Before all the additions the museum complex was a beautiful example of mid-century modern architecture (akin to the Lincoln Center in NYC).




below: The view along Wilshire Boulevard in the 1960s.

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/2...krbyverner.jpg
http://cityplanning.tumblr.com/page/10


below: An atrocious wall-like addition in 1986 destroyed the views from Wilshire Boulevard.

http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/4...acadewikip.jpg
http://cityplanning.tumblr.com/page/10




below: Another view of the oppressive 1986 addition.

http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/4...trancekcet.jpg
http://cityplanning.tumblr.com/page/10




below: A flashback to 1965 showing the moat and elevated walkways.

http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/1316/...ercityplan.jpg
http://cityplanning.tumblr.com/page/10


below: A 1965 view from Wilshire Blvd showing the 'moat' and fountains.

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/3...a1965laplb.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=47334



below: A 1968 view of the museum looking west from the La Brea Tar Pits.

http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/7...arpitslapl.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=78131





below: A postcard from the 1960s. This clearly shows the 'moat' and the elevated 'piazza'.

http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/636/lacmapchuge.jpg
found on ebay





below: Another aerial view (1960s) looking east along Wilshire Boulevard.

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/966...firstposts.jpg
LAPL




below: Today the museum has a multitude of additions (some good & some bad).

http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/5550/lacmamap1.jpg
LACMA






below: LACMA's expansion eventually included the old May Co. Department Building built in 1940 (far right in the above map).

http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/8...corner1989.jpg
http://twentiethcenturyarchitecture....irfax-los.html

___

:previous:
Love, love, love those pics, ethereal. I'm sure I mentioned it before, but the Miracle Mile holds a special place in my heart, being that I lived there as a small child, from 1974 to 1977 (me being age 4 to age 7), on South Cochran Avenue. I attended Cathedral Chapel Catholic School for first grade, which is still located at Cochran and 8th. The Lee Tower, though ugly, is still in my memory as it could be seen from our house, which itself, after having driven by it recently has been hideously painted and now has a black iron fence around the front yard; just awful. I still remember the Lee Tower being a bright turquoise color, I don't know why it had to be painted black. It didn't improve the look; even as a child, I didn't like the turquoise color. And even after my family moved to Cerritos (yawn), we would still go into LA to shop at the May Company on Wilshire and Fairfax or go to the Century City Mall when it was still a more "regular" mall with a Clifton's and the Broadway department store and Bullock's, and visit our friends who still lived on Cochran.

I remember the moat and fountains around LACMA. But from what I've read, the moat leaked, or something, and was later filled in and replaced with a sculpture garden, and of course the 1986 building (originally called the Robert O. Anderson building, now called the Art of the Americas building or something) completely changed the look of the Wilshire frontage of the place.

I first saw LACMA in the summer of 1967 and it was beautiful. The buildings seemed to be floating on those ponds. The current version, to the extent it has a theme of any kind at all, looks downright Stalinist.

I was wondering if any of you have heard of the out of print book....
Tarnished Angels: Paradisiacal turpitude in Los Angeles. by W.W. Robinson, 1964.

I finally found a copy on Amazon.com but the price is $90.00. :(
Numerous colleges & institutions have it in their collections but none seem to be available online.

It's briefly mentioned in the paper below from California State University Pomona.


http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/7...ncsupomona.jpg
http://img849.imageshack.us/img849/8...csupomona1.jpg
http://www.csupomona.edu/~reshaffer/...ple/prostx.htm

My first thought is...what in the sam hell is prophylactic fluid?? Was it something like 'rubber cement'?

The red light districts of Los Angeles haven't been mentioned at all in this thread...yet nothing seems more 'noirish' to me
than a seedy red light district. I thought perhaps 'Tarnished Angels' might open the flood gates.


___

Talked to my dad & the name of the shop was Myrtle's Gown & Hat Shop.
If you can find any pics, that would be great!
Thanks,
Paul

Wow! you dug up so many old images of the museum that I've never seen before & probably few ppl can even identify....since the museum is so different today. I believe another reason the old pools & fountains were removed was it was too much of a nuisance to keep the huge amt of water in them at least semi sanitary & therefore not a health hazard.

