The Warner Downtown pages: history | vintage exterior views | recent exterior views | interior views
1917 - Another version of the previous photo with a bit of the Bullock's store showing on the far right. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this one for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group.
c.1921 - A postcard of the Pantages from a Hill St. tour created by Brent C. Dickerson as part of his Visit to Old Los Angeles series. The pages on the site are bursting with vintage postcard views of downtown. See the index to episodes to get started.
c.1924 - A card from the Werner von Boltenstern Postcard Collection at Loyola Marymount University. Thanks to Yasmin Elming for locating it. See the somewhat wider photo that the card is based on that's in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.
Down on the northwest corner of 7th and Olive, just beyond the Athletic Club, we get a view of the Bank of Italy Building. It was constructed in 1922 and dedicated in 1923. It's now the Per La Hotel. On the southeast corner of 7th and Hope note part of the signage atop the Union Oil Building at 617 W. 7th. It was constructed in 1923.
1925 - A lovely view from Ezra Buzzington showing the Pantages entrance when his grandfather played the theatre in Buzington's (with one Z) Rube Band. The feature film was "Compromise" with Irene Rich, an October release. Thanks, Ezra! Versions of the photo appear on Photos of Los Angeles as a post of Bill Gabel and on the Water and Power Associates Early L.A. Historical Buildings (1925+) page 1.
1926 - The Pantages is running "Marriage License?" No, the Ritz Brothers weren't in the Frank Borzage film -- they were the headliners of the live show. The photo is in the USC Digital Library collection. The Los Angeles Public Library also has a version of the photo.
1926 - A Los Angeles Public Library photo of the Pantages running "Marriage License?" -- a bit different from the take above.
also from 1926: east on 7th - Pantages dome & Loew's State - Los Angeles Public Library | "Hero of the Big Snows "- USC Digital Library | "Hero of the Big Snows" - LAPL | "Hero of the Big Snows" another view - LAPL |
1927 - A nice view of the Pantages running "Is Zat So," a May release. Thanks to Scott Santoro for posting the photo on the Los Angeles Theatres Facebook page. It comes from the collection of his friend Gianpiero Leone.
Note the bottom of the new 7th St. vertical sign, a larger sign than was
up previously -- and closer to the corner. It was installed in early 1927. See a February 14 ad calling it the "world's largest vertical electric sign."
1928 - A Los Angeles Public Library photo of the Pantages running "Submarine," a mostly silent film from Columbia that got an added soundtrack of music and effects. It was an August release.
1928 - A doctored postcard view looking west on 7th St. On the marquee is "Submarine." The image for the card has been retouched so the vertical says "Warner Bros." Actually for the run of this film in 1928 it still said "Pantages." The LAPL "Submarine" photo and the image the postcard is based on were both taken during the second week of the run for the film.
1929 - A "Gold Diggers" marquee detail. This shot is 26:15 into Rick Prelinger's "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2019." It's
from two minutes of amateur
footage that also covers Pershing Square and Broadway, including a view
of Loew's State. Rick's hour and thirty minute program of wonderful clips
from a variety
sources was presented at the Los Angeles Public Library by the
organization Photo Friends as part of the series L.A. in Focus. Also see
an earlier compilation: "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2016." Both
programs are on Vimeo.
1929 - A photo taken during the run of "Gold Diggers of Broadway," at popular prices after the star-studded premiere that reopened the theatre. The photo appeared in the November 23, 1929 issue of Exhibitors Herald World. On the same page was an item noting that Warners planned to build a new theatre costing over $500,000 on Hollywood Blvd, a project that never happened. Thanks to Mike Hume for finding the page on Internet Archive. Visit his Historic Theatre Photography site to see what he's been exploring lately.
1929 - "Show of Shows" was a December "All Color Musical Hit" starring Frank Fay, H.B. Warner, John Barrymore and everybody else on the Warner lot who was available. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for finding the photo for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page.
c.1929 - Thanks to Ken McIntyre on Photos of Los Angeles for this fine card. He added it as a comment to a set of recent photos of the theatre by Ray Doan.
