OPEN: 1940–present
LOCATION: 6215 W. Sunset Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90028
ORIGINAL PHONE: HO 9-7356
CURRENT PHONE: (323) 962-7600
CUISINE: American
DESIGN: Gordon B. Kaufmann
BUILDING STYLE: Streamline Moderne
Postcard featuring the Hollywood Palladium marquee on Sunset Boulevard.
IT TOOK ONLY ONE YEAR FOR FILM PRODUCER MAURY M. COHEN TO BUILD THE HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM ON SUNSET BOULEVARD. After receiving $1.6 million in funding from Los Angeles Times publisher Norman Chandler, Cohen began the theater’s construction on the original Paramount lot. In the last few weeks prior to its grand opening, decorators and craftspeople worked around the clock to finish the ballroom and accompanying café.
The 1940 opening gala, which featured music by Frank Sinatra and Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra, had a unique Halloween theme that attracted a lot of attention. The society pages announced that Judy Garland, Tony Martin, John Astor, George Burns, Alfred Hitchcock, Harold Lloyd, Lana Turner, Rudy Vallee, and Mickey Rooney would be in attendance. That same evening, the Cocoanut Grove across town was hosting a jack-o’-lantern ball to aid handicapped children. Unfortunately, it had a small turnout because all the stars wanted to attend the Palladium’s opening, which drew over 10,000 revelers.
The theater, decorated in shades of deep coral and silver, featured a unique dome-top cocktail lounge, a special emerald-colored room serving soft drinks, and a 200-foot-long bar on the balcony overlooking the dance floor. The $10,000 dance floor, which is still in use at the Palladium today, was made of spiral maple planking built on top of springs, to literally put a spring in the step of those dancing. Touted as a technological wonder of its time, the dance floor could accommodate up to 7,500 people, and another 1,000 could be seated for dinner around it. To entertain its diners, the Palladium projected an image on the wall of a misty group of damsels dancing in a cloud of stars. Another visual effect was a color keyboard projected onto the dance floor that was synced to the music and displayed a sparkling spectrum of eighteen hues.
The Palladium also became a venue for movie premieres, beginning with The Great Dictator, starring Charlie Chaplin and Jack Oakie. NBC broadcasted the event with a transcontinental hookup for the nation to enjoy “Live from the Palladium.” Again, Tommy Dorsey provided the music. Dorsey continued to play at the Palladium for a few weeks after it opened, but the relationship soon soured and he opened a competing ballroom, the Casino Gardens, in 1944.
Telegram invitation to the groundbreaking ceremony for the Hollywood Palladium, 1940.
But nothing could compete with the Palladium. In the 1940s, it was like New Year’s Eve there every night, especially when the servicemen were in town. Betty Grable hosted song requests live on radio broadcasts. Bandleader Guy Mitchell was a fixture at the Palladium; in the early 1950s, his song “Pittsburg, Pennsylvania” had hit gold. In 1961, the long-running Lawrence Welk Show began taping at the Palladium, and in 1971 and 1974, the Grammy Awards were broadcast live from the venue. The ballroom was also used as a stand-in venue for film productions.
The ballroom at the Palladium.
Lawrence Welk on the Palladium’s marquee.
The Palladium offered a simple menu to serve its 1,000 diners in a few short hours, including roast turkey, Virginia baked ham, roast prime rib, and a fish special. All dishes came with a “deluxe” green salad, chef’s potatoes, and a garden vegetable. The menu remained the same throughout the years, but in 1963, the exterior of the Palladium was updated. Most of the building’s two-story entry marquees and Streamline Moderne details were removed, as was its distinctive neon sign featuring two dancing figures. In 2008, a renovation restored the facade to its original 1940 splendor, making it the perfect place for former President Bill Clinton to hold his sixty-fifth birthday celebration gala in 2011.
Today, the Palladium hosts live concerts without food service. Adele played there in 2011, and Guns N’ Roses in 2012. Prince popped up for two shows in 2014. Many political and media groups have used the venue for celebration victories. Now, almost seventy-five years later, the Palladium has evolved from an all-inclusive club and dinner establishment to a standing-room-only venue, but it is still going strong. 