I wanted to post a screen shot from a video the museum had on its website not too long ago, but it appears to be no longer available. It showed an aerial view of the old parking lot & street before they were removed a few yrs ago to make way for new bldgs to the museum. they would be #7 &, more recently, #8......

http://www.lacma.org/sites/default/f...mapdec2011.png
lacma.org

the may co bldg was in the news recently as the new location where the organization that runs the academy awards will have their museum. they'll be leasing the space from & working with the LA county art museum in creating a museum on the history of cinema.

http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics14/00026812.jpglapl.org

In the beginning, it was "Parklabrea"...

At some point, it became "Park La Brea" (or is it "Park LaBrea"?).

But it's "parklabrea" once again in terms of its internet address....

the architect of the museum was said to be influenced by another bldg created in seattle for their 1962 world's fair. it's a bldg still in use today as seattle's science ctr.

http://content.lib.washington.edu/cg...B=0&DMROTATE=0
washington.edu

^ that bldg's architect was the same person who designed the now vanished world trade ctr in nyc.

fwiw, I read that the design of the LA art museum was panned by many critics when it opened in the 1960s. so if it's judged today as "stalinist", it still wasn't praised even when brand new. one of its newest bldgs also got mostly :yuck: reviews by several ppl in the media a few yrs ago. the museum has had a string of bad luck with its bldgs for over 40 yrs. :shrug: :(

Very interesting that it was the same architect as the WTC.

The museum was also panned by local Southern California artists back then for non inclusion in shows there. They needed to import "real" "important" artwork from NYC. Not saying I do not like the work that came out of NYC back then, but LACMA missed the boat big time on the thriving art scene here. Now we have the Getty's Pacific Standard Time event happening to make up for this. http://www.getty.edu/pacificstandardtime/

The current Director and Curators do a very good job now of inclusion of local artists, I must say. We are now one of the most prominent art cities in the world. With great artists here :yes:

And on the bldg front, there was that fiasco a few years ago for architect bids to redo the LACMA bldgs until they found out that they were not allowed to tear down the Ahmanson bldg :rolleyes:
There is a thread about it here http://www.skyscrapercity.com/archiv.../t-439870.html

From a few pages back.....
 

I chuckled a bit when I read GW's descriptions......

Overboard? Perhaps. A matter of opinion. I think it's fantastic.

One thing is certainly NOT a matter of opinion: We are all indebted to you, GW, for your spectacular contributions.

Just my "hats off" to you this morning!

I get a kick from seeing the County Museum mentioned here because my grandfather Herman T. Beck (an immigrant from Bremen, Germany) was an employee there and created the animal statues on the grounds. Happily they're all still there and in fairly good condition.

Here's an article from the March 1944 Popular Science that talks about him and his work. I may have some old family photos of the museum and have been meaning to look. And I've been trying to convince my mom, an occasional lurker here, to post a few of her many reminiscences of life in L.A. back then.

http://dkse.net/david/LACM/Ice.Age.1a.jpg


http://dkse.net/david/LACM/Ice.Age.2.jpg

fwiw, I read that the design of the LA art museum was panned by many critics when it opened in the 1960s. so if it's judged today as "stalinist", it still wasn't praised even when brand new. one of its newest bldgs also got mostly :yuck: reviews by several ppl in the media a few yrs ago. the museum has had a string of bad luck with its bldgs for over 40 yrs. :shrug: :([/QUOTE]

I wasn't living in L.A. when LACMA opened, but I do recall some critical comment that the design was pedestrian and there wasn't much actual art in it.

I'm sure there are people who admire the new design, but I'm not one of them. The best thing about it is being inside, so you don't have to see how ugly the outside is.

...and while we're spending some time around the 'ole tar pits...
 

