Start your Los Angeles area historic theatre explorations by heading to one of these major sections: Downtown | North of Downtown + East L.A. | San Fernando Valley | Glendale | Pasadena | San Gabriel Valley, Pomona and Whittier | South, South Central and Southeast | Hollywood | Westside | Westwood and Brentwood | Along the Coast | Long Beach | [more] L.A. Movie Palaces |
To see what's recently been added to the mix visit the Theatres in Movies site and the Los Angeles Theatres Facebook page.

Navigating Your Tour of Historic Los Angeles Theatres

On a Mobile Device: If you're missing the right column navigation bar or links at the top you can go to the bottom of any page and click on "View Web Version." Still can't find what you're looking for? Send me an email at counterb@gmail.com. See you at the movies! -- Bill Counter

Downtown L.A. Historic Theatres

The survey page gives a rundown on the 20 major surviving theatre buildings in the Downtown Theatre District. There are links to pages about each of them for more detail. You might also want to consult alphabetical rundowns on pages for Hill St. and farther west, the Broadway Theatres, Spring St. Theatres and Main St. and farther east. Those pages give you more detail, including discussions about all the theatres that have vanished. In addition, there's a downtown alphabetical theatre list with alternate names and a theatre list by address.

Historic Hollywood Theatres

Hollywood wasn't just about the movies. Starting in the mid 20s it was also a center for legitimate theatre and musical revues at four newly built playhouses. You'll find an alphabetical list of the theatres in the district on the Hollywood Theatres overview page that includes a bit of data on each and links to pages for more details. Down below this list there's also an alternate name directory. Also of possible interest is a separate page with a list of theatres by street address.

 Westside Theatres

The Westside started booming with retail and housing in the mid 20s and the theatres followed. Many theatres along Wilshire Blvd., in Beverly Hills, and in other neighborhoods became prime venues for everything from small foreign films to major roadshows. It's a huge territory. The Westside Theatres overview page gives you both a list by neighborhood as well as a survey arranged alphabetically. Also see the list of Westside Theatres: by street address and the Westside Theatres: alphabetical list page which includes alternate names.

Westwood and Brentwood

Westwood Village was the third significant theatre district to evolve in Los Angeles, after Downtown and Hollywood. With the construction of the UCLA campus beginning in the late 20s there was a chance to develop a unique shopping and entertainment district for faculty and students. By the 1970's the area had evolved so that Westwood had the largest concentration of first run screens of any neighborhood in Los Angeles. The Westwood and Brentwood Theatres overview page will give you a tour of the area.

Theatres Along the Coast

Santa Monica had a vibrant theatrical life even in the days when it was a small town isolated from the rest of Los Angeles. And that's just the beginning. The Along the Coast section will give you links to discussion of theatres in Ocean Park, Venice, Hermosa Beach, San Pedro, Long Beach and other communities.

[more] L.A. Movie Palaces

This section fills in all the other areas of Los Angeles County. Hundreds of terrific theatres were being built by the studios and independents all over the L.A. area in the 20s and into the 30s.  You'll find coverage of theatres north and east of Downtown as well as in Glendale, Burbank, Pasadena, the San Gabriel Valley, Pomona, Whittier, Long Beach and many other far flung locations.   Some of those listings have been upgraded and appear on this site, many other links will take you to pages on an older site hosted on Google. The index page has links to all these theatres organized by area.

Searching by theatre name

If you don't find it in the right hand column, head for the Main Alphabetical List, which also includes the various alternate names each venue has used. This list includes those pages recently updated for this site (in bold face) as well as the write ups on an older website. For a narrower focus you'll also find separate lists for Westside and Downtown. As well, there are lists by name on the 10 survey pages for more limited areas like Pasadena, North of Downtown, Long Beach, etc. that are listed on the [more] Los Angeles Movie Palaces page.

