Location #3 1/2 :

Neon Signs / A Night on the Town

Q.  Where is it supposed to be?


This isn't exactly a filming location, but it's notable and worth a mention.



At
12:45, as the girls are heading off to the party in their car, and the song "Someone in the Crowd" is playing, the images of a number of bright neon signs flash on the screen, mostly the names of landmark L.A. eateries and clubs
.

But if you wondered where ( or what ) some of those neon signs
were in real life, wonder no longer...
I have the all the answers for you.

  Here is a YouTube video of that neon sequence:




Q. 
Where was it really shot?


The neon signs we see are:  (in order of  appearance)



This is the neon sign of

The Formosa Cafe
at 7156 Santa Monica Blvd, in Hollywood.

Read all about it's long Hollywood history
here.

Here is their website
.

See a Google StreetView
.

Here is a photo of the sign aglow at night.







 
This neon sign sits atop "Paty's" a casual sidewalk cafe/diner
at 10001 Riverside Drive, in the Toluca Lake  neighborhood.

It's been here for over 60 years, and this diner has become something of a local Toluca Lake landmark. Close to Warner Bros. studio, with a popular patio out front, its walls are covered with stars' photos, and the food served is much better than typical diner fare.

Here is their  website.

See a Google StreetView of the sign.






This neon sign is on the front of
The oldest Restaurant in Hollywood:

Musso & Frank
 at 6667 Hollywood Blvd., in Hollywood.

It dates back to 1919, the time of silent movies,
and it hasn't changed much over the years.  A classic.

Read all about it here.

Here is their 
website

Here is a photo of their sign at night.

See a Google StreetView.








This is the rooftop neon sign of the 12-story
"Wilshire Royale" apartments, at 2619 Wilshire Blvd,
in Los Angeles.  It is just west of MacArthur Park.

Built in 1924, that rooftop sign originally read "Arcady",
 as you can see in this old photo.


Here is a photo of the new sign.

See a Google StreetView

See a Google Earth view


Here is their website






For some reason, they cut off the first letter of the name in this shot, resulting in "SBURY" .

This red neon sign is on top of 13-floor
the 
Asbury Hotel (apartments), also near MacArthur park,
 at  2501 West 6th Street, Los Angeles.

There doesn't seem to be much history connected with this one. It appears that they were just shooting in the MacArthur Park area, where there are notable number of large, old rooftop neon signs, and this one must have just caught their attention.

The Asbury is just a two blocks northeast of the Wilshire Royale.

See a  Google StreetView

Here is a photo of the full sign lit at night.

Here is a website






This
"Open Tonight" sign sits outside the old world's oldest
 Bob's Big Boy restaurant, which you will find at
4211 W. Riverside Drive
, in Burbank.

( That's just three blocks east of Paty's. )

This restaurant is an official historical landmark.

But this "open tonight" neon isn't on the large, rectangular slab sign outside Bob's.  Instead, it's part of a separate, smaller, round sign
 below that larger sign, near the corner of Riverside & Rose Street.


Here is their website

Here is a photo of their sign at night.

See a
Google StreetView



This neon sign is on the marquee of
"The Roxy" a legendary night club on the Sunset Strip.
at  9009 Sunset Blvd., in West Hollywood.

The Roxy is one of three vintage '60's / '70's rock clubs ( along with The Whiskey a-Go-Go and The Rainbow ) on the Strip which have survived into the new millennium.

Over the years, its stage has seen the like of Bruce Springsteen, Price, Billy Joel, Jimmy Buffett, Chuck Berry, the Talking Heads, The Cars, Stevie Wonder, The Clash,  Smokey Robinson, Neil Young, Billy Idol, No Doubt, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

See a Google StreetView

Here is a photo of the sign aglow after dark.

Here is their website.





This red arrow and the two blue cocktails are part of the rather audacious, free-standing neon sign outside of

Mel's Diner, at 1660 N Highland Ave, in Hollywood.

This is a branch of the original Mel's Diner in San Francisco, which was the first drive-in diner in California, and the spot where they filmed the diner scenes from "American Graffiti".

Although this Hollywood branch looks like it's been around forever, the restaurant itself is actually a relatively new addition to the Hollywood scene.  But it is located inside part of the historic Max Factor building.

It is right next to the Hollywood Museum,
just south of Hollywood & Highland.

( There is more than one branch of Mel's Diner in L.A.
This is NOT the older one on Sunset Blvd. )


( This arrow is in the lower left part of the Mel's sign. )

See a Google StreetView

( Here is a photo of the entire sign at night. )

Here is their website




This rectangular sign reading "Jam Night" belongs to

The Baked Potato
, a  jazz club
 at
3787 Cahuenga Blvd., in Studio City,
near Universal Studios Hollywood.

For a movie about jazz, this is probably the most relevant sign shown in this montage. The Baked Potato, which opened in 1970, is one of the few remaining old-school jazz clubs in L.A. (and it may be the only one where one can eat actual big baked potatoes while watching a live jazz band concert.)

( Of course, this sign changes, depending on who's playing at the club, so it probably won't read "Jam Nite" the next time you see it. )


Here is a photo of the sign lit at night.

Here is their website

See a Google StreetView




This sign sits atop the 11-story
Knickerbocker
Hotel (now apartments),
 at 1714 Ivar Ave, in Hollywood.

It's simple exterior belies an exceptionally rich Hollywood history, involving everyone from Valentino to Houdini.

Read all about it
here

Here is a good photo of the hotel with its sign aglow.

See a Google StreetView











These two neon signs – the small "Perfection is Forever" sign on the left, and the round-ish one on the right ( that looks somewhat like a seated Buddha ) – are seen separately in the montage, but they are actually part of the same neon sign.

This is a relatively new sign, put up by the Patron liquor company as part of their "perfect" ad campaign for their tequila.

What appears to be a small sign in the montage is actually huge.

It and the other shape ( which is actually a bottle of Patron )
 sit atop the 1929 former Bank of Hollywood  building,
called
"The Hollywood Equitable Building", near the
corner of
Hollywood & Vine,
at 6253 Hollywood Blvd. .

The building now houses "The Lofts at Hollywood & Vine").
It  is right next to (west of) the Pantages Theatre

The big sign on the roof, which originally read "Bank of Hollywood Building". now flashes "Fame is Fleeting.  Perfection is Forever.
It also can show the outline of the Patron bottle and other quotes about perfection. 


Of course, since it's an ad campaign, the message may eventually change. or may disappear completely.

( The red "W", seen to the side, is the sign
atop the nearby
W Hollywood hotel,
at 6250 Hollywood Blvd. )

Here is a photo of the building and its original sign.

Here's a photo of the new neon Patron sign at night.

See a Google StreetView of the new sign.

Here's a website article about it.

Here's an alternate Google StreetView of the sign

And here's a Google Earth shot of that big W.






    

Move on to the next movie location seen in "La La Land".

    

"La La Land" and its images are copyright Summit Entertainment
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