{"nrhp_refnum":"96000102","name":"Alexander Theatre","other_names":["Alex Theatre"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"216 N. Brand Blvd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Glendale","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":34.14908322700006,"lon":-118.25428410499995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-02-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story reinforced concrete vaudeville and movie theater at 216 N. Brand Blvd. in Glendale, California, completed in 1925 and given a marquee and 100-foot tower in 1940.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the theater is tied to Glendale's civic and social development and to the motion picture industry, and is the last remaining historic theater of its type in the city. It is also an example of the vaudeville-movie palace type, a surviving theater with a forecourt, and one of few atmospheric auditoriums in Southern California. The 1940 marquee and tower were designed by prominent theater architect S. Charles Lee.","narrative":"Alex Theatre is a vaudeville and movie house on Brand Boulevard, Glendale's main commercial street. Built in 1925 from designs by Arthur G. Lindley and Charles R. Selkirk, it seated 1,958 and was developed by theater magnate C. L. Langley, who named it for his son. Its facade and lobby use Greek, Roman and Egyptian motifs, and the auditorium is an atmospheric design with a ceiling painted and lit to suggest a twilight sky. In 1940 S. Charles Lee added a 100-foot neon tower, marquee and canopy in the forecourt, with Art Deco and Streamline Moderne details. A 1948 fire led to redecoration, which was reversed in a 1993 rehabilitation. Listed for its role in Glendale's civic life and the film industry, and for its architecture, it is the last historic theater of its kind in the city, and one of few atmospheric theaters in Southern California.","period_of_significance":"1925-1945","architect_builder":"Arthur G. Lindley and Charles R. Selkirk, Associates, architects, 1925; S. Charles Lee, architect, 1940; Robert E. Power Studios, decorator, 1925; Kinne & Westerhouse, Engineers, builder, 1925","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Classical Revival and Egyptian Revival; Modern Movement: Art Deco and Moderne","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a theater. A major rehabilitation and restoration was completed in 1993, reversing 1948 alterations and adapting the building for live presentation.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.984107-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/96000102.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000102/420d5e4119-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000102/420d5e4119-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"Ilpo's Sojourn","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alex_Theater.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Ilpo's Sojourn</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alex_Theater.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858911","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Theatre","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4717884"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/alexander-theatre-96000102/"}