noirish Los Angeles

[Los Angeles]

Originally Posted by citywatch

the pic of wilshire from 1950 shows the bldg with the lighthouse tower that once sat on top of that bldg at the NE corner of wilshire & La Brea. Originally the mutual of omaha bldg & now with a large neon sign that promotes asahi beer. I've often wondered if the owner of the bldg decided to remove the lighthouse for earthquake reasons or because they actually thought their bldg would look better without it. Maybe they thought the lighthouse was too corny?

"Wilshire / La Brea Station cutaway view looking north as envisioned February, 1983." Library Archives Metro Net


Google Blog

Another old picture I found of it without the tower? Not sure when this is from, but it looks like it may have been just built?
Google Blog



I miss the green and white light atop that tower dearly. I grew up on Orange Drive just below Wilshire and saw it from my bedroom every night. It is still there citywatch!!! Just hidden by that gawd awful SAMSUNG sign :/ Yuck!!! I was looking to possibly rent a space in the building and the manager told me it is still there and only hidden. Too bad we cannot shame Samsung into removing there sign and doing one like the Mutual of Omaha did

:::edit::: On a relook of the pics I posted, it seems to me that the tower must be gone It would be poking above that ugly Samsung sign if it were still there me thinks :/ Drag!


//rant on...
As far as the rock goes, I am totally for it. It is Art. Michael Heizer has been doing earth works for many years. http://doublenegative.tarasen.net/It may not be my favorite artwork, but I think the intensity that one may feel of this mass floating above them as they walk under it is one thing that art is all about. Making someone see, feel, or think differently. It may not be your cup of tea, but it iS Art And those snotty New Yorkers, not all of them, can suck on the rock if they think it is just silly nonsense in LaLa Land. I lived in NYC for 20 years and would always defend my city... Los Angeles
NYC is not the center of the art world any more. We have come a long way and are highly respected in the art world, around the world. We are on par with the big apple IMHO

My two RockCents...//rant over

Oh, BTW a cool vid of the rock turning at Western and Wilshire. I was out with many friends watching it from in front of LACMA up until it was safely inside the museum grounds.
The vid---> • Video Link

[kanhawk]

There must be incredible faith in this artist to go to this expense to move this rock. He better live up to people's expectations.

[GaylordWilshire]

Originally Posted by Los Angeles

//rant on...
As far as the rock goes, I am totally for it. It is Art. Michael Heizer has been doing earth works for many years. http://doublenegative.tarasen.net/It may not be my favorite artwork, but I think the intensity that one may feel of this mass floating above them as they walk under it is one thing that art is all about. Making someone see, feel, or think differently. It may not be your cup of tea, but it iS Art And those snotty New Yorkers, not all of them, can suck on the rock if they think it is just silly nonsense in LaLa Land. I lived in NYC for 20 years and would always defend my city... Los Angeles
NYC is not the center of the art world any more. We have come a long way and are highly respected in the art world, around the world. We are on par with the big apple IMHO

My two RockCents...//rant over

You mean it's no longer true that L.A.'s only cultural advantage is being able to make a right turn on a red light?


As for the Clem Wilson building--I am really surprised that it hasn't gotten more attention from its owners in terms of refurbishment. It still looks as down at the heels as it did 30 years ago. The billboard at top will probably never come down (I actually miss the Mutual of Omaha version--btw great rendering at the top of your post, 'Los Angeles'), but I never realized how much has been covered on the lower floors. The visual impact when approaching the building from the west or south--two high stories of glass, a great entrance--must have been amazing when it was new. It could be again, too, if the (apparently) metal coverings were removed.

vokoban
Google

[GaylordWilshire]

Originally Posted by 3940dxer

All I have is this old shot of Fletcher and San Fernando Road (looking west) from 1936. Not really what you had in mind, but maybe it will be of interest.


http://www.lapl.org/

Still a Chevron station on the southwest corner... and, ah, the ziggurat gables of Van de Kamp's headquarters... had to go look at it again...

LAPL

Google
As we've seen here before, it's beautifully preserved. (That ramp down at right makes me nervous.)

