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United Artists Theatre: in the attic

933 S. Broadway Los Angeles, CA 90015 | map |

The pages on the United Artists: history | vintage exterior views | recent exterior views | outer lobby | inner lobby | lounges | upper lobby areas | earlier auditorium views | recent auditorium views | projection | stage and stage basement | other basement areasattic | office building/hotel interior | roof


Looking up the house right stairs toward the booth and attic. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



House right outside the booth. The stairs at the left lead up to the fan room over the booth and out around the dome. The booth is off to the left. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From the booth door looking back toward the stairs down to the rear of the balcony house right. The piping is chilled water lines running (formerly) from chillers in the basement to the air washers above the booth. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Treasures stashed outside the house right door to the booth. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014  



Another look at the old equipment outside the booth. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



Looking back toward the house right stairs from the ladder going up to into the attic. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



In front of the booth on the house left side of the attic. That's the upper part of the booth front wall at the right. Where the straight-ahead catwalk ends and takes a right gets you to the area in the photos above outside the house right side of the booth.

To get out to the dome, take the ladder up, go across a bridge to the left and take another ladder down. The red-ish door two thirds of the way up on the right side of the photo gets you into the center of the fan room area above the booth. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Another view from in front of the booth house right. The duct in the foreground is a main supply duct running along the back of the balcony over to the house right sidewall. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



 Lost in the attic. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



The house left sidewall near the rear of the balcony. We're looking toward the stage. The white duct is the supply duct that runs along the auditorium house left (west) wall. Here it's snorkeling up to get to the fan room above us. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Looking down through grillework at the rear of the balcony. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



The stairs from the attic down to the house left side of the balcony. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Looking into the booth from the house left side of the attic. There's an electrical room on this end of the booth with ballast rheostats and other gear. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



In the center of the fan room above the booth: air washers. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



On the south side of the air washers: looking west toward the main exhaust fan. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

Fresh air intake: Above the air washer area, on the theatre's centerline, are the fresh air intake dampers.

Heating system: When the heating system was redone decades ago the boiler in the basement was replaced by some gas furnaces on the roof. Their output is ducted into part of what had been just the fresh air intake.

Air conditioning: Chilled water from chillers in the basement was pumped up to the air washers above the booth. Supply air forced through the chilled water mist both cleaned and cooled the air.

Return air: The space under the main floor and inside the balcony acted as an air handling plenum. From these areas, the air was sucked up to be either exhausted or recirculated by the 25 hp fan
at the west end of the fan room. The plenum under the main floor was rendered unusable by conversion of that area into support spaces for the hotel.  

Fans in the fan room area, from west to east: Main exhaust fan - 25 hp, #1 supply fan - 15 hp, #3 supply fan - 7 1/2 hp, #2 supply fan - lobby - 5 hp.



On the south side of the air washers: looking east. The wall to our right is the south wall of the building. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



At the far house right (east end) of the fan room area: looking down on the lobby supply fan. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Looking north onto the roof from the east end of the fan room area. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From above: the fan room area on top of the projection booth. The gas furnaces and ductwork are a retrofit done some decades past to replace the original boiler and steam coil installation. The ductwork on the right is taking air brought up by the main exhaust fan from the plenum areas under the main floor and inside the balcony.

The furnaces themselves are at center between the two fan room modules. The duct coming out of the furnaces heading toward us is heated air going into the fresh air intake grilles. Photo: Bill Counter - January 2014



From the catwalk in front of the fan room: forward into the attic onto the top of the dome. The whitish wall rising vertically at the end of the space is the proscenium wall. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From the catwalk in front of the fan room: down to the catwalk circling the outside of the dome. The catwalk goes all the way around the dome and a branch on the theatre's centerline extends forward to above the proscenium. But to get inside the dome area, there's only one access point -- this door we see at the rear of the dome. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From the access door at the rear: looking into the dome area. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From the entrance inside the dome: looking off house right. That walkway to the left of the striplights is what you have to traverse to go around the dome. At right is white plaster to reflect light behind the grillework. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Out over the edge. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Across the dome to the arches on the house left side. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014  



The dome surface - and the dangling mirrors. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



The view down toward house left. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



The balcony house left. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



From the front: a look back into the balcony. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



The grillework surrounding the inner arches. The red seen through the openings is balcony seating. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



The balcony house right. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



Another house right view. In the upper right corner, note the view of the striplights ringing the dome inside the arches. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



The house right organ grille. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



A last look over the edge at the proscenium. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014 



Back out to the catwalk around the outside of the dome. We're at the back of the dome looking toward house right. The doorway at the left gets you into the dome area and the inner walkway around it. That big white hulk in the distance is a supply air duct going along the house right wall. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014



At the proscenium: looking back toward the dome. Directly behind us is the proscenium wall. The last section of the catwalk decking lifts up for access down into the area where speakers are concealed at the top of the proscenium. Photo: Bill Counter - 2014

The pages on the United Artists: history | vintage exterior views | recent exterior views | outer lobby | inner lobby | lounges | upper lobby areas | earlier auditorium views | recent auditorium views | projection | stage and stage basement | other basement areas | back to top -attic | office building/hotel interior | roof

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