Plaza Theatre
The Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs is a landmark in the remaking. The centerpiece of the La Plaza complex in what is now downtown Palm Springs opened on December 12, 1936, with the world premiere of MGM’s Camille starring Greta Garbo and Robert Taylor. The Plaza Theatre was also the venue for nationally-broadcast radio theater programs by such luminaries as Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Jack Benny. The theater remained active until going dark in 1989. From late October through May from 1990 through 2014, the theater housed “The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies,” a Ziegfeld Follies style dance and musical review show founded by Riff Markowitz and Mary Jardin. A partnership of Oak View Group, the Palm Springs Plaza Theatre Foundation and the City of Palm Springs has worked to restore and reimagine the theater for a reopening on December 2, 2025.
Palm Springs, Riverside County
Photographer: Kurt Bayless