Tag Archives: Hotels

Two enormous residences on Figueroa St near 5th Street, downtown Los Angeles, circa 1905

This photo gives us an idea of the sort of mansions that used to fill the streets of downtown Los Angeles around the turn of the century (This photo is circa 1905.) Narrowing down their location is a bit tricky. … Continue reading

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William Penn Hotel, 2208 W 8th St, Los Angeles, 1929

Built in 1928, the William Penn Hotel at 2208 W 8th St, Los Angeles always catches my eye whenever I drive past it. To me, it looks like it’s been plucked out of some centuries-old East Coast city and plopped … Continue reading

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Night shot looking east along Hollywood Blvd from Highland Ave, past Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood, circa 1939

We’re looking east along Hollywood Blvd from Highland Ave on what looks to be a dark and inky night. I love how the Hollywood Theatre is lit up like a beacon tempting moviegoers. They probably didn’t have to try very … Continue reading

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Passengers riding the Thompson Switchback Gravity Railroad from the Arcadia Hotel into Santa Monica, California, circa 1887

The building in the background of this circa 1887 photo was the Arcadia, a luxury-for-the-time oceanfront hotel in Santa Monica (open from 1886 to 1909) on Ocean Ave between Colorado Ave and what is now known as Pico Blvd. In … Continue reading

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Out on the town with “Out with the Stars” exhibit

A couple of months ago, I went to a marvelous exhibit at the Hollywood Heritage museum called Meet The Stars: 100 Years of MGM Studios and the Golden Age of Hollywood. It was so fascinating that when the museum announced … Continue reading

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Looking west along Hollywood Blvd toward the Knickerbocker Hotel and the Guaranty building, Hollywood, circa late 1920s

Very little information came with this photo so I had to dig a little deeper on this one. Those two buildings in the background are the Guaranty building on the left and the Knickerbocker Hotel on the right. They stand … Continue reading

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A streetcar runs past Pershing Square at the intersection of 6th and Hill Streets, downtown Los Angeles circa 1920s

In this wonderfully atmospheric shot, some quick-minded photographer captured a streetcar running through the intersection of 6th and Hill Streets in  downtown Los Angeles. Those trees behind it are in Pershing Square, and behind them is the Biltmore Hotel. The … Continue reading

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Color photo of the now-dingy entrance to the once-stately Angelus Hotel at Spring and Fourth Sts, downtown Los Angeles, 1956

I had never heard of the Angelus Hotel before I came across this sadly atmospheric photo taken in 1956, just before it was torn down. The hotel stood on the southwest corner of Spring and 4th Streets and opened for … Continue reading

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Camel Inn, 5732 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, circa 1927

Back in the 1920s, apparently all you had to do was put up a life-sized camel out of the front of your house and you get to call yourself the Camel Inn. I found a listing for Camel Inn at … Continue reading

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Two people play golf at night in an empty field east of Vine St, Hollywood, circa early 1930s.png

I have very little information about this shot of two people playing golf at night, but triangulating the neon signs of the Hollywood Plaza Hotel, the Broadway-Hollywood department store, and the Pantages Theatre, I’d say it was taken somewhere near … Continue reading

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