La Brea Theatre

La Brea Theatre was a single-screen movie theater located at 857 South La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles, California. It opened in 1926 with seating for approximately 1,200 people and was originally associated with the Chotiner movie-theater chain. The venue subsequently became part of the Fox theater chain and was commonly identified as Fox La Brea during that period. The theater closed in 1954. It reopened in 1960 under the name Art La Brea after a reported renovation costing US$70,000. The remodeling altered both the audience capacity and the venue's operating profile: seating was reduced first to approximately 900 and, after the renovation, to about 640. In the later 1960s, the Japanese company Toho took control of the theater. It then operated as Toho La Brea and screened Toho productions and other Japanese films directly, without relying on a distributor. This made the venue one of the relatively few American movie theaters showing Japanese-language cinema in the post-World War II period. Toho's involvement placed La Brea within a broader effort to operate cinemas in the United States, alongside venues in San Francisco and New York City. The theater therefore served not only as a neighborhood cinema but also as a specialized exhibition outlet for Japanese film. The available historical record does not establish a complete program archive, detailed ownership chronology, or the precise date of the theater's final closure, but it identifies the successive names and operating phases associated with the building. The structure was designed by architect Richard D. King. Its exterior featured numerous Gothic arches around the entrances and the windows on the second floor. The main lobby and upper facade evoked the form of a steeple, although the building did not include a spire. The former theater building remains standing and has since been used as a church. La Brea Theatre is consequently remembered both as a Los Angeles neighborhood cinema and as an early American venue for direct Japanese-film exhibition.

La Brea Theatre opened in 1926 at 857 South La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles. The building was designed by Richard D. King and began operation with an auditorium capacity of approximately 1,200 seats. It was initially part of the Chotiner movie-theater chain, a context reflected in the alternative name Chotiner's La Brea. The venue later entered the Fox theater chain and became known as Fox La Brea. Although the available account does not provide a full list of its film programs or a detailed chronology of all operators, this period represents its operation as a conventional American movie theater. The theater closed in 1954, ending its first major phase of operation. In 1960, the building reopened as Art La Brea following a reported US$70,000 renovation. The work changed the scale of the auditorium: the theater's capacity was reduced to approximately 640 seats, following an earlier reduction to around 900. The remodeling retained the building's distinctive architectural presence while adapting it for a smaller audience. During the later 1960s, the Japanese company Toho took over the theater. Under the name Toho La Brea, the venue was used to show Toho productions and other Japanese films directly, without a distributor. This operating model distinguished it from many conventional American cinemas and gave the theater an important role in the limited postwar American circulation of Japanese-language films. Toho also assumed control of cinemas in San Francisco and New York City, indicating that La Brea was part of a wider American exhibition initiative rather than an isolated venue. The architecture contributed substantially to the theater's identity. Richard D. King's design used repeated Gothic arches above the entrances and across the second-floor windows. The exterior of the main lobby and upper level suggested a steeple, though it lacked a spire. These features made the building recognizable beyond its function as a cinema. The theater eventually ceased operating as a movie venue, but the building itself survived and was later used as a church. The record supplied for this entry does not specify the exact final closing date, the complete sequence of post-Toho occupants, or the theater's full programming history. Its documented significance rests on its long sequence of identities—Chotiner's La Brea, Fox La Brea, Art La Brea, and Toho La Brea—and especially on its role as one of the relatively few United States theaters to exhibit Japanese films after World War II.

• 1960

  Reopens as Art La Brea

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  Following a reported US$70,000 renovation, the venue reopens as Art La Brea with approximately 640 seats.

• 1954

  First closure

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  The theater closes after its initial period of operation.

• 1926

  Theater opens

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  La Brea Theatre opens on South La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles with approximately 1,200 seats as part of the Chotiner theater chain.

• Fox chain operation

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  The theater later becomes part of the Fox theater chain and is known as Fox La Brea.

• Toho takes over the venue

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  During the later 1960s, Toho assumes control and uses the theater to screen Japanese films directly, without a distributor.

• Building repurposed

  [1]La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  After its cinema use ended, the building remained standing and was later used as a church.

A historic Los Angeles neighborhood cinema that later developed a specialized identity as a direct exhibition venue for Japanese films.

• Cinema programming · 1926

  General motion-picture exhibition

  During its early operating phases, La Brea Theatre functioned as a conventional single-screen movie house serving Los Angeles audiences. Its auditorium opened with approximately 1,200 seats, though capacity was later reduced. The available historical record does not identify a complete schedule of titles or genres, but the venue's successive association with the Chotiner and Fox chains indicates a general commercial cinema role before its later specialization.

• International cinema exhibition

  Japanese film screenings

  Under Toho's control in the later 1960s, the theater became a specialized outlet for Toho productions and other Japanese films. The films were shown directly by the Japanese company without an intermediary distributor. This programming made the venue one of the relatively few American theaters identified with Japanese-language cinema in the post-World War II era.

• 1960

  Renovation and capacity reductionStrategy

  Background

  After closing in 1954, the theater was prepared for a new operating phase under the Art La Brea name.

  Action taken

  A reported US$70,000 renovation was carried out, reopening the venue in 1960 and reducing its seating capacity to approximately 640.

  Aftermath

  The remodeled theater continued operating under the Art La Brea identity before later being taken over by Toho.

  Renovation cost. US$70,000 (1960 renovation)

  Source

• Direct Japanese-film exhibitionStrategy

  Background

  Toho expanded its presence in American cinema exhibition during the later 1960s.

  Action taken

  Toho took over La Brea Theatre and used it to screen its own productions and other Japanese films directly, without a distributor.

  Aftermath

  The venue became one of the relatively few United States movie theaters associated with Japanese-film exhibition after World War II.

  Source

1. 1La Brea Theatreen.wikipedia.org