look at all the ladies in dresses and men in suits and hats. wonder what that street looks like today.
, what were all those pedestrians doing/..some were living dangerously I'd say...and today we say everybody is in a hurry...does downtown LA look like this today? love those cars/trucks!
Hello, In 1946, we had just moved from Northern California near the Oregon border down Highway 395 to end up in Long Beach. Not the Westside of Long Beach, but across the Los Angeles River on the Eastside location on PCH. It was a huge empty area with a section of old silver trailers in a two-three block pattern. (currently it is a Goodwill recycle center and main location. Between our move to the Westside of Long Beach, our teenage high school and years, it was a good central location.) During this time period, our dad had a 41 Buick fastback and in 1949, he saved and bought a 49 Buick Roadmaster. The 41 fastback took us around Long Beach/Los Angeles area, but most of those trips were memories of stopping for some food at drive in restaurants and small grocery stores. By the time his 49 Buick Roadmaster came along, now, we were able to see and understand the outside areas of So Cal, when our dad took us somewhere. Jnaki Downtown Los Angeles was a fun place to go on a road trip. We started to go to different areas that our dad knew and had visited with some of his early L.A. adventures as a young college kid. So, we got to see those areas in its early stages. Then as our mom took us via the “Red Car Trolleys” from Long Beach to Los Angeles, we began to expand our local knowledge. The center area where the trolleys was a bustling area of downtown. (currently the Blue Line rail system is located there…) But, as many times we ventured into downtown Los Angeles for visits, friends’ weddings, memorial services, etc, it began to change over the years, even during our own driving days. These days, the places we drove have changed so much it may not be the best areas to walk around or even visit. Historic? Yes, safe? Probably not, but it depends on when you are visiting and why… YRMV The old State Theater in Los Angeles had two entrances, one on S. Broadway, the other on W. 8th Street and the theatre is surrounded by a 12 story high office buildings (the largest brick-clad building in Los Angeles, then.) 7th and Broadway location The State Theatre closed as a movie theatre in 1997. But, a church moved back into the theatre in June 2021. The State Theatre is designated a Historic-Cultural Monument. 8th street around the corner Although the area looked good in the movie, time has made changes and some of those changes are not the best for this area of Downtown Los Angeles...
I don't remember downtown L.A in 1946. I was only 2 years old then. I do remember riding the street cars in '49 and later. Grandma used to take me downtown to a fancy restaurant for lunch. I relished the trips. It was an exciting experience for a kid. It seemed like a long road trip from North Hollywood. My maternal grandparents and family were pioneers in the little village of Lankershim in the '20s, now North Hollywood. They were featured in an L.A. newspaper in 1939. Things were so different, then.
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