Los Angeles Theatre

Here is an early photo of the Los Angeles from the LAPL. Date is 1932:
http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics30/00049663.jpg

There was a cyclone fence across the front of the theater today. No one was around, so I couldn’t ask what was going on.

Hmmm… Well, that must be the guy then, and Brady Westwater is a good friend of his (Brady was at the party, too). And, believe me, if there is anybody you want standing up for the Los Angeles Theater, it’s Brady Westwater. That theater would be compromised over his dead body.

I met the owner of the Palace Theater at a party after the opera we did there (a very young man whose name I’ve forgotten). He also owns the restaurant where the party was, which had wonderful photos on the walls of the Palace Theater in its original vaudeville state). He said he had just bought a much smaller theater downtown as well, but I don’t think he owns the Los Angeles Theater.

If you contact Brady Westwater at http://lacowboy.blogspot.com/

I’m sure he could tell you the owner(s) of the Los Angeles Theater.

(I wish it were the guy who owns the Palace – like I said, a young guy who seems to have unlimited funds – he treated the entire cast to drinks and dinner at his restaurant – and a great appreciation for the history of the theaters on Broadway.)

There is actually lots of parking at the Pershing Square underground lot, which is only a block away from the theater. At the opera production I was in, mentioned above, a discount rate was negotiated with this parking facility for people with a validated ticket. It worked beautifully.

But the Los Angeles does have a shallow stage and limited backstage facilities, which compromise it for live productions. If some enterprising person would buy the property in back of it, the backstage area could be completely redone.

Everybody stands in line once a year for the last remaining seats show. Other than private parties, that’s about it. But, as we’ve said on some of the other pages, is there enough demand to keep a first run theater going in DTLA? I guess the Staples people will find out when they open up their multiplex in a few years. There will be an increased need for entertainment if the downtown population continues to multiply.

You’re right. My apologies.

The State is leased to a Hispanic church, which doesn’t want it to be used for other anything else, period. The situation at the UA is more interesting. That theatre is owned by the Gene Scott ministries. When Dr. Scott first acquired the State he not only spent a lot of money restoring it but seemed to be open to the idea of it being used for other purposes when not needed for church services (Sunday mornings), much like the old Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena. In fact, Last Remaining Seats had a couple of screenings at the theatre with his blessing and he allowed the Conservancy’s Saturday morning tours in there on a regular basis. However, one always felt that he was a little nervous about having “strangers” in his building. His church attendees were carefully screened (you couldn’t attend services without making a reservation in advance) and when the Conservancy tour groups came in they were always accompanied by one or more church security people and closely watched throughout their visit. So at a certain point he informed the Conservancy that no more LRS or other outside events would be permitted at the theatre. The tours continued, however, until 9/11, at which point his apparent nervousness about possible “terrorist” plots prompted him to terminate those as well. Dr. Scott died recently and the church is now in the hands of his widow, who seems even less inclined to allow outside groups in. (“This is a church, not a tourist attraction!”) So it appears that the beautifully restored UA will, for the foreseeable future, be off-limits to anyone except the church parishioners.

I was there last night to view “Roman Holiday” as part of the Last Remaining Seats series. I had never been to the theater and wow — I agree with all the above comments. I’ve never seen such detail, such craftsmanship in a theater. The three levels of seating, the enormous rooms downstairs that weren’t even utilized (the ones separating the bathrooms; the “lounge”, what looked like a kitchen). What a labyrinth. Security wasn’t tight and we were tempted to sneak up the various stairwells but decided not to. An amazing place. I hope they replace the worn carpet and continue the restoration. Wouldn’t it be great to see movies here again all the time? The audience sure appreciated it.

Here is a circa 1940s photo from the USC archive:
http://tinyurl.com/2xxzog

The “old drive-in in Culver City” mentioned above was the Studio Drive-In where Jefferson and Sepulveda come together. Unfortunately, it has been demolished. A housing project is on the site.

I was in downtown Culver City yesterday and saw that the Old Culver Theater, a wonderful old Art Deco movie house, has been turned into the Kirk Douglas Theater, a legitimate theater. It’s near the Culver Hotel, where the Munchkins were put up during the filming of Wizard of Oz – it’s the tallest building in town. You can’t miss it.

I will bet that if you offer the Iglesia people at the State some amount of money, they will set up a big movie screen on the stage, assuming the old one is not there anymore. I would pay to see a movie there, or in the Million Dollar.

I always appreciate the program, so I don’t want to appear to be grousing. However, it seems like the theater rotation was better when I started attending a decade ago. I suppose it’s not possible to screen films in some of the other Broadway theaters, like the State for example, but I’m not too motivated to see a movie at the Ford that I can watch on AMC. The idea is to see the movies in the original settings. Just an opinion.