Eastland in 1960

To bookend Randall Smith's post on Eastland's 3-day Grand Opening (which ended 65 years ago tonight), I present this pair of previously unknown photos that I acquired just this past week.

Eastland Shopping Center, West Covina, California, June, 1960. Click image to enlarge. Photo copyright © J Scott Shannon.

Eastland was once the showpiece gateway to the San Gabriel Valley, as this impressive view attests. Coming down off Kellogg Hill heading toward L.A., the flagship May Co. building in particular was a bold visual announcement to every commuter and traveler that they had arrived in a great American metropolis. By contrast, Eastland Center today is a pale postmodern shadow of its former self, notably lacking the grand scale and aesthetic appeal of its original incarnation.

The Paul Cummins Huddle Restaurant, West Covina, California, June, 1960. Click image to enlarge. Photo copyright © J Scott Shannon.

This photo of the Huddle Restaurant is special because, to the best of my knowledge, it's the only known view of the rear of this lost Googie treasure. (The front was previously featured here.)

Sources:

 

Eastland at 65

...by guest author Randall Smith

65 years ago today . . .
Eastland Shopping Center officially opened its doors to the public, on Thursday, October 24, 1957, with a Grand Opening gala celebration. Emceed by KTTV on-air personality, Bill Walsh, the celebratory activities occurred over a three-day period.

Original advertisement for Eastland’s grand opening. Pasadena Independent, Thursday, October 24, 1957.

Detail: Eastland's fifty-one original tenants.

Aerial photograph of Eastland Shopping Center on September 19, 1957, just three days after the May Co. grand opening. Just a few of the mall shops were open at this time, while interior build-outs were still being completed at most of the tenant storefronts. Note that the iconic “M” has yet to be installed on the sign structure on top of the May Co. building. Photo courtesy Los Angeles Public Library.

Old City Hall on Citrus

Another rare view of downtown Covina, this one from December, 1924-January, 1925. The vantage point is the roof of the Finch Building at 113 N. Citrus, looking northeast. Easy to tell it's wintertime, with new snow in the mountains. The date range can be deduced by the car license plates: about half of which are in the style of 1925 and the other half appear to be 1924, so it's probably close to the end of the year when plates would be in transition. It's also likely a weekday, as a customer can be seen exiting the First National Bank building on the northeast corner of Citrus and College, which opened in 1924.

North Citrus Avenue in Winter, 1925. Photographer unknown, but likely C. W. Tucker. Click image to enlarge.

Probably the most interesting detail in this photo is the lettering in the window of the storefront two doors up from the furniture store. It reads "COVINA CITY HALL." Check out the closeup below.

The pre-1930 Covina City Hall at 132 N. Citrus.

I'd always wondered where city hall was located before the "new" one opened in January, 1930,¹ and now I know!

Another noteworthy detail in this photo is the closeup of the Finch Brothers street clock. Apparently its original face used IIII for the 4, while the one now has IV. The rest of the old downtown landmark has remained unchanged since it was erected in 1916.¹

¹ Pflueger, D. H. 1964. Covina: Sunflowers, Citrus, Subdivisions. Castle Press, Pasadena, California, 372pp.

 

Early Covina Theatre Photo

I believe I may have found the earliest known photograph of the Covina Theatre. Judging by the car license plates, it was taken in 1924. The theater itself opened in 1921, so I am reasonably confident earlier images of it must exist, but to the best of my knowledge, none of those have yet seen the light of day in our times.

Citrus and Badillo in 1924. Photo by Tucker Studio. Click image to enlarge.

At first glance, it appears the theater does not yet have a marquee. However, on higher magnification, the longer panels on the canopy can be seen to spell out C-O-V-I-N-A--T-H-E-A-T-R-E. Although not very visible in the daytime, it's likely those panels were made of glass and were backlit by light bulbs in the evening.

Closeup of the early marquee. The panels on the right of the canopy spell out T-H-E-A-T-R-E.

In the Thirties, both the theater marquee and the building's exterior facade were upgraded to a more modern appearance.