noirish Los Angeles

[Lorendoc]

[QUOTE
-but to me it resembles Lookout Mountain in Los Angeles. You're the LM expert, what do you think?

ebay
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SAN-DIEGO-CA...item5d44acd3fb[/QUOTE]


Good eye, e_r, it's almost the same view as the postcard (that I bought on eBay ) that HossC recently posted:



Both were taken just below the LMI. 1913 sounds about right.

And I'd venture to say that HossC's postcard was taken after the 1918 fire, as the "San Diego" one has a lot more vegetation.

[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by ProphetM

It looks the same, except for a bronze plaque on the side. It's a monument to Frank Putnam Flint, US attorney and Senator.

-vintage slide showing the Flint Monument and the long gone Hall of Records.

ebay


I came across this group of slides last week on ebay.



-pedestrian traffic around the Times Building.

ebay




traffic cop and a very colorful cab.

ebay





-the California State Building, now gone.

ebay





-ya'll can figure this one out your own.

ebay

[Lwize]

Those are some heavily distorted photos!

[GaylordWilshire]

ebay


GSV


GSV


GSV


There seems to be some confusion on the part of the Times about the Louise having become the Cortez... maybe. An address might sometimes change within a block, but it seems odd that 439 would have become 375 Columbia. But then the Louise seems to disappear from CDs after the Cotez made its appearance, and I haven't seen any pics of the Louise. HossC?


GSV/LAT May 22, 1932

LAT March 15, 1930

LAT Aug 22, 1931


(There was an earlier Hotel Louise on Broadway.)

[HossC]

The Hotel Cortez lost its roof sign along with some of its charm during the remodel (I liked the oval windows at the ends). The large building in the background on the right is the Mary Andrews Clark Residence on Loma Drive. This photo is dated 1933.


USC Digital Library

Here's a previous post on the Mary Andrews Clark Residence:

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...&postcount=688

A little of La Vista Terrace bungalow court is visible on the far right. You can see a better picture with the Mary Andrews Clark Residence looming behind in this post:

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...&postcount=330 (scroll down to second picture)

[CityBoyDoug]

Originally Posted by Wig-Wag

CBD, your comment on the building having a steel frame can be verified in the black & white photo where I-beams are visible between the first and second stories. They are somewhat less prominent in its wonderful current livery ; > ).

Cheers,
Jack

Hi Jack:

That is exactly how I came to that conclusion. Back in the day I was a building designer....among other things.

Cheers...!!!

[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

ebay

This is such an amazing find GW! -but someone needs to rip off all that 1980s stucco. They completely covered up the original building.
I mean, they paid homage to the oval windows by covering them up and adding fake circles! Who does that?

-that said, the photograph of the Cortez with the roof-top sign intact leaves me speechless HossC. -am I in heaven?

Anyway...good job you two!
__

[Albany NY]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

traffic cop and a very colorful cab.

ebay

I LOVE that old DeSoto taxi. But it looks familiar. Hmmmm....
insert by Google Images

Sorry. I just couldn't resist. There's nothing Noire about a giant wiener (unless we're talking about the Wonderland murders!).

[ethereal_reality]

LOL!
I knew a girl who drove the weiner-mobile for her summer job while she was in college.
She and her co-pilot caused so many accidents (people gawking at them) that they had to end their tour early.
__

[Otis Criblecoblis]

Originally Posted by BifRayRock

Recent Hardware Store posts (e.g., http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...ostcount=17379 ) begets adding to the potpourri.


1885 - Munger & Griffith Hardware, 19 East Colorado Blvd.
http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics31/00035281.jpg

A marvelous set of pictures, but this one is especially significant for me because it is from the same year our Pasadena home was built. I'm always looking for any information that informs my understanding of what things looked like here in 1885, to help the accuracy of our restoration work.. So thanks for this picture!

[ethereal_reality]

a netherworld of magenta.

old cd of mine/

bunker hill wiped out. (what street?)
__

[ethereal_reality]

magenta_land II

ocdom
__

[rcarlton]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

a netherworld of magenta.

old cd of mine/

bunker hill wiped out. (what street?)
__

[Albany NY]

Oooops! Too little, too late!

[Wig-Wag]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

Great collection of hardware store photographs BRR. -and good sleuthing HossC.
Frustratingly, the photos are a jUmbLe to me, so I pieced one together.

I really like the 'traveling' arrows on the facade (must have been striking at night).


http://collection.pasadenadigitalhis.../id/307/rec/24
__

ER, What I find equally intriguing is that interest rates were stable enough to allow for the construction of the giant neon 6% sign on the roof of the building!

