I believe that the Vineland Drive-In, located a couple of miles east of El Monte in Los Angles County, is still open. One of my friends went to a movie there about three or four months ago.
The architect of the Elite Theatre was Wilfred B. Verity, whose offices were in the Garland Building in Los Angeles. Plans for the Elite were announced in late 1936.
The architect of the Alcazar was J.T. Zeller. The first contracts were let in late 1924. The estimated cost of the theater was $105,000, including an Estey pipe organ.
The address of the San Val Drive-In was 2720 Winona Street. Like the earlier Drive-In Theater in West Los Angeles, it was designed by Clifford Balch. Plans were announced in 1938.
This is the theater which is pictured on the dust jacket of David Naylor’s 1981 book, “American Picture Palaces.” That’s a much better photograph than I’ve been able to find online. There’s another color picture, showing the organ screens, on page 96 of the book.
The Los Angeles Times carried an article about the Criterion headlined “Santa Monica theater will open soon” in its December 30th, 1923 issue, so the theater must have opened early in 1924. An article in the Santa Monica Outlook of August 4th, 1923, announced that the theater’s organ had been ordered.
Awarding of the contract to W.J. Burgin for construction of the Rivoli Theatre was announced in Southwest Builder and Contractor issue of August 7th, 1936. The owner of the building was named as L.T. Edwards, and the plans were prepared by structural engineer F.E. Stanbery (no mention is made of Stanbery’s usual partner, architect Cliff Balch.) The building was to be of reinforced concrete construction, and the estimated cost was $45,000- a tidy sum in that depression year.
Announcing the completion of Carl Boller’s plans for this theater, Southwest Builder and Contractor of June 13th, 1924, said that the there would be six stores and the theater entrance on the ground floor, and that the third floor would be used as a cafe. It also says that the theater would have 1400 seats.
A Los Angeles Times article of April 26th, 1925 (part V, p.5.) contains an illustration of the theater.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram of May 24th, 1925, has an article headlined “Newly erected Ritz Theater to open doors at noon today.”
There is some information about the Oroville State Theater on the City of Oroville web site. The theater’s schedule of events is available there, as well.
The ultimate seating capacity of this 1928 house will be 1000, once the balcony is fully restored. Current seating is 608, on the main floor.
Surprisingly, the total expenditure for the purchase and renovation of this theater in 1986-87 was less than $700,000, including the cost of asbestos removal.
Originally built for San Francisco-based exhibitors Turner and Danken, the State was operated in its last years as a twinned movie house by United Artists.
The theater must have opened as the Carter. Southwest Builder and Contractor of August 22nd, 1924, names the owner of the proposed theater as J.W. Carter.
By 1933, in an article saying that Schilling & Schilling were taking bids for repairing earthquake damage to the theater, the April 14th issue of the same publication names the owner (or perhaps operator) as E. H. Lee.
In an announcement of the remodeling of the theater in its May 16th, 1947 issue, SB&C says that the work is being done for Milton Arthur. Presumably, the house had changed hands, or management, again by then.
The Motion Picture Herald issue of December 12, 1936, Better Theatres section, announced the re-opening of this theater as the Colony, following an “expensive remodeling” by S. Charles Lee. Apparently, the Automatic Theater thing didn’t work out as planned. The operator of the Colony was named as Albert A. Galston, and the article also said that the remodeled theater had 500 seats.
This theater was called the Paris for more than a decade, at least. I remember it by that name from the early 1960s. If memory serves, at that time it was not showing movies, but was the venue of a long-running, rather risque (for the time) stage show called something like “Les Poupees de Paris” (which the scandalized mother of a friend of mine said was “a dirty puppet show.”) I never saw it, alas. I think I’d have enjoyed a dirty puppet show.
According to an article in the May 3rd, 1925, issue of the Long Beach Press-Telegram, the architect of the Granada Theater was W. J. McCormack.
Incidentally, Wilmington was once a seperate incorporated city, but has been, since about 1910, a district of the City of Los Angeles. Along with nearby San Pedro, also once an independent city, it is connected to Los Angeles by the famous “shoestring,” a strip of territory about a half mile wide extending south several miles from the main part of the city. The annexation of the two harbor area cities allowed Los Angeles to arrange the costly improvements needed to make San Pedro Bay into a modern, deep-water port early in the 20th century.
