665 or 655 S. La Brea - Braverman Bros?

April 17, 1951 (or was it the 19th?) people converge on Braverman's window to view Gen. Macarthur on TV. (Or this is what happened when one of the Ivar's "entertainers" got lost on the way to work.)


http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/assets...132-004~3?v=hr

http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0

http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/utils/...rea&DMROTATE=0


Above images from USC Digital

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Remember to park at Tilford's! Try the "Broadbill Swordfish Saute," it's the Radio Special, after 4 PM!
http://i.ebayimg.com/t/1963-PC-Tilfo...Er6Gw~~0_3.JPGEbay

http://a.imageshack.us/img853/2253/l...sflickrjer.jpghttp://a.imageshack.us/img856/6518/l...ordstoday1.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-J...2520PM.bmp.jpg Credit goes to GW and ER. From: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=6842

Bido Lido's/The Sewers of Paris/The Gaslight/The Opium Den
 

OMG, the Ivar. It was notorious when I lived in Hollywood between the late 70's up till about 1983. Guy got shot dead one night under the canvas marquee and no one called it in until dawn.

There was a gay bar in the back behind the stage, "The Gaslight", reached from the driveway to the right of the theater entrance (the drive was later closed in just leaving a long, narrow hallway). Before that, it was a club, "Bido Lido's", and later "The Sewers of Paris". By the 1990's it was a rock venue (I was a patron by then), "The Opium Den".

The always-legit theater itself was opened in '51, but the great two-level club space was much older. What went on over the years in tiny Cosmo Street, the alley which one could access from the back of the club, was the very definition of noir.

Columbia Drug
 

The long-demolished Columbia Drugstore, SE corner of Sunset & Gower, tucked into the corner of Columbia Studios (now Sunset-Gower Studios). It was gorgeous inside with wood phone booths and a soda fountain in back. They sold theatrical make up and all sorts of unusual things. It still had all its original shop fittings when I knew it in the 70's as my local drugstore when I lived in a 1915 craftsman on a forgotten strip of Beachwood Dr between Columbia Studios and Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery (now Hollywood Forever). There was a great news stand too, outside, under the awning, on Columbia Drug's Gower St side.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cVAG2VrYqE...and+Sunset.jpg
2719 Hyperion

Between the people working at Columbia Studios and at Bill Putnam's famous Western Recorders music recording studio (now split between Ocean Way & EastWest [Cello]), which took up the rest of the Sunset frontage on either side of the Columbia Studios gate, you'd never know what luminaries you'd see in Columbia Drug.

http://farm1.staticflickr.com/109/30...c9e43319_z.jpg
jody miller - flicker

Memories like this are priceless to the thread. Thanks for sharing.
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posted earlier by tovanger2
http://imageshack.us/a/img198/5746/a...ehhoyelwik.jpg
wikipedia

I circled the original portion of the Hollywood Hotel Hotel in gray at far right.


below: Here is a wonderful photograph of Prospect Avenue before it was renamed Hollywood Boulevard.
You can clearly see the original Hollywood Hotel (with strawberry fields across the street).

http://imageshack.us/a/img195/3235/a...ectaveebay.jpg
newly listed on ebay

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Mulholland Highway opening December '24
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/assets.../CHS-9075?v=hr

1930 - Valley View from Mulholland Drive.
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/assets...CHS-44632?v=hr Both from USC Digital

When will turkeys get a fair break?

Undated traffic infraction or violation of fish and game laws?
http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics04/00011657.jpg

1931
Police Turkey-shoot.
http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics17/00028050.jpg

1934
Women practicing for a turkey-shoot at Police Academy. Chief "two gun" Davis pointing the way.
http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics20/00029858.jpg

Undated. Chief Davis always get his bird?
http://jpg2.lapl.org/pics04/00011656.jpg

1930 Woman feeds Turkey at restaurant
http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics29/00064066.jpg
http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics29/00064065.jpgAll LAPL

While exploring via the google-mobile, I happened across this rather mundane American Legion Post 252 at 3828 West Slauson Boulevard.

http://imageshack.us/a/img203/1818/zambo3828slauson.jpg
google street view

Growing up in east central Illinois I knew Legion Posts were usually located in obsolete bars (where else?), so I decided to google the address, 3828 West Slauson Avenue.


