Victoria Theatre

2570 W. Pico Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90006 | map |

Opened: 1913. This shot is from the 1921 two-reeler "Cleaned and Dry" from Warner Bros / Federated Film Exchanges. Thanks to Silent Film Detective John Bengtson for spotting the Victoria in the film and getting screenshots. It was directed by Jack L. Warner and stars Monte Banks, Florence Gilbert, William Blaisdell and Alice Belcher. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in the Movies post for four additional views.

Architect: Frank L. Stiff. Joe Vogel did the research: 

"The house that would become the Victoria Theatre was the subject of an item in the March 15, 1913, issue of Southwest Contractor & Manufacturer. The item said that plans and specifications for a brick store, office, and theater building, 57x140 feet, to be built at the southwest corner of Pico Boulevard and Berendo Street, had been filed on March 7. Frank L. Stiff was the architect."

Seating: 700

It's in the city directories from 1914 onward. In the 1921 directory the address is given as at "Pico sw cor Berendo." The theatre was listed in a 1923 "Paramount Week" ad listing those venues playing Paramount pictures.

Closing: It closed in November 1954, according to research by Bruce Kimmel. It's not listed in the 1956 phone directory. 

Hadabob reports on Cinema Treasures that the theatre got an extensive remodel when it was turned into a ballroom and meeting hall, most likely in the 1960s. It was used for occasional concerts as late as 1981.

Status: The Victoria has now been gutted for use as retail space. It was a mattress store and fashion shop for years, then a market. As of 2023 it's a 99 cent mart and an optician.  

 

 

2007 - The building as a mattress store and fashion shop. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for sharing this photo he took on the private Facebook group Photos of Los Angeles.

  2011 - The entrance after the transformation into a market. Photo: Google Maps

2011 - The rear of the building in a Google Maps view. We're looking north on Berendo toward Pico.

 

 

 

2017 - The Victoria repurposed as a fashion boutique and optician. Thanks to Shawn Dudley for sharing his photo, one appearing on the Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation Facebook page. 

 

 

2023 - The former theatre is on the right in this view looking east from Google Maps. 

 

The Victoria in the Movies: 

Another shot from "Cleaned and Dry." (Warner Bros / Federated Film Exchanges, 1921). Thanks to John Bengtson for the screenshot. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in the Movies post for additional views. 

The theatre appears in the blaxploitation film "Petey Wheatstraw" (Generation International Pictures, 1977) with Rudy Ray Moore. No, you don't need to watch it. Thanks to Sean Ault for spotting the theatre in the film. Cliff Roquemore directed.

The auditorium as seen in "Petey Wheatstraw." The floor had been leveled for use as a ballroom and catering hall. The Victoria Theatre sequence of "Petey" on is YouTube. Thanks to Sean Ault for finding it. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for a daytime street view of the theatre.

The Victoria on Video:  Sean Ault notes that we stroll by the Victoria during a long walk down this stretch of Pico on the "Massive Attack - Unfinished Symphony" video. It's on YouTube.

More information: See the Cinema Treasures page on the Victoria. Thanks to Joe Vogel for his research. Cinema Tour has a page with a 2002 exterior photo.

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