Los Angeles Theatres: Wiltern Theatre: the lobby areas

A peek out toward Wilshire and Western from the entrance vestibule. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - 2014. Her Avoiding Regret photo essays "Wiltern Theatre, Public Areas" and "Wiltern, Off Limits Areas" have lovely photos of the theatre taken during the August 2014 LAHTF tour. Thanks, Sandi!

The north side of the vestibule. Those are the front doors at the left. It's a 2014 Hunter Kerhart photo. Keep up with his many explorations on HunterKerhart.com and on the Facebook page for Hunter Kerhart Architectural Photography. Thanks, Hunter!

A view of the dazzling ceiling of a side aisle. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

The decorative work in the south side aisle. Photo: Mike Hume - 2014. Head to the Wiltern page on Mike's Historic Theatre Photography site for many more fine views of the theatre. You can also pay him a visit on the Historic Theatre Photography Facebook page.

The entrance vestibule ceiling. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

A vestibule view looking north. The street is out the doors to the left, the rotunda of the main lobby through the doors to the right. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

Looking in from the entrance doors and checking out the new carpet. Thanks to Graeme McBain for the photo, a 2019 post on the Facebook page Theatre Architecture.

The rotunda:

An October 1931 photo from the Security Pacific National Bank collection at the Los Angeles Public Library.

A 1965 view in the rotunda looking toward the entrance. Thanks to Bob Alder for the use of the photo. It appears on a Wiltern page on his website which also has information on the 4/37 Kimball organ that used to be in the theatre. wilterntheatrepipeorgan.bobalder.com

A 1979 snack bar view. Thanks to Matt Spero for sharing the photo he took.

The lobby stripped as the building awaits demolition. Fortunately there was a rescue by Wayne Ratkovich and his partners. Note the missing chandelier in the center. All the light fixtures had been stripped from the building as the owners at the time, Franklin Life, intended to demolish it. Some of the fixtures now in the building are originals that were repurchased, others are copies made from those. It's a 1983 Herald Examiner photo from the Los Angeles Public Library.

A 1984 Mike Mullen photo of restoration happening in the rotunda. The photo is in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

Happy visitors admiring the theatre after the restoration. It's a 1985 photo by James Ruebsamen in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

The ceiling in 1985 after restoration. Photo: Ray Shepardson collection

The rotunda ready for the 1985 reopening. We're looking toward the entrance to the house left aisle. Photo: Ray Shepardson collection

A lovely post-restoration view of the rotunda by an unknown photographer. The photo is from the Los Angeles Conservancy archives. Among many other places, it has popped up on the L.A. Conservancy Facebook page.

A look from the rotunda back toward the entrance vestibule. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

A balcony level and ceiling view. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

Across the lobby toward the auditorium. Two auditorium entrances are seen at center and right. Farther off to the right is the inner lobby at the rear of the main floor. The theatre's main entrance is off to the left. The stairs on the right edge of the photo head to the balcony. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

Plaster trim on a rotunda pilaster. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

The rotunda from the balcony stairs. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The on-your-back view of the ceiling. Photo: Mike Hume - 2014

Painted detail in the rotunda. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

The crowd arriving for a June 29, 2019 L.A. Conservancy film screening. In the afternoon it was "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." The evening show was "Network.' Photo: Mike Hume.

The inner lobby at the rear of the main floor:

A c.1983 look at the sort of damage that needed repair. It's a photo by Hillsman Wright in the collection of the Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation. Thanks to LAHTF board member Mike Hume for making the photo available.

An inner lobby view taken after the 1985 restoration. The auditorium is on the right. That's the rotunda in the dark at the end of the lobby. Behind the camera are exits to the south. This luscious Randall Michelson photo was included with "The Wiltern Opened 80 Years Ago," an October 2011 L.A. Weekly article by Lianna Fader celebrating the theatre's 80th birthday.

A lovely c.1985 view of the restored lobby from the Los Angeles Conservancy archives. The auditorium is off to the left.

