Here’s a bit of Hollywood history in the making. This is the Gates of Babylon set from D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance (1916) as they were being constructed at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard in Los Feliz, where the Vista Theatre now stands. Once filming was done, the filmmakers just walked away, leaving their set standing until it was torn down three years later. It was this set that inspired the look of the Hollywood and Highland mall.The Los Angeles Times-Richfield “Electric Newspaper” previews on the Paramount Theatre Building at the NE corner of 6th and Hill streets, downtown Los Angeles, October 1931
I’ve often wondered what those wraparound moving headlines were called. I don’t know what other places called them, but when the Los Angeles Times collaborated with the Richfield Oil Co. they called it the “Electric Newspaper.” This shot is of the preview of the one erected on the Paramount Theatre Building at the NE corner of 6th and Hill streets, downtown Los Angeles, October 1931. It was four feet tall, and the service started at 7 o’clock every night and lasted until around midnight.
Aerial view looking west showing the intersection of Wilshire Blvd and San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, 1922
In this aerial view of empty land is from 1922. We’re looking at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and San Vicente Boulevard — Wilshire is the one with the line of trees and San Vicente runs diagonally. (By the way, it was originally the San Vicente line of the Pacific Electric Railway). The line along the bottom is Fairfax Avenue, which was a dirt road at the time. In 4 years’ time, that area to the south of San Vicente at the lower left corner will become Carthay Center, home to the Carthay Circle Theatre.
Although oriented from a different angle, we can see how densely packed all that land is now:
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Tagged Aerial photographs, Carthay Circle Theater, Los Angeles, Wilshire Blvd
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F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Screen Writer’s Guild card, September 23, 1938
I have no idea how or when this photo surfaced on the internet, but it’s pretty cool: F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Screen Writer’s Guild card. It’s dated September 23, 1938, which surprises me as he moved to Hollywood (and into Villa #1 at the Garden of Allah Hotel) in July of 1937 when MGM offered him a 10-week-$1000-a-week contract. I guess the SWG was slow to issue their ID cards!
A crowd of listeners outside Collins’ Radio Shop at 223 South San Fernando Blvd in 1926, listening to the World Series, Burbank, California, 1926
In this age of smartphones and Spotify and headphones, listening to audio entertainment has become an individual thing. We can easily forget that less than 100 years ago, it was very much a communal experience. This photo shows us a crowd of people gathered outside the Collins’ Radio Shop listening to the World Series in 1926, which leads me to presume that none of these men (and note, it’s all men!) even had a radio set at home. The address given for this shot is 223 South San Fernando Boulevard, which I assume means the one in Burbank. That whole block is now a parking structure.
New York’s Penn Station set from MGM’s “The Clock” (1945)
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of effort that gets put into producing movies, and that goes for nowadays as well as yesteryear. These two photos show the recreation of the Penn Railway Station set that MGM built for their 1945 movie “The Clock” starring Judy Garland and Robert Walker. If it wasn’t for the fact that there are no people around, you’d almost swear it was the real thing! (And I guess the little chalkboard saying “Penn Station” is a bit of a giveaway, too.)
Brown Derby Restaurant, 3377 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, circa 1967 (Kodachrome)
I usually restrict the vintage photos I post to the period that the Garden of Allah Hotel was open (1927 to 1959) but even though this shot of original Brown Derby at 3377 Wilshire was taken in the late 1960s, I love it because the place itself didn’t really change a whole lot. Plus, this shot was taken in vivid Kodachrome color and I’ll take a color photograph of the Brown Derby any time I can get it.
Looking west along Hollywood Boulevard toward Highland Ave from the Embassy Club, 1930.jpg The Embassy Club, Hollywood Blvd, 1930
In this photo gives us a 1930 view looking west along Hollywood Boulevard toward Highland Ave from the Embassy Club, which was a popular place in Hollywood during the early 1930s. It was run by Eddie Brandstatter, who also owned the Montmartre next door, which in the 1920s was the first nightclub in Hollywood.
Looks like the joint was really jumping!
From the shape of the doorway, I’d say the Embassy Club was where the Hollywood Wax Museum is now.
Corner Hollywood and Vine, Hollywood, circa 1946.
It looks like it was a busy day at the corner of Hollywood and Vine. Judging by the civilian Jeep underneath the news headlines light wrapped around the corner of the Taft building, this photo was probably taken around 1946 or ’47. The semaphore traffic light is there, the ladies are all in hats, the Owl Drugs store is open, and the Brown Derby is ready to serve you a lovely lunch with perhaps a side dish of celebrity spotting.
Susan says “Post WWII, the army had a plethora of Jeeps to dispose of. You could buy one in good condition for $50. Many of those had not even been used outside of the US. The war-weary Jeeps were sold often for under $25 each. My uncle bought 2 of the better condition Jeeps for his orange ranch up outside of Fillmore.”
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Tagged Brown Derby, Hollywood, Hollywood and Vine, Hollywood Blvd, Restaurants, Stores and Shopping
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The Los Angeles Philharmonic plays in the Daisy Dell at soon-to-be Hollywood Bowl, August 28, 1921
I was recently sent this photo from Bill Donaldson. It’s of the Los Angeles Philharmonic playing a concert at Daisy Dell on August 28, 1921. Within a year of this photo being taken, that temporary-looking stage those musicians are sitting will be replaced by the first incarnation of the Hollywood Bowl. It looks like they had a pretty good turnout! I wonder what these people would think if they could see the Bowl now.
Bill had the photo because his father was in the orchestra!
