Most photos I come across of the Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Blvd are, naturally enough, taken at street level so it’s a nice change to see what the property looked like from the air. This was taken in 1940, with the main “I”-shaped building in the lower left corner. From this perspective, we can better appreciate the huge grounds that the Ambassador had, giving it more of a country club feel with lots of elbow room. I’m surprised that that huge plot of land to the left is still empty by 1940. As soon as the war was over in 1945, L.A. experienced a huge boom so I’m sure that land didn’t stay empty for long.
If we zoom in, we can see the tall, white column at the front of the Ambassador driveway, the Chapman Park Hotel across the street, and the dome of the Brown Derby restaurant.
Most photos I come across of the Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Blvd are, naturally enough, taken at street level so it’s a nice change to see what the property looked like from the air. This was taken in 1940, with the main “I”-shaped building in the lower left corner. From this perspective, we can better appreciate the huge grounds that the Ambassador had, giving it more of a country club feel with lots of elbow room. I’m surprised that that huge plot of land to the left is still empty by 1940. As soon as the war was over in 1945, L.A. experienced a huge boom so I’m sure that land didn’t stay empty for long.
It looks like there’s a pitch and putt golf course at the back of the main hotel building at the lower right in the picture.
Ah yes, Gordon, I think you might be right!