Before Netflix and YouTube, there were movie theaters. From the humble nickelodeon to the opulent movie palace, movie theaters have existed in Los Angeles since the early 1900s. LA is not only the heart of American cinema, it’s also home to the largest theater district on the National Register of Historic Places.
The lobby of the Los Angeles Theatre. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot.
The Broadway Theater District is the nation’s largest concentration of historic theatres and movie palaces on one street, most of which date back to the 1920s and 1930s. Some of the theaters have long been shuttered and converted to retail space, like the Rialto, which is now an Urban Outfitters. Some of them are fully operational and host concerts and other performances regularly, such as the Orpheum. Others, in various states of preservation and decay, seldom open their doors to the public. Last Remaining Seats, presented annually by the Los Angeles Conservancy, is a rare occasion to experience these stunning cinemas in their full splendor.
Not only does Last Remaining Seats get you inside historic spaces, it offers a well-curated lineup of classic films. Last Remaining Seats allowed me to see On the Waterfront near the waterfront at the Warner Grand Theatre in 2017. In 2015 I watched How to Marry a Millionaire at a venue named for a multi-millionaire, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. At the Los Angeles Theatre in 2018, I caught a screening of The Birds that was introduced by Veronica Cartwright – she was a child star in that film sixteen years before we knew her as Lambert in Alien. Step into one of Broadway’s magnificent movie houses and be transported to a time before we had access to an endless stream of entertainment in the palms of our hands.
The basement lounge in the Los Angeles Theatre. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot.
The Los Angeles Theatre
Easily the most lavish of the Broadway theaters, the Los Angeles Theatre is in remarkable condition especially considering it was erected in 1931. Pedestrian traffic inevitably clogs the lobby as people stop to gawk at the gorgeous chandeliers and ornamentation as soon as they step inside. When the theater first opened, it boasted a host of unusual amenities including an electronic indicator that displayed available seats and soundproof rooms for parents with crying children. Still in use are the ladies’ restroom featuring tile made from sixteen different kinds of marble and a beautiful, walnut-paneled lounge in the basement. This lounge once housed a “periscope-like system of prisms [that] relayed the featured film from the auditorium to a secondary screen, allowing patrons to watch the film while socializing.”
The Million Dollar Theatre
The interior of the Million Dollar Theatre. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot.
When the Million Dollar Theatre was christened in 1918, it was the largest movie palace in the country, with over 2000 seats. The décor is awe-inducing both inside and out. The building’s exterior is covered in elaborate Churrigueresque embellishments. The interior adornments are straight out of an English fairy tale. And the massive balcony in the auditorium was a feat of engineering: “It was supported by the world’s first reinforced concrete girder, developed because of a shortage of structural steel during World War I. Permits were withheld pending a stress test of this new engineering technique. With 1.5 million pounds of sandbags piled across the span, the girder passed the test.” The ornate, black ornamentation in the center of the photo here is made from plaster and was built to hide the organ pipes. Its dark color is due to dirt and cigarette smoke: it’s gold underneath!
The Theatre at Ace Hotel
One hundred years ago, United Artists (UA) was founded by Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith when they rebelled from the Hollywood studio system to seize complete creative control over their work. UA was a production company first and a theater chain second; both are still in operation. Built in 1927 to screen first-run UA films, what is now called The Theatre at Ace Hotel was once the flagship United Artists theater. In the 1980s the building was home to a church, which is how it got the famous “Jesus Saves” sign on its roof. The building underwent massive restoration and reopened in 2014 as the Ace Hotel and The Theatre at Ace Hotel.
Inside the Theatre at Ace Hotel. Photo copyright 2019 by Anna Boudinot.
Annually, Last Remaining Seats includes a Spanish-language film in its roster; this year, Los Tallos Amargos is being screened at the Ace. Los Angeles’ Spanish-speakers, in fact, can be thanked for the Broadway theaters’ preservation. In the 1950s and 60s, many of the historic cinemas were able to stay in business by catering to the Latinx community. In 1986 an LA Times journalist noted that “Broadway obviously had been rescued and revitalized by the Spanish-speaking population,” and waxed poetic about spending time in the dream world of downtown LA’s movie theaters: “When I came out again the sky blazed; the heat bounced off the sidewalk; traffic sounds filled the street; I was back in… hard reality.” For those looking to escape hard reality, Last Remaining Seats provides a rare opportunity to do it the old-fashioned way.
Tickets for Last Remaining Seats support the Los Angeles Conservancy’s mission to recognize, preserve, and revitalize the historic architectural and cultural resources of Los Angeles County. Learn more at this link. While on Broadway, visit Grand Central Market and the Bradbury Building, two other landmarks that aren’t to be missed.