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Quote:

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality (Post 5890722)

An amazing kodachrome slide found on ebay. The cars are so beautiful!..and what is KYRON?

http://imageshack.us/a/img803/4926/a...ugstorelac.jpg

originally posted by GaylordWilshire
http://imageshack.us/a/img90/3769/aabrexallgw.jpg
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=3077

below: Here is an earlier post on the same building.

Circa '82 - Before Ma Maison Sofitel. Uncertain, but there still may have been a vestigial capped oil well obstruction toward the southern portion of the Beverly/LaCienega intersection.:shrug:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7176/6...46870ceb_b.jpg http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpo...&postcount=521

http://cls.cdn-hotels.com/hotels/100...17597_98_b.jpg google

http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/4711/00079535.jpg
LAPL

I'm fascinated by the 1926 aerial shot of DTLA (above) and its layers of history originally posted in this thread by sopas ej. One can almost see the buildings rising and falling over the decades. This area was my daily environment during the many years I worked at Fifth and Flower as I used to catch my bus home at 5th and Hill. In the mornings I alighted at 6th and Hill, and walked to work west along 6th. The windows of my workroom looked out over this view too. Also, as a kid in the 50's I thought the buildings around the west garden of Central Library, the Sunkist, Richfield, California Club and the library itself constituted the most glamorous group ever (even then I thought I was a member of the Architecture Police). Bear with me while I rabbit on or just skip this post.

The just finished Central Library (Bertram G. Goodhue) sits near the center of the photo, sharing the block bounded by Grand, Flower, 5th and 6th (former site of the 1882 State Normal School), with the 1915 Bible Institute of Los Angeles Building (see another photo below), the original home of the huge, red neon "Jesus Saves" signs, which were sited on the building's two dormitory towers in 1935, angled to face due north and due west. The Biola Building was torn down in 1988 after being damaged (or so they said) in the October 1, 1987 earthquake and replaced by the 550 Hope St Tower (Kohn, Pedersen Fox Associates, 1991).

The other two notable buildings on this block are the still-standing 1927 Mayflower (later Checkers) Hotel, the roof of which just shows beyond the BIOLA and the Hotel Savoy (Morgan, Walls & Morgan, 1919), 6th and Grand, which would disappear under the footprint of the pedestrian Crocker Citizens Bank Building (Wm Pereira, 1969). The new premises of the California Club (Robert Farquhar, 1930) and the Superior Oil Building, later the Standard Hotel (Claud Beelman, 1956), both facing Flower Street, have yet to be built.

http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/assets...A7645A21B?v=hr
usc digital library
The Bible Institute of Los Angeles (BIOLA) in 1926 looking SE from the south walkway of the new Central Library.

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/6...chfieldoil.jpg
USC digital library, originally posted in this thread by ethereal_reality
The Superior Oil Building/Standard Hotel (Claud Beelman, 1956) rises at 6th and Flower, Directly across Flower St from the Richfield Building (Stiles O Clements, 1929, demolished 1968). Sixth St looking east.

Across 5th street, on the left side of the 1926 photo, the Engstrum Apartments stand at the center of the block; the Edison Building (James and David Allison, 1931) and the Sunkist Building (Walker and Eisen, 1935) have yet to be built on either side of it. The old Bunker Hill steps don't exist yet, let alone the new Bunker Hill steps. The single-story home on the corner of Hope Street and Hope Place appears to be maintained and occupied. The Sunkist Building will be torn down in 1972, eventually replaced by the 444 S Flower Building (originally the Wells Fargo Tower) in 1982. The single-family home and the Engstrum will provide the footprint for Library Tower (Henry N Cobb, 1989). Hope Place will be rerouted behind the Edison Building (One Bunker Hill) and Library Tower to again connect Grand Ave with Hope St.

The seven-story building shown in the photo at top on the corner of 5th and Grand will eventually fall in favor of the Gas Company Tower (SOM, 1991). The massive Subway Terminal Building is beyond, it's narrow eastern front facing on Hill St.

