"X: The Unheard Music"

The Pussycat Theatre, 6656 Hollywood Blvd., is seen in "X: The Unheard Music" (Skouras Pictures, 1986), W.T. Morgan's documentary about the L.A. punk band X. 

 

We go around to the alley south of the theatre. 

Brendan Mullen takes us down the stairs. From August 1977 until January 1978 the basement under the theatre and the adjacent office building at Hollywood and Cherokee had  been his infamous punk club, Masque. The club didn't last longer because it was closed by the Fire Marshal.  

 

 Looking at the walls.  

 

The film cuts to a vintage black and white still and zooms into that for the trip down the stairs.

More investigation.

 

Another look at graffitti. 

 

Surplus seats. 

See the page about the Pussycat / Ritz Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site. It had opened in 1940 as a newsreel house.

On IMDb: "X: The Unheard Music" 

 

For more recent footage of the basement see "Masque," an 11 minute video made in 2012 by Mike Plante that's on Vimeo. Esotouric had located it for a Facebook post that was spotted by Terrence Butcher. 

"Strange Days"

It's a dystopian nightmare in New York City in 1999 with guns and tanks on the streets in Kathryn Bigelow's "Strange Days" (20th Century Fox, 1995). Ralph Fiennes cruises the streets on December 30, two days before the expected Y2K meltdown. But the Christmas decorations look suspiciously like the ones on Hollywood Boulevard during that era. Indeed, the theatre he passes is the Ritz/Pussycat at 6656 Hollywood Blvd. 

 

Ralph is playing a cop turned street hustler who peddles "clips," videos that feel real if you are "wired" by putting on a special headset. Customers, of course, want sex clips but also thrills they can't get in their own boring lives: robbing a liquor store, getting in fights, etc. Many of the clips are generated by people wearing the headsets and having a recorder nearby that records not only what they're seeing but also their feelings.  

 

Ralph and friend Juliette Lewis stumble upon what looks like a police department death squad after an acquaintance is executed. There's a clip to prove it and two cops are after it. The film also features Angela Bassett, Tom Sizemore, Vincent D'Onofrio, Brigitte Bako and Josef Sommer. The cinematography was by Matthew F. Leonetti. Thanks to Sean Ault for noting the various theatres that appear in the film. 

 

Ralph drives around a lot with different footage cut together to make the streets look different. But this is a second view of the same theatre. And we get it in a brief shot a third time as well.

See the page about the Pussycat / Ritz Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site. It had opened in 1940 as a newsreel house. By the time of this film shoot it was in use as a church. 

 

It's new Year's Eve and we're supposedly in Times Square. We are on Broadway but it's the one in Los Angeles. The Palace Theatre, 630 S. Broadway, is down there in the distance in the center of the shot. 

 

 

 

The Palace is in the background as Ralph Fiennes, on the left, and Angela Bassett, on the right, run from a death squad cop who has spotted them. 

 

 The military on alert in front of the Los Angeles Theatre, 615 S. Broadway. 

 

 

 

Another shot at the Los Angeles. 

 

See the pages about the Los Angeles Theatre on the L.A. Theatres site for a history of the 1931 vintage movie palace along with hundreds of photos. 

 

A troublemaker at the festivities. And a bit of the Palace signage on the left. 

 

 

Angela Bassett is in the foreground, trying to flee from one of the death squad cops. She has the clip showing a murder and gives it to the police commissioner. The overexposed signage in the background says "... Times Square," trying to help with the New York Vibe.

 

Angela still running, with the Palace in the background. Evidently she was looking in the wrong direction. Note that the shot has been flipped.  

 

 

 

One of the cops has her on the ground. She's fighting. 

 

More wrestling in front of the Palace. 

 

 

 

She triumphs. But only for a moment and then additional police subdue her. She's rescued by the arrival of Josef Sommer, playing the police commissioner. He's finally looked at the clip and now understands what has been going on.  

 

See the pages about the Palace Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site. It opened in 1911 as the Orpheum.    

 

 

A distance view of the New Year's Eve celebrations. This shot actually IS New York City. Note the marquee of the National Twin in the upper left.

On IMDb: "Strange Days"

"Aloha, Bobby and Rose"

Footage used for the title sequence of "Aloha, Bobby and Rose" (Columbia Pictures, 1975) includes this view of the Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd. On the marquee it's "Don't Look in the Basement" along with "The Last House on the Left." This bill opened November 7, 1973 at the Pantages as well as over 30 other theatres in the area.  

