El Capitan Theatre
Hollywood, CA Photo courtesy Adriene Biondo
The lights at the El Capitan Theatre give Hollywood Boulevard a little extra sparkle after dark. The tall sign draws your attention from a distance, while a closer look reveals the bulbs and neon decorating the marquee below. Across from the Chinese Theatre, this is a corner where an evening walk can turn into several stops for photographs. The ticket window and illuminated entrance are worth a close look, especially when the surrounding boulevard begins to settle into its nighttime glow.
Opened in 1926 as a playhouse, the El Capitan later became a movie theatre, hosting the world premiere of Citizen Kane in 1941. Years under the Paramount name brought changes to its appearance before an extensive restoration uncovered the elaborate decoration and returned the original name to the building.
El Capitan Theatre
Hollywood, CA Photo courtesy Adriene Biondo
The restored theatre reopened in 1991 with The Rocketeer, beginning its familiar role as a showcase for Disney films. The lights outside make a fitting introduction to the surroundings within, where the auditorium and historic Wurlitzer organ offer more to enjoy than the feature alone.
UPDATE: The El Capitan continues showing Disney releases and hosting special presentations in its centennial year. Depending on the engagement, stage entertainment and displays can add to the visit. These night views catch the entrance doing what an old movie palace should do: lighting up the sidewalk and giving passersby a reason to pause. Even without time for a movie, there’s a little Hollywood showmanship waiting out front. 10-26
Los Angeles Theatre (Closed)
Los Angeles, CA Photo courtesy Adriene Biondo
The neon at Los Angeles Theatre brings the Broadway frontage to life as daylight fades. Its marquee throws a little movie-palace glow onto the street, while the elaborate facade rises above it. This is a good reminder to look up when walking downtown—some of the best details are well above the storefronts. Catch the lights at dusk and the old entrance begins to suggest what an evening on Broadway once looked like.
Opened on January 30, 1931, with Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights, the theatre was designed by S. Charles Lee for H. L. Gumbiner. Chaplin helped finance its completion so the building would be ready for the premiere. The result was a showplace where the architecture could hold your attention before the picture started.
Los Angeles Theatre
Los Angeles, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Behind the illuminated entrance, a grand staircase, chandeliers, and elaborate French Baroque decoration carried the spectacle indoors. The theatre at 615 S. Broadway was built to make arriving part of the entertainment, and its nighttime frontage still offers a hint of those lavish surroundings.
UPDATE: Regular movie operations ended in 1994, but filming, special events, and occasional screenings have kept the building in use. The marquee isn’t a promise of nightly movie showings, so opportunities to see it illuminated depend on activity at the theatre. Here, the lights give the old palace another turn in the spotlight, recalling the days when a trip down Broadway offered one glowing entrance after another. 10-26
Fox Theatre
Banning, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The glowing sign for Fox Theatre gives downtown Banning a familiar movie-house landmark. Its bright lettering rises above Ramsey Street, advertising the sort of evening out that once brought customers to neighborhood theatres throughout Southern California. Even before checking the movie titles, the old Fox name gives you something worth photographing.
The theatre’s history reaches back to 1928, when it opened as the Banning Theatre. Remodelings and changes of operators followed, but the property kept its connection to the movies through the years.
UPDATE: The theatre is listed as Fox Cineplex is D’Place at 60 W. Ramsey Street, with a movie-showtime website. The sign is still up and may still light up. This view catches its neon making a fine advertisement after dark. 10-26
Mann Fox Village
Westwood, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The illuminated tower of Mann Fox Village Theatre makes a memorable sight above Westwood. Its familiar Fox lettering gives the neighborhood a landmark that reaches beyond the entrance below. For generations of moviegoers, spotting that tower meant another evening at one of the area’s grand single-screen theatres.
Opened in 1931 at 961 Broxton Avenue, the Village became known for first-run pictures and major Hollywood premieres. The lights outside helped turn an ordinary trip to the movies into something that felt a little closer to opening night.
UPDATE: The theatre closed in 2024 and became the focus of a restoration effort led by Jason Reitman and a group of filmmakers. Plans call for the American Cinematheque to operate and program the restored venue, with a full reopening targeted for 2027. 10-26
See more of the Fox Theatres from across the nation here at Roadside Peek'sFox Theatre.
Tomkat
Theatre (Closed)
W. Hollywood, CA Photo courtesy Michelle K
The Tomkat Theatre shows off its neon as night settles over Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood. This adult cinema offered a different kind of entertainment from Hollywood’s grand premiere houses, but its glowing sign was still worth a roadside peek.
Opened in 1940 as the Monica Theatre, the building later carried the Monica International and Pussycat names before becoming the Tomkat.
UPDATE: The Tomkat became Studs in 2006 and closed in October 2022. By 2026, the old theatre was sitting empty while a possible new use was being explored. Another familiar movie-house name has left the boulevard, but this photo brings back the Tomkat when its neon still caught the eye after dark. 10-26
Tomkat
Theatre (Closed)