The legit Biltmore Theater (Schultze & Weaver, 1924) stands on the corner of 5th and Grand on the block to the east of Central Library. Notice the bustling activity on the Central Library site to the west (right) in the photo below. The theater was torn down in about 1967 and the site used for street-level parking until the Biltmore Tower (Landau Partnership, 1989) went up.

http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics18/00028699.jpg
LAPL

In the 1926 view at top, the Biltmore Hotel (also by Schultze & Weaver, 1923) doesn't have its 1929 addition yet which will change the two bays at the back of the hotel into light wells and bring the building flush with the Grand Ave sidewalk. The limousine drive (now called the VIP Ramp) on the south side of the Biltmore is in place as is the projecting, cantilevered canopy over the VIP entrance at the center of the drive, under which a scene from "Chinatown" (1974) was filmed (see photo below). Over twenty years later a scene for "Se7en" (1995) was filmed at the Grand Ave end of the drive.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tzd-dbFfwB...0/Biltmore.JPG
itsfilmedthere.com
Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway at the center of the drive at the south end of the Biltmore. The third Pacific Mutual building is on the left. In the distance, across Grand Ave, an incongruous 1969 Crocker Bank building can be seen to the left of the much more appropriate 1927 Mayflower/Checkers Hotel (as has already been pointed out on this thread).

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8k2VBLsT42...0/Biltmore.JPG
itsfilmedthere.com
Brad Pitt runs from the Grand Ave end of the Biltmore's limousine lane in "Se7en". One of the great plinth-mounted lanterns which decorate either end of the drive is shown to good effect. The exit ramp from the Pacific Mutual underground parking garage is at right.

A view down and through the Pacific Mutual parking/loading dock ramp is provided by "48 Hours" (1982){https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1...2%252520PM.jpg
youtube

One could used to use the Biltmore drive as a pedestrian shortcut, but starting in the late 1990's or thereabouts gates were installed across the dive and kept locked. In the mid 1980's or so, the of-little-faith Biltmore turned its back on Pershing Square and relocated its entrance and lobby to Grand Ave. With the gentrification of the Historic Core, I'm counting the days until the Biltmore reverses that decision.

Completing the block, the three buildings that make up the Pacific Mutual Insurance complex were all in place by the time of the 1926 photo at top. The first, at the corner of 6th and Olive, was built by Parkinson and Bergstrom in 1908 (later remodeled by Parkinson). The 12-story building to the west of that was added in 1922 by Dodd and Richards and the final two-story building (containing one of LA's first underground parking garages) in 1926, running adjacent to the Biltmore's limousine lane in the interior of the block.

http://www.uncanny.net/~wetzel/6thOlive.JPG
PC image from uncanny.net
The six-story, Corinthian-columned, original Pacific Mutual Building backed by the 12-story annex in circa 1924. The heroic sculptural group over the entrance to the annex was done by Jo Moro who was equally famous as a humorous cartographer (you might want to Google his 1942 map of LA if you aren't familiar with it already). The Savoy Hotel stands beyond the Annex at 6th & Hope.

http://www.you-are-here.com/downtown/pacific_mutual.jpg
youarethere.com
The original 1908 Pacific Mutual Building after John Parkinson's 1936 remodel of his own work.

Again in the 1926 photo at the top of this post, one can just see the Auditorium Building, still with its original, fanciful roofline (Charles F Whittlesey, Otto H Neher, 1906), beyond the NE corner of the Biltmore, built on the site of the old 1887 Hazard Pavilion. The low dome of the main auditorium is visible at the center of the building's roof. It was demolished in 1985. Street-level parking has occupied the the site ever since. The location would be my choice for a Museum of Los Angeles (we could all run it).

http://www.billyspostcards.com/media...itled-0371.jpg
billyspostcards.com
The Auditorium Building's organization was strongly influenced by Adler & Sullivan's 1889 Auditorium Building in Chicago (now Roosevelt University).

http://www.ulwaf.com/images/Auditorium-Remodeled.jpg
ulwaf.com
The Auditorium Building after its 1938 moderne remodel by Claud Beelman (some sources credit Stiles O Clements, I don't know which is correct). An unsightly billboard has been added to the roof in this circa 1960's-1970's view. The Title Trust and Guarantee Building (Parkinson & Parkinson, 1930) is on the right.

Also in the 1926 view at the top of this post, one can see the low buildings on the east side of Pershing Square. These have all been cleared. It's unfortunate that the undistinguished International Jewelry Center Building went up in 1981 at the southern end of this site b/c, in my humble opinion, the land between Hill St and Lindley Place should have been used for an annex to Pershing Square, thereby finally making it an actual square and giving room for much needed public amenities.

