Hotel Bristol

So I snapped this shot when I was Downtown....8th and Olive St. It looked like a nice sign and the entrance was boarded up so I assumed this building was getting torn down or gutted. And I think I was pretty much right, at least according to this article in the LA Times.

Link

"As another indication of downtown's dramatic makeover, restaurateur Adolfo Sauya and designer-du-jour Dodd Mitchell, the duo behind the ultra-fashionable Zen Grill & Sake Lounge in Westwood, will be giving a serious upgrade to the Bristol Hotel, a 1927 Art Nouveau landmark at 8th and Olive streets. Sauya says the renewed establishment will consist of a hotel with between 80 and 100 rooms, an Asian-themed restaurant, a bar and a nightclub. He expects it to open in mid-2005"taken from the above article

Though it was mid 2006 when I took this picture, so maybe there's another Hotel Bristol somewhere downtown? Or maybe it's just taking longer to open. Anyways, I haven't been back to see if the sign's still there or if they're making a new sign. Either way I'm glad I could get a picture of this sign before it went away.

There's a larger picture of this building on this website

Link

A really nice shot of the building and the sign. I'm not quite sure when the picture was taken, but I guess that hotel was available for filming at some point. I don't remember that sign being there when I shot my picture.


Pretty cool.



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The Gaylord

So I snapped this picture when I was walking around Western and Wilshire Blvd. It's kinda at the top of a hill, if I remember correctly. Once you crest it you head down towards MacArthur Park and into downtown Los Angeles. This section of LA is referred to as Wilshire Center. I dug up some great reference on this area, from trusty ole google and wikipedia. It's quite an interesting place, with tons of history. The infamous Brown Derby restaurant was nearby (built in 1926) as well as the Ambassador Hotel and the Cocoanut Grove.

Here's a link to a webpage that sheds some light on the area and it's history, particularly this building, as well as others I've featured or have yet to feature on this blog. Scroll down a little past the listings and you'll see a great article written about the area.

here's one quote about the building above, "Wilshire Boulevard got its name from Henry Gaylord Wilshire-Gaylord apartments bear his name, as well-a politically active millionaire who bought a plot in the Westlake district and turned a city dump into Westlake Park, now MacArthur Park. Popular lore says that when city planners proposed building a street that would bisect his property, he told them that he would allow the street only if it bore his name." (taken from the Wilshire Center link below)

"Gaylord Wilshire built the 14-story Gaylord Apartment Hotel the same year. The entire area near the Ambassador Hotel became the site of New York-style apartment buildings, and many film stars lived in these elegant high rises such as the Asbury, the Langham, the Fox Normandie, the Picadilly and the Windsor." (taken from the wikipedia article linked below)

Wilshire Center


Pretty awesome stuff. But what really blew my mind was the wikipedia entry on Wilshire center. It's got TONS of great facts about the area. I could go on and on.

"If Sunset Boulevard was, in its heyday, the center of the world's dream making, it was to that stretch of Wilshire Boulevard between Hoover and Wilton (called Wilshire Center since the mid-fifties) that generations of Angelenos went to find their own dreams."
(taken from the wikipedia article linked below)

Wikipedia Entry

That wikipedia entry also has some info on a building I had posted a few months ago.

The Los Altos Apts.

" They may have lived in The Talmadge, built for silent film star Norma Talmadge by her husband, United Artists president Joseph Schenck, or in the nearby Los Altos, where publishing czar William Randolph Hearst ensconced his vivacious mistress Marion Davies in a huge apartment neighboring that of the "it" girl of the era, Clara Bow, and, later, Judy Garland, Bette Davis and Loretta Young. Wilshire Center was, as many called it, L.A.'s "Golden Hub." (taken from the wikipedia article linked above)

The thing that gets me is that I was walking thru all of this and had no clue about the significance of these buildings and that area. It's amazing how much such an unassuming area(at least to me, when I first went there) can hold so much history and stories.

Great stuff.

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The Palladium

I took this pic as I was walking east on Sunset blvd, in Hollywood....It's a great sign along with some great exterior decorations. The name sounded familiar to me, but I couldn't recall where I'd heard of this theater. So I googled it and found this:

LINK

It's pretty interesting. How could you not be interested with the shooting location of the Concert Scene at the end of Blues Brothers. Pretty sweet!


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Hollywood Downtowner Inn

Today I drove into Hollywood and spent the better part of 2 hours walking up and down Sunset and Hollywood Blvd.....straying every now and then. It was good to just get out and walk around, but these photo trips always let me explore LA even more. I went from Hollywood into Little Armenia and then into Little Thailand. All in all a good outing...I saw alot of good signs.

