6025 Hollywood Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90028 |
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Opened: May 14, 1926 as the Marcal Theatre, a project of "a syndicate of Hollywood capitalists." The name was a
contraction of two of the lessee's names: Mark Hansen and Alice Calhoun. It
was never a prime Hollywood venue but cobbled together interesting
programs of revivals and overlooked titles. This April 1935 photo of the theatre running "The Mighty Barnum" is in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.
The theatre operating company was called Hansen Theatres, Inc. Joseph G. Curl was also part of the firm. Mark and Alice were involved in operating other theatres including three houses in Oxnard, the La Mirada Theatre on Vine St. (later called the Filmarte), the Larchmont Theatre and the Marquis Theatre on Melrose.
Architect: William Allen. His office was at 649 S. Olive. The
Pacific Coast Architecture Database has a page on him. He also designed the
Fox Compton. A 1925 Times article below misprinted his last name as "Allan." In 1926 they called him William E. Young.
Seating: 1,250 was the number when the project was announced in the Times. 964 was a later count.
The project was announced in the July 10, 1925 issue of the Hollywood Citizen. On July 12 the L.A. Times carried this article:
A drawing appearing in the July 26, 1925 issue of the Times.
The groundbreaking was December 1, 1926 with Alice operating the steam shovel. This article appeared in the December 2 issue of the Times. That "H.L. Groggerty" was actually Henry L. Gogerty, local architect of, among many other buildings, the Yucca/Vine Tower and the
Hollywood Playhouse.
The Times had problems with the architect's last name once again. It was Allen, not Young. This updated rendering appeared in the paper's January 24, 1926 issue. Thanks to J.H. Graham for locating this item, one appearing in "
6021-6025 Hollywood Boulevard: The Marcal Theatre," her extensively researched article about the theatre and its operators. She's the author of the Avery Shepard Detective mystery series.
The opening was May 14, 1926 with "Skinner's Dress Suit" starring Reginald Denny and Laura LaPlante. Both stars and the director were there for the opening. Thanks to J.H. Graham for locating this opening day ad in the Hollywood Citizen.
"All Hollywood Goes to the Mar-Cal." Although the house had only been open for six months, J.H. Graham notes that they closed for a round of renovations that upgraded the theatre so they could get more first-run product. J.H. located this January 26, 1927 reopening ad in the Hollywood Citizen. Along with "Remember," the bill included the Wonder Orchestra of Lindsay-Simons and a stage show.
A 5th Birthday ad. Thanks to J.H. Graham for locating this in the December 16, 1931 issue of the Hollywood Citizen. This was a rather late celebration -- seven months after the actual birthday.
Mark Hansen, although only a tenant when the house opened, had bought the building from the initial investors at some point. In 1934 he leased the house to Albert A. Galston and Jay M. Sutton of Galston & Sutton Theatres. The change was announced in the December 18 issue of the Hollywood Citizen. Thanks to J.H. Graham for her research. She notes that Hansen was focusing on his real estate and nightclub interests. Her
Marcal Theatre article had lots of information on Mark's club adventures.
"A Dignified Theatre." Thanks to J.H. Graham for locating this January 18, 1935 Galston & Sutton ad in the Hollywood Citizen. In addition to "White Parade" and "Affairs of Cellini" we got Dusty Rhodes at the organ and singer Jean Clarke. J.H. notes:
"In February 1935, the new management undertook another remodeling. It reopened February 24, 1935 with a 7 day celebratory 'inaugural week' to usher in their new policy of lowered loge seat admission price for adults from 25 cents to 20 cents. Galston & Sutton would also institute a revival policy, showing films not seen in Hollywood theaters for several years - and always a double feature.
"In April 1940 Hansen sued Galston & Sutton, seeking to forfeit renewal of their lease. Galston and Sutton argued that the theater’s gross profit had increased by 50% under their management. The duo prevailed and the lease was renewed for 10 years."