Sure enough, this particular American Legion Post was once a popular nightclub.


ZAMBOANGA, "Home of the Tailess Monkeys"

http://imageshack.us/a/img706/9101/zambopc1.jpg
ebay

http://imageshack.us/a/img35/6808/zambog.jpg
google street view

above: notice that the horizontal line that stretches from the entrance and curves into the sidewalk is still intact.
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http://imageshack.us/a/img132/6835/zamboapemenu.jpg
http://www.arkivatropika.com/cgi-bin...gi?item_id=486







http://imageshack.us/a/img838/4391/zamboownerjoe.jpg
ebay

This was one of three bars owned by Joe Chastek. (we've already visited his Vagabond's House; see below)
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=8022










below: Real tailess monkeys (behind glass) contemplating guest Spike Jones and owner Joe Chastek.

http://imageshack.us/a/img706/4735/z...ikspikejon.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...rum=1&start=30







below: The Jungle Room Bar at ZAMBOANGA.

http://imageshack.us/a/img826/5633/z...kiroomsite.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...rum=1&start=30





below: The Lounge Bar at ZAMBOANGA


http://imageshack.us/a/img525/6735/z...rpctikiroo.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...rum=1&start=30



Below: The dining room at ZAMBOANGA.

http://imageshack.us/a/img204/7851/zambod1.jpg
http://www.arkivatropika.com/cgi-bin...gi?item_id=486



http://imageshack.us/a/img842/4153/zambomenu.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...rum=1&start=30





http://imageshack.us/a/img825/2732/zambomenu1.jpg








http://imageshack.us/a/img705/7214/z...pentikiroo.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...=30076&forum=2






http://imageshack.us/a/img818/3937/zambocolor6a.jpg

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Here's an even earlier view of ZAMBOANGA.

http://imageshack.us/a/img163/2041/zambopc.jpg
ebay

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Looks like Joe Chastek had two other nightclubs: the Trade Winds and Vagabonds House. The Vagabonds House was discussed here.

Another interesting restaurant is the Islander. More can be found here.

Another fine view of Pickwick Books that we discussed earlier here http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=9911


Hollywood Blvd. circa 1955
http://imageshack.us/a/img824/8118/h...lookingwes.jpg
http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=79640

I love the UNION PACIFIC marquee at left.

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Yessiree - When Prohibition ended the LAPD plowed into Cosmo and Selma's Jimmy's Backyard and BBB's busting the (to them) most flagrant clubs in Hollywood due to performers like Rae Bourbon , Billy the Male Harlow and the quasi L&G milieu - Malin,Haines and Tachman n Garbo lost their teensy haunts

After the monkeys grew tails and the Zamboanga had its run, it became the GINZA (below).

The GINZA - date unknown
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/phot...1_ad_ginza.jpghttp://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thed.../05/ginza.html

Same building to the right
http://ladailymirror.files.wordpress...ng?w=554&h=416

To the left is the former location of the Wilshire Bowl, previously discussed in this thread by gsjansen http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=3770 and covered in this article: http://ladailymirror.com/2011/10/14/...wilshire-blvd/

http://ladailymirror.files.wordpress...pg?w=554&h=428
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5261/...66dd823d_o.jpg

http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/4...irebowl1pc.jpghttp://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=3772

http://imageshack.us/a/img18/921/aabzambok1a.jpg
ebay

The ZAMBOANGA dance floor is shown at lower right.


below: The dance floor today.

http://imageshack.us/a/img528/756/aabzambotdance.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248

special thanks to John-O at tikiroom forum
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The ZAMBOANGA stage and famous mural.