 

The film features Paul Le Mat, Dianne Hull, Tim McIntyre, Leigh French, Noble Willingham, Martine Bartlett and Robert Carradine. Floyd Mutrux directed. The cinematography was by William A. Fraker.  

 

 

We get this shot when they zoom in during the credits. Way down the street it's the vertical for Loew's, 6838 Hollywood Blvd. It's the theatre that opened in 1926 as the El Capitan. Loew's got it in 1967 but at the time this footage was shot it was run by General Cinema Corporation. They never got around to re-doing the vertical although they were calling the theatre the Cinema on Hollywood Blvd. or the Hollywood Cinema. Before and after Loew's and General Cinema had the theatre it was called the Paramount. 

 

 

 

Paul Le Mat owes some guys money from a game of pool that didn't go his way. Hoping to borrow $75, he stops in to see a relative working at a used car lot at Hollywood Blvd. and Gower. The brown building on the left is the east side of the Pix Theatre, 6126 Hollywood Blvd. The Pantages is a bit farther down the street.

 

 

Paul works at a car repair place in the Valley where he fixes the Volkswagon of a girl played by Dianne Hull. Later they go out on a date and take a drive east on Hollywood Blvd. We get this shot as they approach the Egyptian I-II-III, 6712 Hollywood Blvd.  

 

The panel below the marquee is advertising "Hello, Dolly!" It was on the bottom half of a double bill that opened October 31, 1973 at the Egyptian as well as 30 other area theatres. "Cabaret" was on the top of the bill. The initial 40 week 70mm roadshow engagement of "Hello, Dolly!" had been at the Chinese from December 19, 1969 until September 24, 1970.  

 

 

Continuing east we get a quick look down Las Palmas Ave. toward the pizza sign of Micelli's Restaurant and, just beyond, the Las Palmas Theatre.  

 

In the next block we get a murky glimpse of the New-View Theatre at 6656 Hollywood Blvd. It opened in 1940 as a newsreel house called the News-View. Later it was the Pussycat Theatre and then became a revival house called the Ritz.  

Paul and Dianne stop at a convenience store and, not being the sharpest guy, he plays around pretending to hold up the store. It ends badly and they go on the run.  

See the pages on the Los Angeles Theatres site about the Pantages, Loew's/El Capitan, Music Box/Pix, Egyptian, Las Palmas and New View/Pussycat/Ritz for more information about these historic Hollywood show houses.

On IMDb: "Aloha, Bobby and Rose"

"The Wonderland Massacre & the Secret History of Hollywood"

The turquoise vertical of the Paradise Theatre is seen on the left in this shot from 1970s footage in Episode 2 of "The Wonderland Massacre & the Secret History of Hollywood" (MGM+, 2024). Thanks to Donavan S. Moye for spotting the various theatres and getting the screenshots seen here. The four-part series, based on a podcast by Michael Connelly, features Ian S. Peterson, Trevon Rubbins and Daryl Terry. Alison Ellwood directed. 

 

The theatre was at 9110 S. Sepulveda Blvd. in Westchester, seven blocks south of Manchester. It closed in 1978. The building was gutted and repurposed as office space. See the Paradise Theatre page on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more information and photos.  

 

 

 

A fine c.1977 look at the Pussycat Theatre at 6656 Hollywood Blvd., just west of Cherokee. It's across the street from the Vogue.

 A closer look at the boxoffice. 

 

 

Larry Edmunds bookstore was originally adjacent to the theatre.

 

See the page on the Pussycat/Ritz Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more information. It opened as a newsreel house called the News-View in 1940 and was rebranded as the New-View when it went to features.  

 

Looking down from the Hollywood Center Building at Hollywood and Cherokee. David Lean's "A Passage To India" was a December 1984 release. The banner under the marquee was advertising the film's five Golden Globe nominations.

See the Los Angeles Theatres page about the Vogue Theatre for more information. It's located at 6675 Hollywood Blvd., between Cherokee and Las Palmas. The building was a 1935 design by S. Charles Lee. 

 

 

Connolly in his car headed east toward Highland Ave. The banner up on the Ovation Mall on the left was advertising the December 2023 release "Wonka." On the right the El Capitan marquee's copy was "Thank You Veterans." The pages about the El Capitan on the Los Angeles Theatres site offer a discussion about the history of this 1926 vintage legit house along with hundreds of photos. 

