The Older auditorium was beautiful… but built of wood but a major fire trap. My grandmother was a founding member of the Long Beach Symphony Society and spent many nights in the old auditorium in the 1920s and said that the its accoustics were great, but the ocean waves were easily heard beneath the floorboards. Here is a photo of that older venue from 1929, which shows the State Theater behind it… notice this angle is looking north-east towards Ocean Blvd…. notice the rail tracks.. this was for the trolley cars whick came to the ocean at the end of the line….. within a year or two that was to become the start of a pleasure pier to drive around in your automobile and the famous “spit and argue” club… a sort of poor mans “Toastmasters”….. http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014875.jpg
The 1932 building was massive, spectacular and beautifully versitile.. it had a symphony hall as well as a “hippodrome” type of arena for events. Here are some interesting shots of that amazing building, which I was fortunate enough to see one time inside before it’s destruction for the new Pacific Terrace Theater…. in this west-facing shot, you will see the State Theater in the distance in front of the entrance to the auditorium just to the right … it was about 2 blocks further down Seaside Avenue….. http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014881.jpg
Here is the symphony hall in 1932, which was housed in the circular ocean-facing area on the south side… the painting on the ceiling was amazing….. http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014868.jpg
Here is the large “hippodrome” sized convention area in 1932, which was used for rodeos, conventions, rock concerts, basketball games and hundreds of other uses…… for many years in the late 40s through the early 60s, Long Beach was host to the “Miss International Beauty and American Beauty” pagent… it was held in this room….. http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014873.jpg
Here is beautiful mosaic mural that was designed by Stanton Macdonald-Wright and placed on the facade facing Ocean Blvd. The last time I saw this in 1989, it had been saved, removed and re-installed to the entrance of the new Long Beach Mall downtown… not sure if it is still there or not… maybe someone knows… of course, most of these classic buildings are long gone from downtown Long Beach today and the waterfront has been extended well beyond where the Rainbow Pier used to be….. http://newdeal.feri.org/smw/3.jpg
Hi Warren, as far as I know, it has simply been “the Pantages”, however, for some of us who have lived in the Los Angeles area for a while, we often refer to it as the “Hollywood Pantages” to avoid confusion with the “Los Angeles Pantages” at 7th and Hill Streets, later renamed the Warner Theater, which is only a few miles away. In San Diego, there was also a “San Diego Pantages”, as well. They all were operating in the 30s and 40s under the same name from what I can tell…
The story of the Los Angeles Pantages at Cinema Treasures /theaters/491/
The story of the San Diego Pantages at San Diego Historical Society View link
Hi GerryC. There are 2 theaters seen in “Ed Wood” . The first theater scene, where the crowd goes wild and is throwing popcorn is where the cast of “Plan 9” exits in a hurry and the film that is on the marquee is “Bride of the Monster”. The theater used for that scene was in Torrance and was called “The Stadium” theater but renamed especially for the film as “The Aurora”. It has since been demolished. The story of that theater is at /theaters/1908/
As you mention, the Pantages was the theater we see Ed and the cast of “Plan 9 from Outer Space” attend the premier of, but only Ed and his bride-to-be exit to the pouring rain at the end of the movie. I am not sure which theater “Plan 9” actually had it’s premier, but I don’t think it was the Pantages… however, the Pantages did give the movie that triumphant feel that Ed Wood actually accomplished his goal of being a movie director to be recognized. One note: Ed meets Orson Welles in a restaurant… that real life place is a few blocks from the Pantages and is called “Musso and Frank Grille” and has been a fixture on the boulevard for about 90 years. A bit of old Hollywood that still looks pretty much the same as it did in the 50s when I first went there as a boy.
Does anyone else know where the Wood films first showed? Do those venues still exsist?
On December 16, 1939, Monrovia Police Officer Scott Vernon Smith, 28, was chasing a speeding suspect on his motorcycle on Foothill Boulevard when 2 small children darted in front of his motorcycle running to the Lyric Theater matinee. They were late, so they were crossing the street in the middle of the block. He knew he could not have avoided hitting the kids, so he instinctively and intentionally turned his motorcycle at Ivy and Foothill, skidded across the curb and actually crashed into the east end of the Lyric Theater lobby.
Only moments before there were dozens of children in the lobby waiting to enter the auditorium. Theater manager John Nylen opened the lobby early, otherwise, the scene might have been even more tragic… but the officer struck his head on the stucco of the wall so hard, the metal reinforcing under-structure was exposed.
