Here's Hollywood!

Motoring through Northeast Portland recently, a newcomer from Massachusetts asked me why it was called the Hollywood District.

Imagine if life’s big questions could be answered in just two words!

The roaring 20s were still at full throat in 1926 when the Hollywood Theatre opened at N.E. 41st Ave. and Sandy Boulevard.  Its bold, glitzy, daring, Spanish baroque multi-colored terra cotta front façade may well have been the flashiest anywhere in town.  In an era when East Portland was feeling inferior to the wealthier downtown across the river, it amounted to a big boost for the neighborhood.  Thus the commercial and residential area nearby quickly adopted Hollywood District as an identifier.

Now, in an era pocked by numerous demolitions throughout Portland, the 94-year-old the Hollywood Theatre exemplifies how a vintage buildings creates a distinctive sense of place not easily, if ever, recaptured.

If buildings could talk, this one was shouting “Hey!  Look at me!  Come on in!  Let’s have some fun!”  Photographs from the era show attendees dressed up in their finest for a night on the town. 

The balconied theater with 1500 seats was designed in the office of John Virginius Bennes and Harry Herzog.  Herzog may have been the primary figure because he had worked on the Majestic and Liberty theaters downtown, neither of which survives, before partnering with Bennes.  Bennes is best known for some imposing Portland houses and several buildings at the heart of the Oregon State University campus which are now included in a national historic district.

The Hollywood was designed for vaudeville and live music in addition to movies.  But as happens with many vintage buildings, times, conditions and uses change.  Vaudeville and movies with live music were the first to go.  The post-World-War II era brought television’s intrusion.  The rise of multi-screen theaters meant more screens for smaller audiences as the industry shifted its business strategy. 

In 1975, the Hollywood balcony was walled off from the main auditorium and split into two smaller theaters.  Sometime before that, the fancy terra cotta decorations at the ground level and the octagonal free-standing ticket booth disappeared.  Hard times and deferred maintenance continued at the landmark building.  By the late 1980s and building was a white elephant in the movie world.

In 1997, a nonprofit entity called Film Action Oregon bought the Hollywood Theater for $135,000 --  a sum that would have sufficed for a medium-sized house --  along with a major concession by the seller.  With eyes toward architectural restoration and innovative film programming, the entity (now known simply as Hollywood Theatre) has worked steadily to attract viewers and donors as building improvements unfold.

Revamped lower facade will make the entry more attractive. 

Restoring old buildings is an expensive, time-consuming process.  Some costly projects like roof, plumbing and painting are largely unseen by visitors.  The theater made a big neighborhood splash in 2013 when it turned on its big red new “Hollywood” sign surrounded by small blinking bulbs and a new marquee, both aimed at recreating the original feel of 1926.  More than 1100 contributors helped meet the $124,500 cost.

 The theatre made a less-noticeable upgrade in 2016.  It replaced the aesthetically-inappropriate aluminum-framed entry doors with an attractive mahogany-framed set similar to what existed in 1926.  Now, planning is afoot for a lower-façade renovation that will replace the blank brown wall we see today. 

Paul Falsetto, an architect with an extensive background in in historic restoration, is working on a design that will return original materials to the entrance.  The design will not be a duplicate of the original, but should give the entire façade a coherent feeling it has lacked for decades.  The free-standing ticket booth will not be replaced in order to meet current standards for ingress and egress, but an outline of its original placement will be included on the floor.

While the lower-facade work will complete most of the visible exterior renovation, "There is still plenty more to go," says Virginia Durost, the theatre's operations director.  "Plumbing, electric, interior details, seismic..." 

The theatre is currently engaged in fundraising to pay for the lower-façade work.  If you are interested in helping, you can reach the theatre through its website, hollywoodtheatre.org, or by mail at 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., Portland, 97212.  Plans called for the work to be finished this year, but the pandemic quarantine may slow the timeline.

Regardless, the day should come once again when this irreplaceable building says:  Come on in.  Let’s have some fun!