Olympic Theatre (Closed)
Los Angeles, CA
Photo courtesy Scott Broadhurst

Here's a shot of the neon sign on the Olympic Theatre on Eight Street in Los Angeles. Since this sign photo was taken in 2007, the marquee was covered with with a "for sale" sign and now has been painted a solid black. Many thanks to Scott Broadhurst for info.

Opened on April 2, 1927, as Bard’s Eighth Street Theatre, the house became the Olympic in 1932, the year Los Angeles hosted the Games. Its location across from the May Company put downtown shopping and a movie within an easy walk. Customers could finish their errands, check the marquee, and make an evening of it.

Olympic Theatre
Los Angeles, CA
Photo courtesy Scott Broadhurst

The Olympic later presented Spanish-language films under Metropolitan Theatres before closing in 1986. Retail and storage uses followed, leaving the old theatre frontage to advertise a past attraction. Film fans might also recognize the exterior from The Omega Man, the 1971 Charlton Heston picture that captured another glimpse of its moviegoing years.

UPDATE: Clothing retailer COS opened in the former theatre at 313 W. Eighth Street in 2017, restoring the frontage and bringing customers back through the entrance. The conversion changed the interior for shopping, while retaining a connection to the building’s earlier appearance. There were clothes to browse instead of a feature to watch, but thankfully the Olympic avoided becoming another missing theatre along the downtown streetscape. 10-26

Tower Theatre (Closed)
Santa Paula, CA
Photo courtesy John King

The Tower Theatre adds an old movie-house presence to downtown Santa Paula, with its distinctive frontage facing Main Street. Seen here during its long closure, the building still offered plenty to catch a theatre enthusiast’s eye. The marquee remained a reminder of busier evenings, when customers stopped outside to check the feature before heading through the doors. 10-10

The theatre’s history reaches back to 1911, earlier than its later Mission Theatre identity might suggest. It opened as the Elektra and passed through several names and programming changes, including years presenting Spanish-language films. Generations of customers made it part of downtown’s entertainment life.

Tower Theatre
Santa Paula, CA
Photo courtesy John King

Like many smaller theatres, the Tower eventually fell quiet as moviegoing habits changed. The vacant entrance became a familiar sight, leaving residents and preservation enthusiasts wondering whether another audience would ever gather beneath the marquee.

UPDATE: Santa Paula granted the Tower local landmark status in 2025. Owner David Berger, who revived the Ojai Playhouse, has proposed restoring this theatre for movies and live performances. Bringing it back will take substantial work, but the plans offer a welcome possibility for Main Street. After years without a regular attraction, the old Tower has another opening night to work toward. 10-26

Rialto Theatre (Closed)
South Pasadena, CA
Photo courtesy Rod Holcomb

The Rialto Theatre gives Fair Oaks Avenue a movie-palace entrance worth stopping to admire. Its tall sign and projecting marquee recall the years when a neighborhood theatre could make an ordinary evening feel like an occasion. These photographs show the South Pasadena landmark during the uncertain years following its 2007 closure, with its familiar exterior still drawing attention from the sidewalk. 11-10

Opened in 1925, the Lewis Arthur Smith-designed theatre combines an exuberant assortment of architectural details. The decoration gave customers something to admire before the lights went down, making the building part of the evening’s entertainment. Its listing in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 recognized a landmark already treasured by generations of moviegoers.

Rialto Theatre
South Pasadena, CA
Photo courtesy Rod Holcomb

Later audiences came for independent films and midnight screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Rialto also found its way onto the screen in The Player and La La Land, giving viewers elsewhere a glimpse of this distinctive neighborhood movie house.

UPDATE: Mosaic Church began using the building in 2017, and an exterior restoration brought renewed paint and replacement neon in 2020. Regular cinema operations have ended, but the marquee and Rialto name survived to brighten Fair Oaks Avenue again. Thankfully, passing this corner no longer means looking at quite the same neglected entrance pictured during its vacant years. The old theatre remains one of South Pasadena’s sights worth a nighttime peek. 10-26