Dr. Robert Crusan, who was in the theater with his children was quickly on the scene and even went to the hospital with the officer, but the policeman died of his injuries a short time later. Services were held at the First Christian Church under Rev. Stanley Bond and Rev. Quick of the Free Methodist Church. Interment was at Live Oak Cemetery. It was obvious that the officer sacrificed his own life to avoid hitting the children. He loved kids and had actually spent his spare time teaching school kids bicycle safety.
The Village theater in Westwood was less than a year old on January 11, 1932, when it was the site of a murder. Detective Lieut. Hugh A. Crowley of the Los Angeles Police Dept. (who worked for the office of the chief), went to the theater after a call. Unknown to him were two robbery suspects who were in building in the act of committing their crime… and they heard him enter. They hid, and saw him go into the theater office, then walked over and waited just outside the door. When he emerged, they shot him to death. Before he died, the detective. who was a great shot, was able to pull out his revolver and shoot the gun from one of the mens hand. The detective died a few moments later on the floor of the lobby. There is a photo showing the scene taken just after the incident on file at the Los Angeles Public Library, but it is graphic, so I decided that those who are interested can go there and look it up on line for themselves at http://www.lapd.org
The Ricardo Montalban Theater on Vine Street in Hollywood, CA. was bought by the Latino theater group “Nosotros” in 2000. They have returned the theater to it’s original 1927 facade, and are CURRENTLY restoring the interior. The management of the theater man are very responsive and quite interested in the theater’s history and returning it as much as possible to its original Beaux Arts appearance. If you wish to contact them, I am sure they would be very thrilled with your project. Let me know if I can help. I write the history of the theater here at cinematreasures.org…
The second is about 1922 or so… note the ORIGINAL Municipal Auditorium is behind it… that was torn down in the mid-1930s I believe.. maybe you can find out for sure, Joe … http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014894.jpg
Here is a 1929 view with the building ALMOST completed… you can see the old tiles where the floors USED to end.. and in the 1960s, that line was still visible, by the way… http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014903.jpg
Here is the building looking great in the 1930s with a crowd lining up to see the stage show and “picture” (as movies were called back then)… http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014899.jpg
On the movie “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World”, my best guess without going back and still-framing the scene on my DVD is that it was the RIVOLI. That theater is listed here, however, it says it is on American Ave. and that street was re-named Long Beach Boulevard many years ago.
The police station used in the move was actually the YMCA on Long Beach Boulevard near 6th Avenue (and no longer used as that, if it still exsists). The Rivoli would have been in the same block or two as the YMCA. In that same scene, you will see the auto dealership across the street is Cormier Chevrolet. They are still in business, and are now located off the 405 in nearby Wilmington.
By the way, there is another theater visible in the film. During the chase scene on the long-gone Rainbow Pier, you can quickly see the “Tracy” theater, which was located on Seaside Ave. It’s also gone now.
Wow… here is an enterprising company that has taken FOUR lovely old movie palaces and restored them! Wait.. they did it in Kansas! … And the theaters are making money! Why can’t we do this on Hollywood Boulevard with those lovely and historic theaters that are boarded up in the “movie capitol of the world?”
The “FIne Arts Group” of Kansas deserves some serious credit for the great job on these grand venues! Bravo!
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?
Well said, Joe! By the way, the reason the Hollywood Playhouse/El Capitan/Palace theater is not listed here at cinematreasures.org 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.
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.
Right pmiller! I saw the Lion King a couple of years ago at the Pantages and it was quite spectacular and the theater was packed the night I was there. There were many “ooohs and ahhs” by the hundreds of children in the theater during intermission, as well. I think the Pacific, with it’s size, history, and proportion, seems like one of the few spectacular sized venues left for musicals or live performances in the area. I sure hope we get a benefactor to rescue it!
As far as what is left in Hollywood, please let’s not forget the newly aquired live stage theater… the “Ricardo Montalban” (old Huntington Hartford) on Vine Street, which has dedicated it’s future to the presentation of live theater by the group “Nosotros”, which is specifically designed to present productions by and/or with Latin American actors, directors and performers. They have somewhat completed the facade restoration so the theater looks more like it’s Beaux Arts roots of 1926 and the interior is presently being worked on to match. I am doing some historic research for the management on my own and have written the story of that theater at the following link. I continue to discover new details every week.
pmiller…. thanks for the insight. When these great theaters were built, we did not have television and these showplaces were a central feature to entertain the masses. In my opinion, we also had better mass transit in Hollywood. My mom did not have a car, but we were able to get everywhere on the red car line and streetcars. It was relatively safe and fun. When we went out, we always hired a nice taxicab. That was the way to go. Today we have huge home entertainment systems and classic films have become part of our domestic life as never before. So now I wonder what we can show in the great theaters that will bring the crowds back? Many of the cinemas that are still intact theaters have become cultural art centers, symphony halls, opera houses, churches and live stage venues. What other uses can we give them to save them? Your point that they have a practical use is quite valid.
