What a difference 120 years of rampant development can make. What we’re looking at here is the bucolic view looking east along Santa Monica Blvd from around Beachwood Drive. These days, the view is all auto repair mini malls and unremarkable offices but back then, it would have been a lovely place for a weekend stroll. Part of this land did remain open, however, as the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, which would have been brand new when this photo was taken circa 1900.
Out of curiosity, I ran the photo through one of those colorization website just to see how it would turn out. I think it did a pretty good job of giving us an idea of what this scene looked like to the photographer that day:
Ordinarily, I’d be looking at a shot like this one, looking west along Wilshire Blvd to the Town House Hotel and Bullocks Wilshire and I’d be thinking “Oh my, look at how light the traffic is along Wilshire!” But I’m posting this during the Covid-19 lockdown, during which the traffic along Wilshire is probably even lighter than this. I’m guessing it was taken during WWII, when gas rationing was in effect. Most of the traffic is heading east into downtown Los Angeles, so this is probably what morning peak hour looked back then, as, in fact, it probably does right now.
Soon after the Carthay Circle Theatre opened in 1926, it quickly became one of the theaters favored most by studios when it came time hold their premieres. The theatre’s soaring tower and stark white exteriors lit up beautifully amid all those searchlights raking the night skies. This artfully framed shot, taken through the arches of a nearby building (does anybody remember what that building was?) makes it almost look like it could have been somewhere in Europe.
This image isn’t wholly real. It’s a screengrab I took while recently watching a 1953 movie called “The I Don’t Care Girl.” In this scene, Mitzi Gaynor’s character is entering the 20th Century-Fox studios. It looked suspiciously matted together, which surprised me. Even in a 20th Century-Fox movie they need to manufacture the entrance to their own studios? That white structure with the (fake-looking) logo on top is the administration building that Darryl F. Zanuck built near Stages 10 and 11. It’s still there but this gate is no longer accessible to the public, but at the time was a main entrance onto the lot. And if that part is real, it’s a surprisingly unremarkable gate for a Hollywood movie studio, don’t you think?
Here’s a satellite shot from 2020 showing the admin building (far right) and Stages 10 & 11 (top left corner.) It looks like the admin building is partially covered with filming facades.
One of the more upscale restaurants on the Los Angeles social scene was Perino’s. It started out in 1932 at 3927 Wilshire Blvd before moving up the street to 4101 Wilshire in 1950. The two cars we can see in this shot are a 1948 Cadillac and a 1950 Chrysler New Yorker, so I’m guessing this shot was taken not long after Perino’s moved. Perino’s served the finest French cuisine—but no garlic because Mr. Perino hated it—until 1969, which is a mighty fine run for a restaurant. It even survived a fire that broke out in 1954:
** UPDATE ** – Perino’s survived into the 1980s but Mr Perino sold his ownership in 1969.
That site is now an apartment block. This image is from April 2019:
In this aerial view of Hollywood in what I’m guessing is the 1930s, of the three major buildings we can see—Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, the Hollywood Hotel, and the Hollywood First National Bank building—two of them are still with us, which is remarkable. Only the hotel is long gone; it fell to the wrecking ball in 1956. Also gone is Orchid Ave’s access to Hollywood Blvd – that’s the street immediately above Grauman’s. Once upon a time it connected Franklin Ave with the boulevard but these days it’s only half as long. The Dolby theater, where the Oscars are held, now stands on that land.
This photo shows us the relatively plain and unadorned entrance to the parking lot at Disneyland. In 1965, when this was taken (Disneyland was only 10 years old at the time), parking cost 25 cents. Today, it costs 25 dollars. If you look closely, you can just make out the Matterhorn underneath the “A.” I’m writing this on March 29, 2020, when Disneyland, like all theme parks in America, is closed down because of the Covid-19 coronavirus. So right now, the entrance to the Disneyland parking lot is as bare and forlorn today as it looked back then.
Without any definite markers to date it, it’s hard to pinpoint when this spectacular night shot of the Los Angeles City Hall was taken. But I’m going to take a guess that it was for the 1928 opening, which was a very big deal at the time and garnered a lot of interest. I love how the tower of the nearby L.A. Times building is silhouetted in the foreground with its circular clock face lit up against the dark night sky. (Photo credit: Los Angeles Relics.)
This is a clearer, daytime shot of the LA Times tower:
When Harvey’s Broiler opened at 7447 Firestone Blvd in Downey in 1958, the Googie-style combination coffee shop, restaurant, and drive-in was the largest of its type in Southern California. The car at the far right is a 1957 Chevrolet convertible, so I’m guessing this photo was taken just after the opening and just before Harvey’s became a hub of the Californian cruising culture as shown in the movie “American Graffiti.” The place lasted until 2007, when it was illegally demolished. The Bob’s Big Boy chain rebuilt it as close to the original as possible, for which they received a Conservancy Preservation Award in 2010.
