Sing Lee / King Hing Theatre

649 N. Spring St. Los Angeles, CA 90012  | map |

Opened: 1962 as the Sing Lee Theatre, a project of Tony Quon Lew and his wife Margaret Lew. This grand opening photo from the collection of the Tony Quan Lew family appears with "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the UCLA Film and Television Archives blog. It appeared in conjunction with the film series "Echoes From Spring Street: The World of Sing Lee and Chinese-Language Cinema in L.A." She comments: 

"When the Sing Lee Theatre opened in 1962, it became a premier destination for Cantonese opera fans in Chinatown, Los Angeles. The theatre owner, Chinese immigrant Tony Quon Lew, drew in crowds by inviting celebrity performers from Hong Kong at the height of the establishment’s popularity. In order to make this happen, Lew routinely traveled to Hong Kong, courting stars like the Eight Peonies, Mak Bing-Wing and Lee Bo-ying to visit the theatre."

Janet notes that that Sing Lee was the name of the couple's oldest son. The building is on the west side of the street a half block north of Cesar Chavez Ave. It has a long lobby and the auditorium is set back far from the entrance.  

In 2016 over 500 film prints stored in the theatre were donated to the UCLA Film and Television Archive by Redcar Properties, the owner of the building. More details and photos are lower on the page. 

Architect: Gilbert L. Leong. He was a native of Los Angeles and the first Chinese-American to graduate from USC's School of Architecture.  

Seating: 425

 

A 1960s magazine story from from Tony Quan Lew family's collection appearing with Janet Louie's UCLA Film and Television Archive article "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection..." The caption: "An industry tabloid shows Tony Quon Lew accompanied by the Peony Sisters, Lee Bo-Ying and Kei Siu-Ying, among others, sending him off at the airport."

 

The front of a flyer advertising Kong Yeung's 1961 opera film "The Belt" (衣帶奇冤), also with an ad for the family's International Grocery Co. It's from the Tony Quan Lew family collection and appears with Janet Louie's UCLA Film and Television Archive article "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection..." Also see the rear of the flyer, with a synopsis of the film and an ad for the family's Mankow Cafe. 

Along with the photos of Bruce Lee and James Wong Howe that Janet includes in her article, she notes: 

"During its heyday, the Sing Lee entertained a number of Chinese American public figures. In 1964, prior to his role in the ABC TV show 'The Green Hornet' (1966-1967), Bruce Lee reportedly visited the theatre — a photo of this event hung in the theatre until it was stolen sometime in the 1970s. The innovative Chinese American cinematographer James Wong Howe was also a frequent visitor to the theatre in the 1960s."

Margaret Lew took over operation of the theatre in 1968 following the death of her husband Tony. Janet Louie notes that at this time they began to do fewer live performances and screen a more diverse selection of films, usually purchased directly from Hong Kong distributors. Margaret was also ran the family's restaurant and market.  

The Foo Hsing Opera Academy of Taiwan was offering performances of the opera "Lady White Snake" in 1970. There was a shutdown later in 1970 after allegations that the theatre was operating as a gambling casino. 

 

A 1970 newspaper clipping. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for finding this, added as a comment on a 2020 post about Chinatown theatres for the private Facebook group Photos of Los Angeles. This was also included by Ken in a 2023 post for the group that included clippings about other suspected Chinatown gambling dens shut down in 1970. 

There was new management by the 1980s. Janet Louie notes: 

"By the 1980s the Sing Lee appears to have operated as part of Gordon’s Film Inc., a network that distributed Hong Kong films in North America since the 1960s. Other theaters in the network included the Sun Sing Theatre (New York), the Pagoda Theatre (Boston), the Toronto Theatre (Toronto) and the Sun Sing Chinese Theatre (San Francisco)."

 

 

A 1984 ad for the Chinese language houses in town that appeared in the Mandarine Commercial News. See the pages for the Pagoda/Cinemaland, Kuo-Hwa/San Gabriel, Monterey, Kim Sing and Garfield theaters. Thanks to Ron Strong for sharing the ad. Visit his Bijou Memories site for many articles about the theatres in the area he once attended. 

 

 

A 1988 writeup located by Ken McIntyre. He included this as part of a 2023 thread about suspected Chinatown gambling dens for the private Facebook group Photos of Los Angeles.

Around 1988 it was renamed the King Hing Theatre by a new owner. Janet Louie notes that he was a Chinatown doctor. 

 

Closing: It closed as a film house in 2001, according to the L.A. Conservancy.

 

Quentin Tarantino was evidently interested in buying the house around 2003 but he didn't pursue a deal. Many Chinese films were stored in the theatre and that library was going to be part of the transaction. 

 

In 2016 the films stored in the theatre were donated to the UCLA Film and Television Archive by Redcar Properties, the building's owners. 

