I think this was the theater on 15th just below Chestnut where I saw one of Richard Pryor’s concert films in 1982. The theater was on the west side of 15th Street between Chestnut and Market.
I guess we all saw Altered States when it played at the Regency in 1980. I know I was there. I don’t remember much about the theaters except that they were near the Duke and Duchess.
I worked at the Arby’s on the northwest corner of 15th and Chestnut in the early 1980’s. I remember the Duke and Duchess, of course, but I can’t place the Arcadia or its marquee on that block. It’s been a long time since I worked in that area. My restaurant used to be Butcher Block, I think. There was a movie theater around the corner on 15th Street between Chestnut and Market. I’m sure that theater is listed in here somewhere.
I went to a double feature with my mother at the Roxy in 1967. The films were Jungle Book (the cartoon) and Charlie the Lonesome Cougar, a nature documentary of sorts released by Disney. I can picture the theater in my mind to this day. I also saw Oliver there the same year or possibly the next.
I have driven by this theater countless times over the years. It wasn’t demolished, which is a small victory given LA’s history of obliterating landmarks like the Atlantic Richfield building downtown.
I looked for Safety Last on Netflix with no luck. Does anyone know how to rent this film?
Incidentally, I believe that the Susan Hayward film “I’ll Cry Tomorrow” has some scenes that were filmed around Fifth and Main downtown.
You can attribute the demise of adult theaters to home video. No one needs to go out and spend ten dollars to watch a porno movie anymore.
I saw my first adult film at the Beach Theater in Atlantic City. The theater was around the corner from my high school (no repressive zoning requirements then) and I was terrifed that some teacher would spot me, or worse, would be in the audience. I was fourteen years old. I remember that the ticket was five dollars, which was mucho dinero in 1975. When I walked into the auditorium, the first thing that I saw was a wide screen shoot of John Holmes unfolding the part of his anatomy which made him famous. I felt rather inadequate. The rest of the film was an anti-climax, if you will pardon the pun.
I recall the Million Dollar showing Wild Wild West (the Will Smith flop) about seven years ago. I was too busy to go and have regretted it since. I have been in most of the Broadway theaters but not the $1,000,000.
I saw “Some Like It Hot” also, back in 2004. I don’t think the Conservancy has shown a film at the Los Angeles in a while. This year’s films were all at the Orpheum. Speaking of Broadway, I often appear at the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board on the 9th floor of the original Broadway building on 4th street. I would be interested in any links that would show the interior of the store in its heyday. There are plenty of exterior shots on the LAPL database.
Nobody has mentioned the fact that you can go to a movie at the Avco and then walk around the block and see a lot of dead stars at the Westwood Memorial cemetery, including Marilyn Monroe, of course. Also Natalie Wood, Richard Conte (who has a question mark after the date of death on his tombstone) and Heather O'Rourke, the little girl from Poltergeist. I think Dominique Dunne is there too, to complete the Poltergeist connection.
The LA Library online database has a series of pictures of this theater and the adjoining buildings. The first picture from the 1920’s shows the Adolphus and the Westminster Hotel on the corner of 4th and Main. The next picture is from 1950. The theater is now a parking garage with the Main Street Gym upstairs. The last picture appears to be from the late 1960s or early 1970s and shows the theater/parking structure standing alone, in disrepair. I imagine it was demolished shortly after.
If you look at the 1950 picture and note the location of the fire hydrant, you can stand by the same hydrant today and see by the cutout in the sidewalk where the entrance to the garage was. I know this is a little overboard, but by the time I moved to LA in 1984, all of the interesting buildings were already torn down.
I saw a film at the Picwood shortly before it closed. It was some kind of a breakdancing/martial arts film as far as I can remember, and it was produced by Motown’s Berry Gordy. That would have been in 1985. Not long after that, the theater was gone and the unwanted and unnecessary extension to the Westside Pavilion was built.
The World was closed when I moved to LA in September 1984. I read about the theater in a book called “The Best of LA”, published by the LA Weekly, which had the quote referenced by Ken Roe. I was disappointed to find that I had missed out on the World experience.
I went to this theater once in the 1980’s. My television at home had a bigger screen than the theater I was in. Good riddance if it closes. Maybe they can level the Beverly Center and bring back the pony rides.
Thanks for the info. I was trying to catch a glimpse of the theater in Gone in 60 Seconds (the original) when Ed Halicki gets off the 110 at Sepulveda, going north. Unfortunately, he turns right on Sepulveda instead of left or we would see everything. I did see a large vacant lot where the Target is now, on the corner of Sepulveda and Figueroa.
The GCC Northeast is gone? I dated a girl in the Northeast and saw quite a few films at this complex, including The Verdict and Monty Python’s Meaning of Life. There was a happening bar close by, the name of which I can’t recall. There was also a very good Jewish deli near the theater, which is probably gone as well.
I have to admit that I did pay 99 cents to attend one of the Center Theater’s less stellar presentations in 1975 or thereabouts. Thankfully my mother does not own a computer.
I saw many, many films at this theater in the early 1980’s. It was a single large theater to which they added a few small screens while I was still living in Philadelphia. I saw Rocky III on the large screen in 1982.
I thought this was Grendel’s Lair in the early 80s. Was the Ripley Music Hall in the same block of South Street?
I think this was the theater on 15th just below Chestnut where I saw one of Richard Pryor’s concert films in 1982. The theater was on the west side of 15th Street between Chestnut and Market.