1930 - The Exhibitors Herald World issue of October 18, 1930 included this photo of the banners used to advertise John Barrymore in "Moby Dick." They note that "lines converged from two streets to the ticket office" and that the banners were visible for several blocks. The page can be viewed on Internet Archive.
Thanks to Brooklyn-based theatre historian Cezar Del Valle for his copy of the photo. He featured it in a post titled "Ahab Hunting White Whale in Downtown L.A." on his Theatre Talks blog.
1931 - A Los Angeles Public Library photo with the theatre running "Stranger In Town" with Bette Davis. It was an August release.
1931 - Another version of "The Ruling Voice" card. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this one via the site Worthpoint for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page. And thanks to Mike Manus for doing some restoration work on the image
1931 - A lovely look at the Hill St. side of the Warner advertising Vitaphone. Guido Diero was a noted Italian accordionist appearing at the Warner. Or were they running his Vitaphone short? The photo was on a now-vanished on the Guido Diero Vitaphone website. The feature film is Dorothy Mackaill in "Safe in Hell," a December release.
The far right side of the marquee on Hill St. where it says "Warner Bros." on top was an extension of the big marquee re-do Warners did in 1929. A look at a 1929 LAPL photo above reveals just a plain canopy over the exit doors there.
1932 - An Olympics look west on 7th discovered by Ken McIntyre. We're at Broadway with the Warner a block down at Hill St. That's Bullock's department store on the right.
1932 - Looking north on Hill with the Warner running the Jimmy Cagney boxing film "Winner Take All," a July release. Thanks to Noirish Los Angeles contributor Riichkay for finding the photo in the UCLA Adelbert Bartlett Papers Collection. It's on Noirish post #55201.
1932 - "Love Like He Fights & Boy, Can He Fight - That Red-Head Wonder Boy James Cagney - Puts Sock Appeal In 'Winner Take All.'" It's a detail from the Adelbert Bartlett photo.
1934 - Another "Navy" shot with the Signal guy. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating this one for a post on Photos of Los Angeles. Bruce Kimmel notes that the film opened August 2 and adds: "May have been the first time Cagney was on the right side of the law."
1936 - On the left we get a bit of the Hill St. side of the Warner with banners out for "Captain Blood." Thanks to Scott Collette for locating the photo in the UCLA Los Angeles Daily News Negatives collection for a post on his Forgotten Los Angeles Facebook page. He also has it on Instagram and notes that this shot very likely goes with a January 1936 ambulance shot on Hill St. just south of the Town Theatre. Scott comments:
"Incredible shot from the passenger seat of an ambulance, taken as it heads north on Hill Street, weaving between city busses and an LA Railway streetcar as it speeds through the intersection of 7th Street. Officially, this photo is undated, but those hanging banners in the upper left appear to be for the Errol Flynn movie 'Captain Blood,' which opened at the Warner Downtown Theatre on Christmas of 1935. As there don’t appear to be any Christmas decorations hanging over the street, and given that the film continued to play for several weeks, my guess is that it’s probably mid-January of 1936."
1938 - "The Hurricane" opened at the Warner for a "popular engagement" on January 13. It was a November 1937 release with Dorothy Lamour, Jon Hall and Mary Astor. The co-feature was the December 1937 release "Missing Witnesses" with John Litel and Virginia Dale. It's a photo from the Federal Writers Project collection of the Los Angeles Publuc Library where it's given a January 26 date. The Library also has a second take in their collection.
c.1938 - A Los Angeles Public Library photo by Herman Schultheis. We're pointed east on 7th.
1938 - A Herman Schultheis photo in the Los Angeles Public Library collection. The Warner is running "Hollywood Hotel," a January release.
1938 - Another "Hollywood Hotel" shot by Mr. Schultheis in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.
also by Mr. Schultheis: 7th St. east toward Hill | north on Hill - "Hollywood Hotel" | west on 7th - "Hollywood Hotel" |
1938 - A view south on Hill that was located by Ken McIntyre.