Searching by address

If you know an address or street head to either the Main Theatre List by Address, the San Fernando Valley List by Address, the San Gabriel Valley, Pomona and Whittier List by Address or the Long Beach List. If what you're looking for isn't there, you should find a link to take you to a more localized list by address for Downtown, WestsideHollywood, etc. Also see the survey pages for more limited areas that are listed on the [more] Los Angeles Movie Palaces page.
 

1922-1926 - Egyptomania: Bard's/Academy - Pasadena | Bard's West Adams | Egyptian - Hollywood | Egyptian - Long Beach | Garfield | Vista Theatre | Warner's Egyptian - Pasadena |

1927 - Exotic destinations: Grauman's Chinese | Mayan Theatre

1930 - 1932 - The best L.A. County Art Deco wonders: Fox Pomona | Four Star Theatre | Fox Wilshire / Saban | Leimert / Vision Theatre | Pantages | United Artists Long Beach | Warner Beverly Hills | Warner Grand San Pedro | Warner Huntington Park | Wiltern Theatre

1935 - 1939 - Moderne marvels: Academy - Inglewood | Arden - Lynwood | Bruin Theatre | El Rey - Wilshire | Gordon/Showcase Theatre | La Reina Theatre | Tower - Compton | Vogue - Hollywood | Vogue - Southgate |  

1946 - 1951 - Skouras-style: Crest - Long Beach | Culver Theatre | Fox Inglewood | Fox Venice | Loyola Theatre |

1948 - 1951 - Skouras-ized older theatres: California - Huntington Park | El Portal | Fox Westwood Village | Mesa Theatre |

1942 - 1970 - The most interesting Mid-Century Modern designs: Baldwin Theatre | Cinerama Dome | General Cinema - Sherman Oaks I & II | La Tijera Theatre | National Theatre | Pan Pacific Theatre | Paradise Theatre | Towne - Long Beach |

Happy touring! Please contact me if you spot errors, links that don't work, etc.  

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Twin City Theatre

 822 S. San Fernando Blvd. Burbank, CA 91502 | map |

Opening: It looks like the beginning was 1926. The address used at the time was 822 E. San Fernando Blvd. That's on the east side of the street between Elmwood and Valencia, a bit over a block north of Alameda. These days the big landmark is IKEA, on the other side of San Fernando Blvd.
 
Thanks to Marc Chevalier for locating this item in the September 4, 1926 issue of the trade magazine The Billboard: 
 
"BURBANK, Calif. - The Twin City Theater, 822 East San Fernando boulevard, has opened. W.H. Church is manager."  
 

The theatre was looking for "Women Solicitors" in 1926. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for including the ad in a thread about various Murphy's Comedians venues on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group.
 
This November 5, 1927 item in The Billboard was another located by Marc Chevalier:
 
"MIL AND LIL HOUSMAN advise that after 25 weeks with a Southern show, they have returned to the Coast, and have signed for a season of stock with Murphy's Comedians at the Twin City Theater, Burbank, Calif."
 
 
 
A December 16, 1927 ad for the dramas "The Undercover Kid" and "The Family Pride."  Thanks to Ken for locating it. It's nice that they gave us an address! 
 
 
 
"Just a few steps west of the Burbank and Glendale City Line." It's a January 19, 1928 ad Ken McIntyre located. 
 
 
 
A January 1928 ad for the Murphy's Comedians production of "The Unkissed Bride," a "Hilarious Farce Comedy." And the following Wednesday it would be "The False Alarm," an appropriately themed show for a firemen's benefit.  
 
 
 
The theatre got a fine writeup about their production of "The Unkissed Bride" in this column from the January 23, 1928 issue of the Burbank Daily Review. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it. 
 
 

A c.1928 ticket for shows by the group Murphy's Comedians. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this for his Murphy's Comedians thread on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group.

