The mention of the big sign the Ritz had intrigues me. I never saw it. I first drove by the Ritz in its last days, and, while the entry—terrazzo, box office, doors, display cases—marked it as an older theatre, the plain, plastic-clad triangular marquee and sign were in no way spectacular and of much later vintage, though the marquee soffit appeared to be original. Vertical sign photos, anyone?
Might one presume that this was located near the intersection of Wilshire and Yale Streets? Santa Monica has a number of streets named after venerable universities. For instance, my great aunt lived on Harvard Street.
I must append a comment to that made above by Mr. Greco (fun Photoshop work, by the way!). Below his photos linked above, there is the comment that the facade is removed and whitewashed. Indeed, the facade and signage have been repainted in a bland two-tone scheme, but all ornament is still intact, as well as the vertical sign and marquee. This theatre still merits at least a driveby look for theatre buffs who are in the area.
The father of a friend of mine lived for a time in Superior when he was growing up, and attended the Uptown. Several years ago, he revisited the town and photographed the exterior of the Uptown for me. The style is Streamline Moderne. The theatre appears closed and faded, like in the above description.
Glad to hear this theatre is at least still standing. I remember seeing a photo of it many years ago in a book called, “Stockton’s Theatres of Yesterday.” I THINK I’ve got the title right. Much has been said about the Fox (Bob Hope) California (rightly so) and I remember seeing the now-gutted or demolished Ritz in its last days in the mid-1980s, but its nice to hear Stockton still has yet another cinema treasure surviving. Hopefully much of its integrity will be respected.
Yet another Enean theatre still stands in the delta town of Pittsburgh. Long closed and used for other things, it was a deco style house which opened in 1932, and reportedly was the last new theatre in the Bay Area to open with an organ.
Now…if someone with a lot of money and vision would PLEASE restore this theatre’s original black and silver decorative scheme and consign that pale lavender with Welsh Rarebit-accented color palette (courtesey of Richard F. Mc Cann’s design team in the early 80s) to oblivion, this theatre would truly once again be a deco pipe-dream! Long live S. Charles Lee! :–)
The Moderne tower shown in the postcard view accessible via “Magic Lantern”’s posting still stood as of my one visit to Bellflower in 1991. The neon was gone from it, and there was the name HOSANNA in applied letters in place of the NUBELL name. There were some low windows cut into the auditorium walls, through which I could see a nice streamlined interior, albeit painted over in quietly neutral tones (at least that’s better than the stark white so often favored by theatre-to-church conversions).
The outside of the fly tower has an earlier classic deco look, and a postcard I bought a few years later showing the entrance and facade when it was the BELLFLOWER confirmed the existence of an earlier ziggurat-like deco spire where the current tower structure now stands. There was no name on the tower, but there was a neon-bedecked marquee with the name spelled out horozontally. The cast concrete detailing of the earlier tower matched exactly the detailing which still exists on the stage fly.
Niles had two theatres in its history. One, which was built in the 1930s (circa) burned down. The other one, an early-looking structure of wood and stucco, still stands. When I last looked at it, it was a photography studio.
This shouldn’t be taken as totally solid fact, but this is what I have heard: Renaissance Rialto will vacate the Orinda when their lease is up in ‘06. I’m not sure about the Oaks, but they’re looking to be out of there soon. The theatre on the old Alameda Naval Air Station is still going to be used for auctions, and the Grand Lake will carry on as it always has, being the only regular movie house operated by RR. I have a feeling there will be others very much interested in operating the Orinda. The citizens of that area fought very hard to keep it in the 1980s. Indeed, one of the reasons—maybe even the chief one—Orinda incorporated as a city was to have a say in the theatre’s fate.
The new multiplex cinema on the site of the Crystal (and much adjacent property) is now well underway. Part of the new building’s facade incorporates the steel frame of what looks to be some kind of effort at replicating—or at least visually honoring the memory of—the Crystal’s vertical sign, at the general location of the original.
The Reid Bros. were NOT the architects of the Parkside, though stylistically it appears much like a Reid atmospheric design. I do not have the actual architect’s name immediately accessible here or I would post it.