I saw the first run of CHINATOWN in 1974 at this theater. It was still quite classy and very clean. It was intimate and I remember the popcorn was very good.
I lived just a couple of doors north of the STRAIGHT Theater in San Francisco from July, 1972 through December 1973 or so, and the theater was boarded up and closed during that time. The last time I saw it was around 1980 and it was still boarded up. I understand there were indeed rock concerts held there a couple of years before I arrived. It was supposed to be really run down when the hippies arrived and some actually camped out in the theater. Some rats got into the pitch dark and dank theater and that sort of finished it off, from what I was told.
Hi William, great info! Wonder if you have any memoribilia from when the theater showed the west coast premier of “2001: A Space Odyssey.” There were custom made glass panels with back-lit scenes from the movie which were in the showcases in the area around the box office. They were so striking. Would love to know where they are today.
Also wonder if you found any “KEYS” from the “Andromeda Strain” premier in 1971… the ticket people and ushers wore them on chains around their necks like the “single male” character in the film. Gosh, that’s when you remembered a movie opening!
The Older auditorium was beautiful… but built of wood but a major fire trap. My grandmother was a founding member of the Long Beach Symphony Society and spent many nights in the old auditorium in the 1920s and said that the its accoustics were great, but the ocean waves were easily heard beneath the floorboards. Here is a photo of that older venue from 1929, which shows the State Theater behind it… notice this angle is looking north-east towards Ocean Blvd…. notice the rail tracks.. this was for the trolley cars whick came to the ocean at the end of the line….. within a year or two that was to become the start of a pleasure pier to drive around in your automobile and the famous “spit and argue” club… a sort of poor mans “Toastmasters”…..
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014875.jpg
The 1932 building was massive, spectacular and beautifully versitile.. it had a symphony hall as well as a “hippodrome” type of arena for events. Here are some interesting shots of that amazing building, which I was fortunate enough to see one time inside before it’s destruction for the new Pacific Terrace Theater…. in this west-facing shot, you will see the State Theater in the distance in front of the entrance to the auditorium just to the right … it was about 2 blocks further down Seaside Avenue…..
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014881.jpg
Here is the symphony hall in 1932, which was housed in the circular ocean-facing area on the south side… the painting on the ceiling was amazing…..
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014868.jpg
Here is the large “hippodrome” sized convention area in 1932, which was used for rodeos, conventions, rock concerts, basketball games and hundreds of other uses…… for many years in the late 40s through the early 60s, Long Beach was host to the “Miss International Beauty and American Beauty” pagent… it was held in this room…..
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014873.jpg
Here is beautiful mosaic mural that was designed by Stanton Macdonald-Wright and placed on the facade facing Ocean Blvd. The last time I saw this in 1989, it had been saved, removed and re-installed to the entrance of the new Long Beach Mall downtown… not sure if it is still there or not… maybe someone knows… of course, most of these classic buildings are long gone from downtown Long Beach today and the waterfront has been extended well beyond where the Rainbow Pier used to be…..
http://newdeal.feri.org/smw/3.jpg
Hi Warren, as far as I know, it has simply been “the Pantages”, however, for some of us who have lived in the Los Angeles area for a while, we often refer to it as the “Hollywood Pantages” to avoid confusion with the “Los Angeles Pantages” at 7th and Hill Streets, later renamed the Warner Theater, which is only a few miles away. In San Diego, there was also a “San Diego Pantages”, as well. They all were operating in the 30s and 40s under the same name from what I can tell…
The story of the Los Angeles Pantages at Cinema Treasures
/theaters/491/
The story of the San Diego Pantages at San Diego Historical Society
View link
Hi GerryC. There are 2 theaters seen in “Ed Wood” . The first theater scene, where the crowd goes wild and is throwing popcorn is where the cast of “Plan 9” exits in a hurry and the film that is on the marquee is “Bride of the Monster”. The theater used for that scene was in Torrance and was called “The Stadium” theater but renamed especially for the film as “The Aurora”. It has since been demolished. The story of that theater is at /theaters/1908/
As you mention, the Pantages was the theater we see Ed and the cast of “Plan 9 from Outer Space” attend the premier of, but only Ed and his bride-to-be exit to the pouring rain at the end of the movie. I am not sure which theater “Plan 9” actually had it’s premier, but I don’t think it was the Pantages… however, the Pantages did give the movie that triumphant feel that Ed Wood actually accomplished his goal of being a movie director to be recognized. One note: Ed meets Orson Welles in a restaurant… that real life place is a few blocks from the Pantages and is called “Musso and Frank Grille” and has been a fixture on the boulevard for about 90 years. A bit of old Hollywood that still looks pretty much the same as it did in the 50s when I first went there as a boy.