[GaylordWilshire]

LAPL

A great nighttime shot of the Wayne McAllister-designed Van de Kamp's retail store next to the company's headquarters, as seen in sopas's recent post...

Originally Posted by sopas ej

Van De Kamps Bakery and Coffee Shop with Drive-In service, located on the corner of Fletcher Drive and San Fernando Road, circa 1945.

LAPL

The Streamline drive-in replaced the older Van de Kamp's windmill on the same corner, seen below. Now we have El Pollo Loco there...the precursor of which appears atop Van de Kamp's ca. 1945.... Inquiring minds want to know: Did the company do a traffic study in deciding that the windmill blades should be turned to face drivers coming from the southwest on Fletcher, rather than having them face the center of the intersection?

[Los Angeles]

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

You mean it's no longer true that L.A.'s only cultural advantage is being able to make a right turn on a red light?

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

As for the Clem Wilson building--I am really surprised that it hasn't gotten more attention from its owners in terms of refurbishment. It still looks as down at the heels as it did 30 years ago. The billboard at top will probably never come down (I actually miss the Mutual of Omaha version--btw great rendering at the top of your post, 'Los Angeles'), but I never realized how much has been covered on the lower floors. The visual impact when approaching the building from the west or south--two high stories of glass, a great entrance--must have been amazing when it was new. It could be again, too, if the (apparently) metal coverings were removed.

It would take a bit, but not much to get it looking wonderful again. Seeing what they are doing to some of those beautiful old buildings downtown and how they are being brought back to life, maybe one day. Ya never know..I hate to say it, but I think you're right about the ugly sign never coming down though Sad...

[GaylordWilshire]

Library of Congress

Found this apparently hand-colored shot of one of my favorite bits of L.A.--the stretch of Figueroa in front of the famous Stimson house, which still stands, of course. Its neighbor to the right, the Slauson house, is gone, as is its southerly neighbor, the Sabichi house. The Sabichi's driveway contour is preserved, however...

Google

...as are features of its fencing:

Google


What I really like about this short stretch of Figueroa is that it has remnants of the zanjas... check out this old post:

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=1843

[jg6544]

Just think how much better L. A. would be today if they had built that subway route back in the '80s when the drawing was made!

[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by sopas ej

Ah, Atwater Village.

The pic isn't from the 40s or 50s, but from some time in the 20s; here's the Tam O'Shanter Inn, a beloved Atwater Village landmark, on Los Feliz Boulevard:

LAPL

The Tam O'Shanter Inn was designed by none other than Harry Oliver, art director at the old Willat Studios. You might remember him from my earlier post last week on the Spadena House (or witch's house).



below: Harry Oliver designed this administration building (and dressing rooms) for Willat Studios in Culver City. Eventually the building was moved to Beverly Hills where it became know as the Spadena House.


http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/D...wdate=&hidate=





below: A 1934 view of the Tam O'Shanter Inn with a very interesting sign.


http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=10237







http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Tam-O-...009_.htm?RDP=1





http://themerica.org/





http://themerica.org/





http://themerica.org/

above: That fireplace looks like a caricature of Richard Nixon.


____





The Tam O'Shanter Inn as it appears today. Obviously there have been many renovations over the years.
I wonder how much of the original Harry Oliver building is still intact. Does anyone know...or been there?


http://themerica.org/blog/archives/101





http://themerica.org/blog/archives/101

[ethereal_reality]

http://photos.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/F...olNumber=24952


Los Feliz Boulevard in Atwater Village circa the 1920s. The Theodore Payne Nursery is seen, as well as part of the Tam O'Shanter Inn (lower middle).