The inner lobby as viewed from the rotunda in 2014. Photo: Hunter Kerhart

The inner lobby ceiling. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The area with some added uplights. Photo: Mike Hume - 2014

An inner lobby wall panel. We're looking at a segment of the south wall -- on the north side it would be an entrance to the auditorium. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The decorative panel above an auditorium entrance. Photo: Mike Hume - 2014

At the south end of the inner lobby -- the view back toward the rotunda. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The stairs to the basement:

The stairs with, at the left, a peek into the auditorium. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The new carpet. Photo: Bill Counter - 2019

A railing detail at the first landing down. Photo: Bill Counter - 2019

The basement lounge:

A downstairs lounge view appearing in the November 21, 1931 issue of Motion Picture Herald. It's on Internet Archive. This space is directly below the rotunda.

The basement lounge in 2014. Straight ahead was a VIP bar area at the time of the photo. It used to be the manager's office. Off to the right in the lit archway is a storage area in an elevator shaft that was never used. There's also a doorway in toward the plenum and on to backstage. The ladies restroom is off to the right out of the frame. Behind us are the men's restroom and the stairs up to the main floor. Photo: Hunter Kerhart

The VIP bar area in 2014. Photo: Bill Counter

Looking in toward the redone space in 2019. Photo: Mike Hume

A look across "The Wiltern Underground." That's the men's room to the right of the stairs. Photo: Mike Hume- 2019

Basement restrooms:

The basement lounge ladies room. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

The basement lounge men's room. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

Heading upstairs:

On the southwest side of the rotunda -- up to the balcony or down to the basement lounge. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

A nice angle view of a wall surface on the landing showing the relief enhancing the design. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

Another stair vista. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

Deco ladies on the stairs to the balcony. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

The vista toward the stairs in 2019. Photo: Mike Hume

A closer look at the landing. Photo: Mike Hume - 2019

A peek at the rotunda. Photo: Mike Hume - 2019

Balcony level rotunda views:

A view looking south. The inner lobby is straight ahead on the main floor with the balcony lobby directly above it. The auditorium is off to the left. The stairs on the right continue from this level up to a lobby at the top of the balcony. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

The rotunda chandelier. Photo: Mike Hume - 2019

Looking down at the latest bar upgrade. Photo: Bill Counter - 2019

A panoramic vista taken on the day of the June 2019 L.A. Conservancy film screenings. Photo: Mike Hume

Around on the north side of the rotunda. That's the ladies room straight ahead. Photo: Bill Counter - 2019

A look across with the stairs over on the left and the restroom entrances on either side of the art display on the northwest wall. The green exit signs on the main floor lead to the entrance vestibule at Wilshire and Western. Photo: Mike Hume

One of the pilaster capitols. Photo: Mike Hume - 2019

A view southeast with the main entrance to the balcony just to the left of the chandelier and the inner lobby just to the right. The stairs are on the far right and this level's restrooms behind us. Photo: Mike Hume - 2019

Balcony level restrooms:

The balcony ladies room. The restrooms at balcony level are on the northwest corner of the building -- above the entrance. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

The balcony ladies room. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

The balcony men's room. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

Balcony level inner lobby:

A look south across the rotunda into the balcony lobby. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

Looking in from the rotunda. Photo: Hunter Kerhart - 2014

A balcony lobby trim detail. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014

The balcony lobby drinking fountain. Photo: Mike Hume - 2014

Another ceiling trim detail. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

A balcony lobby ceiling panel. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

Another balcony lobby ceiling panel. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

From house right -- looking west back to the rotunda. The stairs at the left go up to the upper balcony lobby, actually more of a corridor. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

The view in from the rotunda in 2019 after a bar upgrade and new carpet installation. Photo: Mike Hume

The upper balcony lobby:

The upper balcony corridor. The doors here get you to the top of the aisles at the back of the balcony. Photo: Sandi Hemmerlein - Avoiding Regret - 2014