This photo of Angelenos strolling along the Venice Beach midway circa 1900s shows that things haven’t really changed much in 120 years. (Well, that is to say apart from the formal way people are dressed while at the beach.) Venice Beach is still filled with strolling tourists and tourist attractions. Those minarets were part of the “Streets of Cairo” attraction. You could take a camel ride down Windward Ave. Closer in we can see a 10-cent experience called “Darkness and Dawn” and features what appears to be a topless woman, which must have been very daring to those Victorians. Next door is the Electric Theater, advertising moving pictures. Being so early in the movies’ history, it was probably at this place that many people saw moving pictures for the first time.
Here are a couple of other views of the Venice Midway:
Not to nit-pick but Kinney opened his cement Broad Walk — Ocean Front Walk — in 1905. In 1906 he brought in the Side Shows, which you described, from either St. Louis or Oregon, can’t remember, but those Side Shows showed Kinney that the public was more interested in them than in the high minded classical music Kinney provided daily to guests of his Venice of America entertainment destination. In 1911, he transformed Venice, as well as Ocean Park (Pico Blvd. south almost to Rose), into a City dedicated to entertaining the public, as crass as they may be.
Thanks for the nit-pick, William! I always want to know if I’ve muddled the facts.
I like that the Electric Theater is advertising not only moving pictures, but “illustrated songs.” That has an appealing ring to it.
I wondered what “illustrated songs” were and how they differed from moving pictures.
Maybe those sing-along slides?
Turns out, yes, that’s what they were!
Yay! I guessed right.
The facade on the building with the nude woman is vaguely Middle Eastern looking. Nudity in exotic settings was not that unusual in the early 20th century.