This photo was taken on November 4, 1927 when hundreds of people showed up to witness the premiere of Douglas Fairbanks’ new movie, “The Gaucho,” at Grauman’s Chinese. The theater was so new that this was only the second splashy premiere here held there. Fairbanks was at the height of his popularity, which explains the crowds crammed on the sidewalks on both sides of Hollywood Blvd. Lucky ticket holders were treated to a 12-part live show called a “Prologue” staged by Sid Grauman himself before the movie. “The Gaucho” ran for 12 weeks making it a solid hit.
And this is the program for the Prologue
(care of GraumansChinese.org)
Grauman’s hasn’t changed much over the years. This is how it looked in July 2022.
Just out of curiosity, what was the first movie to premier at the theater?
DeMille’s “King of Kings” that ran from May 19 to October 30, 1927
The newer photo makes it look like Disneyland. What happened to the big palm trees?
Palm trees tend to have a 100-year-ish lifespan so maybe they died? Either that, or they were too hard and/or expensive to maintain. Probably the latter.
Thank you Martin