The Regent and the Plaza were both Laemmle Theaters. The Bruin, Village, and Mann’s Westwood were Mann Theaters. Then there were two UA Theaters, the UA Westwood (later the Festival) and the UA Cinema Center on Westwood Blvd. (now a CV Pharmacy). Not sure whether the Avco Cinema Center and Crest were associated with any larger corporate chains.
To see old (1970’s) and new footage of the Festival and other Westwood Village movie theaters past and present, check out this musical tribute to Stan’s Donuts on youtube:
There’s a video on youtube dedicated to Stan’s Donuts in Westwood (located right across from the street from the Bruin Theater). The video includes old and new footage of the Bruin and other Westwood theaters:
For anyone who is interested, there is a new youtube video which shows both video footage and still of the Plaza dating from back in the 1970’s (note: the video footage is located in the middle of the video):
Westwood Village in the 70’s was, indeed, Southern California’s premier entertainment spot, much like the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica is today. The fantastic Plaza Theater was a part of this excitement as Westwood was THE spot for first run movies. Yet, in its being located on quiet Glendon Ave. and in its focus on art films, the Plaza had a cozy, private feeling to it. I was always thrilled to catch a movie there! What is worse than the Plaza being demolished is the way that entire block of Glendon Ave. has been disfigured, and a charming piece of Los Angeles has taken on the look of a boring Orange County shopping complex. But that’s the way things go. Thanks for all for the great posts in tribute to this great movie theater.
The Regent and the Plaza were both Laemmle Theaters. The Bruin, Village, and Mann’s Westwood were Mann Theaters. Then there were two UA Theaters, the UA Westwood (later the Festival) and the UA Cinema Center on Westwood Blvd. (now a CV Pharmacy). Not sure whether the Avco Cinema Center and Crest were associated with any larger corporate chains.
To see old (1970’s) and new footage of the Festival and other Westwood Village movie theaters past and present, check out this musical tribute to Stan’s Donuts on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xad6gLpKG9A
There’s a video on youtube dedicated to Stan’s Donuts in Westwood (located right across from the street from the Bruin Theater). The video includes old and new footage of the Bruin and other Westwood theaters:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xad6gLpKG9A
There is a music video on youtube which shows a good bit of footage of the Village Theater, including footage from back in the ‘70’s! The link is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xad6gLpKG9A
For anyone who is interested, there is a new youtube video which shows both video footage and still of the Plaza dating from back in the 1970’s (note: the video footage is located in the middle of the video):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xad6gLpKG9A
Westwood Village in the 70’s was, indeed, Southern California’s premier entertainment spot, much like the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica is today. The fantastic Plaza Theater was a part of this excitement as Westwood was THE spot for first run movies. Yet, in its being located on quiet Glendon Ave. and in its focus on art films, the Plaza had a cozy, private feeling to it. I was always thrilled to catch a movie there! What is worse than the Plaza being demolished is the way that entire block of Glendon Ave. has been disfigured, and a charming piece of Los Angeles has taken on the look of a boring Orange County shopping complex. But that’s the way things go. Thanks for all for the great posts in tribute to this great movie theater.