I was an usher at the Magnolia for a couple years while I was in high school. Eventually became assistant manager until I went off to college in 1962. The owner/manager, Jack Grossman, was a good friend of my father, who worked for Columbia Pictures. It was a beautifully run and maintained neighborhood theatre, down to the smallest detail, including excellent sound and projection. A large curved screen was installed while I was working there. The projectionist was fastidious about keeping the picture in focus, an art that seems to have been lost in subsequent decades.
Does anyone know of photos of the Hollywood Paramount auditorium in the 50s and early 60s (I’ve asked this before), the era of Sayonara, Vertigo and Gigi, before the unfortunate gold-glitz job that was finally (fortunately) obliterated in the theatre’s El Capitanization? For those of us who spent many happy hours during those years in that elegantly draped venue, which complimented and enhanced any film (only the Chinese during the same period, before its “refurbishment” and the late, lamented Carthay Circle were comparable), the memories are indelible.
Does anyone know of photos of the Hollywood Paramount auditorium in the 50s and early 60s (I’ve asked this before), the era of Sayonara, Vertigo and Gigi, before the unfortunate gold-glitz job that was finally (fortunately) obliterated in the theatre’s El Capitanization? For those of us who spent many happy hours during those years in that elegantly draped venue, which complimented and enhanced any film (only the Chinese during the same period, before its “refurbishment” and the late, lamented Carthay Circle were comparable), the memories are indelible.
Good question, haineshisway. I’ve been looking for exactly these LA newspaper pages myself, and I suspect many others are too. I haven’t come across any online.
Thanks for the photo of the Paramount exterior. Does anyone know of a photo of the auditorium from the 1950s. It was extremely beautiful, and that magnificent screen curtain raising and lowering was in its way even more dramatic than the El Capitan’s now. The end of “Vertigo” could never be as devastating at any other theatre as it was at the Hollywood Paramount in 1958.
With all due appreciation for the El Capitan’s fine restoration by Disney, does anyone else besides me remember how elegant the Hollywood Paramount interior was back in the 50s, before the series of increasingly gaudy renovations? It was my favorite movie theatre growing up in LA at that time (even more than the Chinese across the street, which was also much nicer inside then than it is now – with the original salmon-colored seats and gold-embroidered screen curtain). I still have fond memories of seeing such classics at the Paramount as Hitchcock’s Vertigo, Gigi (reserved seat engagement), The Nun’s Story, Sayonara, and a host of others. In its way, it was every bit as beautiful as the El Capitan is now and made every film seem a little better and more memorable.
Does anyone know of interior photos of the Paramount Hollywood from this time? I don’t believe it was part of a chain then. The marquee and exterior were also simpler and less glitzy than they became through various unfortunate transformations in the 60s, each seemingly uglier and more tasteless than the one before.
Reading these comments almost brought tears of nostalgia. This was the most beautiful movie palace I’ve experienced in five decades of moviegoing in America and Europe. It became a kind of shrine when I was growing up in Hollywood in the 50s. My first film there was “Around the World in 80 Days” (which ran for two years), after the theatre was adapted for Todd-AO/70mm projection. What was especially striking was its interior design – perfect dimensions that made you feel enveloped by the giant screen and superb sound, wherever you sat. Even Cinerama and IMAX didn’t equal the impression. I also saw “The Alamo” and “Porgy and Bess” there in 70mm (both undoubtedly were made to seem better by the venue than they actually were) as well as “Mary Poppins” in 35mm (moveover run from Grauman’s Chinese, Hollywood’s second most beautiful cinema until the chintzy renovation that destroyed the breathtaking original color scheme and the magnificent screen curtain with a gold dragon embroidered into it). I once heard that Fox West Coast Theatres demolished its flagship Carthay Circle because it was supposedly too susceptible to earthquake damage. Never swallowed that. The company (then renamed National General) put up an office building on the site, if memory serves. What a tragedy.
