In the history of early Los Angeles television, Don Lee stands out as a pioneer. But what I didn’t know until I came across this photo, was that he started out as the owner of a Cadillac dealership. This is a circa early 1930s shot of his car lot on the southwest corner of 7^th and Bixel Streets in downtown LA. After purchasing a radio station in 1926, he got a television broadcasting license in 1931 and on December 23, 1931, his station W6XAO launched one of the country’s first regular television broadcasts. Talk about a career change!

The same view in March 2018:

I got curious about that building in the distance with the white top. Turns out it is now the delightfully renovated Mayfair Hotel and has its charming decoration intact.

The Academy’s Linwood Dunn Theater complex at Fountain and Vine was built in 1948 as the original KHJ Studios (later home to KABC). As originally built by the Lee family (Don died in 1934), at first it actually included a token Cadillac showroom on the south side of the building. Look closely at this uncommon 1949 postcard:

Casa de Cadillac at the corner Beverly Glen and Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks was built as Don Lee Cadillac in 1949, showing that the Lee family stayed in the car business parallel to their broadcasting interests into the 1950s: