This went on for a decade until the event needed a much larger location. The RKO Pantages Theatre saw its heydays from 1950 to 1959, when it was chosen as the venue for the annual Academy Awards. It was renamed RKO Pantages and was considered the crown jewel of his film production company and movie theatre chain, RKO Pictures. In 1949, the Pantages Theatre was acquired by business magnate Howard Hughes. The Theatre Springs Back to Life After the Great Depression Live stage acts proved to be so expensive, so the management was forced to economize by converting it to an all-movie place, with occasional musical acts and sponsored events. Its operations were hit hard by the Great Depression. But even the grandest landmarks run across misfortunes. The Pantages Theatre is truly the epitome of magnificence. Other employees working behind the scenes are stationed in the upper floor offices and conference rooms. It’s also home to an orchestra pit, vast stage area, balconies, and backstage dressing rooms. These staircases are adorned with life-sized Egyptian and Assyro-Babylonian style statues, representing the hard workers of the film industry. It has a spacious, lavishly decorated lobby with a twenty-foot-wide staircase on each end. Source: PicrylĪt the time of its opening, the state-of-the-art theatre featured 2,812 seats, opulent staircases, starburst ceiling patterns, massive chandeliers, all for a cost of $1.25 million. It opened its doors on June 4, 1930, with significant fanfare and celebrity guests. The Pantages Theatre was the last theatre built by the vaudeville impresario Alexander Pantages and was designed to accommodate vaudeville performances and film events. The Pantages Theatre’s Striking Beginning Some of its iconic guests and owners clearly never left. Over the decades, show personnel and guests have reported apparitions that roam the theatre’s majestic rooms and passageways.

It turns out the Pantages Theatre is just as unique to the dead as it is for the living. It’s a thriving representation of Hollywood’s golden age, tracing its roots back to the glorious vaudeville days. An art deco masterpiece located in the heart of Hollywood, it was a popular venue for many dazzling stage performances and movie premieres. The Hollywood Pantages Theatre is no doubt one of the most extravagant theatres in the world.

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