Classic Cinema

The beach cities of Southern California are known more for their sunbathers and parking problems than historical architecture or cultural landmarks.

But the oldest building in Hermosa Beach--the last remaining art cinema in the South Bay until its recent closure--has caught the eye of preservationists and moviegoers who are bent on seeing it restored.

Audiences have attended movies at the Art Deco Bijou Cinemas since the 1930s. But the troubled twin theater closed in December when the deadline for a state-mandated seismic overhaul passed with no repairs made.

The City Council, which recently approved a major downtown renovation project, passed a moratorium to prevent Bijou property owner Joe Naughton from tearing down the historic 1923 building.

Last week, that blockage was extended for 10 months, but Naughton, who had considered converting the theater into office space, is now looking into selling the three-story structure. He said he is talking with several theater operators--including Laemmle Theatres, the largest operator of art-oriented cinemas--since that’s the direction in which the community wants to go.

“The Bijou is one of the last threads to the beach cities’ past,” said Councilman Sam Edgerton. “We need to preserve this structure or we will be sending a message that we don’t care about our past.”

Thus far the preservation effort has drawn the support of the Los Angeles Conservancy, which is working with the city to draft a historic buildings ordinance and a proposal to include the theater on the National Register of Historic Places. More than 500 South Bay residents have also expressed interest in efforts to save the cinema, including Ramon Garcia, who operated the theater for the last 12 years.

Over the years, many historic theaters and neighborhood movie palaces have been squeezed out by big multiplexes that offer more movies in a modern environment. And while preservationists agree that art film houses don’t offer the glitz of a megaplex, they say the cinemas do offer a unique experience and can be successful as independent theaters.

Glendale restored the Alex Theatre to its former glory by turning the Art Deco building into a community playhouse. Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre was restored, and similar efforts are underway for the Warner Grand Theater in San Pedro. Because the Bijou, whose prominent archways and stately columns are still intact, featured mostly first-run art films and independent movies, many people believe the same can be accomplished in Hermosa Beach.

“Old theaters are very distinct and unusual, since they usually offer art or revival films and offer an experience that the multiplex doesn’t,” said USC architecture professor Stephanos Polyzoides. “Every effort should be made to save them, because movie houses like this will not be built for a long time to come.”

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Though the South Bay has several large movie theaters, it has a relatively small number of historical buildings, especially in the beach cities. Polyzoides said that beach towns tend to have less elaborate architecture.

Over the years, many of the structures that gave the seaside cities their character have been demolished to maximize property values and make room for large commercial developments.

Back in the 1970s, Redondo Beach razed dozens of old Craftsman-style homes and historical buildings in its downtown district to make room for the oceanfront condominiums in today’s Esplanade area.

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The Fox Redondo Theatre, the first South Bay theater to show movies, was torn down to make room for a 10-story hotel, which has never been built. And the Marina Theaters, formerly The Strand theaters, were leveled to make room for a condo complex.

“They tore down the whole town,” the late Redondo Beach historian Gloria Snyder once said. “It was a great loss for the city.”

Redondo Beach officials have since learned a lesson. In 1989, the city adopted a preservation program and historical ordinance. Although many of the old commercial structures have been torn down, city planner Anita Kroeger said the ordinance has preserved more than 40 old Craftsman-style and bungalow-style homes.

Hermosa Beach, hoping to avoid Redondo Beach’s experience, is considering a similar ordinance and is exploring proposals on how to reopen the Bijou.

“We really want to save this theater,” said Judy Garland, a Hermosa Beach resident and member of a newly formed committee to save the Bijou. “It’s our most historic building and there’s a certain moral responsibility we have to keep it around.”