I took photos of this marquee many years ago and have got to find them. I recall it had a mural of racing airplanes (like something out of “The Rocketeer”). I always thought that was curious because there was no airport in that area, at least not that I remember. This theater was on a huge lot and they’ve since built a massive shopping mall centered by a Wal-Mart, which is the same fate as that of the Hwy 59 Drive-In.
I remember The Compton – which was completely different from the Compton Symphony Theatre (which ceased to be in 1933). As noted, it was at 136 E. Compton Bl, which, if you were facing east and standing at the intersection of Compton and Willowbrook Av, was on the right side of the street. (I never remember the theater actually being open; I think Fox abandoned it at the end of the 1950s at the dawn of the “white flight” from Compton). It was in the block just before the major department stores, which included a JC Penney’s (which had the most exquisite mezzanine) and the JJ Newberry’s store (which had wonderful hardwood floors). I think people confuse the two theaters because Tamarind was a nearby cross-street for both. (That entire area was completely demolished in the 1970s, so all of this is from memory). There was a Bank Of America branch and the Compton Raceway (slot car racing) across the street. I once saw an interview with James Coburn in which he mentioned that, during his youth in Compton, he was hired to change the lettering on the marquee at the Compton Theater, which he did for a number of years.
(Sorry, that should have been “Hwy 39” Drive-In)…
I took photos of this marquee many years ago and have got to find them. I recall it had a mural of racing airplanes (like something out of “The Rocketeer”). I always thought that was curious because there was no airport in that area, at least not that I remember. This theater was on a huge lot and they’ve since built a massive shopping mall centered by a Wal-Mart, which is the same fate as that of the Hwy 59 Drive-In.
I remember The Compton – which was completely different from the Compton Symphony Theatre (which ceased to be in 1933). As noted, it was at 136 E. Compton Bl, which, if you were facing east and standing at the intersection of Compton and Willowbrook Av, was on the right side of the street. (I never remember the theater actually being open; I think Fox abandoned it at the end of the 1950s at the dawn of the “white flight” from Compton). It was in the block just before the major department stores, which included a JC Penney’s (which had the most exquisite mezzanine) and the JJ Newberry’s store (which had wonderful hardwood floors). I think people confuse the two theaters because Tamarind was a nearby cross-street for both. (That entire area was completely demolished in the 1970s, so all of this is from memory). There was a Bank Of America branch and the Compton Raceway (slot car racing) across the street. I once saw an interview with James Coburn in which he mentioned that, during his youth in Compton, he was hired to change the lettering on the marquee at the Compton Theater, which he did for a number of years.