Thanks to Donavan for the screenshots. He adds: "And there's a couple of seconds of THIS memorable footage in the opening title sequence of each episode..."

For those who weren't there, it's Brad Pitt's Karmann Ghia on Hollywood Blvd. just east of McCadden place in July 2018. See the Theatres in Movies post about this part of the shoot shoot for Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood." 

See the "Wonderland Murders" page about the podcast on the Michael Connelly website. There's also a page about the MGM series.

On IMDb: "The Wonderland Massacre & the Secret History of Hollywood"    

"Kathy O"

We get a quick view of the News-View Theatre, 6656 Hollywood Blvd., in TV coverage of the the Hollywood Christmas parade seen about 48 minutes into "Kathy O'" (Universal-International, 1958). Kathy is a bratty child star played by Patty McCormack. The film also stars Dan Duryea as a studio PR guy and Jan Sterling as Dan's ex-wife, in town to do a story about the kid. Jack Sher directed. The cinematography was by Arthur E. Arling. It's a process shot using older parade footage. The theatre had become the "New-View" several years before the film was done.

See the page about the News-View Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site. When its newsreel days were over they dropped the "S" and the name became the New-View. Later it was called the Pussycat and the Ritz.

On IMDb: "Kathy O'"    The full film can be seen on YouTube. 

"Death Wish II"

A view west toward the vertical of the Paramount Theatre from Michael Winner's "Death Wish II" (Filmways, 1982). The theatre, at 6838 Hollywood Blvd., closed in 1989 and regained its original El Capitan name in 1991 following a Disney / Pacific Theatres renovation. 

Thanks to Thomas Joe for noting the appearance of the theatre in the film, which he saw during its run at the Paramount. It stars Charles Bronson (of course), Jill Ireland and Vincent Gardenia. Thomas Del Ruth and Richard H. Kline did the cinematography. Earlier we had a day shot with a glimpse of the rotating disco balls the theatre had above its entrance at the time.

Bronson is cruising Hollywood Blvd. looking for certain lowlifes. Here he's outside the Pussycat Theatre, 6656 Hollywood Blvd. At the time they were running "Deep Throat" and "The Devil in Miss Jones." The Larry Edmunds bookstore was still in the space west of the theatre at this time. 

 

 

 

The Vogue Theatre, 6675 Hollywood Blvd. They were running a Clint Eastwood double bill of "Any Which Way You Can" and "Every Which Way But Loose."

 

 

 

Bronson is having lunch with Jill Ireland up at Yamashiro. The Paramount is visible on the far right between the horizontal members of the railing. Behind Bronson it's the Holiday Inn, now Loews Hollywood. In the late 1960s and early 1970s when Loew's still had a theatre circuit they operated the Paramount, rebranding it as Loew's. The company later jettisoned the apostrophe in their name. 

Bronson heads north on Orange Dr. after having to stop for several street characters asserting their right to walk in front of the car. Over at the Chinese, 6925 Hollywood Blvd., they're running "Excalibur," a film that got a seven week run beginning April 10, 1981. Earlier we had a day shot on the sidewalk east of the theatre.

See the pages on the Los Angeles Theatres site about the El Capitan, the Pussycat/Ritz Theatre, the Vogue Theatre and the Chinese Theatre for a history of each building and many, many photos.

On IMDb: "Death Wish II"

"Lethal Weapon"

Mel Gibson and Danny Glover get a Pepsi and a hot dog at Wilshire and Western in Richard Donner's "Lethal Weapon" (Warner Bros., 1987). That's the 1931 vintage Wiltern Theatre across the street. The film also features Gary Busey, Mitchell Ryan, Darlene Love and Traci Wolf. The cinematography was by Stephen Goldblatt. 

 

Michael Coate comments: "It’s a crackup. 'Lost Boys' (executive produced by Donner) is on the Wiltern marquee. Definitely deliberate."

 

 

A production shot with the Wiltern in the background. That's director Richard Donner, on the left, with Danny and Mel. Donner died in 2021 at age 91. Thanks to Michael Coate for locating the photo. It's one shot for Warner Bros. by an unknown photographer.

 

See the pages about the Wiltern Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for the history of this deco landmark along with hundreds of photos of all areas of the building.  

 

 

Mel comes out of a nightclub and ends up under the marquee of the Pussycat Theatre, 6656 Hollywood Blvd., as the shooting starts near the end of the film. 

Here we get a look across the street at the Vogue Theatre, 6675 Hollywood Blvd., as Mel gets serious.  