http://imageshack.us/a/img713/8539/aabzambotstage.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248



below: The stage today.

http://imageshack.us/a/img27/2470/aabzambotstage1.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248

again....thanks to John-O at tikiroom forum.
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Some ZAMBOANGA-era bamboo still in place at a rear exit.

http://imageshack.us/a/img163/1131/aabzambotbamboo.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248





below: 1930s tile work survives in the john.

http://imageshack.us/a/img338/8509/aabzambottile.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248



One last view of the Dining Room at ZAMBOANGA. Notice the elevated area in the right foreground.

http://imageshack.us/a/img109/3797/aabzambotdining.jpg
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248


below: The elevated area today.

http://imageshack.us/a/img109/3851/aabzambotele.jpg
John-O at http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248




exterior view/night time

http://imageshack.us/a/img545/1387/aabzamanoir.jpg
John-O at http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/...1&vpost=583248
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1608 Cosmo Street, Hollywood
 

Regarding the club space behind the Ivar Theater, Curbed LA was recently mystified by it use:

"Walking around Hollywood, I see several older commercial and warehouse buildings that have been thoroughly and stylishly renovated but have no indication of who or what is inside. Mostly they look like they'd be architect's offices, but none has any nameplate anywhere. They are: 1603 Cosmo Street, 1608 Cosmo Street (the old back-of-the-Ivar club space), and 1715 North Gower. Does anyone know what is done inside these handsome but mysterious buildings?"

As late as 2011, 1608 Cosmo St was still a venue called The Brick Box.

But Cosmo Street is no longer the raucously entertaining pocket of seedinesss and vice it once was. The club marquee, which was over its main entrance in the Ivar Theater's facade (photo below), is gone. Cosmo Street has been gentrified. Hollywood's first building to get lofted is also on Cosmo. The tiny, one-block-long street is now kept clean as a whistle.

http://www.casenet.com/music/opden1s.jpg
casenet

http://kevinestrada.files.wordpress...._dgen_blog.jpg
Kevin Estrada
D Generation plays the Opium Den 1996

P.S. The aforementioned Rae Bourbon (1892-1971) once starred in a review on the Ivar Theater's main stage, "She Lost It in Juarez(?)", the title of which was a joking reference to Bourbon's widely-regarded-as-a-hoax 1955 sex-change operation in Mexico. Bourbon was arrested multiple times for impersonating a woman and once for impersonating a man.

Jimmy's Back Yard, named for the courtyard (now roofed over) at the back-of-the-Ivar club space, opened in circa 1928. It was joined on Cosmo by Bobby Burns Berman's BBB's Cellar. The 1932 police raid didn't bother them much. The Cosmo clubs were back running in the black by 1933. As well as the patrons mentioned by rick m above, Marlene Dietrich, James Cagney, Mae West, Ethel Barrymore, Talullah Bankhead, Joan Crawford and Jean Harlow hit the Cosmo clubs, the women as much to see themselves impersonated as anything else. Even Howard Hughes dropped by two nights in a row. (per Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood, 1910-1969 by William J. Mann, Penguin Books, 2001 and Out with the Stars: Hollywood Nightlife in the Golden Era by Jim Heimann, Abbeville Press, 1985)

Alhambra Edison Plant 1928.

http://imageshack.us/a/img687/4156/a...nplant1928.jpg
unknown

Rooftop sign for pilots enroute to Mines Field, which would eventually become Los Angeles International Airport.
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Your post is provocative and interesting too. I don't know if these places have been discussed on this thread, but I would love to learn more about the clubs you mention above and about the performers you mention. I think you might shed some light on "quasi L&G" nightlife in the 1930s and leading up to WW2. Would you care to give it a shot?

Ivar Correction
 

To keep the record straight (and in matters of sleaze, a straight record is essential), another blog lists the Ivar picture I posted as being from LAPL and dated 1977.

Cheers,

Earl

Holy cow, ER, that instantly became one of my favorite photos of old Hollywood! I may need to bid on it.