The only information on the Admiral Theater in the LAPL regional history database is a card referencing a January 19th, 1940, issue of Southwest Builder and Contractor. The abstract says that the owner of the theater was Julius Stern, that Henry Aurbach had been awarded the construction contract, and that S. Charles Lee was the architect. The building was to be built of brick and reinforced concrete, would have 700 seats, and would cost $21,280. Given the low costs of construction in the pre-war period, that seems like an entirely new building, rather than a remodeling job. It’s possible that there was an earlier theater on the same site which was demolished to make way for the Admiral, though. I’m sure that central Hollywood had no vacant lots at that late date.
The original owner of this theater was Otis Hunley. It was designed by Meyer and Holler and erected by the Milwaukee Building Company in 1921-22. The April 21st, 1922, issue of the Hollywood Citizen said that the pipe organ of the Hunley Theater was being enlarged, and named the organist as a Mrs. Gleason.
Ah, I missed an entire page in my map book when I was measuring, and I also thought that Long Beach counted at least twelve blocks per mile, since the downtown blocks are fairly short. Apparently they stretch the numbering system once they get out of downtown. Still, from downtown Long Beach to South Street (which is about where the 5800 block begins) is only a bit over six miles.
Hugh Biggs was the architect of the Towne Theater. It was originally intended to be named the Vogue, which is the name which appears in Biggs' early renderings of the design. The walls of the Towne were built of reinforced granite.
W.H. Wingo:
I believe that the Vineland Drive-In, located a couple of miles east of El Monte in Los Angles County, is still open. One of my friends went to a movie there about three or four months ago.
Listed here: /theaters/7692/
The architect of the Elite Theatre was Wilfred B. Verity, whose offices were in the Garland Building in Los Angeles. Plans for the Elite were announced in late 1936.
The architect of the Alcazar was J.T. Zeller. The first contracts were let in late 1924. The estimated cost of the theater was $105,000, including an Estey pipe organ.
The address of the San Val Drive-In was 2720 Winona Street. Like the earlier Drive-In Theater in West Los Angeles, it was designed by Clifford Balch. Plans were announced in 1938.
I found a small color picture of the Ohio here:
http://www.columbus-connections.com/links.htm
This is the theater which is pictured on the dust jacket of David Naylor’s 1981 book, “American Picture Palaces.” That’s a much better photograph than I’ve been able to find online. There’s another color picture, showing the organ screens, on page 96 of the book.
I found an old postcard view of the Ohio Theater posted here (Google’s cache of the site):
View link
The Los Angeles Times carried an article about the Criterion headlined “Santa Monica theater will open soon” in its December 30th, 1923 issue, so the theater must have opened early in 1924. An article in the Santa Monica Outlook of August 4th, 1923, announced that the theater’s organ had been ordered.
Awarding of the contract to W.J. Burgin for construction of the Rivoli Theatre was announced in Southwest Builder and Contractor issue of August 7th, 1936. The owner of the building was named as L.T. Edwards, and the plans were prepared by structural engineer F.E. Stanbery (no mention is made of Stanbery’s usual partner, architect Cliff Balch.) The building was to be of reinforced concrete construction, and the estimated cost was $45,000- a tidy sum in that depression year.
Announcing the completion of Carl Boller’s plans for this theater, Southwest Builder and Contractor of June 13th, 1924, said that the there would be six stores and the theater entrance on the ground floor, and that the third floor would be used as a cafe. It also says that the theater would have 1400 seats.
A Los Angeles Times article of April 26th, 1925 (part V, p.5.) contains an illustration of the theater.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram of May 24th, 1925, has an article headlined “Newly erected Ritz Theater to open doors at noon today.”
Southwest Builder and Contractor, issue of September 26th, 1945, says that the plans for the Crest were made by Kaiser Engineers.
There is some information about the Oroville State Theater on the City of Oroville web site. The theater’s schedule of events is available there, as well.
The ultimate seating capacity of this 1928 house will be 1000, once the balcony is fully restored. Current seating is 608, on the main floor.