A couple of weeks ago I posted a photo of the Chapman Park Market on 6th Street, Los Angeles. The market, not far from the Brown Derby and the Chapman Park Hotel on Wilshire, takes up a full city block. The earlier photo was from the Alexander Ave end, and this is from the Kenmore Ave end. This is circa 1929, so it would have been taken not long after the market opened. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if that striped bunting was put up to celebrate the opening. What I appreciate about this photo is the double-lamp electroliers. While the market is still there, that charming street lighting is gone, which is a shame because they add wonderful atmosphere to the cityscape.
What a difference 120 years of rampant development can make. What we’re looking at here is the bucolic view looking east along Santa Monica Blvd from around Beachwood Drive. These days, the view is all auto repair mini malls and unremarkable offices but back then, it would have been a lovely place for a weekend stroll. Part of this land did remain open, however, as the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, which would have been brand new when this photo was taken circa 1900.
Ordinarily, I’d be looking at a shot like this one, looking west along Wilshire Blvd to the Town House Hotel and Bullocks Wilshire and I’d be thinking “Oh my, look at how light the traffic is along Wilshire!” But I’m posting this during the Covid-19 lockdown, during which the traffic along Wilshire is probably even lighter than this. I’m guessing it was taken during WWII, when gas rationing was in effect. Most of the traffic is heading east into downtown Los Angeles, so this is probably what morning peak hour looked back then, as, in fact, it probably does right now.
Soon after the Carthay Circle Theatre opened in 1926, it quickly became one of the theaters favored most by studios when it came time hold their premieres. The theatre’s soaring tower and stark white exteriors lit up beautifully amid all those searchlights raking the night skies. This artfully framed shot, taken through the arches of a nearby building (does anybody remember what that building was?) makes it almost look like it could have been somewhere in Europe.
This image isn’t wholly real. It’s a screengrab I took while recently watching a 1953 movie called “The I Don’t Care Girl.” In this scene, Mitzi Gaynor’s character is entering the 20th Century-Fox studios. It looked suspiciously matted together, which surprised me. Even in a 20th Century-Fox movie they need to manufacture the entrance to their own studios? That white structure with the (fake-looking) logo on top is the administration building that Darryl F. Zanuck built near Stages 10 and 11. It’s still there but this gate is no longer accessible to the public, but at the time was a main entrance onto the lot. And if that part is real, it’s a surprisingly unremarkable gate for a Hollywood movie studio, don’t you think?
One of the more upscale restaurants on the Los Angeles social scene was Perino’s. It started out in 1932 at 3927 Wilshire Blvd before moving up the street to 4101 Wilshire in 1950. The two cars we can see in this shot are a 1948 Cadillac and a 1950 Chrysler New Yorker, so I’m guessing this shot was taken not long after Perino’s moved. Perino’s served the finest French cuisine—but no garlic because Mr. Perino hated it—until 1969, which is a mighty fine run for a restaurant. It even survived a fire that broke out in 1954:
In this aerial view of Hollywood in what I’m guessing is the 1930s, of the three major buildings we can see—Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, the Hollywood Hotel, and the Hollywood First National Bank building—two of them are still with us, which is remarkable. Only the hotel is long gone; it fell to the wrecking ball in 1956. Also gone is Orchid Ave’s access to Hollywood Blvd – that’s the street immediately above Grauman’s. Once upon a time it connected Franklin Ave with the boulevard but these days it’s only half as long. The Dolby theater, where the Oscars are held, now stands on that land.
This photo shows us the relatively plain and unadorned entrance to the parking lot at Disneyland. In 1965, when this was taken (Disneyland was only 10 years old at the time), parking cost 25 cents. Today, it costs 25 dollars. If you look closely, you can just make out the Matterhorn underneath the “A.” I’m writing this on March 29, 2020, when Disneyland, like all theme parks in America, is closed down because of the Covid-19 coronavirus. So right now, the entrance to the Disneyland parking lot is as bare and forlorn today as it looked back then.
Without any definite markers to date it, it’s hard to pinpoint when this spectacular night shot of the Los Angeles City Hall was taken. But I’m going to take a guess that it was for the 1928 opening, which was a very big deal at the time and garnered a lot of interest. I love how the tower of the nearby L.A. Times building is silhouetted in the foreground with its circular clock face lit up against the dark night sky. (Photo credit: Los Angeles Relics.)
When Harvey’s Broiler opened at 7447 Firestone Blvd in Downey in 1958, the Googie-style combination coffee shop, restaurant, and drive-in was the largest of its type in Southern California. The car at the far right is a 1957 Chevrolet convertible, so I’m guessing this photo was taken just after the opening and just before Harvey’s became a hub of the Californian cruising culture as shown in the movie “American Graffiti.” The place lasted until 2007, when it was illegally demolished. The Bob’s Big Boy chain rebuilt it as close to the original as possible, for which they received a Conservancy Preservation Award in 2010.
A couple of weeks ago I posted a photo of the Chapman Park Market on 6th Street, Los Angeles. The market, not far from the 