Does anyone else know where the Wood films first showed? Do those venues still exsist?
On December 16, 1939, Monrovia Police Officer Scott Vernon Smith, 28, was chasing a speeding suspect on his motorcycle on Foothill Boulevard when 2 small children darted in front of his motorcycle running to the Lyric Theater matinee. They were late, so they were crossing the street in the middle of the block. He knew he could not have avoided hitting the kids, so he instinctively and intentionally turned his motorcycle at Ivy and Foothill, skidded across the curb and actually crashed into the east end of the Lyric Theater lobby.
Only moments before there were dozens of children in the lobby waiting to enter the auditorium. Theater manager John Nylen opened the lobby early, otherwise, the scene might have been even more tragic… but the officer struck his head on the stucco of the wall so hard, the metal reinforcing under-structure was exposed.
Dr. Robert Crusan, who was in the theater with his children was quickly on the scene and even went to the hospital with the officer, but the policeman died of his injuries a short time later. Services were held at the First Christian Church under Rev. Stanley Bond and Rev. Quick of the Free Methodist Church. Interment was at Live Oak Cemetery. It was obvious that the officer sacrificed his own life to avoid hitting the children. He loved kids and had actually spent his spare time teaching school kids bicycle safety.
The Village theater in Westwood was less than a year old on January 11, 1932, when it was the site of a murder. Detective Lieut. Hugh A. Crowley of the Los Angeles Police Dept. (who worked for the office of the chief), went to the theater after a call. Unknown to him were two robbery suspects who were in building in the act of committing their crime… and they heard him enter. They hid, and saw him go into the theater office, then walked over and waited just outside the door. When he emerged, they shot him to death. Before he died, the detective. who was a great shot, was able to pull out his revolver and shoot the gun from one of the mens hand. The detective died a few moments later on the floor of the lobby. There is a photo showing the scene taken just after the incident on file at the Los Angeles Public Library, but it is graphic, so I decided that those who are interested can go there and look it up on line for themselves at http://www.lapd.org
Here is a clearer and wider shot of the photo above, which shows the organ ranks a bit better…..
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015509.jpg
Here is a great closeup from 1968 of the theater entrance…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater2/00015012.jpg
Hello Barbara,
The Ricardo Montalban Theater on Vine Street in Hollywood, CA. was bought by the Latino theater group “Nosotros” in 2000. They have returned the theater to it’s original 1927 facade, and are CURRENTLY restoring the interior. The management of the theater man are very responsive and quite interested in the theater’s history and returning it as much as possible to its original Beaux Arts appearance. If you wish to contact them, I am sure they would be very thrilled with your project. Let me know if I can help. I write the history of the theater here at cinematreasures.org…
/theaters/9863/
Christian Anderson
Palm Springs, CA
RIght you are Joe!!
Here are some great photos of the building.
The first is the Markwell Building in 1918 under construction…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014897.jpg
The second is about 1922 or so… note the ORIGINAL Municipal Auditorium is behind it… that was torn down in the mid-1930s I believe.. maybe you can find out for sure, Joe …
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014894.jpg
Here is a photo from about 1928 with the new additon of floors under construction…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014901.jpg
Here is a 1929 view with the building ALMOST completed… you can see the old tiles where the floors USED to end.. and in the 1960s, that line was still visible, by the way…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014903.jpg
Here is the building looking great in the 1930s with a crowd lining up to see the stage show and “picture” (as movies were called back then)…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014899.jpg
Here is the stage show (vaudeville) players and the marquee in the background…
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014904.jpg
The auditorium….
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater1/00014898.jpg
On the movie “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World”, my best guess without going back and still-framing the scene on my DVD is that it was the RIVOLI. That theater is listed here, however, it says it is on American Ave. and that street was re-named Long Beach Boulevard many years ago.