Horace Murphy's companies toured widely, with shows happening simultaneously in many venues. The Colonial in South Pasadena was later known as the Ritz Theatre. See the page about the Tent Theatre in Hawthorne. The page about the Embassy Theatre in Gardena includes a newspaper story about a 1931 booking in that town, at what was then called the Alamo Theatre. 

Murphy's career was discussed in "Murphy Comedians Open Showhouse...." an April 10, 1931 article from a Glendale paper was located by Jerry Miles. It's about a tent theatre that Murphy was erecting in South Pasadena. Some of their comments about Murphy:

"...There is perhaps no better showman in the west than Horace Murphy. For the past twenty years he has been engaged in theatrical work in Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico, at one time having more than twelve companies. He has had theaters in Glendale, Burbank, Ontario, San Bernardino, Santa Ana, Orange, Hawthorne, Oxnard and Los Angeles in this vicinity and in Phoenix, Tucson, Douglass [sic], Prescott Arizona. At the present time he is showing in Glendale, Los Angeles and Oxnard, California... Mr. Murphy makes a specialty of showing high class legitimate shows at popular prices..."

See the full article at the bottom of the page about the Colonial/Ritz Theatre in South Pasadena.  

Closing: Sometime in the 1930s. 
 
Marc Chevalier notes that by the time the 1939 Burbank city directory was compiled 822 East San Fernando had become an auto dealership operated by J.E. Robertson.   
 
 

These days Harbor Freight is at the 822 S. address. We're looking north. That's Valencia St. taking off on the right. The banners for IKEA are on the left, down in the next block. Image: Google Maps - 2022

More information: There isn't any about the Twin City. Nor have any photos yet emerged. 

Burbank had a tent show in the mid-1920s. In the 1926 San Fernando Valley City Directory there is a listing under "theatres" for Tent at 310 N. Providence (or 310 Providencia, if you looked in the alphabetical section). The proprietor was one Jos. Aubrey.

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Gardena Theatre

1106 W. Gardena Blvd. Gardena, CA 90247 | map |

Opened: February 1939. The location is on the south side of the street, one building west of Berendo Ave. Berendo is two blocks west of Vermont. 

Architect: Clarence Eugene Noerenberg. Thanks to Joe Vogel for researching the project. He comments: 

"A couple of issues of Boxoffice in the mid-1940s mention the Gardena Theatre (it suffered a fire in 1945) operated by Harry Millstein and Harry Mellenkoff. It was most likely the unnamed theater being built for Mellenkoff that was mentioned in Southwest Builder & Contractor of October 28, 1938.

"This 800-seat house was designed by architect C. E. Noerenberg, best known for designing a number of branch libraries for the City of Los Angeles, and for Dorsey High School, which he designed in partnership with Hollywood architect H. L. Gogerty."
 
Seating: 692 is a later number from a Film Daily Yearbook. 

An ad from the May 11, 1939 issue of the Torrance Herald.  
 
There was a fire in the theatre on May 3, 1945. It reopened on November 1, 1945. Joe Vogel comments: 
 
"As for the L.A. Times report from 1945 giving the address of the theater as 1002 Gardena Boulevard, I suspect that it was either a mistake, or the lots along Gardena Boulevard have since been renumbered."
 
 
 
The Gardena Theatre appears in this December 31, 1947 L.A. Times listing. The Park Theatre in Gardena was the venue on Crenshaw Blvd. now known as the Gardena Cinema. Both houses were operated by Harry Millstein and Harry Mellenkoff. 
 

A schedule for September 16, 1955. Thanks to Denise Gaskell Snuffin for sharing this on Cinema Treasures. She notes that she took it when she worked the theatre as a cashier.
 

The stub from Denise Gaskell Snuffin's October 22, 1955 paycheck. She shared it on Cinema Treasures.

Closing: November 1955. The Gardena Department Store later moved into the building. 


 
The theatre building in use as the Gardena Department Store. We're looking east toward Berendo Ave. Vermont is two blocks farther east. Image: Google Maps - 2022. Joe Vogel comments: 
 
"The LA. County Assessor’s office says that the department store building was built in 1938, which is when the theater was built."