Surprisingly, the total expenditure for the purchase and renovation of this theater in 1986-87 was less than $700,000, including the cost of asbestos removal.
Originally built for San Francisco-based exhibitors Turner and Danken, the State was operated in its last years as a twinned movie house by United Artists.
Actually, that opening was February 1st, 1945. ((Can’t read my own scribbling.)
The Los Angeles Times records the date on which this theater re-opened as the Guild as February 2nd, 1945.
The theater must have opened as the Carter. Southwest Builder and Contractor of August 22nd, 1924, names the owner of the proposed theater as J.W. Carter.
By 1933, in an article saying that Schilling & Schilling were taking bids for repairing earthquake damage to the theater, the April 14th issue of the same publication names the owner (or perhaps operator) as E. H. Lee.
In an announcement of the remodeling of the theater in its May 16th, 1947 issue, SB&C says that the work is being done for Milton Arthur. Presumably, the house had changed hands, or management, again by then.
The Motion Picture Herald issue of December 12, 1936, Better Theatres section, announced the re-opening of this theater as the Colony, following an “expensive remodeling” by S. Charles Lee. Apparently, the Automatic Theater thing didn’t work out as planned. The operator of the Colony was named as Albert A. Galston, and the article also said that the remodeled theater had 500 seats.
Architect Clarence Smale collaborated with theater designer Carl G. Moeller on the Hawaii. It was built for the Times-Mirror Company.
Christian:
The theater marquee in the postcard view is that of the Admiral (now called the Vine) at 6321 Hollywood Boulevard.
This theater was called the Paris for more than a decade, at least. I remember it by that name from the early 1960s. If memory serves, at that time it was not showing movies, but was the venue of a long-running, rather risque (for the time) stage show called something like “Les Poupees de Paris” (which the scandalized mother of a friend of mine said was “a dirty puppet show.”) I never saw it, alas. I think I’d have enjoyed a dirty puppet show.
According to an article in the May 3rd, 1925, issue of the Long Beach Press-Telegram, the architect of the Granada Theater was W. J. McCormack.
Incidentally, Wilmington was once a seperate incorporated city, but has been, since about 1910, a district of the City of Los Angeles. Along with nearby San Pedro, also once an independent city, it is connected to Los Angeles by the famous “shoestring,” a strip of territory about a half mile wide extending south several miles from the main part of the city. The annexation of the two harbor area cities allowed Los Angeles to arrange the costly improvements needed to make San Pedro Bay into a modern, deep-water port early in the 20th century.
Ken:
The only information on the Admiral Theater in the LAPL regional history database is a card referencing a January 19th, 1940, issue of Southwest Builder and Contractor. The abstract says that the owner of the theater was Julius Stern, that Henry Aurbach had been awarded the construction contract, and that S. Charles Lee was the architect. The building was to be built of brick and reinforced concrete, would have 700 seats, and would cost $21,280. Given the low costs of construction in the pre-war period, that seems like an entirely new building, rather than a remodeling job. It’s possible that there was an earlier theater on the same site which was demolished to make way for the Admiral, though. I’m sure that central Hollywood had no vacant lots at that late date.
The original owner of this theater was Otis Hunley. It was designed by Meyer and Holler and erected by the Milwaukee Building Company in 1921-22. The April 21st, 1922, issue of the Hollywood Citizen said that the pipe organ of the Hunley Theater was being enlarged, and named the organist as a Mrs. Gleason.
Ah, I missed an entire page in my map book when I was measuring, and I also thought that Long Beach counted at least twelve blocks per mile, since the downtown blocks are fairly short. Apparently they stretch the numbering system once they get out of downtown. Still, from downtown Long Beach to South Street (which is about where the 5800 block begins) is only a bit over six miles.
Hugh Biggs was the architect of the Towne Theater. It was originally intended to be named the Vogue, which is the name which appears in Biggs' early renderings of the design. The walls of the Towne were built of reinforced granite.
The Brayton was designed by the Long Beach architectural firm Schilling & Schilling. It opened on July 30th, 1925.
And, ronp is right about the designer. I have found two other sources saying that Carl Boller was the architect of the Atlantic Theater.