El Portal Theatre
5269 Lankershim Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
91601
5269 Lankershim Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
91601
13 people
favorited this theater
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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.
This theater’s exterior is featured in a new TV commercial for the deodorant Secret.
Reopened by Metropolitan theatres on May 7th, 1978 showing Mexican movies. Grand opening ad posted.
Held an reopening on December 22nd, 1950
El Portal theatre opening Thu, Dec 21, 1950 – 19 · () · Newspapers.com
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
Here are some photos taken yesterday:
http://tinyurl.com/y8hvbhs
http://tinyurl.com/yl3vs6n
http://tinyurl.com/ybu9w6o
http://tinyurl.com/yhnen7s
The zip code for this theatre is 91601.
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.
Here is a night shot from 1982:
http://tinyurl.com/ckbk8z
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
Here’s a movie listing from Aug. 3, 1927:
LANKERSHIM
EL PORTAL
Wed., Thurs.-John Gilbert in “12 Miles Out"
Fri., Sat.–"Chang”
Here is another photo from USC, showing the El Portal in 1937:
http://tinyurl.com/pf7jn
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.
Here is a photo of Lankershim Boulevard in 1926, with the El Portal nearing completion. (From the USC Archives.)
From the LA Library:
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015664.jpg
From the LA Library:
http://jpg2.lapl.org/theater3/00015664.jpg
a pic
http://ga2so.com/burbank/images/elportal.jpg
You can also see a shot of the marquee in a current State Farms commercial running now.
It was just some CGI work done on the theatre for the ad client.
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.
The El Portal must have been quite a house in the old days. It features a very large stage and what I think used to be their orchestra pit, now covered. The auditorium is a bit disappointing. Like the Egyptian theater, they basically remodeled by tearing out the interior and building two new theaters inside. Like the Egyptian, the main stage has a much steeper rake than the old seats. This allows them to build a smaller theater underneath the seats for the main stage.
If one looks around, one can still see where the original entrances to the auditorium were. This has now been sacrificed to accomodate a bar and lobby area as well as steps to the upper level of seats. Nothing remains of the original ceiling, torn down to accomodate the catwalk and the high rake of seats.
Can’t be sure, but I think Brian might be right and there may at one time have been a small balcony. Be sure to check out the forward exit doors which still have the crumbling plasterwork that looks like it may have been original.