Sunday, November 21, 2010

Kick Off Christmas at the Million Dollar Theater

Take that as you like--kick off the season, or literally kick the holiday off into the wild blue yonder with a resounding "Bah humbug!"

Either way, the LA Conservancy is hosting a showing of Scrooge starring Albert Finney and Alec Guinness on December 5, at 2pm. The theater's at 307 S. Broadway--the SW corner of 4th & Broadway. Free candy canes for the kiddies! And the movie is only $10 for adults. Buy tickets here.

The Million Dollar Theater was built by Sid Graumann in 1918--before his Chinese and Egyptian Theaters. The first movie shown there on February 1, 1918, was The Silent Man, a western with William S. Hart.

The theater itself is at the bottom of a 12-story tower, and you can read about the architect and sculptor and more of the history at this Wikipedia page, or at PublicArtin LA. The facade was in Blade Runner!

Another piece of trivia: The building once housed L.A.'s Metropolitan Water District, and William Mulholland's office was on the top floor.

Graumann started a tradition of bringing in Vaudeville acts before showing the movie--acts that complemented the film. (Most theaters in those days started as Vaudeville houses and added a movie screen;. The Million Dollar Theater was the first big movie theater built here.) Years later, when the theater showed Spanish language films, live performers like Mariachi bands introduced the movie.

After decades as a movie house, the Million Dollar Theater served as a church for a bit. It re-opened as a live theater within the last ten years, and sometimes hosts movies--as it will on December 5 for the LA Conservancy.

2 comments:

Brady Westwater said...

And before loft living became the rage, actor Nicholas Cage lived in the penthouse.

Brady Westwater said...

And before loft living became the rage, actor Nicholas Cage lived in the penthouse.