Re. my above Thanks to the Evergreene folks who worked at the Golden State Theatre in Monterey: I meant SHERRY, not Suzie…a momentary mental lapse…sorry Sherry! :–)
Well, I for one will be happy to speak for the high quality of Evergreene’s work. Recently, they completed the restoration of the grand lobby ceiling of the Golden State Theatre in Monterey, California, a theatre with which I have been a volunteer. The job is fantastic. Check it out for yourself at www.goldenstatetheatre.com
I have been doing volunteer decorative painting elsewhere in this same theatre, and by observing what the craftspeople from Evergreene were doing, gained additional inspiration which has improved the quality of what I—and several other volunteers—have been accomplishing. All of us connected with the Golden State Theatre heartily commend Jackie, Walter, and Suzie for their professionalism and friendliness throughout their involvement in the project. Note: I am gainfully and happily employed as an architectural art glass designer, and have no plans whatsoever to run off and start my own decorative painting company with knowledge I gained by observing the folks from Evergreene. :–) While our business has provided etched glass to the Golden State Theatre on a professional basis, my painting involvement is as a volunteer.
Interesting comment about the “Hansel and Gretel” decor. My naming of the original style as Spanish Colonial is however based on a photo I’ve seen of the original facade, which was unquestionably Spanish Colonial, with a Mission silouhette and a pair of finials, as well as the fact that the proscenium and the arches along the twin staircases leading to the restrooms are unquestionably Spanish. People’s impressions of architectural styles can vary greatly. In one early description of the Hester/Towne which I read long ago, the decor was described as “Egyptian.” There’s no further evidence to support this, so it likely was someone’s long-ago comment based on their own impression, or perhaps the architect’s original idea was to have designed an Egyptian theatre but the concept was changed before construction. As to the Hansel and Gretel/Witch’s Hut idea, this could have been an impression derived from woodgrained beams and stenciling, as well as faux stonework, which did exist in this theatre. Some of the faux stonework is still visible in the exterior ticket lobby, though covered by many layers of paint. The scored stucco imitating blocks of stone is still visible. In many Spanishoid buildings of the 1920s, the dark beams with simple, almost folkart style stenciled patterns can indeed give a more primitive storybook appearance which could easily come under the Hansel and Gretel appelation.
Minor correction: The Lyric’s final sign—a neon piece which succeeded the sign shown in the photo—was not a vertical, but rather a horozontal swing-out sign.
I don’t know how often the sign lights up these days, but I remember when I lived in Oakland 1984-‘86 (and attended the Grand Lake fairly often) the only nights the sign was lit were Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The rest of the week, only the marquee was lit, and on rainy nights, only the reader boards and GRAND LAKE letters were lit. In a perfect world, all signage would be lit every night, all night, but the fact is, maintaining all that wonderful glamour is very expensive.
If the theatre here discussed is the ORIGINAL Fox, not the Fox which was formerly the Costa, than the original architect was A.W. Cornelius. This theatre, beginning its life as the T&D, was one of several Cornelius-designed houses which had very similar Italianate facades. Others include the California in Berkeley (operating but remodeled several times), the California in Pittsburg (still largely intact, closed, but apparently headed for revival), and the T&D/Fox California in Salinas (remodeled several times but with most of Cornelius' original facade intact behind the present art deco one, usually closed but occasionally used for live theatre).
I do recall a 1980s article in the San Jose Mercury News which was reporting on a planned revival for downtown Richmond which mentioned discussions being held about bringing back the UA Theatre. Perhaps the Woolworths had only remodeled the bottom portion of the building, leaving the upper part intact, and so its revival as a theatre was then an option. Regardless, the building was gone by the time I first visited Richmond (hunting for theatres) in the early 1990s. The area where the T&D/Fox/UA had stood was levelled and replaced by new development. Apparently historic preservation was not seen as the method for “reviving” that part of downtown.
The facade of the Madera was nearly identical to that of the Del Mar in San Leandro. I photographed the exterior of the Madera in 1990. At that time the theatre was closed, but from some signage in the display cases, “Hoy,” and “Proximamente,” it obviously ended its exhibition days as a Spanish language house.
The mention of the big sign the Ritz had intrigues me. I never saw it. I first drove by the Ritz in its last days, and, while the entry—terrazzo, box office, doors, display cases—marked it as an older theatre, the plain, plastic-clad triangular marquee and sign were in no way spectacular and of much later vintage, though the marquee soffit appeared to be original. Vertical sign photos, anyone?