And regarding the building on the corner: 
 
"The L.A. County Assessor (not always reliable) doesn't list 1002 W. Gardena, but gives an original construction date of 1924 and an effective construction date of 1940 for the 4625 sq. ft. building on the corner lot at 1004 Gardena, and those dates don’t match the 1938 construction and 1945 reconstruction of the Gardena Theatre."

A look down the alley toward the back of the former theatre, the second building in. Image: Google Maps - 2022. Joe Vogel comments: 

"If you take Google’s street view down the alley behind the building you can see to the left of the single rear door that the plaster is separating, in line with the top of the doorway, indicating that there could formerly have been a double exit door at that location. There is also an area at the other end of the rear which looks to have been bricked up, though it is difficult to make out due to layers of paint. That would have been the location of the second pair of rear exit doors. And again, the plaster appears to be separating in a line that would indicate the top of a doorway that has been bricked up."

More information: See our page about the Gardena Cinema, a 1946 vintage house that didn't get named the Gardena until 1995. There's also a page on an earlier theatre in Gardena, the Embassy, located on Vermont Blvd. There was yet another early venue at 918 Palm Ave. in Gardena. In the 1922-23 Watts-Compton city directory and the 1925 Watts directory it's listed as The Auditorium. In the 1927-28 city directory it's listed as the Gardena Theatre.

See the Cinema Treasures page about the Gardena Theatre. Thanks to Joe Vogel for his research. Cinema Treasures also has a page about the later Gardena Cinema on Crenshaw Blvd.

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Embassy Theatre

15401 S. Vermont Ave. Gardena, CA 90247 | map |

Opened: 1929. Thanks to Joe Vogel for doing the research. He reports: 

"Southwest Builder & Contractor of May 18, 1928, said that H. L. Batey was building a theater on the west side of Vermont Avenue between 153rd and Magnolia Street in Gardena (153rd Street is now Redondo Beach Boulevard.) The entire 15300-15400 block now shows as a single parcel on the Assessor’s office web site, with a construction date of 2001. But Mr. Batey’s 1928 project (probably completed in 1929) must have been the Embassy."

It may have been branded as the Alamo Theatre in the early 1930s. The Embassy seems to have been one of two theatres in Gardena at that time. The other possibility would have been a building at 918 Palm Ave. that was variously known in the 20s as The Auditorium and the Gardena Theatre.  
 
There was a closure in early 1931. The March 28 issue of "Inside Facts of Stage and Screen," available as a PDF via Internet Archive, had this tiny item:
 
"HOUSE CLOSED - The Alamo Theatre at Gardena was closed March 23."
 
Murphy's Comedians had a booking in Gardena later in 1931. There's a thread about Murphy on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group. Thanks to Jerry Miles for sharing this May 28, 1931 article he located about a Gardena engagement for the Murphy troupe:
 

Murphy went all over the place, with his various companies playing bookings in both regular theatres and setting up their own tents. For some of their other engagements see the pages about the Colonial/Ritz Theatre in South Pasadena, the Tent Theatre in Hawthorne and the Twin City Theatre in Burbank.   

A directory page on the Cinema Tour site lists an Alamo Theatre in Gardena but they have no other data.

Murphy's career was discussed in "Murphy Comedians Open Showhouse...." an April 10, 1931 article from a Glendale paper was located by Jerry Miles. It's about a tent theatre that Murphy was erecting in South Pasadena. Some of their comments about Murphy:

"...There is perhaps no better showman in the west than Horace Murphy. For the past twenty years he has been engaged in theatrical work in Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico, at one time having more than twelve companies. He has had theaters in Glendale, Burbank, Ontario, San Bernardino, Santa Ana, Orange, Hawthorne, Oxnard and Los Angeles in this vicinity and in Phoenix, Tucson, Douglass [sic], Prescott Arizona. At the present time he is showing in Glendale, Los Angeles and Oxnard, California... Mr. Murphy makes a specialty of showing high class legitimate shows at popular prices..."

