noirish Los Angeles v2.0

[ethereal_reality]

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A mystery location.

This rather unattractive slide looks like a scene out of a dystopian movie. .(it just needs some zombies)


eBay

I feel like I should know the building on the left but I can't place it.


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[ethereal_reality]

Originally Posted by odinthor

e_r, I was looking into the "L.A. Mod Shop" question. I have a question fundamental to this: How certain is it that it is L.A. Mod Shop? I have a suspicion that it is C.A. Mod Shop: Observe:


from earlier posting

In all instances, of which the above is just one, the writer makes a sharp angle and straight upright for undoubted L (as in "Leslie"). The letter in question attending to Mod Shop tends in all instances to be half-circles.

Now, what C.A. might be is a mystery to me, and even more of a mystery to A.I., which thinks it denotes either "circa" or "California." The "C" could be "Central," and I'd like to think "Central America" is involved; but somehow I don't think there has ever been a mod shop in Central America. I give up! But I do think that's a "C." Perhaps "C.A." are the initials of the owner or manager...?

You could very well be correct, odinthor...Thanks for the input.

[Bristolian]

C.A. - Creative Artists?

[HossC]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

"Like a piece of modern sculpture, this "floating" staircase was the focal point of the McCulloch Motor showroom in Los Angeles, designed by Paul Laszlo in 1955.
Notice the sparkly mosaic tile behind the staircase, the graphic shapes in the floor tiles, and the outboard motors on display in the background."


Getty Mondernist Collection on facebook

It's beautiful.

Since the author is writing in the past tense I guess it's gone now.

The McCulloch Motor showroom was located at 6101 West Century Boulevard. I posted that Julius Shulman image and many others about 10 years ago. Below is a USC image of the exterior from that post. I also noted that the McCulloch building was replaced in 1979, and the Sheraton Hotel now stands in its place.

Originally Posted by HossC

USC Digital Library

[HossC]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

A mystery location.

This rather unattractive slide looks like a scene out of a dystopian movie. .(it just needs some zombies)


eBay

I feel like I should know the building on the left but I can't place it.

We're looking down Flower Street from its intersection with 6th Street. The building on the left is the former General Petroleum Building, now the Pegasus Apartments.


GSV

[Alkapone]

A 1976 image on FB, presumably looking SW across Sunset Blvd. at Virgil (where the Hollywood Blvd. extension meets): https://www.facebook.com/photo/

The image in 1976:



What is known of the studio fire that leveled this block in the ‘60’s? There’s a shot of Alan Ladd in 13 West Street (1962) found on Imdb looking across from that corner toward the Richfield Station and Court Fox Ford on Hollywood Boulevard. The Stan’s sat just out of the edge here, across Virgil, until an unknown (to me) date. Was this Safeway built soon after the fire? As far as I can tell, a Texaco station was located at the corner where Mr. Ladd was supposedly looking in to a window where guns were available. Was it just a stock footage backdrop behind him, or was there a real storefront for the camera to look through?

[odinthor]

Just a scrap of information, whether useful or not I don't know. On looking at building permits for the associated buildings at that site (I searched on 4504 Sunset), I see a long-continued flurry of various permits, including grading, beginning January 31, 1962.

[Alkapone]

From Flckr, a view of the old Fine Arts Studio on Sunset at the Hollywood Blvd. extension with a trolley car and that old Ventura Gasoline mission style station: https://www.flickr.com/photos/alcue/10405690016/

The image above:



source via Flckr posting.

The photo looks slightly right (west) of where the Virgil Avenue extension was cut through east of the studio buildings. Is the photographer levitating?

[Alkapone]

Originally Posted by odinthor

Just a scrap of information, whether useful or not I don't know. On looking at building permits for the associated buildings at that site (I searched on 4504 Sunset), I see a long-continued flurry of various permits, including grading, beginning January 31, 1962.