 

A 2016 photo by Barry Schwartz that appears with "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the UCLA Film and Television Archives blog. Janet interned at the archive and created a detailed inventory of the acquisitions. She comments about the collection:

"... Some notable films included Seven Dragons, Eight Phoenixes, Nine Mandarin Ducks (七龍八鳳九鴛鴦) (director unknown, 1950-60?), The Hidden Dagger (魚腸劍) (dir. Shu-sun Chiu, Hok-sing Wong, 1957), A Fairy Brings a Son (天姬送子) (dir. Wui Ng, 1957) and Magic Head of Princess (飛頭公主滴血救親夫) (dir. Chi-Kong Fung, 1960)...

 

"... films in the collection from the 1970-’80s reflected many of the Sinophone world’s most iconic movie genres. Hong Kong kung fu and Taiwanese melodramas (wenyi 文藝) from the 1970s, horror and horror-comedies (jiangshi 殭屍) from Japan and Hong Kong from the 1960s-’90s, as well as films from Hong Kong’s Golden Age and exploitation films from the 1980s are all represented. Movies by significant female filmmakers and those produced by historic film studios including the Shaw Brothers, Cathay, D&B and Cinema City are also included." 

Some of the comments with the article by UCLA Motion Picture Curator Todd Weiner: 

"In early 2016, commercial real estate developer Redcar Properties approached the UCLA Film & Television Archive regarding a collection of over 500 film cases of Chinese-language films that were abandoned in the Sing Lee Theatre (also known as the King Hing Theatre)... Thankfully, Redcar recognized the potential value of this abandoned print collection. 

 

"After I visited the site with my colleagues in Collection Services, the Archive agreed to acquire the materials and began to receive shipments in June of 2016. Since then, Collection Services has worked to identify and conserve these films. We are grateful to Redcar Properties for reaching out to the Archive to salvage the collection and for covering the substantial cost of staging and shipping all 18 pallets of film materials to the Archive...." 

 

Another photo by Barry Schwartz Photography. See three more in the album with Janet Louie's article.  

 One group wanted to take over the theatre in 2016. Corky Baines comments: 

"Some friends of mine wanted to rent it and put up a new marquee and change the name to the Chinatown. There was lots free street parking after 6 pm, good BBQ across the street. But money didn’t happen."

In October 2016 the theatre had a brief resurgence as a dance venue with performances of "When I Am King" by the Heidi Duckler Dance Theatre. For views of various areas of the building set up for the event see Sandi Hemmerlein's 2016 Avoiding Regret photo essay "A Dormant Chinatown Theatre Wakes Up To Dance."

Redcar Properties announced a renovation program in 2016 and was advertising the the availability of the theatre for short term rentals and special events. A January 2017 Curbed L.A. story by Bianca Barrigan noted that it would have included 200 units of housing. What specifically they planned to do with the theatre wasn't outlined. In any case, the project didn't proceed.

Status: The building is currently vacant, largely stripped out, and with a big hole in the roof. Presumably the project involving it is still a possibility for the future. The Red Car website has all sorts of interesting projects on it but the King Hing no longer appears there.

Lobby views:

A 2010 photo of the lobby by Dennis Bartok. He's the co-author, with Jeff Joseph, of the 2016 book "A Thousand Cuts: The Bizarre Underground World of the Collectors and Dealers who Saved the Movies." It's available from Amazon or your local bookseller. There's a preview on Google Books. Thanks to Ron Strong for passing along Dennis' photos. Visit his site Bijou Memories.

A c.2015 lobby view from Red Car Properties. It was on a now-vanished "Productions" page.

Looking in toward the auditorium. Photo: Red Car Properties

An upstairs lounge area facing Spring St. Photo: Red Car Properties

 

 

The auditorium and stage: 

 

A 2010 look at the front of the house. Thanks to Dennis Bartok for sharing his photo.  

 

 

The stage in 2010. And part of the collection of films. It's a Dennis Bartok photo. He reports that there were 300 prints of Chinese films at the theatre. 

 

 

The seats in 2010. Photo: Dennis Bartok

 

 

The back of the house in 2010. Photo: Dennis Bartok

A c.2015 look toward the rear of the house that appeared on a now-deleted page from Red Car.

A c.2015 view toward the screen that appeared on the now-vanished site Imgrum.net.   

 

 

 

A 2016 photo by Todd Weiner of the UCLA Film and Television Archive. It appears with "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the archive's blog. 

The auditorium in October 2016 for the Heidi Duckler performances. It's a photo that appeared with an article about the show on the site Dance Informa. 

Another 2016 dance performance view. It appeared with an article by Christina Campodonico on the now-vanished site This Stage LA.