The police station used in the move was actually the YMCA on Long Beach Boulevard near 6th Avenue (and no longer used as that, if it still exsists). The Rivoli would have been in the same block or two as the YMCA. In that same scene, you will see the auto dealership across the street is Cormier Chevrolet. They are still in business, and are now located off the 405 in nearby Wilmington.
By the way, there is another theater visible in the film. During the chase scene on the long-gone Rainbow Pier, you can quickly see the “Tracy” theater, which was located on Seaside Ave. It’s also gone now.
Wow… here is an enterprising company that has taken FOUR lovely old movie palaces and restored them! Wait.. they did it in Kansas! … And the theaters are making money! Why can’t we do this on Hollywood Boulevard with those lovely and historic theaters that are boarded up in the “movie capitol of the world?”
The “FIne Arts Group” of Kansas deserves some serious credit for the great job on these grand venues! Bravo!
Here is a great photograph of the theater from 1943…..
View link
Here is a night view of the Alcazar from 1946….
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics35/00037280.jpg
Thanks Joe! Yes, I recall the Las Palmas as well!
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?
Well said, Joe! By the way, the reason the Hollywood Playhouse/El Capitan/Palace theater is not listed here at cinematreasures.org 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.
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.
Right pmiller! I saw the Lion King a couple of years ago at the Pantages and it was quite spectacular and the theater was packed the night I was there. There were many “ooohs and ahhs” by the hundreds of children in the theater during intermission, as well. I think the Pacific, with it’s size, history, and proportion, seems like one of the few spectacular sized venues left for musicals or live performances in the area. I sure hope we get a benefactor to rescue it!
As far as what is left in Hollywood, please let’s not forget the newly aquired live stage theater… the “Ricardo Montalban” (old Huntington Hartford) on Vine Street, which has dedicated it’s future to the presentation of live theater by the group “Nosotros”, which is specifically designed to present productions by and/or with Latin American actors, directors and performers. They have somewhat completed the facade restoration so the theater looks more like it’s Beaux Arts roots of 1926 and the interior is presently being worked on to match. I am doing some historic research for the management on my own and have written the story of that theater at the following link. I continue to discover new details every week.
/theaters/9863/
It’s actually a great name for a theater: According to the dictionary…
RITZ
n. Informal
“Elegant, often ostentatious display.”
Idiom:
“to put on the ritz” (Informal)
“To behave or live in an elegant, ostentatious manner.”
pmiller…. thanks for the insight. When these great theaters were built, we did not have television and these showplaces were a central feature to entertain the masses. In my opinion, we also had better mass transit in Hollywood. My mom did not have a car, but we were able to get everywhere on the red car line and streetcars. It was relatively safe and fun. When we went out, we always hired a nice taxicab. That was the way to go. Today we have huge home entertainment systems and classic films have become part of our domestic life as never before. So now I wonder what we can show in the great theaters that will bring the crowds back? Many of the cinemas that are still intact theaters have become cultural art centers, symphony halls, opera houses, churches and live stage venues. What other uses can we give them to save them? Your point that they have a practical use is quite valid.
A couple of other theaters in Southern California have had “South Pacific” decor…
One I remember was the HAWAII Theater in Hollywood…
/theaters/1986/
I recently found another here on cinematreasures.org, but can’t remember the name now.
You are correct, the South Sea decor must be a very rare design theme.
I saw the first run of CHINATOWN in 1974 at this theater. It was still quite classy and very clean. It was intimate and I remember the popcorn was very good.
I lived just a couple of doors north of the STRAIGHT Theater in San Francisco from July, 1972 through December 1973 or so, and the theater was boarded up and closed during that time. The last time I saw it was around 1980 and it was still boarded up. I understand there were indeed rock concerts held there a couple of years before I arrived. It was supposed to be really run down when the hippies arrived and some actually camped out in the theater. Some rats got into the pitch dark and dank theater and that sort of finished it off, from what I was told.
Sorry, that last comment was intended for pmiller.
Hi William, great info! Wonder if you have any memoribilia from when the theater showed the west coast premier of “2001: A Space Odyssey.” There were custom made glass panels with back-lit scenes from the movie which were in the showcases in the area around the box office. They were so striking. Would love to know where they are today.
Also wonder if you found any “KEYS” from the “Andromeda Strain” premier in 1971… the ticket people and ushers wore them on chains around their necks like the “single male” character in the film. Gosh, that’s when you remembered a movie opening!