Like the above......

It was a pretty unassuming motel on Hollywood Blvd, near the 101. As I was walking west on Hollywood Blvd I came upon it, first seeing the bottom of the sign and then seeing the rest. These small motels have so much character, I love them!


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Hotel Eldorado

So I took a picture of this sign when I was downtown. It's on Spring St.....somewhere around 8th and 9th St. What really killed me is that the sign is larger, but I couldn't get a good enough view to capture it all. Below the "Eldorado" was an attached "Liquor" sign....I guess at some point there was a liquor store in one of the storefronts, I'm not sure. The building was in the process of being gutted when I took the picture. I wouldn't be surprised if this sign no longer existed....but maybe it's still there. When I tried to research on the hotel I couldn't come up with much. I got one website with different angles of the building.

Here


and it's on the left side of the picture, here

In the latter pic you can see the entire sign....you can also catch a glimpse of the large tree that was hampering my view when I snapped my pic.

I don't know what it was about this sign, but I loved it. I was walking around, with no clear path and just happened upon it. I like the faded colors, and of course how can you beat a hotel sign with a liquor sign attached.....I think that's what sold it for me....it added so much character to the sign. I can only imagine what it was like in it's heyday.

This is one of my favorites


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Hotel Clark

This Hotel is on Hill St between 4th and 5th St, in downtown. It was the first sign I happened upon when I was walking around. This sign's great, the huge circled letters really stand out, I can just imagine what it looks like lit up at night....if it still can....which I'm not quite sure about. It's definitely not a hotel anymore, when I walked closer it seemd to be just a storage space. I did some searching on google and came up with a few tidbits about this building.

Link

That page contains a rendition of the hotel from a postcard.

It reads, "Below right is a postcard view of the Clark Hotel, an 11-story structure with 555 rooms, across the street from the Subway Terminal Building. The government of the People's Republic of China bought the hotel in the 1980s to be a business and cultural center — a project that was a casualty of the vagaries of China/U.S. relations."

It's pretty interesting how these buildings have changed hands throughout their lifetimes. After finding that I found

this

Close to the bottom of that page you can see an old picture of the Hotel Clark.

As I was searching for info I found myself just looking at these pages for the historical value they hold. I had no idea there was an incline railroad in downtown LA. Or that they had an elevated train system. It's a real shame that alot of this stuff is gone and no one even knew it existed. I'm really glad someone has taken the time to make websites like the ones above. As an outsider it really starts to get me interested in LA, and learn about a city that's more than just Hollywood and Beverly Hills. And it makes me appreciate this city more than I thought I ever could.

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WestLake Theater

I snapped this on the same trip as the last posting. One thing I forgot to add about that sign...I think there was more to the "O" word, than just an, "O". I guess I'll never know.

Back to this sign. It's on Wilshire, on the eastern side of MacArthur Park. I shot this from the western side, but later drove past and saw that this is no longer a theater.....it's been turned into a swap meet. BUT, I did dig this up from google:

Link

Here you will find a picture of the sign back in the olden days. This webpage was great! I had no idea what this theater was, or what type of theater it had been. But that page cleared it up...it was built in 1926.

"The Westlake is the largest theater in the Macarthur Park area (in downtown Los Angeles). Some of the design is reminiscent of the nearby State Theatre. Surprisingly, the theater's large roof-top neon sign has not only survived, but is still in use."

the webpage also has a bunch of comments from people recollecting their experience with the theater, really great stuff!


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O Town House

The first post of my second year! (well technically my second, but I had to write a post to acknowledge my year anniversary). I shot this sign along Wilshire Blvd. right after Vermont. For some reason this area has a bunch of apt. buildings that have their own huge signs. I like it alot, though I'm not sure the reason. Maybe these buildings are alot older, and that's what they did when they made large apt. buildings back then. Who knows? I couldn't find anything out about this particular building...maybe it's not so historic. I like this picture, though, the framing the palm trees......where else but LA. (and maybe Miami).


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One Year Old

So, I've been at this blog for more than a year now. So far I'm pretty happy with the way it's turned out. True, I had started it with greater expectations, but for the most part I'm happy with what it's formed into. It allows me to get out and see the city I live in and it's wonderful signage. I had no idea how fast some of these signs were going down, and it gives me a sense of pride that I can document them before their final end. I'm sure hundreds of others have taken the same pictures, but it still means alot to me. This blog has made me enjoy LA that much more, and I'm happy for it.

