When this venue at 1735 Vine St, Hollywood opened on January 24, 1927 it was a live-theater called the Hollywood Playhouse. During the Great Depression, it was the WPA Federal Theatre and was used for government-sponsored programs. By the 40s it was the El Capitan Theatre from which CBS broadcast their network radio shows, as well as playing host to the Ken Murray’s Blackouts variety stage show. By the 50s, it was a television studio and home to shows like The Colgate Comedy Hour and This Is Your Life. Probably its biggest claim to fame is that on September 23, 1952, Richard Nixon delivered his famous “Checkers Speech” in this studio, which was broadcast on NBC.