Wiltern Theater

It’s hard to miss the glorious, faded jade green art deco behemoth known as The Wiltern Theater.

It’s a must visit at any time of day, but eye poppingly glamorous at night when it’s neon lights spring into action.

The Wiltern was built in 1931 and designed by Los Angeles oldest architectural firm, Morgan, Walls and Clements.

Originally designed as a vaudeville theater, the Wiltern is highly decorated inside and out, with the exterior clad in blue green glazed architectural terra cotta tile, and the interior dripping in gold leaf and art deco pattern.

The 12 storey zig zag moderne tower above the theater (technically known as the Pellisier Building) helps make the Wiltern stand out from the crowd, as does it’s sweeping corner location, on the corner of WIL shire and WesTERN (ergo WILTERN - someone is a GENIUS!)

In addition to all the beautiful signage, look for the amazing terrazzo paving at the entrance.

And if you get the chance to go inside, look for the murals painted by Anthony Heinsbergen, and the incredible sunburst on the ceiling (each sunbeam is a separate art deco skyscraper - my eyes are bugging out of my head!)

The Wiltern theater is on the National Register of Historic Places, and also a Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument.

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Southern California #148 -last visited April 2023