Things to look forward to in the future? Why more signs of course! And hopefully I can start finding more history on those signs. I also hope to make it over to the valley and shoot some of their signs. The few visits I've had over there have made me crane my neck as I watch some really cool signs go past.

So here's to you, Robots vs. Samurai. No one knows what exactly that name has to do with Los Angeles area neon signs, but they've beared with you this long.

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Musso & Frank Grill

Ah, the famous Musso and Frank Grill. The sign says it all. I don't know too much about this place, I've never eaten there...but....wikipedia has a write up on it.

LINK

And if you look in the background, you'll spot a future sign I'll post.

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Billy's Coffee Shop

I can't quite remember where I shot this sign. I know it was downtown, but I can't remember the streets. I like these types of signs, not sure if the lights still work, but I bet they did the old, "light up to the point of the arrow" in their prime. Looks kinda like a sign out of an old noir film.

"It was a dark and stormy night......my coffee cup was empty......and then She walked in....."



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Commercial Exchange

This angle was the only way I could get all of this sign in frame. How else could I get a 10 story tall sign on film? Anyways....I liked this sign alot. It's on the corner of 8th St and Olive....Downtown. It's seems to have quite a history, too. If you have the time, check out the NPR piece, a tour of La's Neon Link. I'm always interested in the history of these signs, so when I can find out more about them, I eat it up!

I also found this bit of info here. "The Commercial Exchange Building was 160 feet high. The building was an important part of the Downtown scene from its completion into the mid-1930s, serving as headquarters for the then-giant Owl Drug Co. It also contained the offices of author Edgar Rice Burroughs, creator of the Tarzan character."


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United Foods

Happy New Year!

I know it's been awhile since I've posted. No really great excuses...let's just say I needed a break from the computer when I'd get home from work. But I'm feeling refreshed from the holiday break and am ready to start up the posts!

About a month ago I met up with some friends down in Chinatown, for some Dim Sum. The food was good and so was this sign. Not too many other signs around, though I didn't explore the area too well.

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Fish House

Ah the Fish House. I snapped this shot as I was walking back to my car, in Downtown. I believe it was on Spring St.....but it could have been Main.....between 1st and 2nd. Unfortunately the storefront was empty, so I assume they were going out of business, and not getting ready to go into business. Anyway, I like this sign, you don't see the mosaic style too much, these days. And there was this really cool old man standing outside....waiting for the bus.

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Vogue Theater

I took a recent trip over to Hollywood. Walked up and down the main drag and snapped some photos. Here's the Vogue Theater. It's on Hollywood Blvd, but I can't remember the cross street. It still seems to be in business, though I can't remember who was on the marquee.


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Royal Wilshire

I went down Wilshire one last time the weekend before last. This would complete my drive from the Beach to Downtown. Inbetween Western Blvd and Downtown (right before MacArthur Park) there are a bunch of old Apt/Hotel buildings....each with their own giant neon signs. Some are in better condition than others, but they all looked great. This one is on Wilshire by South Rampart Blvd. Quite a large building itself. Really cool sign.

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West End

This was a peculiar sign. It belongs to this hotel...but the weird thing is the location. It's near the corner of Santa Monica Blvd. and Sawtelle. But it's a block up from Sanata Monica. So if you were just driving down the road, chances are you wouldn't see it. Maybe it's visible from the 405, but I don't think so. I guess it's not THAT weird, but you would think if someone owned a hotel they'd try to keep it on a main street. I dunno. I like the sign, though. It was one of the first that made me think, "I need to get these thing son film."

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Los Altos

This was one of many apt. buildings on Wilshire, between Western Ave and MacArthur Park. There were probably 10 or so of these old buildings, I assume still fully functional apt. buildings or hotels. I saw some construction next to this one, but I think it was just the lot next to it and not the building itself. I don't know what it is, but there's something about these signs, I guess it's because most apt. building don't have huge neon signs to advertise the building.... I know mine sure doesn't. But I've noticed aroudn that area and Hollywood, there are quite a few of them. Very cool.


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Hotel Rosslyn

This seemed like one of the few working hotels left around downtown. I know there are quite a few north of the central library, but this seemed to be one of the few originals. Maybe I'm wrong and it's only a few years old.....but I'd like to think it's pretty old. I think I shot this somewhere around Main St and 9th St.....maybe.


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King's Liquor

I shot this sign after I stopped to shoot a sign on the opposite side of the road. I think it's at the corner of Santa Monica Blvd and Stanford St. I like it alot, very festive, and how can you not like a sign that touts itself as the "party center"?

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