In this photo, we’re looking south down Broadway in downtown LA, with the aptly named Tower Theater at 8th Street on the left. This photo is circa 1928, which means it had only been open for a year or so. With signs for the Southern California Music Co, the Platt Music Co., and Wurlitzer organs, it seems that stretch of Broadway was also popular with music-makers.
The Tower Theatre building is still there. It is now a recently renovated Apple store. This image is from September 2021.
Apple did a good job of honoring the history of the Tower theater when remodeling it for their purposes.
Apple did a good job of honoring the history of the Tower theater when remodeling it for their purposes.
The Tower is the only downtown movie palace my wife and I weren’t able to visit as part of the Last Remaining Seats program, run by the Los Angeles Conservancy. I regret not being able to see it in its original glory as a movie theater, but I’m glad Apple was able to restore so much of its original glory while also putting the building to good use.