See the full article at the bottom of the page about the Colonial/Ritz Theatre in South Pasadena.  

In the 40s there was a management change at the Embassy. Joe Vogel notes:

"Boxoffice of October 5, 1940, said that Laraine Valuskis had taken over the Embassy Theatre at Gardena from J. Reese. That’s the only mention of the house I’ve been able to find in Boxoffice."

Closed: Sometime around 1946. 

According to research by Cinema Treasures contributors, the building became the Embassy Palace and the Eldorado Club. It's now the Hustler Casino. It's unknown how much of that dates from the 20s and how much is new construction.     
 

On the left we're looking south on Vermont Ave. Over on the right it's a view west on Redondo Beach Blvd. Image: Google Maps - 2022

More information: See the Cinema Treasures page about the Embassy. 

Here on this site see our page about the Gardena Cinema, a 1946 vintage house. There's also a page about the Gardena Theatre, a venue on Gardena Blvd. that ran from 1939 until 1955. 

There was also an earlier venue at 918 Palm Ave. in Gardena. In the 1922-23 Watts-Compton city directory and the 1925 Watts directory it's listed as The Auditorium. In the 1927-28 city directory it's listed as the Gardena Theatre. This was in the first block west of Vermont. Palm later got renamed W. 165th Pl. See a 1912 Sanborn map in the Library of Congress collection.

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Tent Theatre in Hawthorne

Hawthorne Blvd. north of El Segundo Blvd. Hawthorne CA 90250  | map |

Opening: The date is unknown but it was running in the mid-1920s. Originally the address was in the 100 block of N. Hawthorne Blvd., on the west side of the street just north of what is now El Segundo Blvd. That would be approximately 12717 Hawthorne Blvd. with the current numbering.

 

A c.1928 ticket for shows by the group Murphy's Comedians. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it for a thread about Murphy on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group.

Horace Murphy's companies toured widely, with shows happening simultaneously in many venues. The Colonial in South Pasadena was later known as the Ritz Theatre. See the page about the Twin City Theatre in Burbank. The page about the Embassy Theatre in Gardena includes a newspaper story about a 1931 booking in that town, at what was then called the Alamo Theatre. 

Murphy's career was discussed in "Murphy Comedians Open Showhouse...." an April 10, 1931 article from a Glendale paper was located by Jerry Miles. It's about a tent theatre that Murphy was erecting in South Pasadena. Some of their comments about Murphy:

"...There is perhaps no better showman in the west than Horace Murphy. For the past twenty years he has been engaged in theatrical work in Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico, at one time having more than twelve companies. He has had theaters in Glendale, Burbank, Ontario, San Bernardino, Santa Ana, Orange, Hawthorne, Oxnard and Los Angeles in this vicinity and in Phoenix, Tucson, Douglass [sic], Prescott Arizona. At the present time he is showing in Glendale, Los Angeles and Oxnard, California... Mr. Murphy makes a specialty of showing high class legitimate shows at popular prices..."

See the full article at the bottom of the page about the Colonial/Ritz Theatre in South Pasadena.  

 

By mid-1928 the Hawthorne tent location had been taken over by the Wade-Renfroe Players, opening July 1 with "The Patsy." Thanks to Jerry Miles for locating this ad for the Murphy thread on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook group. 
 

The tent operation was still around in 1932. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for sharing this ad about a lunch spot for rent adjacent to the theatre. 

Closing: The date isn't known. 

More information: Sorry, there isn't any yet.

