2/16/19 Hiking in Downtown LA

Our LAC docents always have great notebooks filled with historic photos

Every February Hiking Club stays out of the mountains, and spends a day in DTLA taking an LA Conservancy walking tour. This year we toured the old theaters of Broadway St, the largest cluster of movie palaces anywhere in the world - 12 of them in six blocks. After WW2 a lot of the business went to Hollywood, and sadly the Broadway theaters fell into disuse, misuse, abuse, or re-use. With downtown currently in a renaissance, money is returning and while none are open for daily movies, some are still in use. Find out more here. 

Los Angeles Theater (1931)

 We got to spend some real time inside the LA Theater. In addition to its magnificent lobby it had, I think, four other levels, two below the theater. Our Photo Club Commissioner Roger Day attended as well and took this photo, which brought out the true colors of the lobby much better than our point & shoots could do:

Roger's group shot of us on the lobby stairs

In the United Artists Ace Theater, a crew was readying for a show

I title this photo, 'Choices'

The Eastern Columbia Building isn't a theater but it's my favorite DTLA building. This 1930 Art Deco masterpiece is clad in turquoise and gold leaf terra cotta tiles. Johnny Depp lived in the penthouse before he went broke.

Looking south on Broadway

The 1926 Orpheum started as a vaudeville venue.