[ethereal_reality]

Scrivner's Drive-In at the corner of Western & Imperial HWY.




http://www.flickr.com/photos/ponyroj...7628243326263/








http://www.flickr.com/photos/ponyroj...7628243326263/

[GaylordWilshire]

wesclark.com

I guess it's not really a surprise, given that they share Atwater Village as home, but it was interesting to discover that the Tam O'Shanter was established by Lawrence Frank and Walter Van de Kamp, who founded the Van de Kamp bakeries.... It was they who had hired Harry Oliver to design the inn, having first turned to him to design their first Van de Kamp windmill:

klaxo.net

It seems that by the late '30s, Frank and Van de Kamp changed design course, as we've just seen with the Atwater Village Van de Kamp drive-in by Wayne McAllister. And it turns out that the restaurateurs' contemporary turn included the design of their next venture:

la.eater.com

Who knew that there's an Harry Oliver fan page?
http://www.klaxo.net/hofc/harry.htm

More pictures of the Tam here:
http://www.lawrysonline.com/tam-osha...niversary.aspx

[westcork]

Originally Posted by 3940dxer

All I have is this old shot of Fletcher and San Fernando Road (looking west) from 1936. Not really what you had in mind, but maybe it will be of interest.



http://www.lapl.org/

I had no idea Fletcher was State Route 2. I love the old format road signs....


OldCal02b by Westcork, on Flickr

[ethereal_reality]

Good eye Westcork. Also notice the Union Air Terminal sign at the intersection.

[ethereal_reality]

A couple color photographs of Muscle Beach from the 1950s.



http://www.flickr.com/photos/5035369...4847/lightbox/

above: Notice the two young boys in red trunks holding up the girl. It's cute that they're mimicking the adults.








http://www.portauthorityandco.com/20...ntestants.html

[ethereal_reality]

Here's an enormous photo of Muscle Beach/Venice Beach in 1947.




http://macrochef.files.wordpress.com...nd-r1-e054.jpg

above: There's a good trick going on in front of the middle tan awning (pan right----> )

[GaylordWilshire]

Manitoba Museum of Finds Art
The Ambassador, with a '53 Mercury Monterey in Yosemite Yellow

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Los Angeles

I miss the green and white light atop that tower dearly. I grew up on Orange Drive just below Wilshire and saw it from my bedroom every night. It is still there citywatch!!! Just hidden by that gawd awful SAMSUNG sign :/

:::edit::: On a relook of the pics I posted, it seems to me that the tower must be gone It would be poking above that ugly Samsung sign if it were still there me thinks :/ Drag!

I wish it had been hidden by that sign! But as you can tell by the pic below, the beacon tower definitely rose way above the level of whatever sign might be attached below it. My last memory of the light tower was seeing its revolving beacon from the samo fwy as I was driving east towards DT. That obviously occurred some time ago. I always liked seeing that light at night, as sort of a "hello" to passers by.


LAPL

the beacon wasn't original to the bldg, but to me it made the wilson look more complete & lofty. I have a hunch it was removed to make the bldg less top heavy in an earthquake. I read several months ago that the old hall of justice bldg in the civic ctr, which is finally being renovated, contained lots of steel on one of its upper floors, used for the jail cells. They were torn out so the bldg wouldn't wobble as much from all the steel during a quake.

I did another google search on the bldg at Wilshire & La Brea & suddenly discovered it had been mentioned----naturally-----awhile back in this very thread. I now realize there have been at least 2 earlier versions of the sign, the first one in 1991 to promote a japanese beer, & more recently two different versions of signs for samsung.

Gaylordwilshire's post from 12-4-10

[ethereal_reality]

You can see the Mutual of Omaha revolving beacon in this clip at 2:21.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0lEosbR-Vg (watch 'full screen')


Highlights in this video from 1966 are a revolving Van de Kamp windmill....numerous theaters (a total of three), the Carnation sign changing from bright red to blue (at 1:00)....and towards the end a wonderful Cadillac sign spelling out 'Cadillac' in cursive.


When I lived at Cochran & Wilshire in the 1980s Wilshire was completely dead in the evenings (reminiscent of downtown L.A.). This video shows a very vibrant Wilshire Boulevard with restaurants and theaters.


___

[kanhawk]

I don't think this one was posted before. The caption says shoeshine boys in the old plaza 1930s.


http://blog.preservationnation.org/w...Plaza-1930.jpg

I like the European look of this scene.