Remember the days when you could drive to a movie house and park your car right out front? Nah, neither do I. But gosh, it must have been nice when you could. This is the Manchester Theatre at 322 W Manchester Ave, near the Watts Towers. The marquee shows they were playing “The Unholy Three” (1930) and were making much of the fact that Lon Chaney was talking. It was Chaney’s first talkie and last movie as he was dying of cancer during filming. Also on the bill was a comedy duo called “Barto and Mann” who were a well-known comedy dance team whose main selling point was that Barto was 4’11” and Mann was 6’6″. Barto’s other claim to fame was that he was the father of actress Nancy Walker.
After his theatrical career, George Mann had a career as a 3-D photographer. Notably, he photographed Bunker Hill in DTLA which can be seen here http://www.onbunkerhill.org (scroll down to the George Mann link). He also used his connections to the entertainment industry to make some fascinating photographs of stars of the era in informal settings.
Remember the days when you could drive to a movie house and park your car right out front? Nah, neither do I. But gosh, it must have been nice when you could. This is the Manchester Theatre at 322 W Manchester Ave, near the Watts Towers. The marquee shows they were playing “The Unholy Three” (1930) and were making much of the fact that Lon Chaney was talking. It was Chaney’s first talkie and last movie as he was dying of cancer during filming. Also on the bill was a comedy duo called “Barto and Mann” who were a well-known comedy dance team whose main selling point was that Barto was 4’11” and Mann was 6’6″. Barto’s other claim to fame was that he was the father of actress Nancy Walker.
Went there regularly in the 40s. We also used to donate tiles and glass to Rodia while he built his towers. Kids were fascinated by his efforts.
Rodia’s efforts are *still* fascinating!
After his theatrical career, George Mann had a career as a 3-D photographer. Notably, he photographed Bunker Hill in DTLA which can be seen here http://www.onbunkerhill.org (scroll down to the George Mann link). He also used his connections to the entertainment industry to make some fascinating photographs of stars of the era in informal settings.
Oh wow! What a second career he had!