P.S., Remember the running neon rats on the facade of the Western Exterminator building of the Hollywood Freeway at Glendale Boulevard?

Cheers,
Jack

[Flyingwedge]

Originally Posted by BifRayRock

"Chotiner's La Brea" (857 So. La Brea) and "The Ritz" (5214 Wilshire ).

The "857 La Brea" building has gone through many iterations and has been mentioned previously. This is the first time I noticed the "Chotiner" name. The Ritz is another story.




Fox's Ritz Theater 5412 LaBrea ca. '30
lapl


**In deference to those who prefer smaller images, you can view the map here:http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=8036

I don't believe that the following two 1926 images have already been posted. They are both zoomable at the source. First, a photo of 857 S. La Brea:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...d/32299/rec/31

The picture playing at Chotiner's, The Pleasure Garden, was directed by a young Alfred Hitchcock (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016230/).

The building is now a church: https://sites.google.com/site/wilshi...es/fox-la-brea

As for the Fox Ritz, which we also saw here http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=9808, it was for a time (c. 1926-29) the West Coast Ritz:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...d/32299/rec/31

This photo is looking SW at Wilshire and Sycamore. According to this site https://sites.google.com/site/wilshiremoviepalaces/ritz the Ritz opened October 15, 1926. The picture playing here, My Official Wife, was released October 16, 1926 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017185/).

Was there ever a mural on the tall back wall of the theater? Seems like a good place for one.

The theater was torn down in 1977.

[GaylordWilshire]

Originally Posted by Flyingwedge

As for the Fox Ritz, which we also saw here http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=9808, it was for a time (c. 1926-29) the West Coast Ritz:

USC Digital Library -- http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...d/32299/rec/31

This photo is looking SW at Wilshire and Sycamore. According to this site https://sites.google.com/site/wilshiremoviepalaces/ritz the Ritz opened October 15, 1926. The picture playing here, My Official Wife, was released October 16, 1926 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017185/).
The theater was torn down in 1977.

Great to see a dedicated storefront for the I-ON-A-CO...with a neon sign to boot.





Ads for the I-ON-A-CO appeared in the Times from mid 1925 to as late as a year after the real GW's death on Sept 7, 1927. This one is from Feb 10, 1927:



History of the I-ON-A-CO: http://oldsite.thebakken.org/artifacts/wilshire.htm

A prior NLA post: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=7123


LAT, USCDL

[Godzilla]

Originally Posted by Wig-Wag

ER, What I find equally intriguing is that interest rates were stable enough to allow for the construction of the giant neon 6% sign on the roof of the building!

P.S., Remember the running neon rats on the facade of the Western Exterminator building of the Hollywood Freeway at Glendale Boulevard?

Cheers,
Jack

Pondered the same thing in connection with photo below. Much like the facades of many financial institutions, they are intended to project stability and instill confidence. As you know, these ads were numerous. The Fed Reserve was still fairly young and its policies relatively conservative. Same with administrators (Harding, Coolidge and Hoover). Not that the cost of the signage wasn't significant, but once the superstructures were in place, numeral replacement may not have been all that difficult/costly - especially considering the myriad of wing walkers, flagpole sitters, and height-defying daredevils depicted in this thread.


'29 - Bay Cities Guaranty
http://catalog.library.ca.gov/exlibr...KEFB2APKTA.jpg

http://skyscraperpage.com/forum/show...ostcount=15284


http://latimesphoto.files.wordpress....ding2_9701.jpg

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=8522

[Godzilla]

Remarkable collection of photos.

Not clear if the streets had been paved or were in the process. Perhaps unintended, the building's facade favors the English seat of government or a church, which now occupies the structure.

Forget the fact that Hitchcock's directorial debut was playing. May have been worth the dusty drive to hear "Tom Callis at the Wurlitzer."!

Curious about the large opening on left side of building/photo. The sidewalk does not appear to be beveled permitting easy access to street. Nevertheless, opening seems consistent with overall design Subterranean parking? Access for large set pieces? Separate business, e.g. garage? Opening remains today - for pedestrian traffic.


(ER, go here: http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...d/32299/rec/31 )





http://www.hitchcockwiki.com/gallery/900.jpg

[Godzilla]

From: http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/co...d/32299/rec/31


The Reedy Apartments. Circa '26. Furnished.















Interesting friezes above windows. Not sure what they depict (dancing/party (?)). Perhaps an indication that that this is a festive place to "get down?" A nice touch.