A view back to the booth from Sandi Hemmerlein's 2016 Avoiding Regret photo essay "A Dormant Chinatown Theatre Wakes Up To Dance."

The cache of prints of Chinese films stored backstage at the theatre. They were donated to the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Thanks to Corky Baines for his 2016 photo, added as a comment to a post on the Los Angeles Theatres Facebook page. 

 

 

A c.2017 look to the rear of the stripped-out house. Thanks to Dennis Bartok for sharing his photo.

The auditorium in 2019. Thanks to Adam Piron for his photos. This is one of four posted on what was then called Twitter.

A view toward the stage. Photo: Adam Piron - Twitter - 2019   

The rear of the house. Photo: Adam Piron - Twitter - 2019. Thanks, Adam!  

 

 

Up in the booth:

 

In 2010 it was equipped with Simplex XLs and Simplex SH-1000 soundheads. Thanks to Dennis Bartok for the photo. 

A 2016 photo by Todd Weiner. This image and the two below appear with "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the UCLA Film and Television Archive's blog.

 

 

The rewind bench. Photo: Todd Weiner - 2016 

 

 

A cache of trailers.  Photo: Todd Weiner - 2016. Thanks!  

A dancer in the booth during one of the performances by the Heidi Duckler troupe. It's another photo from Sandi Hemmerlein's 2016 Avoiding Regret photo essay "A Dormant Chinatown Theatre Wakes Up To Dance." Thanks, Sandi!

More exterior views: 

 

1962 - The groundbreaking ceremony with Tony Quon Lew and Margaret Lew at the center. The photo from the Tony Quan Lew family collection appears with "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the UCLA Film and Television Archives blog. 

 

 

1960s - A look north on Spring toward the theatre when it was the Sing Lee. The photo appears on a fine 2012 History of Chinatown post by Elizabeth Uyeda on the site Los Angeles Revisited. Elizabeth credits the photo to the Seaver Center for Western History Research at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

 

1968 - Tony Quan Lew's funeral procession. This photo from the family's collection appears with Janet Louie's UCLA Film and Television Archive article "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection..."

2009 - A facade view by Ken McIntyre

 

2009 - A signage detail. Thanks to Ken McIntyre for sharing this photo.

 

c.2012 - A view north. Thanks to Elizabeth Uyeda for the photo, one appearing with her article about Chinatown on Los Angeles Revisited. The building occupying most of the image dates from 1890.

2014 - Looking south on Spring toward Cesar Chavez Ave. On the right of the photo we see auditorium of the theatre sprawling off toward New High St. Photo: Google Maps

 

c.2015 - A fine view by drone that appeared on the now-vanished Chinatown page of the Red Car Properties website. 

 

 

2016 - A view by Todd Weiner appearing with Janet Louie's 2026 UCLA Film and Television Archive article "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection..."  

 

c.2017 - A facade view from Dennis Bartok. 

 

c.2017 - Another shot by Dennis Bartok. Thanks!

 

2020 - A photo shared by Marco Diaz on the private Facebook group Photos of Los Angeles. He was wondering what a translation was of the characters on the vertical sign. Marielena Tiscareño offered "Hong Kong Movie City" or "HK Movie Cinema" noting that apparently Cinema and City are the same word. Alex Fernandez suggested one of the characters means warrior.

 

 

 

2020 - Looking south toward Cesar Chavez Ave. Photo: Bill Counter 

 

 

2020 - The north side of the building. That's the auditorium over on the right. Photo: Bill Counter

 

 

 

2020 - A wider view south with a bit of City Hall on the far left. Photo: Bill Counter 

 

2020 - An early November view north toward the theatre and its new Mondrian-esqe decorative scheme. Photo: Yasmin Elming

 

 

 

2020 - A closer look at the facade's redecoration. Photo: Yasmin Elming

 

 

 

2020 - Looking south toward Cesar Chavez Ave. Photo: Yasmin Elming. Thanks, Yasmin! 

 

 

2023 - Not looking good with holes in the roof, windows gone and what looks like some fire damage. Photo: Bill Counter - May 25 

 

 

2026 - Continuing to deteriorate. Thanks to Edwin Gomex for sharing this January photo as well as the two below. 

 

 

2026 - A facade detail. Photo: Edwin Gomez 

 

 

2026 - Looking north. Photo: Edwin Gomez. Thanks!   

 

 

The Sing Lee in the Movies: 

The theatre's signage is seen down the block in this shot from the final scene of Roman Polanski's "Chinatown" (Paramount, 1974). Thanks to Jordan Lage for spotting the theatre in the film. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for three additional shots from the scene. 

More Information: See the Cinema Treasures page on the King Hing Theatre. 

Don't miss "The Sing Lee Theatre Collection: From Chinatown to UCLA," Janet Louie's January 2026 article for the UCLA Film and Television Archives blog. 

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