I was an usher at the Magnolia for a couple years while I was in high school. Eventually became assistant manager until I went off to college in 1962. The owner/manager, Jack Grossman, was a good friend of my father, who worked for Columbia Pictures. It was a beautifully run and maintained neighborhood theatre, down to the smallest detail, including excellent sound and projection. A large curved screen was installed while I was working there. The projectionist was fastidious about keeping the picture in focus, an art that seems to have been lost in subsequent decades.
Does anyone know of photos of the Hollywood Paramount auditorium in the 50s and early 60s (I’ve asked this before), the era of Sayonara, Vertigo and Gigi, before the unfortunate gold-glitz job that was finally (fortunately) obliterated in the theatre’s El Capitanization? For those of us who spent many happy hours during those years in that elegantly draped venue, which complimented and enhanced any film (only the Chinese during the same period, before its “refurbishment” and the late, lamented Carthay Circle were comparable), the memories are indelible.
Does anyone know of photos of the Hollywood Paramount auditorium in the 50s and early 60s (I’ve asked this before), the era of Sayonara, Vertigo and Gigi, before the unfortunate gold-glitz job that was finally (fortunately) obliterated in the theatre’s El Capitanization? For those of us who spent many happy hours during those years in that elegantly draped venue, which complimented and enhanced any film (only the Chinese during the same period, before its “refurbishment” and the late, lamented Carthay Circle were comparable), the memories are indelible.
Good question, haineshisway. I’ve been looking for exactly these LA newspaper pages myself, and I suspect many others are too. I haven’t come across any online.
Could you give me details of the magazine article so I can try to find it?
Thanks for the photo of the Paramount exterior. Does anyone know of a photo of the auditorium from the 1950s. It was extremely beautiful, and that magnificent screen curtain raising and lowering was in its way even more dramatic than the El Capitan’s now. The end of “Vertigo” could never be as devastating at any other theatre as it was at the Hollywood Paramount in 1958.
With all due appreciation for the El Capitan’s fine restoration by Disney, does anyone else besides me remember how elegant the Hollywood Paramount interior was back in the 50s, before the series of increasingly gaudy renovations? It was my favorite movie theatre growing up in LA at that time (even more than the Chinese across the street, which was also much nicer inside then than it is now – with the original salmon-colored seats and gold-embroidered screen curtain). I still have fond memories of seeing such classics at the Paramount as Hitchcock’s Vertigo, Gigi (reserved seat engagement), The Nun’s Story, Sayonara, and a host of others. In its way, it was every bit as beautiful as the El Capitan is now and made every film seem a little better and more memorable.
Does anyone know of interior photos of the Paramount Hollywood from this time? I don’t believe it was part of a chain then. The marquee and exterior were also simpler and less glitzy than they became through various unfortunate transformations in the 60s, each seemingly uglier and more tasteless than the one before.
Reading these comments almost brought tears of nostalgia. This was the most beautiful movie palace I’ve experienced in five decades of moviegoing in America and Europe. It became a kind of shrine when I was growing up in Hollywood in the 50s. My first film there was “Around the World in 80 Days” (which ran for two years), after the theatre was adapted for Todd-AO/70mm projection. What was especially striking was its interior design – perfect dimensions that made you feel enveloped by the giant screen and superb sound, wherever you sat. Even Cinerama and IMAX didn’t equal the impression. I also saw “The Alamo” and “Porgy and Bess” there in 70mm (both undoubtedly were made to seem better by the venue than they actually were) as well as “Mary Poppins” in 35mm (moveover run from Grauman’s Chinese, Hollywood’s second most beautiful cinema until the chintzy renovation that destroyed the breathtaking original color scheme and the magnificent screen curtain with a gold dragon embroidered into it). I once heard that Fox West Coast Theatres demolished its flagship Carthay Circle because it was supposedly too susceptible to earthquake damage. Never swallowed that. The company (then renamed National General) put up an office building on the site, if memory serves. What a tragedy.
Richard J.E.