Bizzare name, but most likely quite aptly named. No further explanation, please.
Might one presume that this was located near the intersection of Wilshire and Yale Streets? Santa Monica has a number of streets named after venerable universities. For instance, my great aunt lived on Harvard Street.
I must append a comment to that made above by Mr. Greco (fun Photoshop work, by the way!). Below his photos linked above, there is the comment that the facade is removed and whitewashed. Indeed, the facade and signage have been repainted in a bland two-tone scheme, but all ornament is still intact, as well as the vertical sign and marquee. This theatre still merits at least a driveby look for theatre buffs who are in the area.
The father of a friend of mine lived for a time in Superior when he was growing up, and attended the Uptown. Several years ago, he revisited the town and photographed the exterior of the Uptown for me. The style is Streamline Moderne. The theatre appears closed and faded, like in the above description.
Glad to hear this theatre is at least still standing. I remember seeing a photo of it many years ago in a book called, “Stockton’s Theatres of Yesterday.” I THINK I’ve got the title right. Much has been said about the Fox (Bob Hope) California (rightly so) and I remember seeing the now-gutted or demolished Ritz in its last days in the mid-1980s, but its nice to hear Stockton still has yet another cinema treasure surviving. Hopefully much of its integrity will be respected.
Yet another Enean theatre still stands in the delta town of Pittsburgh. Long closed and used for other things, it was a deco style house which opened in 1932, and reportedly was the last new theatre in the Bay Area to open with an organ.
Now…if someone with a lot of money and vision would PLEASE restore this theatre’s original black and silver decorative scheme and consign that pale lavender with Welsh Rarebit-accented color palette (courtesey of Richard F. Mc Cann’s design team in the early 80s) to oblivion, this theatre would truly once again be a deco pipe-dream! Long live S. Charles Lee! :–)
The Moderne tower shown in the postcard view accessible via “Magic Lantern”’s posting still stood as of my one visit to Bellflower in 1991. The neon was gone from it, and there was the name HOSANNA in applied letters in place of the NUBELL name. There were some low windows cut into the auditorium walls, through which I could see a nice streamlined interior, albeit painted over in quietly neutral tones (at least that’s better than the stark white so often favored by theatre-to-church conversions).
The outside of the fly tower has an earlier classic deco look, and a postcard I bought a few years later showing the entrance and facade when it was the BELLFLOWER confirmed the existence of an earlier ziggurat-like deco spire where the current tower structure now stands. There was no name on the tower, but there was a neon-bedecked marquee with the name spelled out horozontally. The cast concrete detailing of the earlier tower matched exactly the detailing which still exists on the stage fly.
Niles had two theatres in its history. One, which was built in the 1930s (circa) burned down. The other one, an early-looking structure of wood and stucco, still stands. When I last looked at it, it was a photography studio.
This shouldn’t be taken as totally solid fact, but this is what I have heard: Renaissance Rialto will vacate the Orinda when their lease is up in ‘06. I’m not sure about the Oaks, but they’re looking to be out of there soon. The theatre on the old Alameda Naval Air Station is still going to be used for auctions, and the Grand Lake will carry on as it always has, being the only regular movie house operated by RR. I have a feeling there will be others very much interested in operating the Orinda. The citizens of that area fought very hard to keep it in the 1980s. Indeed, one of the reasons—maybe even the chief one—Orinda incorporated as a city was to have a say in the theatre’s fate.
The new multiplex cinema on the site of the Crystal (and much adjacent property) is now well underway. Part of the new building’s facade incorporates the steel frame of what looks to be some kind of effort at replicating—or at least visually honoring the memory of—the Crystal’s vertical sign, at the general location of the original.
Thanks Tom!
The Reid Bros. were NOT the architects of the Parkside, though stylistically it appears much like a Reid atmospheric design. I do not have the actual architect’s name immediately accessible here or I would post it.
