Opened: The Plaza Theatre opened June 30, 1967 with "Barefoot in the Park." It was a project of Laemmle
Theatres and run by them until 1981. It was on the west side of the street between Weyburn and
Kinross. The line down the block is for the 1977 release "Which Way is Up?" with Richard Pryor. Thanks to Jonathan Haworth for locating the photo for a post on the Facebook group Mid Century Modern.
Seating: 650
Architect: Unknown. It was a remodel of an existing building.
In late 1981, during the run of "True Confessions," Mann took over the lease. Thanks to Richard Stegman, Jr. for the data. Mann installed 70mm equipment and made the venue a popular spot for midnight shows, frequently featuring 70mm prints.
Closing: October 2004.
Status: The theatre was demolished for a new housing and retail development encompassing a major chunk of the block.
1973 - A look down on the theatre. It's the building in the center with the rounded marquee -- just beyond the one with the red tile roof. Thanks to Sean Ault for spotting the image when it was for sale online.
1979 - A wet day in Westwood. Thanks to Laemmle Theatres for this shot. It's one displayed in the lobby at their Royal Theatre. "The Onion Field" was a September release.
1980 - Thanks to Richard DuVal for sharing this photo he took in a post on the Westwood Village in the 70s and 80s and Lost Angeles Facebook pages. "Hero at Large" was a February release.
2001 - Thanks to Scott Neff for this photo appearing on Cinema Tour.
2004 - A Mark Campbell photo appearing on the Cinema Tour page about the Plaza.
2004 - Thanks to Mark Tufitee for this December 30 photo he shared on Cinema Treasures.
2007 - The development that swallowed the Plaza Theatre site. Photo: Bill Counter
The Plaza in the Movies:
We're in Westwood and get a look at the Plaza in Robert Aldrich's
"Hustle (Paramount, 1975). The film stars Burt Reynolds, Catherine
Deneuve and Ben Johnson in a tale of an L.A. cop investigating a suicide
that may actually have been something else. Thanks to Eitan Alexander for spotting this one and providing the screenshot. See the Theatres In Movies post for one more shot from this scene.
We see the Plaza along with four other Westwood theatres plus a
finale at Grauman's Chinese in Vernon Zimmerman's "Fade to Black"
(American Cinema, 1980). It's a tale of an unhappy film buff on a
killing spree. Thanks to Colonel Mortimer for the screenshot and Jonathan Raines for researching the film. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for shots of the other theatres from the film.
More information: See the Mann Plaza page on Cinema Treasures. There's a small 1999 shot of the Plaza on the Westwood Theatres page of the Roadside Peek.
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