Alex Theatre
The Alexander Theatre in Glendale was designed by architects Arthur Lindley and Charles Selkirk in 1925 for the West Coast Langley Theatre Circuit. It originally featured vaudeville performances, plays and silent movies. A huge Wurlitzer organ was installed and an organist improvised accompaniment during the silent film era. Located only a few miles from Walt Disney’s Hyperion studio, the theater was Disney’s favorite place to preview his cartoons to see how they would play to audiences. Fox West Coast Theatres bought the theatre in 1940 and renamed it the Alex Theatre. Noted theatre architect S. Charles Lee was commissioned to create a new exterior look that added the current marquees and 100′ tower topped with the star-like sphere in a combination of Classical Revival, Art Deco and Moderne architectural styles. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Glendale, Los Angeles County
Photographer: Al Russell