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Pacific 4 / Pacific Galleria 16 / ArcLight Sherman Oaks / Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria

15301 Ventura Blvd. Sherman Oaks (Los Angeles) CA 91403  | map |

The mall is located at Ventura Blvd. and Sepulveda, just east of the 405. The initial 4 plex in the mall was open from 1980 until 1999. The replacement 16 screen complex opened as the Pacific Galleria 16 in 2001.  

The Pacific 4:  

Opening: December 1980. It was located on the top floor of the Galleria, what at the time was a three-story enclosed mall. It had opened October 30, anchored by Robinsons on the south and the May Co. on the north end.
 
 
 
A December 5, 1980 grand opening ad. Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating it. Visit his site: Movie-Theatre.org. They opened with one screen running "Flash Gordon." The other three screens debuted December 19 with "Seems Like Old Times," "Raging Bull" and "The Formula." 
 
 

The theatres are over on the right in this view across that appears, uncredited, with a 2017 Behind the Deals story by Joshua Beroukhim. It's a photo by John F. Gaylord Photography.
 

 
A photo taken by Wayne Thom in 1981. It's in the USC Digital Library collection. Fourteen additional shots he took can be seen on Calisphere
 


The Pacific 4 Theatres are in the lower left on this c.1981 floorplan of the mall's upper level. Todd Tarpley drew this after analyzing available photos as well as shots from "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." His fine discussion about the mall's layout appears on a Galleria page of the Tarp Report. He says:
 
"Jeeze, do I have to do everything myself? Since I didn't have the chance to see it in person before it was torn down, I was curious about what the Sherman Oaks Galleria looked like--how big it was, what stores were there, how it was laid out. I found about a dozen photos online, but a floor plan doesn't seem to exist.

"Why I care: the Sherman Oaks Galleria was synonymous with the mall culture of the early '80s. 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' was shot there. The song 'Valley Girl' was written about it. It was not a large mall; it was not unique; its popularity was fleeting. But I'm a pop culture buff and an urban archaeology buff. 
 
"So...here's my floor plan of the top floor of the Sherman Oaks Galleria from late 1981, when 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' was filmed there. As you can see, it's a complicated layout with relatively few 90-degree angles!..."
 
 
 
The boxoffice in 1985. Thanks to Gary Fimbres for sharing his photo as a post on the private Facebook group Mid Century Modern. Mike Rivest later added it to the Cinema Treasures page about the theatre. Among the films playing were "The Breakfast Club" and "The Falcon and the Snowman."


 
The boxoffice in 1993. Thanks to the Valley Relics Museum for sharing the image in a Facebook post.  
 

A c.1985 photo from the Valley Relics Museum Facebook page.

Closing: The 4-plex closed in 1999 when the mall got a major makeover. 
 

The Pacific 4 Theatres in the movies:

The theatre plays a part in Amy Heckerling's "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (Universal, 1982). The film features Brian Backer, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold, Phoebe Cates, Robert Romanus, Ray Walston, Kelli Maroney, Eric Stoltz and Forest Whitaker. Cameron Crowe did the screenplay based on his book. The cinematography was by Matthew F. Leonetti. Thanks to Whiteberry for this screenshot shared in a post on Blu-ray.com. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for eight more shots from the film.

Marty Glassman comments: 

"I was in there watching 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' with a friend, when they showed the scene of the inside of the mall. Everyone started laughing in the theater, and then they showed the kid taking tickets in the theater that we were watching the movie, and then we really started laughing."


The mall is seen in the opening credits of Martha Coolidge's "Valley Girl" (Atlantic Releasing, 1983). The film features Nicolas Cage, Deborah Foreman, Cameron Dye, Heidi Holicker, Elizabeth Daily, Michael Bowen, Michelle Meyrink, Colleen Camp and Frederic Forrest. The cinematography was by Frederick Elmes. While we don't go to the movies in the mall, we do have two visits to the nearby Sherman Theatre and, of course, cruise many theatres in Hollywood. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for shots of the theatres we see.   
 