Galston and Sutton would be running nearby the
Hawaii Theatre when it opened in May 1940.
An interesting experiment with a 16mm booking in 1946. Thanks to Ron Strong for locating the ad. Visit his
Bijou Memories site for his research and memories regarding San Fernando and San Gabriel Valley theatres.
A fire starting in the orchestra pit in 1948. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating the June 27 story for his Facebook thread about the theatre on
Ken's Movie page. Note that Mark Hansen was still the owner at this time. The fire marked the exit of Galston and Sutton as the Marcal's operators.
They took their time renovating the theatre after the fire. Among the exciting new features announced prior to the reopening was anti-talk technology. Sounds like it was just sound absorbent panels on the side walls and ceiling. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this March 28, 1949 item.
"Hollywood's Finest - New Throughout - Modern as Tomorrow." New operators, a remodel and a grand reopening in 1949. Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating the March 31 ad in the L.A. Times. Note the
Picfair running the same program. The two theatres were operated at this time by the group doing business as both "Encore Theatres" and "Academies of Proven Hits."
The 1949 Film Daily Yearbook listed
"Academies of Proven Hits" as a company run by Saul Mahler and James H.
Nicholson. The theatres listed as being under their control at the time
included the Arlington, Cinema, Jewel, Picfair and Vermont. Joseph Moritz was also a part of the company. Nicholson was later a co-founder of American International Pictures.
A 1949 Times ad touting their "New Cycloramic Screen." Thanks to Ken McIntyre for spotting it. "The 7th Veil" was a 1945 release, "Great Expectations" was out in 1946. A display case at the theatre is also seen with material advertising the new screen in "Destination Murder" (RKO, 1950).
A December 14, 1949 ad located by Gerald A. DeLuca for a post on
Cinema Treasures.
"Treasure of the Sierra Madre" and "Casablanca" running in 1950, also at the Picfair. Thanks to Kurt Wahlner for locating the August 18 ad in the L.A. Times. Visit Kurt's site about the Chinese:
GraumansChinese.org
In April 1952 the theatre was leased to FilmCraft Productions for use as a TV studio, according to research by J.H. Graham. She notes that a pilot for a Goodson-Todman game show titled "Two For the Money" was shot at the Marcal.
Later in 1952 the Marcal went legit. J.H. Graham notes that the first production was "The Merry Widow," opening December 4. Reviews were not good.
Another interesting chapter in the Marcal's history was the run of Sid Pink's "French Post Card Revue," opening October 2, 1953. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this September 30 L.A. Mirror ad for a post about the theatre on the
Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group.
An article about the show that Ken located. Pink operated other theatres at times, including the
Major in Burbank as well as houses in East L.A. and Anaheim. Sid is best remembered as a producer
of the 3-D hit "Bwana Devil."
Star of the revue, the "Gorgeous" Gloria Pall, gets a bit of promotion in the Mirror in 1953. Thanks to Ken for locating this. J.H. Graham notes that the next show up was "Brooklyn U.S.A.," a show about the mob that, like "French Postcard," also got bad reviews.
"Pepe Lemoko" on the screen plus a stage show. It's a November 1953 listing in the L.A. Times.
The stage shows were gone by 1954. Film runs that year included an exclusive post-Oscar run of Billy Wilder's "Stalag 17" in February and a "roadshow engagement" of "The Salt of the Earth" beginning May 20. In late 1957 and early 1958 the theatre was leased to a church. J.H. Graham notes that by July 1958 there were rentals again for occasional live shows and films.
A stage production of "The Innocents," based on the Henry James novel. Thanks to J.H. Graham for locating the September 13, 1958 ad in the Hollywood Citizen-News. She notes that the reviews were not good. Then films were back.
Closing as the Marcal: The last films were a double bill of "Splendor in the Grass" and Elvis in "Girls! Girls! Girls!" that ran from June 5 to June 9, 1963. Thanks to J.H. Graham for the research.
