Paradise Theatre

2018 link with images.

http://blogs.dailybreeze.com/history/2018/12/29/the-paradise-theatre-becomes-westchesters-second-theater-on-sepulveda/

The Paradise had plusher seats than the Loyola, up the street on Sepulveda, and charged higher admission prices. There was a hall on the right, as we went in, with the auditorium entrances on the left. I remember driving past the theater with my father, and seeing Ernest Hemingway’s name on the marquee, above the title of the film, “The Old Man and the Sea.” I asked, “Who’s Ernest Hemingway?” “He wrote the book.” “Is he in the movie?” “No.” “Then why is is name up there?”

I grew up with the Paradise. From 1952, I would ride the bus from Loyola Village for 7 cents and watched a double feature for a quarter. At the intermission, the manager would go on stage and hold a drawing —if your ticket stub number was called, you got a box of red hots, popcorn or Milk Duds. It was his way of calming a theater full of kids sailing popcorn boxes and running up and down the aisles. I went almost every weekend until I was 15 (except for a few times at the Loyola or trips to Inglewood. The big kids hung out on the aisle next to the south wall – the 14 and 15 year olds. The rest of us, took over the lobby. It was a great childhood.

I had the pleasure of working as a vacation relief projectionist at the Paradise early 1976. What impressed me was the size of the auditorium and screen. Huge! Blackbeards Ghost was the feature movie. A door in the booth led to a part of the flat roof where a couch was set up. Sometimes I would step out to the roof and watch the big airliners land at Los Angeles Intl Airport. The regular projectionist (I never met him) must have been a weight lifter since the booth was full of weights and a bench press.

Just another day in Paradise!!!

During my senior year in high school in 1960-1961, I was an usher and later cashier at the Paradise. So many premiers were done that movie goers were somewhat jaded about stars. Still Rock Hudson did create a bit of a stir with the release of “Come September”.

Here is part of a 1958 conspiracy complaint by Paradise:

Paradise Theatre Building Corporation brought action against Fox West Coast Theatres Corporation, Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation and Loew’s, Incorporated, and also against Paramount, Warner’s and Universal, against none of which the jury returned a verdict. The complaint was based upon an alleged conspiracy resulting in the uniform refusal of all defendants to license motion pictures to Paradise on Los Angeles first run. The conspiracy among all defendants was alleged to have resulted also in a coordinated refusal to license a seven-day run in Inglewood and Westchester, and that Paradise was injured thereby. A trial was held where there was a voluminous record.

The jury returned a verdict against defendants Fox West Coast Theatres Corporation, Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation and Loew’s, Incorporated, in the sum of $ 20,000.00. This appeal is from a final judgment against defendants last named for the treble damages in the amount of $ 60,000.00 and $ 10,000.00, attorney fees, and $ 1,657.69 costs.

The Paradise Theatre was located in the Westchester district. The Loyola Theatre, of Fox, was located less than a half mile away. Loyola exhibited Fox pictures on the Los Angeles first run day and date with Grauman’s Chinese, in Hollywood, Los Angeles, in the downtown area, and Wilshire and Uptown theatres, in the Wilshire district, all of which were Fox theatres. Before Paradise and La Tijera, a theatre which was also located in the Westchester district of Los Angeles, were built, Loew’s did not license a seven-day run to any theatre in the City of Los Angeles except in the faraway sections of San Pedro and Wilmington. Its practice was to offer a twenty-one-day run in the urban area. In Inglewood, a section merging into Westwood, it licensed a single seven-day run. After La Tijera and Paradise were built, Loew’s offered Paradise a twenty-one-day run without bidding. All defendants uniformly refused to license motion pictures to Paradise Los Angeles first run. Paradise demanded the right to license a nonexclusive seven-day run without bidding against other theatres in the general area. All defendants refused this demand.

Before 1949, where were four motion picture theatres in Inglewood and Westchester, including the Loyola. Within twenty months, there were constructed six additional theatres, including Paradise and La Tijera and the Fox in downtown Inglewood.

The jury found a conspiracy between Fox West Coast, Twentieth Century-Fox and Loew’s to refuse to Paradise a right to license a nonexclusive seven-day run without competitive bidding between September 18, 1950, and September 17, 1951.

It turns out that Ted Rogvoy was the associate architect for the Paradise, and the lead architect was Arthur Froelich. Two articles in Boxoffice Magazine, from July 22, 1950, and from August 26, 1950, both name Froelich as the architect, and the earlier issue even has a photo of Froelich holding his rendering of the theater. Only the later article mentions Rogvoy as the associate architect, but misspells his name.

Well, the plaques remain in place, so I assume the capsules are as well. There seemed to be about 15 of them. Here’s the text of a typical plaque:

Sealed herein are mementoes of
Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Awards for 1954

Best Picture On The Waterfront – Columbia
Best Performance by an Actor Marlon Brando On The Waterfront – Columbia
Best Performance by an Actress Grace Kelly The Country Girl – Paramount

I just stopped by today to take some pictures. Anybody know what kind of mementoes are buried in the forecourt?

Here is the 8/23/50 article that William was referring to in December 2003:
http://tinyurl.com/yv7g3k

I saw “Shane” with Alan Ladd there in the early 1950’s as well as hundreds of others in the 50’s and 60’s. My mother would drop us off for the double feature and we would be there the whole afternoon. Does anyone remember the glassed-in cry room that was located in the back few rows in the 50’s? Mothers with small children would go in there, but you often could still hear the crying — just muffled. Where does time go?