Yes, it's a Christmas movie. In this view east on Hollywood Blvd. the Vogue is on the left and the Pussycat is over on the right.

A bit of bus action in this view west with the Vogue on the right. 

 

 

 

Another shot featuring the Pussycat. Later the theatre would be renamed the Ritz. 

See the pages about the Vogue Theatre and Pussycat/Ritz Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site for a history of these two vintage Hollywood cinemas along with many, many photos.  

Also see the site It's Filmed There for shots of additional locations used by the film.

On IMDb: "Lethal Weapon"

"Trackdown"

Karen Lamm plays a 17 year old who flees her constricting life on a cattle ranch in Montana and comes to the big city in "Trackdown" (United Artists, 1976). Here we're looking west across Cherokee St. with the entrance to the Hollywood Cherokee Building on the left and the Pussycat Theatre in the next block.

 

When Karen's character gets off the bus in Hollywood she is, of course, an easy mark for lowlifes on the street who steal her purse and suitcase, pretend to befriend her, get her on drugs and later sell her to a local pimp. James Mitchum plays the brother who comes looking for her. Cathy Lee Crosby is a social worker who tries to help him find her. Also featured are Anne Archer, Erik Estrada and Ray Sharkey. Richard T. Heffron directed. The cinematography was by Gene Polito. 

See the page on the Los Angeles Theatres site about the Pussycat Theatre, 6656 Hollywood Blvd. The marquee we see just had received a makeover. If the shoot had been a couple months earlier it still would have said New-View atop the readerboard.

She's been spotted by this guy. Here we're looking west toward the Holly Theatre, 6523 Hollywood Blvd. See the Los Angeles Theatres page about the Holly for information about the theatre's history. It opened in 1931 as the Studio, a conversion by S. Charles Lee from what had been retail space. It's now a restaurant. Thanks to Eric Schaefer for spotting the theatre in the film and getting the screenshot.

 

 

 

Karen walks by the Fox at 6508 Hollywood Blvd. It opened in 1918 as the Iris and was re-branded as the Fox in 1968. In recent years the space has gone through several names and operators as a nightclub. See the Fox Theatre page on the Los Angeles Theatres site. Thanks to Eric Schaefer for the screenshot.

 

A look at the north side of the street reveals the Hollywood Pacific at 6433 Hollywood Blvd. They were playing Robert Hendrickson's 1973 documentary "Manson" along with "Ripped Off." That program opened September 24, 1975.

 

 

Another shot with the Hollywood Pacific in the background. It opened in 1928 as the Warner. See the pages about the theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site about the Warner Hollywood.  

The brother, played by James Mitchum, comes to town and we get a shot of Broadway. One of the features on the marquee is the July 1975 release "Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold." See the page about the Palace Theatre on the Los Angeles Theatres site. It opened in 1911 as an Orpheum circuit vaudeville house.

 

Social worker Cathy Lee Crosby is on the right, joining James in the hunt for the missing girl. In the background on the left we get the Vogue Theatre, 6675 Hollywood Blvd. It was a 1935 design by S. Charles Lee. It's been through a number of uses after closing as a film house and is now a church. On the far right the glowing marquee and oval up on the facade is at the Pussycat Theatre. 

 

 

 

A shot on the corner after James arrives. 

 

 

 

The search continues. Here we are at the Le Sex Shoppe at 5507 Hollywood Blvd., on the north side of the street just west of Western Ave. The guy in front has been enlisted by James to help get some information from a guy working at another venue across the street. He's trying to get him to come over. 

 

 

 

A look at the premises across the street. 

 

Another shot as the Le Sex Shoppe guy gets the attention of the barker.  

 

 

 

A wider view reveals that the "Free Adult Movies / Live Semi-Nude Girls" emporium is at 5510 Hollywood Blvd., the west storefront in the Hollywood and Western Building. It's an S. Charles Lee design dating from 1928. Tenants in the four-story deco building have included the Motion Picture Association of America, Central Casting and the Hays Office.

 

The barker comes over and, once around in the parking lot next to Le Sex Shoppe, gets attached to a cable and hoisted to the roof by James. There's a bit more about this Le Sex Shoppe location on our page about Storefront Porno venues.

On IMDb: "Trackdown"   Sean Ault notes that the whole film can be seen on YouTube. 

 

"Trackdown" playing on a four-feature grindhouse bill at the Arcade Theatre on Broadway in 1976. Thanks to Sean Ault for locating the shot when it appeared for sale online.