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On October 1, 1919, the Garden Theatre opened in La Habra, originally operating as both a vaudeville and motion picture venue. The theatre was later renamed the “La Habra” and managed to last until the mid 1950’s, when Lippert Theatres announced that they would be opening their own “La Habra Theatre” in town. The former Garden […]

Walking past Costa Mesa’s bustling Orange County Performing Arts Center this evening, I took a shortcut which unintentionally brought me to a site of cinema loss and waste.   This grass covered clearing was once a movie going Mecca for Orange County, the South Coast Plaza Theatre. Some two decades removed from the “Westwood of […]

Today’s picture captures the Orange Drive-In’s snack bar and staff (circa late 1940’s?). As with most drive-ins, the Orange operated a cafeteria style snack bar, with patrons passing along a stationed service line, before checking out at the register; another, larger, stand was built when the venue added a second screen in the late 60’s. A […]

  And you thought “big sound” was a modern innovation. .   . Pictured above are two Bell Laboratories technicians, showing off one of the sixteen horned speakers that was utilized during a series stereophonic sound demonstrations held in the late 1930’s. Initially used to showcase musical performances, the technology was adapted to motion pictures […]

Today’s photo is of the RMS Queen Mary’s cinema (circa 1936). At the time of the ship’s launch, the movie theatre was promoted as being “talkie” equipped and featuring a “giant screen”, for the “leisurely pleasure” of first class passengers. While the theatre’s sound quality remains a matter of conjecture, the “giant screen” claim looks […]

The young man pictured below is Lyndon “Lynn” Aufdenkamp (circa 1916). In addition to having been a prominent figure in Laguna Beach’s early twentieth century development, Mr. Aufdenkamp was also the  city’s first cinema operator and the namesake for all of the movie theatres which have operated in Laguna Beach over the past ninety five years. .   Laguna’s […]

This week marks the 95th anniversary of Santa Ana’s West End Theatre. In addition to being Orange County’s second oldest remaining theatre structure (the Yost being the oldest), the West End was the first county venue built expressly for use as a cinema. Prior to the West End’s construction, Orange County cinema venues were comprised […]

Forty five years ago, this evening, a sell out audience welcomed Santa Ana’s “ultra modern and luxurious” United Artists Theatre on to the Orange County cinema scene. The VIP grand opening festivities included a pre release screening of the John Wayne picture “In Harms Way” and a star studded reception, which featured the likes of Maureen O’Hara in attendance. Amid […]

Theatre structures have regularly posed a dilemma for property owners. While serving as potentially lucrative tenants and offering up considerable consumer drawing power, there is often a problematic issue once a theatre has run it’s coarse as a viable business. After movie goers have moved on, the property owner is left with a “white elephant”; […]

This coming week marks the anniversaries of two county drive-ins; the 55th, for Westminster’s Hi-Way 39 Drive-In, and the 50th for Santa Ana’s Harbor Drive-In. Both were opened by Pacific Theatres, on June 29th, but separated by five years (Hi-Way 39 in 1955 and the Harbor in 1960).  As with their county peers, each is now long gone and redeveloped; the […]