Pdxguide

Built by architects Bennes & Herzog in the grand Baroque and Gothic Eclectic styles for Fox, the 1500 seat Hollywood opened its doors on July 17, 1926 with the film More Pay-Less Work. The Hollywood was-and is-one of the most ornate movie palaces in the Pacific Northwest, built in a time when theaters were meant to stand out. With its unique Byzantine rococo tower, the theater quickly became a fixture in the neighborhood, so much so that the commercial district along Sandy surrounding the Hollywood was named after it (not the other way around!), the only time a neighborhood in Portland was named after a building. Like the Bagdad, the Hollywood started as a cinema/vaudeville house, but switched to all movies sometime mid-century. The Hollywood got into the widescreen game, when in the early 1960’s it became Cinerama-capable. In 1975, to better compete with the cineplex competition, the balcony was converted into two smaller theaters, a setup that remains to this day. This wasn’t enough, though, and the Hollywood went through its slump years. The turnaround came in April of 1997, when the Oregon Film & Video Foundation bought the ailing cinema. Committed to restoring the Hollywood to its original luster, its new owners have been extensively renovating the theater inside and out. Hopefully in the near future they will be able to remove the red floor-to-ceiling draperies in the main theater and restore the deco interior that hides behind it. Currently the Hollywood shows an eclectic mix of international. indie-arthouse, and local films, and hosts various film festivals. Four dollar movie night on Monday!