Reopening: Pacific Theatres leased the house from Hansen in 1963, gave it a remodel designed by Carl Moller, and reopened it as the World Theatre.
"Open All Night." Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating this July 3, 1963 reopening day ad.
Goodbye to Mark Hansen, on the right, and hello to Ted Morris of Pacific Theatres. Thanks to mystery writer J.H. Graham for locating this item in the July 18, 1963 issue of the Hollywood Citizen-News. She includes it in her extensively researched article "6021-6025 Hollywood Boulevard: The Marcal Theatre." J.H. notes that Mark died in June 1964.
The World Theatre is mentioned 41:37 minutes into the 2023 "
Roger Corman Tribute @ Beyond Fest" chapter of the Post Mortem podcast with Mick Garris that the World Theatre was used for a test screening for the 1982 Corman film "Slumber Party Massacre." Thanks to Jonathan Raines for the information.
Keep a low profile was the advice in this review of the environment at the World that Ken McIntyre located in a 1982 issue of L.A. Weekly. He comments: "I saw a double feature at the World in 1984. It was an experience."
Closing: The World closed in the summer of 1986, a grindhouse operation until the end. The theatre was later gutted for other purposes.
Looking at the present exterior you'd never guess that it was a theatre. The facade is unrecognizable. Chris Hoffman reports that the front portion was damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Building permits show it was rebuilt in June of that year.
A drawing from the 1994 permit application. Thanks to Chris Hoffman for providing it.
Status: Since 2013 or so the building has been used as a nightclub. It was initially called Create. It's now called Academy. Thanks to T.J. Pierce for the club data.
Interior views:
A peek into the lobby. It's a 1932 Dick Whittington Studio photo in the
USC Digital Library collection. Also see Whittington's
job ticket for the three photos he took.
Back out toward the street. It's a 1932 Dick Whittington Studio photo in the
USC Digital Library collection.
A c.1978 lobby view taken during a shoot for a USC film project. Thanks to Meredith Jacobson Marciano for the photo, one appearing on
Cinema Treasures.
A 1940 look at the seating taken for an insurance case. A woman caught her heel on the metal plate on the floor and fell. It's a photo by the Dick Whittington Studio. This shot as well as a view from the other direction are in the USC Digital Library collection.
More exterior views:
1926 - "Hollywood Boulevard at Gower as it looks today." We're looking east with the Marcal in the center of this Security Trust and Savings Bank photo that appeared in the November issue of Los Angeles Realtor. Thanks to the Special Collections Division of the Los
Angeles Public Library for making the issue of the magazine available. Click on the image for a larger view.
1926 - The Marcal nestled among the trees of Hollywood Blvd. It's a detail from the Security Bank photo.
1927 - A look at the ticket lobby with the theatre running "The Broken Gate," a February release from Tiffany Productions. The photo is in the collection of the
Los Angeles Public Library. The photo was an illustration to show off the work by Winter Iron Works that had been designed by architect William Allen.
1931 - "City Lights" is on the marquee. Chaplin himself evidently
picked the Marcal for the film's Hollywood run. "City Lights" had
opened downtown at the Los Angeles Theatre, where it was the initial
film for the theatre when it opened in January 1931. It's a photo that appears on page 224 of "The Story of Hollywood: An Illustrated History" by Gregory Paul Williams.
1932 - A look at the ticket lobby from Dick Whittington Studio that's in the
USC Digital Library collection.
c.1937 - A shot of the market that later became the X Theatre. Note the view of the Marcal Theatre's vertical sign on the left. It's a Herman Schultheis photo from the
Los Angeles Public Library.