We see the theatres during a fine brawl at the Galleria in Mark Lester's film "Commando" (20th Century Fox, 1985). The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Rae Dawn Chong. Featured are Dan Hedaya, Vernon Wells, Alyssa Milano, David Patrick Kelly, James Olson and Sharon Wyatt. The cinematography was by Matthew F. Leonetti. See a clip of the mall brawl scene on YouTube. There's another shot from the scene showing the theatres on the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post.

The mall also appears in "Chopping Mall" (1986), "Innerspace" (1987), "Walk Like a Man" (1987), "Mother" (1996), "Phantom of the Mall: Eric's Revenge" (1989) and "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" (1992). A post by Whiteberry on the forum pages of the site Blu-ray.com has a superb rundown of the mall's movies with many screenshots. TV appearances include the 1983 TV movie "Sunset Limousine" and the "Bad Eggs" episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" from 1998.

 

The new Pacific Galleria 16:

Opened: 2001 on the 3rd floor. It's in space that had originally been the top level of the Robinsons store at the south end of the mall. 
 

A  November 2, 2001 ad located by Mike Rivest.  

Closing: 2007

Rebranded as the Arclight Cinemas Sherman Oaks:  

Opening: November 2007 with five screens ready. The rest followed in December. This was the second complex to use the ArcLight name. The original ArcLight, in Hollywood, had opened in 2001.
 
Seating: 3,497 

Architects: The rebuild was designed by the Santa Monica office of Gensler & Associates. Thanks to Joe Vogel for the data. He notes that they had also done the Hollywood complex.
 

A November 22, 2007 ad. Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating it.  
 
 

A September 2008 view. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for sharing his photo.  
 
 

A November 2008 shot from Ken McIntyre.  
 
 

A 2018 entrance view by Aaashish Singh

The lobby:
 

Thanks to Fsantos for sharing this 2007 image on Cinema Treasures. Their comment: "Before we opened." 

A 2007 lobby shot that had appeared on the ArcLight Facebook page. Thanks to Dallas Movie Theaters for posting it on Cinema Treasures
 
 

A 2019 photo by J S that was shared by Google. 
 
 

A 2019 inner lobby view by Jsn Tlr that was shared by Google. 

A photo shared in July 2021 on a Save the Arclight Cinemas Facebook page.
 

The Arclight auditorium look:

A 2019 view. Thanks to Scott Neff for sharing this one on Cinema Tour. It's one of over 30 photos dating from 2010 to 2019 that appear on their page about the theatre.  

Closing: March 2020 due to Covid restrictions.

On April 12, 2021 the Decurion Corporation announced that they were not going to reopen any of its theatres using the Pacific Theatres and ArcLight brands. Their Vineland Drive-In was operating at the time but none of the indoor locations had tried reopening even as pandemic restrictions were easing. 300 screens were involved. 

Pamela McClintock had the sad news in "Arclight Cinemas and Pacific Theatres to Close," an April 12, 2021 story for The Hollywood Reporter. Also see stories from Deadline, the L.A. Times and Variety. A Decurion statement noted: 

"This was not the outcome anyone wanted, but despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward... To our guests and members of the film industry who have made going to the movies such a magical experience over the years: our deepest thanks. It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve you."

Tom Nunan had a nice April 13 story for Forbes: "Iconic Movie Chain Closes In Los Angeles; 5 Predictions For Future Of Cinemas Nationwide." Ryan Faughnder's April 16 story for the times asked "After ArcLight Cinemas' closure, what happens next?"

The Pacific Theatres Exhibition Corporation, part of the Forman empire, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on June 18 so that they could have protection while they liquidated their assets and paid creditors. The plan was to sell off whatever is theirs: seats, projectors, popcorn machines, etc. at both company owned and leased locations. 