Re. my above Thanks to the Evergreene folks who worked at the Golden State Theatre in Monterey: I meant SHERRY, not Suzie…a momentary mental lapse…sorry Sherry! :–)
Well, I for one will be happy to speak for the high quality of Evergreene’s work. Recently, they completed the restoration of the grand lobby ceiling of the Golden State Theatre in Monterey, California, a theatre with which I have been a volunteer. The job is fantastic. Check it out for yourself at www.goldenstatetheatre.com
I have been doing volunteer decorative painting elsewhere in this same theatre, and by observing what the craftspeople from Evergreene were doing, gained additional inspiration which has improved the quality of what I—and several other volunteers—have been accomplishing. All of us connected with the Golden State Theatre heartily commend Jackie, Walter, and Suzie for their professionalism and friendliness throughout their involvement in the project. Note: I am gainfully and happily employed as an architectural art glass designer, and have no plans whatsoever to run off and start my own decorative painting company with knowledge I gained by observing the folks from Evergreene. :–) While our business has provided etched glass to the Golden State Theatre on a professional basis, my painting involvement is as a volunteer.
This theatre and the Golden State Theatre are one-and-the-same. Check “Golden State Theatre” for more info and its website, goldenstatetheatre.com
Interesting comment about the “Hansel and Gretel” decor. My naming of the original style as Spanish Colonial is however based on a photo I’ve seen of the original facade, which was unquestionably Spanish Colonial, with a Mission silouhette and a pair of finials, as well as the fact that the proscenium and the arches along the twin staircases leading to the restrooms are unquestionably Spanish. People’s impressions of architectural styles can vary greatly. In one early description of the Hester/Towne which I read long ago, the decor was described as “Egyptian.” There’s no further evidence to support this, so it likely was someone’s long-ago comment based on their own impression, or perhaps the architect’s original idea was to have designed an Egyptian theatre but the concept was changed before construction. As to the Hansel and Gretel/Witch’s Hut idea, this could have been an impression derived from woodgrained beams and stenciling, as well as faux stonework, which did exist in this theatre. Some of the faux stonework is still visible in the exterior ticket lobby, though covered by many layers of paint. The scored stucco imitating blocks of stone is still visible. In many Spanishoid buildings of the 1920s, the dark beams with simple, almost folkart style stenciled patterns can indeed give a more primitive storybook appearance which could easily come under the Hansel and Gretel appelation.
Minor correction: The Lyric’s final sign—a neon piece which succeeded the sign shown in the photo—was not a vertical, but rather a horozontal swing-out sign.
Was part of Rennaisance Rialto Theatres in its last days. Its style can be listed as Moderne.
I don’t know how often the sign lights up these days, but I remember when I lived in Oakland 1984-‘86 (and attended the Grand Lake fairly often) the only nights the sign was lit were Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The rest of the week, only the marquee was lit, and on rainy nights, only the reader boards and GRAND LAKE letters were lit. In a perfect world, all signage would be lit every night, all night, but the fact is, maintaining all that wonderful glamour is very expensive.
The Uptown still stands, though its substantial concrete shell now houses a senior citizens center.
If the theatre here discussed is the ORIGINAL Fox, not the Fox which was formerly the Costa, than the original architect was A.W. Cornelius. This theatre, beginning its life as the T&D, was one of several Cornelius-designed houses which had very similar Italianate facades. Others include the California in Berkeley (operating but remodeled several times), the California in Pittsburg (still largely intact, closed, but apparently headed for revival), and the T&D/Fox California in Salinas (remodeled several times but with most of Cornelius' original facade intact behind the present art deco one, usually closed but occasionally used for live theatre).
I do recall a 1980s article in the San Jose Mercury News which was reporting on a planned revival for downtown Richmond which mentioned discussions being held about bringing back the UA Theatre. Perhaps the Woolworths had only remodeled the bottom portion of the building, leaving the upper part intact, and so its revival as a theatre was then an option. Regardless, the building was gone by the time I first visited Richmond (hunting for theatres) in the early 1990s. The area where the T&D/Fox/UA had stood was levelled and replaced by new development. Apparently historic preservation was not seen as the method for “reviving” that part of downtown.
The facade of the Madera was nearly identical to that of the Del Mar in San Leandro. I photographed the exterior of the Madera in 1990. At that time the theatre was closed, but from some signage in the display cases, “Hoy,” and “Proximamente,” it obviously ended its exhibition days as a Spanish language house.