California Theatre

3310 W. Magnolia Blvd. Burbank, CA 91042   | map |

Opened: December 5, 1950. The building is on the south side of the street between California St. and Lima St. The neighborhood is known as Magnolia Park. The opening night photo from the San Fernando Valley Historical Society appears on the Cal State Northridge Oviatt Library website. "Breakthrough" was a film starring John Agar. The program opening night also included a studio preview. For the rest of the week the second feature was "Hot Rod."

Architect: Unknown. 

Ron Strong comments on the lobby: "Entering the main lobby to the snack bar, visitors were greeted with a very plush carpet in a design that incorporated a red wine colored motif, broken by elaborate green vines dotted by golden poppy flowers, which continued into the auditorium. A curved staircase led up to the balcony with its additional 50 seats as well as it's own restrooms." 

The auditorium decor was described in a newspaper account as "a colorful series of murals lining the auditorium walls and depicting scenes of California's historical and scenic attractions. The early Indians, the padres and their vinyards, the conquistadors, the missions are pictured, created by artist Nat Smith. Fiesta scenes, bathing beaches and native flora are also depicted. Colors of wine, gold and green provide the decorative scheme for the auditorium and for other rooms of the California Theater." 

Seating: 1,650. There was a cry room. It was the only Burbank theatre to have a balcony. The balcony had rockers and smoking was allowed there.

 

A November 24, 1950 listing located by Ken McIntyre. 

The developers of the project were Earl and Perc White. The operator was Sterling Theatres, Inc., a firm headed by the brothers William J. Kupper, Jr. and Richard W. Kupper.  The firm was no relation to the Seattle-based Sterling Theatres. A newspaper account noted that R.W. "Dick" Kupper was managing director and he was also supervising the company's other Valley holdings. Earlier the firm had taken over the Magnolia, Major and Loma theatres operated by Charles Minor and his mother Minnie. 

 

 

 An ad that ran on December 4.

Another pre-opening ad. Thanks to Ron Strong for finding these two ads for his fine Bijou Memories page about the California.   

 

 

Lt. Governor Goodwin J. Knight, Rex Allen, and Johnny Grant at the grand opening. The photo from the California Valley Historical Society appears on the CSUN Oviatt Library website. 

A photo of Richard Kupper and his assistant Lynn Risconsin that appeared on December 8, 1950. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it. 

 

A December 8, 1950 story located by Ken McIntyre.  

 

 

A December 8, 1950 ad. Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating it. Visit his site: Movie-Theatre.org  

 

 

A July 1951 ad spotted by Ken. The circuit had closed the Loma.  

 

 

A religious rental in September 1951. Thanks to Ken for spotting this.  

 

A November 1, 1951 ad. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it. 

 

Ron Strong reports that for reasons unknown Sterling closed the house on May 10th, 1952. The City of Burbank used the otherwise dark theatre in May 1953 for stage shows in conjunction the Magnolia Park "Red Arrow Days." 

 

It reopened for films on May 20, 1953 with Pacific Theatres as the operator. It's possible that Mike Blumberg's Principal Theatres of America was also involved as he evidently had a stake in the Cornell Theatre, a house that opened in 1949.

 

 

 A 1955 Valley Times ad.

A 1957 Valley Times ad. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating the ads. 

 

 

A November 1966 ad that Ken found.  

 

 

  

A December 1, 1966 ad for Elvis in "Spinout," the last booking for the California. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating it.  

Closing: December 6, 1966 with Pacific Theatres as the final operator. 

In 1969 the Burbank Community Church began using the building. Ron Strong reports that the house had a one-night film engagement on April 13, 1978 for a screening of the pro-Vietnam War film "No Substitute for Victory."

Status: It's now been a church for decades and has had extensive remodeling. In 2000 the group that has the building renamed it Worshipwalk Church. 

 

 

More exterior views:  

1962 - A Christmas season view looking east on Magnolia Blvd. from Hollywood Way with the tower of the California over on the right. It's a Valley Times photo in the Los Angeles Public Library collection. 

1965 - A detail from a June photo taken by Howard D. Kelly for Pacific Theatres. It's in the Los Angeles Public Library collection.

2011 - Looking west on Magnolia. The former entrance is over on the right side. Photo: Google Maps

 

 

The California in the Movies: 

 

Arch Hall Jr. comes to Hollywood with his guitar aiming to become a star in Ray Dennis Steckler's "Wild Guitar" (Fairway International, 1962). He makes it and goes on tour. Here he's coming out of the California after a show there. 

 

 

He'd met Nancy Czar in a coffee shop and fallen in love but his managers had been trying to keep them apart. But Nancy's been coming to his shows and he sees her in this shot. They reconcile and have a happy ending. Also featured in the film are Arch Hall Sr., Marie Denn, Robert Crumb, Virginia Broderick, Carolyn Brandt and Lloyd Williams. The cinematography was by Joseph V. Mascelli. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for views of the Pantages, Egyptian, Chinese, Vogue theatres.  

More information: See Ron Strong's fine Bijou Memories page about the California Theatre. For additional material also see his California Theatre album on Google Books.

See the Cinema Treasures page on the California. The Cinema Tour page has a 2003 exterior photo.

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