1938 - An entrance detail taken from the first of the two Dick Whittington "Robin Hood" shots.
1939 - A USC Digital Library view of the vista north on Hill St. from 8th toward the Warner. It's a Dick Whittington photo. The Alhambra Theatre (here after it became a parking garage) is seen half way down the block.
1939 - A USC Digital Library view north on Hill St. from the Dick Whittington Studio. The Warner is running "Dark Victory." The side panels of the marquee still have large neon displays advertising "Vitaphone." Also see another USC "Dark Victory" view looking west on 7th.
1942 - "New Wine" was a biography of Franz Schubert starring Ilona Massey and Alan Curtis that was released in September 1941. The unlikely co-feature was "Wild Bill Hickock Rides," a western out in January 1942 starring Constance Bennett and Bruce Cabot. Thanks to Arnold Darrow for locating the photo for a Facebook post.
1942 - We're looking north on Hill in this photo on Shorpy. The Warner is running "The Male Animal," an April release, and "Lady for a Night." The photo was taken by Russell Lee for the Office of War Information. Also see the hi-res version. Thanks to Torr Leonard for spotting this one! Brad
Lewis has also posted it on Photos of Los Angeles.
c.1942 - A fine shot in the USC Digital Library collection from the Dick Whittington Studio. We're looking east on 7th past the Los Angeles Athletic Club toward the Warner.
1943 - A July photo from the William Schlotter collection taken by an unknown photographer. Thanks to MatÃas Antonio Bombal for scanning the image and sharing it on a Facebook post. The Warner had repainted the marquee
installed "modern" white readerboard faces -- no more milk glass
letters.
c.1943 - A superb view west on 7th with a bit of Loew's State on the left, Bullocks on the right. Oh, yes -- the Warner down the block at 7th & Hill. Thanks to Sean Ault for finding the photo on eBay and sending it our way. Note the change on the vertical in this photo. It now says "Warners" instead of "Warner Bros."
1947 - A look west on 7th from Ken McIntyre on the Facebook group Photos of Los Angeles. That's Bullocks at 7th & Broadway behind the L.A. Railway car.
1948 - A great shot looking west with the Warner playing "Silver River" with Erroll Flynn and Ann Sheridan. It was a May release. Just to the west of the Warner it's the Los Angeles Athletic Club. And beyond, at 7th and Olive, is the Bank of Italy Building, now the Nomad Hotel. Many thanks to Sean Ault for providing the photo. It can also be seen in Eric Lynxwiler's collection on Flickr.
The image is a screenshot from footage that's included in Rick Prelinger's "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2016," an hour and twenty minutes of wonderful delights from various sources originally presented as a program at the Los Angeles Public Library. Also see "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2019." The second installment was presented at the Library by the organization Photo Friends as part of the series L.A. in Focus. Both compilations are on Vimeo. The short clip showing the Warner can also be seen on the Getty Images site.
1952 - A hot day in L.A. as a Warner usherette is mopping her brow in a September shot taken for the L.A. Examiner that's in the USC Digital Library collection. It's cool inside -- she should go in to see "What Price Glory, a " 20th Century Fox release with James Cagney. Thanks to Eitan Alexander for spotting the photo!
also from 1952: "This Woman is Dangerous" - east on 7th - USC Digital Library
1953 - A Los Angeles Public Library photo of the Warner running "Roman Holiday." The stagecoach was traveling the downtown streets as a promotion for Arden Texas Pecan ice cream.
1955 - A February 19 Los Angeles Examiner photo of the newspaper's carriers at the Warner for a screening of "The Far Country" with James Stewart. Thanks to Eitan Alexander for finding the shot in the USC Digital Library collection. They also have a second take.
1955 - A detail of the WB cartouche from the Examiner photo above.