Hey y'all! A heads up, bunch of new BH images over at LAPL, e.g., this honey of the pre-LBquake Castle with its tower:

http://jpg1.lapl.org/00102/00102781.jpg LAPL

And there's a ton of color shots of the Castle during her brief tenure as Grande Dame of Heritage Square before torching --

http://jpg1.lapl.org/00102/00102742.jpg LAPL

...and a whole gaggle (pride?) of photos -- again, color -- of the Hildreth! Including interiors.

http://jpg1.lapl.org/00102/00102789.jpg

http://jpg1.lapl.org/00102/00102788.jpg LAPL

Note how in the early-50s pic we can see the Stuart K Oliver house under construction next door. And check out how they've prettied up the house (one assumes, to dispel the bad juju that famously surrounded it, after the demise of the greater Hildreth family): painting the chimney, replacing all that fishscale shingle with board, enclosing the sleeping porch...

http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics13/00026477.jpg LAPL

...LAPL has this shot dated 1949, during the renovations (who does that to a Newsom?!). Bunch of money sunk into that. Of course, in late September of that year the CRA declared Bunker Hill to be Redevelopment Site #1. At which point the Hildreth's owners said "Ohhhh...oh crap." The 4th St cut took it out just a few short years later.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckaluck (Post 5908899)

This post: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=2098 and similar images (below) should serve as a painful reminder of what not to demolish. 555 S. Flower Street.

http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r.../LA60Bldg5.jpg

Starting in about 1974, I worked for the person who bears ultimate responsibility for the destruction of the Richfield Building, Robert O Anderson, founding chairman of Atlantic Richfield Company. If anyone's interested, I can post what I remember being told, six years after the fact, about that deplorable event.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tovangar2 (Post 5909003)

Oh, please do. The Richfield building is one of my obsessions, and I try to learn anything I can about it.

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/5466/...orcomplete.jpg USCDL

A Mr. and Mrs. Gaffney posing at 620 S St. Andrews, May 28, 1951.

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/8...nornow1005.jpgGoogleSV

The neighborhood has changed, but they still keep the brass polished.

The building started out with another name...

http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/9...rtcomplete.jpg Los Angeles Times, Dec 25, 1926

There's a little bit of noir at every address in L.A.... '20s variety in this case.

Los Angeles Times

Apparently, Virginia dropped the insanity suit the next day. She'd only been mad at her mother
for not letting her play bridge. She started out as a child actor, but her career tanked with
sound. She married twice, had two kids, and died young (27) of TB.

And... a rough few weeks for the Fleurys of 620 S St Andrews...

http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/525/fluerycomp.jpg lLos Angeles Times, Oct 10, 1932 and Nov 4, 1932

Apparently Mama did recover.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tovangar2 (Post 5909003)

:whisper: Please tell.

http://jpg1.lapl.org/spnb01/00007319.jpg lapl

http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/602/dw44423isla.jpg http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/602/dw44423isla.jpg

?????? :koko:

1. Building looked awful on Dumont's new color TV's?
2. Unable to obtain permit to move entire building to Heritage Square?
3. Bus, tire, and auto companies felt building's views might make street car demise too obvious?
4. Tower clashed with the Southland Hotel silhouette, so Southland ownership said "one of us has got to go"?
5. Unspoken part of Brooklyn Dodgers deal?
6. Miracle Mile jealousy?
7. Little value since neither Huntington nor Getty owned it?
8. Should be green like the Eastern, since black and gold is too heat absorbent?
9. HHughes felt it disrespectful toward JRussell's "Outlaw" role?
10. Never prominently featured in George Reeves TV series?
11. Elevators were notoriously slow?
12. Fay Wray secreted several of Monkey Island's former inhabitants on top floors and they made a hell of a mess?
13. Not enough room for a proper roof garden?
?????? :koko::haha:

I've enjoyed visiting this thread for almost two years seeing the vanished buildings and neighborhoods of LA. What a treasure trove of information and photos have been posted. A big thank you to all!

I just learned of an interesting area in the far south part of LA in San Pedro. A couple of blocks of residential area started sinking and sliding over 80 years ago and is now referred to as the "Sunken City." More info and photos here: http://milepoint.com/forums/threads/...t-fermin.3604/

Another somewhat remote part of LA that has fascinated me since I first saw it 40 years ago is the Surfridge neighborhood located off the west end of the runways at LAX. It was mostly gone when I was there but one can still see the streets driving by on Vista del Mar or on Google Earth. There is some interesting information and photos on this neighborhood at: http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge/

It's really sad to see how many neighborhoods in LA have been lost to development or natural disaster but at least we can remember them through all the old photos and info here and other sites.

