seems likely that the Main Street theatre, originally called the National Theatre (per Ken Roe’s comment of May 9), would not have been given the name Regent until some time later, after the Regent on Spring Street had been closed.
I’m unable to find a theatre at the 447 S. Spring Street address listed at Cinema Treasures under any name. I might have missed it though.
Ok, there’s three Regents listed. The LA Times in 1925 has an ad for the Regent on 447 S. Spring. This may be under another name, but I know it’s not already listed as the Regent as I have accounted for all three to date. Any ideas?
I’m going blind. Thanks.