I guess we all saw Altered States when it played at the Regency in 1980. I know I was there. I don’t remember much about the theaters except that they were near the Duke and Duchess.
I worked at the Arby’s on the northwest corner of 15th and Chestnut in the early 1980’s. I remember the Duke and Duchess, of course, but I can’t place the Arcadia or its marquee on that block. It’s been a long time since I worked in that area. My restaurant used to be Butcher Block, I think. There was a movie theater around the corner on 15th Street between Chestnut and Market. I’m sure that theater is listed in here somewhere.
I went to a double feature with my mother at the Roxy in 1967. The films were Jungle Book (the cartoon) and Charlie the Lonesome Cougar, a nature documentary of sorts released by Disney. I can picture the theater in my mind to this day. I also saw Oliver there the same year or possibly the next.
Drive-in theaters may die, but swap meets live on forever…
I have driven by this theater countless times over the years. It wasn’t demolished, which is a small victory given LA’s history of obliterating landmarks like the Atlantic Richfield building downtown.
I looked for Safety Last on Netflix with no luck. Does anyone know how to rent this film?
Incidentally, I believe that the Susan Hayward film “I’ll Cry Tomorrow” has some scenes that were filmed around Fifth and Main downtown.
You can attribute the demise of adult theaters to home video. No one needs to go out and spend ten dollars to watch a porno movie anymore.
I saw my first adult film at the Beach Theater in Atlantic City. The theater was around the corner from my high school (no repressive zoning requirements then) and I was terrifed that some teacher would spot me, or worse, would be in the audience. I was fourteen years old. I remember that the ticket was five dollars, which was mucho dinero in 1975. When I walked into the auditorium, the first thing that I saw was a wide screen shoot of John Holmes unfolding the part of his anatomy which made him famous. I felt rather inadequate. The rest of the film was an anti-climax, if you will pardon the pun.
I recall the Million Dollar showing Wild Wild West (the Will Smith flop) about seven years ago. I was too busy to go and have regretted it since. I have been in most of the Broadway theaters but not the $1,000,000.
I saw “Some Like It Hot” also, back in 2004. I don’t think the Conservancy has shown a film at the Los Angeles in a while. This year’s films were all at the Orpheum. Speaking of Broadway, I often appear at the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board on the 9th floor of the original Broadway building on 4th street. I would be interested in any links that would show the interior of the store in its heyday. There are plenty of exterior shots on the LAPL database.
There is a picture of the Lyceum on the LA Library online database.
Nobody has mentioned the fact that you can go to a movie at the Avco and then walk around the block and see a lot of dead stars at the Westwood Memorial cemetery, including Marilyn Monroe, of course. Also Natalie Wood, Richard Conte (who has a question mark after the date of death on his tombstone) and Heather O'Rourke, the little girl from Poltergeist. I think Dominique Dunne is there too, to complete the Poltergeist connection.
The LA Library online database has a series of pictures of this theater and the adjoining buildings. The first picture from the 1920’s shows the Adolphus and the Westminster Hotel on the corner of 4th and Main. The next picture is from 1950. The theater is now a parking garage with the Main Street Gym upstairs. The last picture appears to be from the late 1960s or early 1970s and shows the theater/parking structure standing alone, in disrepair. I imagine it was demolished shortly after.
If you look at the 1950 picture and note the location of the fire hydrant, you can stand by the same hydrant today and see by the cutout in the sidewalk where the entrance to the garage was. I know this is a little overboard, but by the time I moved to LA in 1984, all of the interesting buildings were already torn down.
There are several pictures of this theater in the LA Library online database.
I saw a film at the Picwood shortly before it closed. It was some kind of a breakdancing/martial arts film as far as I can remember, and it was produced by Motown’s Berry Gordy. That would have been in 1985. Not long after that, the theater was gone and the unwanted and unnecessary extension to the Westside Pavilion was built.
The World was closed when I moved to LA in September 1984. I read about the theater in a book called “The Best of LA”, published by the LA Weekly, which had the quote referenced by Ken Roe. I was disappointed to find that I had missed out on the World experience.
That theater would have been in the shopping center at Admiralty and Fiji Way, along with the Boys Market and Mr. D’s Coffee Shop.
Any theater named the Ken is worthy of a visit next time I’m in SD.
Another work of art lost to progress.
I went to this theater once in the 1980’s. My television at home had a bigger screen than the theater I was in. Good riddance if it closes. Maybe they can level the Beverly Center and bring back the pony rides.
Thanks for the info. I was trying to catch a glimpse of the theater in Gone in 60 Seconds (the original) when Ed Halicki gets off the 110 at Sepulveda, going north. Unfortunately, he turns right on Sepulveda instead of left or we would see everything. I did see a large vacant lot where the Target is now, on the corner of Sepulveda and Figueroa.
The GCC Northeast is gone? I dated a girl in the Northeast and saw quite a few films at this complex, including The Verdict and Monty Python’s Meaning of Life. There was a happening bar close by, the name of which I can’t recall. There was also a very good Jewish deli near the theater, which is probably gone as well.
I have to admit that I did pay 99 cents to attend one of the Center Theater’s less stellar presentations in 1975 or thereabouts. Thankfully my mother does not own a computer.
I saw many, many films at this theater in the early 1980’s. It was a single large theater to which they added a few small screens while I was still living in Philadelphia. I saw Rocky III on the large screen in 1982.