Thank you..very useful dating. The identity of the owner of the “Triangle gas Station” (alleged) is given in the comments section here: https://keithharrishistory.com/keith-harris-history/the-fine-arts-studio-hollywood

Even though CalPet took over Ventura, and was itself absorbed shortly after by Texaco, this station never seemed to be re-branded or carry any name in the later era images. Here (posted as Fine Arts Studios) we can barely see the Mission Bell Ventura sign just to the right of the flagpole next to the pedestrian path. It’s a match to the known postcard mentioned a while back and found on FB postings. So perhaps it may be listed under that “Triangle” name?

[Alkapone]

An amazing photo (ER) and timeline of the studio (Martin Pal) were posted on NLA v.1 back here: https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9687235#post9687235

Notice that peak to the east of the view which is good marker to spot East Hollywood locations in really old photos.

[riichkay]

Some years ago a Flickr user named Andy Blair posted this photo with the following caption: "My aunt and mom somewhere in Los Angeles, 1956....if you know where this is please leave a comment".

Several comments to the post correctly identified the towers in the background as, of course, Park La Brea.....note (I think) the Prudential Building (now Museum Square, or the SAG-Aftra Bldg) at the far left of the skyline....that's on Wilshire (at Curson) so we must be facing west, Wilshire would be to the left (south), correct?....however, to my eyes the building would only appear that way if you were looking east....I'm mystified.

A Flickr comment suggested this was a model home, he noted the patio ropes that the women are leaning against....but the home does not appear in character with the low-rise apartments at Park La Brea.


....detail...





....below is the leasing office, just inside the 3rd St. and Burnside Ave. entrance to the community....it appears consistent with the building in the detail image....





....the leasing office is indicated by the arrow in this image from the Chase Bank parking lot just east of Burnside, 3rd St. is to the right....




Note from this vantage point there are no towers visible behind the leasing office, so how are we facing west in the Flickr image?....


....detail....





...Prudential Bldg. looking east in 1970...





We are at a disadvantage in pinpointing the location as the Googlemobile does not enter Park La Brea proper.

[HossC]

I concur with your identification of the leasing office, riichkay. So, we're looking south toward the northern face of the Prudential Building. The only way I can make the angles work is if we're a bit further north, so I'm going to suggest that this was a home show at the Pan Pacific.


Google Maps

Here's a similar event in 1935, before La Brea Park was built. Various show homes were constructed outside the auditorium. Maybe someone can find newspaper articles to confirm that there was a home show at the Pan Pacific in 1956.


LAPL

[odinthor]

Apparently, it was an annual event.


LA Times, 6/10/1956

[ethereal_reality]

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A mystery location - showing a huge air conditioning unit atop a motel.


"Los Palmos Sno-Breeze Motel Los Angeles California 1930s Sign"



eBay

It will be interesting to see if that huge thing is still there.

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[ethereal_reality]

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Somewhere in Los Angeles' Little Toyko section.


"Los Angeles California 1942 Little Tokyo street scene Japanese "


eBay




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[odinthor]

e_r, that would be 204 E. 1st Street for the Tomio Building:


LA Times, 7/21/1929

[Bristolian]

Good sleuthing on the Pan Pacific home show location. Although I couldn't specify what exactly, when first looking at the photo something seemed a little off. After the location was figured out, the large parking lot just over the wooden fence is the anomaly.

[HossC]

Originally Posted by odinthor

e_r, that would be 204 E. 1st Street for the Tomio Building:


LA Times, 7/21/1929

Given the 1942 date of the photo and the building on the left (extant minus the arches on the first floor), I think this is the New Tomio Building at 312 E 1st Street.

[ethereal_reality]

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. . mystery location.


Hotel Del Flores man 1930s Los Angeles California hotel sign



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[HossC]

It looks like it's the extant Hotel Del Flores at 409 N Crescent Drive in Beverly Hills, although the sign has gone.


GSV