Collection: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962 - UCLA Library Digital Collections Search Results

Description:: Lee's rendering of this small-town theatre on a corner site in Visalia shows a simple Streamline Moderne two-story building with glass block, tile, curved glass windows and butt-jointed glass box office windows. The flat marquee shows recessed downlights, almost the only feature retained in the final design.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Photographer:: Hoffman-Luckhaus
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: This night view is a simplified design for a one-story building, retaining the downlighting in the lobby area, but eliminating the curved Streamline effects of the daytime view. Here the sign at the corner becomes the principal element of the design. Lee uses a series of recessed frames highlighted by indirect lighting, around the entire entrance, the poster cases, the false windows on the façade, and above the box office as a unifying motif.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: Lee used the frame motif from the exterior as a central feature in the foyer to advertise coming attractions.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: At night the brightly illuminated lobby, the large neon sign and the prominent illuminated box office all drew attention to the theatre.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: The finished theatre conforms closely to the design of the night-time rendering. The box office and sign focus attention on the corner. The use of artificial brick cladding was fashionable for both commercial and residential building of the period. (See also the Garmar Theatre in Montebello 30301-30305 for similar treatment of the exterior.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: Lee's design for the candy counter incorporated the Streamline Moderne curves initially planned for the exterior. Glass, shiny stainless steel fixtures, curved blond wood veneers and downlights in the ceiling all contribute to the effect.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962

Description:: The auditorium interior reveals Lee's use of the inexpensive Quonset hut truss system, also used in the Puente Theatre (51101-51110) and the Garmar Theatre ((30301-30305) from the same period. In the immediate post-war period the system was used to build housing, commercial and factory buildings to satisfy the pent-up demand for new construction.
Date:: 1946-49
Resource Type:: still image
Collection:: S. Charles Lee Papers, 1919-1962