1937 - A photo taken at an event honoring various silent film stars. Thanks to Gregory Paul Williams for including the photo in his epic "The Story of Hollywood: An Illustrated History," available on Amazon. This photo is on page 224. There's a preview of the book to browse on Google Books.
c.1937 - A view when the theatre was on a revival policy running "Godless Girl" (1928) and "American Madness" (1932). As an extra they're including "The Great Train Robbery." The photo appears in the great 2008 Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres In Los Angeles" by Suzanne Tarbell Cooper, Amy Ronnebeck Hall and Marc Wanamaker. Most of the photos in the book are from Mr. Wanamaker's
Bison Archives. There's a preview you can browse on
Google Books. Also see
the uncropped version of the photo.
1966 - Buffalo Springfield at the theatre. Thanks to Torbjörn Eriksson for locating this shot and the one below for a post on the private Facebook group
Southern California Nostalgia. He notes that one of the posters is for the March release "Cast a Giant Shadow." Photo: Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
1966 - A look across the street toward Hollywood Ford, 6000 Hollywood Blvd. Photo: Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
1971 - A look east on Hollywood Blvd. at the World, running as a three feature grindhouse operated by Pacific Theatres.
That's the X Theatre beyond, here seen with the two halves of the twin called the Adam and Eve. The photo is from the amazing Bruce Torrence
Historic Hollywood Photographs collection, their #T-057-1. The collection is now owned by the McAvoy family.
1972 - Again thanks to the McAvoy/Bruce Torrence
Historic Hollywood Photographs collection
for this photo that was taken when the World was a 99 cent admission triple-feature grindhouse. It's their #T-057-2.
1977 - A shot looking west at the X Theatre and onward down Hollywood Blvd. toward the World. Thanks to Brooklyn-based theatre historian Cezar DelValle for the photo. His theatre adventures can be found on his Theatre Talks blog as well as on
Facebook.
c.1978 - The World vertical. Thanks to Meredith Jacobson Marciano for the photo. She was there on a USC film project. The photo appears on
Cinema Treasures.
c.1978 - A marquee photo from Meredith Jacobson Marciano that she shared on
Flickr.
c.1978 - Looking east across the facade of the World toward the X Theatre. Thanks to Meredith Jacobson Marciano for the photo on
Flickr.
1979 - A view discovered by Ken McIntyre for the private Facebook group
Photos of Los Angeles. Thanks, Ken!
1983 - The World playing "Monsignor," "The Missionary" and "Taps." The photo was on the website of the now-vanished American Classic Images collection. Bruce Kimmel did the research and notes that this bill opened January 5.
1983 - Another one from American Classic Images that was taken the same day as the previous shot.
2010 - The now unrecognizable building. Photo: Bill Counter
2018 - The former theatre as a music venue called Academy. Photo: Bill Counter
The Marcal/World in the Movies:
In "Destination Murder" (RKO, 1950) we see the theatre running a revival
double bill of "Flight Lieutenant" (1942) and "Corregidor"
(1943). Thanks to Jack Tillmany for the information on this one. He
notes that the filming was done during the first week of December 1949
and the Marcal's booker must have thought this was an appropriate
"commemoration" of the anniversary of
Pearl Harbor.
Stanley Clements is there with a date in "Destination Murder." During intermission he goes out
for a smoke and a guy picks him up to go do a killing nearby. Here he's
coming back in to grab a popcorn before the show starts again. The film,
directed by Edward L. Cahn, stars Joyce Mackenzie as the
daughter of the man who was killed, Hurd
Hatfield and Albert Dekker as sleezy club operators, and James Flavin as
the cop on the case. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for several more shots at the Marcal.
We get a view of the World on the left as a bust is underway at the X Theatre in the Carlos Tobalina
film "Refinements in Love" (Hollywood International Pictures, 1971).
See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for several more shots at the X plus views of the Mayan and Las Palmas theatres.
More Information: Lots of recollections of the World's days as a grindhouse are on the Cinema Treasures page about the theatre.
Don't miss "6021-6025 Hollywood Boulevard: The Marcal Theatre," J.H. Graham's extensive article about the theatre's history.
Nearby: the X Theatre | the Music Box/Fonda | the Hawaii Theatre |
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