The 3,000+ acres of land that industrialist Griffith J. Griffith donated to the city of Los Angeles makes a stark background for this striking photo of the Griffith Observatory taken at dusk circa 1937. The observatory had opened in 1935, so for Angelenos, it was probably still a new sight to see in the night sky. This photo was taken from the Los Feliz area which sits at the foot of the hills atop which the Observatory sits.
I couldn’t duplicate the vintage photo, but he’s a November 2017 view from Catalina St.
This is one of my favorite places in LA. I remember it as the Earthly headquarters in reruns of the Flash Gordon serials starting Buster Crabbe I loved to watch on TV in the 1950’s. Whenever Flash would call back to Earth by radio from the planet Mongo, there would be an establishing shot like these of the Griffith Observatory. What followed was a conversation between Flash and usually his scientist father. Never mind that the distance between Earth and Mongo would have delayed responses in the conversation for hours.
I’ve been up at the observatory, even offered a job there. It is the most spectacular place to be in LA. The vantage point at the top of the observatory is absolutely breath-taking. You have to take photos, it’s a requirement, whether you’re a resident or a tourist. Being a tv and movie buff, there have been countless films made here, especially the long, winding road up to the top. Perfect for chase scenes! What a trip. Thank you for the memories.
My parents had a photo of the family sitting on the wall there. It was hanging up until my mom passed and we sold her home.
I also remember riding our bikes up there when I was 10-12 with friends. We rode and walked our bikes up, but was a blast riding down, no helmets, go as fast as you can.