Los Angeles Theatres: Michelle at the Palace

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Michelle at the Palace - From Booth to Basement

I just updated the page for the Palace Theatre downtown on Broadway. New on the page are 8 photos taken by Michelle Gerdes on the Palace's 100th birthday, June 26.

Plus I added a lot of links to other views in Michelle's new Palace Theatre set on Flickr. She was at the Palace working all day as head usher for the three "Sunset Boulevard" screenings but managed to sneak around a bit and get some nice photos for us to oogle.

She took a few in the booth and wandered a lot in the basement. The view here is a lovely detail of some plasterwork in the now stunning ticket lobby area.

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Welcome to an exploration
of the historic theatres
of Los Angeles

Going to the movies in Los Angeles has always been wonderful.

Los Angeles theatres were interesting and opulent not only because because the city was rapidly growing at a time of intense movie theatre construction across the country but also because this was the center of the film industry. All the studios wanted exotic palaces to showcase their product.

Movie theatre architecture in LA is amazingly diverse stylistically. The important Los Angeles movie palaces downtown and in Hollywood may not have been the largest in the country in terms of seating capacity but they were certainly among the most eclectic in terms of decor.

Even the neighborhoods got great buildings by talented architects. Just look at the Chinese wonders of the Beverly Theatre in Beverly Hills or the Art Deco confections in San Pedro, Huntington Park, and Beverly Hills that B. Marcus Priteca did for Warner Bros. Our intent is to search through the massive amounts of material available and give it a bit of organization on a theatre-by-theatre basis.

This is still very much a work-in-progress.

Please e-mail us if you have any corrections or suggestions.

Thanks for visiting. See you at the movies in Los Angeles!

---Bill Counter

News and Events in the historic theatres of L.A.

There are 3 organizations very active in preserving the remaining historic theatres in Los Angeles. Check out their websites:

Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation
This group holds monthly free "All About" sessions at selected historic theatres both downtown and in other areas of the city. These usually include a booth to basement tour and a discussion of the history of the theatre by theatre historian Ed Kelsey. There are also film screenings and downtown architecture walks sponsored by the LAHTF. Join the group's contact list so you won't miss any fun events.

Los Angeles Conservancy
The conservancy is active on a number of preservation fronts with the downtown Los Angeles movie palaces high on the list of priorities. The Conservancy sponsors walking tours of the downtown theatres, an annual film series in classic theatres and other special events.

Bringing Back Broadway
This is a partnership between the City of Los Angeles and the Broadway theatre district property owners to promote a renewal of the district by upgrading the streetscape, working on a Broadway streetcar project and providing incentives for property owners to get suitable tenants using the theatre buildings once again. It's a long term project and along the way there are lots of tours and events. Subscribe to the e-mail newsletter and you'll be kept informed.

Other Pages to Visit

All of the pages for individual theatres have sources listed for more information. You might want to also visit several pages I've done that will provide you with many more ideas for exploration:

The Los Angeles History page, in addition to a listing of some websites of interest, also has a list of blogs about life in Los Angeles.

The Theatre History resources page lists many photo collections and sites covering the Los Angeles Theatres. It's on the Los Angeles Movie Palaces site.

The Wilshire History page has a number of items especially focused on the history of that Boulevard.

The Hollywood History page points you toward some good sites about the Hollywood area.

Happy exploring! Please e-mail me if you're looking for something elusive.

-- Bill Counter

Los Angeles Theatres

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Michelle at the Palace - From Booth to Basement

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Welcome to an exploration
of the historic theatres
of Los Angeles

Search Our Los Angeles Theatre Sites [ then click on "Linked From Here" ]

Downtown
Los Angeles
Theatres

Historic
Hollywood
Theatres

The Wilshire
and Westwood
Theatre Tour

More
Los Angeles
Movie Palaces

Posts by Category

BLOGS WE LIKE
ABOUT LOS ANGELES

News and Events in the historic theatres of L.A.

Other Pages to Visit

Los Angeles Theatres

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Michelle at the Palace - From Booth to Basement

0 comments:

Post a Comment

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Welcome to an exploration of the historic theatres of Los Angeles

Search Our Los Angeles Theatre Sites [ then click on "Linked From Here" ]

DowntownLos AngelesTheatres

HistoricHollywoodTheatres

The Wilshireand WestwoodTheatre Tour

More Los Angeles Movie Palaces

Posts by Category

BLOGS WE LIKEABOUT LOS ANGELES

News and Events in the historic theatres of L.A.

Other Pages to Visit

Welcome to an exploration
of the historic theatres
of Los Angeles

Downtown
Los Angeles
Theatres

Historic
Hollywood
Theatres

The Wilshire
and Westwood
Theatre Tour

More
Los Angeles
Movie Palaces

BLOGS WE LIKE
ABOUT LOS ANGELES