El Portal Theatre

5269 Lankershim Boulevard,
Los Angeles, CA 91601

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50sSNIPES
50sSNIPES on July 16, 2024 at 10:07 pm

The theater’s exterior and marquee is also featured on a Nissan commercial recently.

m00se1111
m00se1111 on March 13, 2024 at 9:52 am

The El Portal was used (smaller and larger spaces) in the MTV “dating” show Parental Control. When the 2nd prospective date took the girl tap dancing.

This ‘classic’ runs on the MTV Dating channel on the Pluto streaming app.

Mike (saps)
Mike (saps) on October 11, 2023 at 10:38 pm

This theater’s exterior is featured in a new TV commercial for the deodorant Secret.

rivest266
rivest266 on March 14, 2021 at 4:51 pm

Reopened by Metropolitan theatres on May 7th, 1978 showing Mexican movies. Grand opening ad posted.

jeffreyedling
jeffreyedling on May 3, 2018 at 7:01 am

The El Portal Theatre in Los Angeles, California was recently featured in Episode 20, Season 2 of the Lethal Weapon TV show. The episode was entitled “Jesse’s Girl.” Roger Murtaugh’s daughter Riana was watching a movie with her new boyfriend inside the theater. They also showed the marquee outside. According to the theater’s website, they no longer show movies there. It’s all live shows now.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on October 28, 2014 at 5:47 pm

Here are two interior photos of El Portal Theatre from the Los Angeles Public Library’s Security Pacific National Bank Collection:

Lobby

Auditorium

Neither is dated, but from the nearly-pristine condition of the theater I’d say they were probably taken around the time it opened.

MagicLantern
MagicLantern on March 4, 2011 at 3:55 am

Saturday, March 19 – 1st Los Angeles Spaghetti Western Festival, screening “Dead Men Don’t Count,” “Gatling Gun” and “A Fistful of Dollars” at the El Portal.

mujerado
mujerado on January 18, 2011 at 3:36 am

I remember the El Portal from the 50’s and 60’s. It was my Mom’s favorite theatre. Among many others, we kids saw a rerelease of Disney’s Fantasia and we all went to a rerelease of Bambi on my birthday. North Hollywood was a favorite place to go. There was an old wood-floor Woolworth’s right across the street where I’d always order a grilled cheese sandwich and a chocolate malt.

david787
david787 on July 4, 2010 at 12:59 am

I grew up in North Hollywood during the 50’s. The El Portal was my neighborhood theater. I used to love going there on Saturdays. I miss those days so much. Next to it, on the corner was a diner called Albert Sheetz but it closed. On the other side was a department store called Rathbuns. My parents knew the owners. Nearby was the place where my mom and I used to catch the “red car” into downtown LA. It was really an adventure for me

monika
monika on September 7, 2009 at 1:52 am

The zip code for this theatre is 91601.

Mike (saps)
Mike (saps) on May 3, 2009 at 11:30 pm

A good portion of the crime thriller “Hard” (1998) seemed to be set in this theater; the killer used it as his lair and had victims on the stage, in the dressing rooms, etc. The place was nearly gutted at the time, with scaffolding inside. They didn’t show the outside, but they showed the proscenium, exits, asbestos curtain, and other interior details. Near the end of the movie, with the police closing in, one of the cops radios in that they’re at the El Portal on Lankershim, so of course I came to CT and looked it up. Voila!

The R-rated movie, which is about a closeted cop on the trail of this killer, is graphic in its sex and violence, and is currently running on the cable channel Here and is available on Netflix. Buyer beware.

vokoban
vokoban on July 10, 2008 at 2:50 pm

Apparently someone listened to this person’s complaint or a deal fell through….
LA Times (July 24, 1977)

PORNO HOUSES MOVE TO SUBURBS
This is a part of a letter to councilman Joel Wachs.
Although I am a resident of Canoga Park, I have many friends in North Hollywood and therefore spend a good deal of my time and leisure there. Certain tragic circumstances have come to my notice in that the old El Portal Theater is being sold and is to be razed shortly and the Guild Theater is to be sold to become a porno house. It would appear that the filth peddlers, being forced out of Hollywood proper, are spreading their disease to the suburbs. Since the only other theater in North Hollywood (the old Lankershim Theater)is also porno, perhaps the City Council should consider making this a “red light district” and bring to the residents the crime, pimping and prostitution that go hand in hand. It seems to me that the theater owners are determined to sell to any get-rich-quick artist who doesn’t give a damn for the residents.

R.A. Simon
Canoga Park

vokoban
vokoban on July 10, 2008 at 2:35 pm

Here’s a movie listing from Aug. 3, 1927:

LANKERSHIM
EL PORTAL
Wed., Thurs.-John Gilbert in “12 Miles Out"
Fri., Sat.–"Chang”

kencmcintyre
kencmcintyre on July 8, 2006 at 4:16 pm

Here is another photo from USC, showing the El Portal in 1937:
http://tinyurl.com/pf7jn

Life's Too Short
Life's Too Short on June 12, 2006 at 12:43 pm

It’s kind of a bummer the way they altered it. But it looks like the building is getting good use, and many decorative elements remain. All in all not a bad situation.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on January 9, 2006 at 5:36 am

Here is a photo of Lankershim Boulevard in 1926, with the El Portal nearing completion. (From the USC Archives.)

William
William on April 13, 2005 at 12:01 pm

You can also see a shot of the marquee in a current State Farms commercial running now.

William
William on February 28, 2005 at 2:34 pm

It was just some CGI work done on the theatre for the ad client.

teecee
teecee on February 28, 2005 at 1:22 pm

Did anyone notice the name of the theater in the Mercedes add shown during the Oscars last night? It said El Portal, but it didn’t look like this theater (it had a vertical marquee). Perhaps just a fictional theater.