Included was whatever equipment the landlords didn't claim at the leased ArcLight locations in Culver City, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, El Segundo, Pasadena, La Jolla, Chicago, Boston and the D.C. area. Also affected were the Pacific locations (some owned, some leased) in Lakewood, Northridge, Chatsworth (the Winnetka), Sherman Oaks (the 5 plex), City of Industry (Vineland D-I), the Grove, and Glendale (Americana at Brand). Deadline had the story: "Pacific Theatres Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy." 

In Variety's June 18 story, also titled "Pacific Theatres Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy," they noted that creditors, including landlords and film studios, might get little or nothing: 

"According to the bankruptcy filings, the six entities that filed for bankruptcy on Friday had $69 million in liabilities, and just $4.8 million in total assets. The only secured debt is a $6.4 million obligation to Bank of America, which means that all the unsecured creditors — including landlords, taxing authorities, former employees, vendors, various litigants, and gift card holders — will likely wind up with little or nothing. The unsecured creditors also include all the major film studios, along with many smaller distributors, who were still owed box office revenue when Pacific’s theaters closed last year. Disney is owed $1.26 million, followed by Warner Bros. ($779,000), Universal ($619,000), Paramount ($501,000), Sony ($389,000) and indie distributor Neon ($231,000). In sum, 25 distributors are owed $4.26 million."

See the Cinerama Dome page for more stories about the disposition of other ArcLight locations. 


As the Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria:

Opening: Regal Cinemas reopened the former ArcLight location on July 6, 2021. "Former ArcLight at Sherman Oaks Galleria taken over by Regal Cinemas" was the June 18 story in the Times. 

 

A photo shared in July 2021 on a Save the Arclight Cinemas Facebook page.   

The rebranded entrance. It's a 2022 photo by Steven B. on Yelp

Status: In January 2023 the Sherman Oaks Galleria venue was on the list as one of 39 locations Regal was planning on shutting in the midst of their bankruptcy proceedings. Variety had the list. But it continues to stay open. A story shared on Cinema Treasures:

"Regal announces new lease agreement at Sherman Oaks Galleria - KNOXVILLE, Tenn., May 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ – The 16-screen Sherman Oaks Galleria theatre will continue operating as a Regal property following entry into a new lease agreement with the owner. The Regal theatre is the only structure left standing from the original Sherman Oaks Galleria mall, which was transformed into today's modern open-air, mixed-use facility in 2002.

"'The new agreement between Regal and Douglas Emmett allows movies to continue playing at one of Los Angeles' sacred entertainment sites,' stated Mooky Greidinger, CEO of Cineworld, parent company of Regal. 'We are excited not only to preserve the legacy of Sherman Oaks Galleria but also to update this theatre with the latest advancements in the movie-going experience. Soon our guests will be able to enjoy movies in IMAX, 4DX and ScreenX at Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria cinema.'"


The building in 2023 with its new "Regal" signage. Photo: Google Maps

More information: See the Cinema Treasures pages on the Pacific 4 and the Regal Sherman Oaks Galleria. The Cinema Tour page about the 16-plex has over 30 photos dating from 2010 to 2019. 

A mall remodel in 1992 was discussed in the June 8 L.A. Times story "Galleria Remodels in Effort to Lure 'More Mature' Customer.." One of their comments:

"The mall became widely known outside Southern California in 1982 because it was mentioned in the song 'Valley Girl' by Moon Unit Zappa. The song described the Galleria as the habitat of teen-agers who talked oddly and were fixated on goods. The lyrics included: 'Like ohmigod like totally Encino is like so bitchen. There’s like the Galleria and like all those like really great shoe stores. . . . I like buy the neatest miniskirts and stuff. It’s so bitchen.' The song--and a subsequent movie, 'Valley Girl,' that was filmed at the Galleria--caused foot traffic in the 100-store mall to increase by 30%, Galleria officials said in 1983..."

There's a nice history of the mall in a 2017 Behind the Deals story by Joshua Beroukhim.  Wikipedia has an article about the Galleria. Of course there's a page about the Regal Galleria on Yelp.

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