Quote:
Originally Posted by FredH
It was located at 827 W. Third Street. According to the library, it used to be the Rose Theater and the Rex Theater. Anyone have any earlier photos?
lapl
It was located about here, past the west end of the Third Street tunnel.
Google Street View |
Yes, almost at Figueroa (now the "grounds" of Bunker Hill Towers):
The Lux is just out of shot to the left in this 1949 pic
(one can see the vertical "Hotel" sign just to the east of the theater):
Photo: Max Yavno from The Los Angeles Book co-authoed by Lee Shippy, Houghton Mifflin (1950)
Too bad this gorgeous shot, previously posted by
ethereal_reality, wasn't taken from a block and a half further west:
usc digital archive
Damn, look at that ragtop.
What a wasteland these two blocks are now.
P.S.
No earlier photo, but here's an even later one. 1965
The Lux appears to be gone, but the hotel's still there:
LAPL
"LUX Theater:
827 W. 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90071
This little theatre just east of Figueroa opened prior to 1914 as the Bear Theatre then became the Rose. It's listed as the Rose in the 1917, 1918 and 1919 city directories.
By 1929 it was known as the Rex it had a long career running lots of westerns. By 1939 it was known as the Lux except for a brief fling as the Anita. It was operated in the early 60's by Harold Wenzler, who later ran the Granada on Temple St.
Seating: 500
Status: Demolished as part of the Bunker Hill redevelopment project."
- quoted from Downtown Los Angeles Theatres
https://sites.google.com/site/downto...ll-st-theatres
Some interesting and
norish comments re Harold Wenzler (mentioned in the quote above) when he moved to the
Oaks Theater, Pasadena after both the Lux and Granada had closed:
http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/3497/comments
There was another theater on this strip.
The Tunnel Theater (1914) was at 712 W 3rd between Hope and Flower (south side of 3rd).
The site is now inside the loading dock of 1974's 333 S Hope Tower (Bank of America Plaza):
google sv
Pic here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/3345511...57626195546712
gsjansen/flickr
(an all-rights-reserved grab from
Bucket of Blood, 1959)
...and this one (the Tower Theater is the single-story, hipped-roof building on the left and LOL, I just noticed there's a "chop suey" sign on the right.
Check out the rooftop washing line on the right too. These two blocks had
everything):
lapl (William Reagh, 1940)
Both photos linked from
http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/20860/comments. There's more photo links at the link.
P.P.S.
Another 1965 view:
usc digital archive
A circa 1970 long shot including 3rd Street between Hope and Figueroa. The land cleared, Bunker Hill Towers (Wm Pereira, 1969) built, the western extension to the 3rd St tunnel built, 333 S Hope Tower and the WTC not yet started:
LAPL
(One of my sons just looked at this post and related how last year he and our friend Alex (RIP) were running from the cops north on Flower from 3rd and all he could think of was if it was only how it used to be here they would have had someplace to hide (he'only 24, but he knows and loves old LA from photos), but they got away in the end anyway.)
1903 (with all the bare ground and missing streets, looking strangely like 1965):
lapl
(The three shots immediately above first posted by gsjansen)