1957 - A view west on 7th from the Sean Ault collection. The Warner was running "The Ten Commandments." Bruce Kimmel comments: "This is actually sometime after the film opened at the Warner Downtown (along with the Wiltern and Hollywood Paramount) in early October of 1957. 'The Ten Commandments' originally opened in November of 1956 exclusively at the Stanley Warner Beverly Hills and it played at that single theater until September of 1957."
c.1958 - An interesting Los Angeles Public Library photo by Roy Hankey looking east on 7th St. toward the Warner. Note the Bullocks store beyond in the block between 7th and Broadway. The Library dates this one as 1959 but it's obviously a bit earlier.
1958 - A rainy day view discovered by Ken McIntyre gives us a view looking west on 7th. Note a bit of the bottom of the 7th St. State Theatre vertical sign on the left side of the photo.
1958 - A rare look at the marquee with the SW (Stanley-Warner) crest replacing the WB. They're running "Bridge on the River Kwai" after it won its Best Picture Oscar. The initial reserved seat engagement for the film had been at the Egyptian beginning in December 1957. Also: "Smoking in the Loges." Thanks to Noirish Los Angeles contributor Hoss C for finding the photo on eBay and posting it in Noirish post #26926. The seller dated it as a June photo. Bruce Kimmel notes that the film opened at the Warner and citywide on May 21.
1961 - The theatre playing "One Eyed Jacks," a March release with Marlon Brando and Karl Malden. It's a shot from 1 1/2 minutes of footage taken for process shot use that appears 20:10 into Rick Prelinger's "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2019." A colorized version of the Hill St. footage is on YouTube. Thanks to Sean Ault for spotting it.
Rick's hour and thirty minute program of wonderful clips from a variety sources was presented at the Los Angeles Public Library by the organization Photo Friends as part of the series L.A. in Focus. Also see an earlier compilation: "Lost Landscapes of Los Angeles - 2016." Both programs are on Vimeo.
1963 - Looking west on 7th toward toward the Warrens in January. All electrified transit would end in Los Angeles on March 31, 1963. Steven Otto notes that the Warrens marquee is advertising "Barabbas" with Anthony Quinn, an October 1962 release that included the Warrens when it opened wide on December 21. Thanks to Bill Gabel for finding the photo for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page.
1963 - A glorious look west on 7th St. from the Downtown Los Angeles set of the Metro Transportation Library and Archive on Flickr. The photo also appears on the website of the Pacific Electric Railway Historical Society - it's from their collection.
1965 - A fine look at the marquee when the theatre was the Warrens. Note the nice look we get at the three-windowed boxoffice as it appeared in later years. Sad to see the crest at the center now bare. Once it had a WB, later an SW (for Stanley Warner). Thanks to L.A. transit historian Sean Ault for the photo from his collection. Bruce Kimmel notes that this bill of "In Harm's Way" and "Up From the Beach" opened July 7.
c.1965 - Perhaps they were running "How To Murder Your Wife." Or was it "Run For Your Wife"? Thanks to Sean Ault for sharing this photo from his collection.
1970 - A neat view on Hill Street posted on the Facebook page Vintage Los Angeles by Mitchell Walker Jr.
1970 - A fine look south on Hill St. toward the Warrens. Michelangelo Antonioni's "Zabriskie Point" can be seen on the marquee. The film began its L.A. runs on March 18 with an exclusive engagement at Loew's Crest in Westwood. Thanks to Sean Ault for sharing the photo from his collection.
1975 - A William Reagh photo from the California State Library where they have it titled "Mexicans on Hill St." The theatre had closed in 1975 and then had a short stint as a church before its career as a jewelry mart began.
mid-1970s - A wider look toward the "Compassion Theatre." Note the redone vertical. Thanks to Sean Ault for sharing the photo from his collection. He notes that was one of the "Georgia Peach" buses that had been in service in Atlanta and came to L.A. in 1974-75.
early 1980s - Thanks to the now-vanished American Classic Images website for this view of the entrance.
1983 - A look at the building by William Reagh from the California State Library collection.
1987 - A lovely view of the building with a Burger King in the theatre's basement lounge spaces. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for the photo, a post on the Facebook page Photos of Los Angeles.
1989 - A William Reagh photo from the California State Library collection.
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