inside the westlake theatre: architecture and piñatas
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News came last week that the MacArthur Park's historic Westlake Theatre is being targeted for restoration as a movie and performing arts space in a larger 97,000-square-foot, mixed-use development facilitated by the Community Redevelopment Agency.
With the spotlight back on this landmark after decades of disregard, angelenic was inspired to investigate the theater's architectural soundness among the swap meet clutter now dominating the historic space.
We are happy to report that most of the original interior details are in good to excellent visual condition, with the exception of the blackened auditorium ceiling.
The once-elegant venue is looking shabby these days due to the mess of perfume cases, piñatas, Dora the Explorer backpacks and other cheap wares masking its distinguished features.
Brief History
The Westlake Theatre, designed by architect Richard M. Bates in a Spanish Colonial Revival style (including Churrigueresque details), had a gala opening September 22, 1926 with Monte Blue and Marie Prevost in "Other Women's Husbands" on screen.
Original seating capacity for the grand hall was approximately 2,000 and featured a Wurlitzer organ and band stand.
Highly recognizable by most Angelenos is the theatre's large rooftop neon sign which stills works (only partially) to this day. A restoration and modification in 1987 removed the words "West Coast" from the upper portion of the sign and added a new coiling "frame" around the lettering.
The Westlake Theatre is designated a Historic Cultural Monument.
-Westlake Theatre Photo Set
-macarthur park gentrification efforts gain traction
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7 comments
beautiful
wow it looks pretty good inside. I need to make a trip soon.
I was in there just a couple of weeks ago… for the amount of swap meet stuff inside, it’s pretty amazing how much is architecturally intact. I love the sign reassuring you that it’s fireproofed with ASBESTOS!
Some of the converted theaters on Broadway are also fairly intact. Just go inside and look around.
The “Westlake Community Plan” already complains about renters in the neighborhood being displaced by gentrification. And the Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation has authored the “Healthy Homes Collaborative Community Action Plan ” that specifically calls for the slowing of gentrification. Yet the displacement of low income renters will only increase if the theater is renovated and caters to a theater-going crowd. I cannot see the neighborhood supporting that. (Not unless the “mixed use” component is affordable housing and the theater caters to a spanish speaking clientel.)
Wow- its kind of sad to see it as a “swapmeet” but glad that at least it was not or has not been torn down. I just passed by the area yesterday in a car though.
Here is a link about the theater on http://cinematreasures.org/theater/497/
There has to be a certain amount of displacement of the people in this neighborhood for any revitalization to take place. A large number of the folks who live around MacArthur Park and Pico Union are illegal aliens from Central America and they have transformed these once nice neighborhoods into mini-replicas of their impoverished home countries. We can all wail and moan about the evils of gentrification, but a people make a place and if some of the people who live around MacArthur Park now don’t move elsewhere, it will likely continue to be a dump.
To Sadbuttrue and other racists! First of all most of the people who live in West lake area have been forced to immigrate to the united states because of the unfair and unbalanced free trade agreements that US corporate hegemonies imposes on the people of Latin America through the corruption of government officials who ignore the peoples opposition and repress or murder dissenters with US AID, one example the murder of Journalist Brad Will in Oaxaca Mexico \ Any one who has an understanding of the inhumanity of the neoliberal market and our foreign policy towards Latin America and people of color in general would not make such ignorant statements, and would denounce Gentrification. European Americans should be ashamed that they continue to relocate the indigenous people of the Americas. Second, if Latin America is a dump it’s no more of a dump than the ghettos of the United States due to the racist and privileged attitudes of Euro Americans and is also a result of neocolonialism. The truth is that European Americans who are now arriving in Los Angeles do not understand or know the history of this city, the Central American and Indigenous community in the West lake area is a direct result of US intervention in Latin America, where millions of dollars where sent to support death squads and military atrocities like in EL MOZOTE (EL SALVADOR) so that US Interest could continue to exploit there natural and human resources. Shame on all of you for being ignorant about the crimes committed in your name with your tax dollars against the democratic struggles in Latin America and for only seeing things from a white mans privileged perspective!
Yuppies go Home!! No Human is ILLEGAL!
CRA = Community Replacement Agency!
Artist: Spartacous Cacao http://723.com/Cacao/
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