Tag Archives: Wilshire Blvd
Color film of the Brown Derby restaurant, 3377 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, circa 1940s
It’s not often that we get to see the original Brown Derby on Wilshire Blvd in color and on film, so this gif is rare and special. The streetlight on the right was called a Wilshire Special but I’m intrigued … Continue reading
Color photograph Wilshire Blvd cutting through MacArthur Park, Los Angeles, circa 1950s
In this photo we’re treated to a color view of Wilshire Blvd heading east toward downtown Los Angeles, cutting through MacArthur Park. Until 1942, the park was known as Westlake Park, but was renamed MacArthur Park in honor of General … Continue reading
Bullocks Wilshire department store, 3050 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, circa late 1930s
The Bullocks Wilshire department store on Wilshire Blvd is one of those Los Angeles buildings that I never get sick of looking at. It’s also one of the buildings that has survived the unrelenting onslaught of progress, which is amazing … Continue reading
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Tagged Bullocks Wilshire, Stores and Shopping, Wilshire Blvd
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Gus Arnheim Orchestra, Cocoanut Grove at Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles, 1932
One of the names most often associated with the Cocoanut Grove nightclub at the Ambassador Hotel was Gus Arnheim, whose orchestra and a three-year engagement in the late 20s/early 30s. He was also instrumental in helping to get Bing Crosby’s … Continue reading
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Tagged Ambassador Hotel, Cocoanut Grove nightclub, Hotels, Nightclubs, Wilshire Blvd
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Looking west along Wilshire Blvd from Vermont Ave toward the I. Magnin store at 3240 Wilshire, Los Angeles, circa 1940s
In this photo we’re looking west along Wilshire Blvd from Vermont Ave. In the medium distance we can see the I. Magnin department store at 3240 Wilshire Blvd, which had some major competition a couple of blocks east: Bullocks Wilshire. … Continue reading
Bomb shelter sales display, 6135 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, circa 1940s
Here’s a very 1950s photo: Get your bomb shelters right here! A couple of doors west of the Wilshire Blvd/Fairfax Ave intersection (where the May Company department store stood) was this sales display for bomb shelters, which were going for … Continue reading
The Navy Relief Ball held at the Cocoanut Grove, Ambassador Hotel, Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, June 12, 1942
It’s photos like these that seem to burst from the screen with chatter, music, and festive hubbub. What we’re looking at is the Navy Relief Ball held at the Cocoanut Grove at the Ambassador Hotel on June 12, 1942. This … Continue reading
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Tagged Ambassador Hotel, Cocoanut Grove nightclub, Nightclubs, Wilshire Blvd
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Looking east along Wilshire Blvd from Masselin Ave, Los Angeles, circa 1930s
In this circa 1930s photo, we’re looking east along Wilshire Blvd from Masselin Ave. On the left, with the canopy extending across the sidewalk is the Wilshire Bowl, which was a nightclub popular with the Hollywood crowd. In 1942 it … Continue reading
Mercury Aviation airplanes and a blimp parked at Chaplin Airfield, Fairfax and Wilshire Boulevards, Los Angeles, 1919
Back when Los Angeles was more open field than urban sprawl, Charlie Chaplin’s brother, Syd, leased property bounded by what is now Wilshire, Fairfax, and San Vincente, and named it Chaplin Airfield. In 1918, Cecil B. DeMille started the Mercury … Continue reading
Looking west along Wilshire Blvd from Lafayette Park toward the Town House Hotel and Bullocks Wilshire, circa early 1940s
The photographer who took this shot was standing at Lafayette Park on Wilshire Blvd as it curves gently to the left and heads west toward the Pacific. On the right we have the Town House Hotel and on the left … Continue reading
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Tagged Bullocks Wilshire, Hotels, Stores and Shopping, Town House Hotel, Wilshire Blvd, WWII
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