Again, thanks for keeping this fascinating thread going and best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving.

Dave

I wish I could join in on the conversation right now, but my area of expertise tends to be around the Alexandria Hotel and things that are happening nowadays downtown....

That being said, I thought I might just share this picture with you lot.

Q. When was it taken?

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b1...tulio-/1-3.jpg

A. About 8AM this morning, by me.

Just saw this man walking by and decided it would make for a good picture. Of course I had to crop out the big model of the challenger space shuttle though. Space shuttles are not noir.

:previous: Thanks Cyberider for sharing. Interesting stories. Now I am anxious to see before pictures!:)

Quote:

Originally Posted by rcarlton (Post 5909601)

:previous: Thanks Cyberider for sharing. Interesting stories. Now I am anxious to see before pictures!:)

I will have to do some more research on the Sunken City area of San Pedro.

For Surfridge, there was another good site that seems to be no more. You can see some aerial photos from 1972 showing some homes remaining in the area between the two runways on the site below. You can view photos up and down the beach in various years at this site. 1972 was about the time I pedalled past it on my way from Santa Monica to Redondo Beach for breakfast and back and Surfridge was so mysterious looking but it didn't occur to me at the time what was happening. Wish I could have been in LA earlier to see Bunker Hill and all the other interesting and historical places that disappeared.

http://www.californiacoastline.org/c...gs=0&year=1972

All these lost neighborhoods are so depressing on one hand but so interesting on the other.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyberider (Post 5909471)

Another somewhat remote part of LA that has fascinated me since I first saw it 40 years ago is the Surfridge neighborhood located off the west end of the runways at LAX. It was mostly gone when I was there but one can still see the streets driving by on Vista del Mar or on Google Earth.

The photo below shows what condemned Surfridge. LAX jumped Sepulveda Blvd when the 1953 Sepulveda tunnel allowed runway expansion to the west. Before the tunnel, Mines Field, as it used to be called, was east of Sepulveda, stretching to Aviation, with the northern and southern borders at Century & Imperial HWY. Imperial has held firm, so far, on the south, but the west-of-Sepulveda part of the airport reaches north to Manchester PKWY and a big chunk of land east of Aviation is now an overflight area.

http://jpg1.lapl.org/pics28/00033801.jpg
LAPL

If anyone wants to know why Mines Field was expanded into LA's main airport, rather than an existing (Glendale and Burbank handled more air traffic than Mines up until the end of WWII) or new one in the Valley, just follow the money.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality (Post 5909768)

http://imageshack.us/a/img705/5270/a...1descripti.jpg
ebay
__

If the ebay seller was a noirish regular, he would know that Orange became Wilshire...

Quote:

Originally Posted by tovangar2 (Post 5909816)

I love Surfridge. I used to bike over the one open road they have that goes through there, sandpiper. It used to be open to cars but they closed it after 9/11

Here's a cool fade between 1969 and today on the PCH. There are a ton of pix on the web. Here, I'll post a few.

http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge...69_to_2011.m4v
Lakata.org

http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge..._satellite.jpg
Lakata.org

http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge/LAX4002F06.jpg
Lakata.org

http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge/LAX1061F12.jpg
Lakata.org

http://www.lakata.org/arch/surfridge...five_palms.jpg
Lakata.org

http://launfd.com/wp-content/uploads...202401833.jpeg
Spotlight LA

http://launfd.com/wp-content/uploads...202449127.jpeg
Spotlight LA

http://launfd.com/wp-content/uploads...202520613.jpeg
Spotlight LA

http://launfd.com/wp-content/uploads...202544819.jpeg
spotlight LA

And here is a great video of the whole place. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=ZcOHTlnJKKg

And one more neat video about the area.

http://www.5min.com/Video/WHAT-REMAI...-Rey-517545332

:previous: Now that is post-apocalyptic looking. -especially the sepia/yellowish one.
___

Northeast corner of Santa Monica Blvd. and Doheny Drive.

http://imageshack.us/a/img856/5488/d...monica1945.jpg
http://www.hollywoodhistoricphotos.com/

today
http://imageshack.us/a/img26/1313/do...onicatoday.jpg
google street view

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