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-N...2520PM.bmp.jpgLAPL

I don't drive past the Wilshire/Fairfax intersection all that often... I do, after all, live a fur piece away, except in my head. But when I have motored down The Fifth Avenue of the West, I've never noticed the big building, bottom, center-left. I suppose with all the upgrades to LACMA, the Peterson Museum, and the tower on the southwest corner I never would have assumed that it survives. But there it is, the additions, at least, apparently now home to chiropractors. I'm glad nothing has happened to Johnnies, at least yet. It might be nice to see the old Carthay Apartments building cleared of its frontal assaults and restored...but then again, they seem to have some noir-era charm, even if most if not all of its Vitrolite now seems to be gone, and should probably stay (he says as if he has any decision in the matter).

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-5...2520PM.bmp.jpgGoogle Street View

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-B...2520PM.bmp.jpgGoogle Street View


http://jpg1.lapl.org/00090/00090515.jpghttp://jpg1.lapl.org/00090/00090516.jpghttp://jpg1.lapl.org/00090/00090517.jpghttp://jpg1.lapl.org/00090/00090518.jpgLAPL

Ca. 1978-79: Ya gotta LOVE that Lane's cocktails...glass bricks, curving entrance.... It could have been Edie Phillips's if she had been able to make a go of her Figueroa joint. But then, as she said to Karl on her way to San Quentin, "I'm Margaret de Lorca"...

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x...2520PM.bmp.jpgLAPL
1956: Apt. 201½??


Re the top photo: The labels, in this case, aren't mine. Presumably the dotted line indicates planning for the Seibu/Orbachs/Peterson building....

Can anyone find an old pic of the Carthay Apartments sans the storefronts, and with the sign on top? Is the main building still apartments?

:previous: Very interesting post G_W

Lane's cocktails...what a beautiful little bar! I would so love to find a photo of the Carthay Apartments with the rooftop sign intact
and the front shops gone....but I haven't had much luck.


I was able to find a photograph of the courtyard in the back. The unpainted brick is beautiful.

http://img31.imageshack.us/img31/979...urtyardfil.jpg
http://www.filmsitelocators.com/loca...angeles-90048/



After a few more searches I came across this site.

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/4285/sarttheater.jpg
http://www.actorsart.com/about.html

Surprisingly, there is a 32 seat theater in converted apartment #110!

____

David (3940dxer) you must be proud of your Grandfather. I loved looking at the mammoths and saber-toothed tigers in the tar pit.....
he did a great job!

Earlier on the page Gaylord_Wilshire posted a 1959 aerial showing the proposed location for the SEIBU department store.
I've been meaning to do a SEIBU post for quite some time..so this seems like a good time to do so.



below: SEIBU, the Japanese department store opened on March 1962 at the southeast corner of Wilshire & Fairfax.
This was three years before LACMA.

http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/2...deptstore1.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/FullRecord?
databaseID=968&record=6&controlNumber=4778773





below: Looking north on Fairfax toward the May Co. department store on Wilshire.

http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/8...axentrance.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=60450




below: Interior view 1962.

http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/3...buinterior.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53409445@N04/5447380644/




below: SEIBU 1962 rooftop restaurant (I didn't know there was a rooftop restaurant until today)

http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/9...estaurantf.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53409445@N04/page7/


below: Another view of the rooftop restaurant 1962.

http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/2...962wilshir.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53409445@N04/page7/





SEIBU only lasted from 1962 to 1964. From 1964 to 1986 it operated as an Ohrbach's department store.

below: SEIBU as an Ohrbach's in 1978.

http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/5...s1978annel.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...Number=4984278


below: Today the SEIBU building hosts the Peterson Automotive Museum.


http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/846/seibutoday.jpg
google street views

..for comparison
http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/2...deptstore1.jpg
LAPL




I just found out the rooftop restaurant space is still intact! :)

http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/7...automuseum.jpg
http://www.herecomestheguide.com/sou...motive-museum/

The Peterson Automotive Museum/SEIBU building with some impressive klieg lights.

http://img594.imageshack.us/img594/9...rsenmuseum.jpg
http://guestofaguest.com/los-angeles...-this-week-20/

GREAT posts, e_r. I guess I always assumed the fins on the Peterson were original to the building. OK, I get it--cars, fins.... (?)

Amazing thread I'm spending my last two nights admiring those pictures. In <3 with the city of angels. :D :cheers:

I've always thought they were as well. This may be the only building in L.A. where exterior renovations to a historic building actually improved the way the building looked.