Archiving Angeles (AA): Philharmonic Auditorium

June 6, 2008 at 11:35 am in History

There it stood. 54 years before the dedication of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. 93 years before the doors opened to Walt Disney Concert Hall. 75 years before it’s own demolition to make way for a parking lot near 5th & Hill in Downtown Los Angeles.

It opened with a performance of “Aida” on the largest stage in the west. It hosted the premier of D.W. Griffith’s “Birth of a Nation”, with a full orchestra to play the score. The Los Angeles Philharmonic would call it home for more than 4 decades.

It stood as a pillar to music and the arts. It stood as a symbol of pride for the city. It was the Philharmonic Auditorium. Clune Auditorium. The Theatre Beautiful.

The year was 1910.

Photo from USC Digital Archive

6 Comments »

http://www.proctorformayor.com aaronproctor

That is awesome. Reminds me of some of the buildings still standing in places like St. Louis and Philadelphia.

Think you could find some old Pasadena pics? That would be a real treat.

- AP
http://www.proctorformayor.com
http://www.franklinavenue.net Franklin Avenue

And 23 years after it was cleared to make way for a new development that was never built, the land where the auditorium once stood is still… a parking lot. Sigh.
http://www.wildbell.com WILL•I•AM CAMPBELL

Of interest might be the massive tomb at Hollywood Forever Cemetery built after LA Phil founder William Andrews Clark’s death in 1934 and within which he is interred.
http://betheboy.com The 8 Track Kid

That’s the most beautiful building I’ve never seen in this city.
http://militantangeleno.blogspot.com militantangeleno

The Militant has read about this building before and seen pics of the interior and part of the exterior, but this was the first one he’s seen of the entire building’s massing. Very beautiful. Imagine if it had still remained, how much THOSE lofts would be going for…

We talk about the demolition of buildings, and yes some of it is shameless erasing of history, but in an earthquake-prone area with constantly-upgrading ‘quake codes, many of our buildings fall victim to a form of structural Darwinism.
http://mimlay.com/blog/2008/06/07/weekend-links-lost-and-found-department/ Dateline>City of Angels » Weekend Links: Lost and Found Department

[...] In search of lost architecture? Metblog L.A.’s Jason Burns serves up a quick retrospective on the once stately Philharmonic Auditorium that formerly stood at 5th and Hill, a site that’s now… you guessed it… a parking lot. [...]

Archiving Angeles (AA): Philharmonic Auditorium

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