The Hotel Alexandria is a historic building constructed as a luxury hotel at the beginning of the 20th century in what was then the heart of
downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. As the business center of the city moved gradually westward, the hotel decayed and gradually devolved into a
single room occupancy (SRO) hotel housing long-term, low income residents and gained a reputation for crime and being unsafe.
Due to its elegant design and the fact that its public rooms sat disused for decades, it has been the site of countless film shoots, and its iconic
Palm Court
A palm court is a large atrium (architecture), atrium with Arecaceae, palm trees, usually in a prestigious hotel, where functions are staged, notably tea dances. Examples include the Langham Hotel, London, Langham Hotel (1865), Alexandra Palace (1 ...
ballroom is a protected Los Angeles landmark. As the area was revitalized in the first decade of the 21st century, the building found itself at the heart of this and has recently been remodeled as apartments. The building continues to advertise itself for movie locations and social events.
History
Early years
The Hotel Alexandria, designed by architect
John B. Parkinson of the firm of Parkinson & Bergstrom and constructed by developers
Albert Bilicke (1861–1915) and Robert Arnold Rowan (1875–1918), opened on February 12, 1906 as an 8-story luxury hotel at the southwest corner of Spring and 5th Streets in downtown Los Angeles.
Its popularity resulted in Parkinson & Bergstrom designing a twelve-story addition, which was built behind the original building in 1911. Bilicke died in 1915 when he went down with the ocean liner
RMS ''Lusitania''. Rowan died not long after. Their widows, Gladys Huff Bilicke and Laura Schwarz Rowan, sold the hotel in 1919 to the builders of the nearby
Ambassador Hotel, and the Alexandria was for a time part of the Ambassador Hotels System.
The hotel was the most luxurious in Los Angeles for a number of years until the construction of the
Biltmore Hotel three blocks west in 1923. The Ambassador Hotels System sold the hotel in 1927, and it was sold again in 1930, before going bankrupt and closing in 1932.
The hotel's gold leaf ceilings, furniture, chandeliers and other fittings were sold in 1934 to pay off debts. The hotel was sold again in 1937, to film producer
Phil Goldstone
Phil Goldstone (1893–1963) was a Polish-born American film producer and film director, director. He was also a real estate developer in Palm Springs, California, Palm Springs. Goldstone was involved with low-budget Poverty Row companies such as ...
, who renovated and reopened it. In 1946, following the end of WWII, Goldstone sold the hotel. In 1954, the new owners altered the original lobby by filling in the mezzanine floor in order to house the Pacific Coast Merchandise Mart. The lobby below was given a "Mid-Century Modern French Provincial look, featuring square pillars, custom-made furniture and planters". It was later acquired by real estate developer
S. Jon Kreedman in 1961, who renovated it in 1970 in a faux-Victorian style.
Decay
The Palm Court, by the early 1970s, was in relatively good shape, and was declared as a city historic-cultural landmark on March 3, 1971. By this time, there had been a gradual westward movement of the entire downtown business district. The old heart of Los Angeles along Broadway was abandoned and a new downtown grew up west of the Biltmore along Figueroa. In the early 1980s, the hotel housed "Disco 500" on the first floor. The hotel's decline was becoming noticeable with low occupancy and shabby interiors. It was gradually transformed into a
Single Room Occupancy
Single room occupancy (more commonly abbreviated to SRO) is a form of housing that is typically aimed at residents with low or minimal incomes who rent small, furnished single rooms with a bed, chair, and sometimes a small desk. SRO units are ren ...
or SRO hotel, housing long-term low-income residents. Its location near Los Angeles's
Skid Row
A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...
meant that it had long since ceased to attract overnight guests. During this period the building became notorious for drug crime and its generally dangerous character.
Rebirth
In 2005, as the area around the hotel was gradually transformed with the conversion of numerous buildings to expensive lofts, the new owners of the hotel converted it permanently into an apartment building. Remodeling was conducted gradually, as short-term tenants moved out. The building today contains a mix of market rate and subsidized housing. The building was declared a historic place.
Its elegant ballrooms are frequently rented for events, filming and weddings. From 2010 to 2014, its lobby featured The Gorbals, a restaurant run by ''
Top Chef
''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional chef ...
'' winner
Ilan Hall
Ilan D. Hall is an American chef, television personality, and restaurateur. He won second season of ''Top Chef,'' and is owner-chef of Ramen Hood in Los Angeles.
Early life and education
Hall is a native of Great Neck, New York. His parents wer ...
.
Phantom Wing
The Hotel Alexandria has an additional wing, on the 5th Street side, that is no longer part of the hotel. It was built by local businessman William Chick, who owned the land, in conjunction with the main hotel in 1905.
It mirrors the main hotel's design. Each floor offered guest rooms on a hallway that connected to the hallways of the Alexandria.
When the wing's new owners came into conflict with the owners of the Alexandria in 1938, the Alexandria simply bricked up the hallways on all seven floors at the end of their property, making the hotel rooms in the smaller wing completely inaccessible, as Chick had not constructed stairs or an elevator in his wing, relying on those in the main hotel. The retail spaces on the ground floor remained in use over the ensuing years, while the hotel rooms sat as largely untouched time capsules.
The entire building was finally sold in 2012 for conversion to condos, with no connection anymore to the adjacent Alexandria Hotel.
Film location
The hotel has played host to countless film shoots. Its ornate public rooms, marble staircases and decaying grandeur have made it a favorite of movies, music videos, television commercials and fashion shoots. In
David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fin ...
's ''
Se7en'' (1995), it served as the residence of the killer, John Doe, for a lengthy chase sequence through much of the hotel. Other films shot in the Alexandria include ''A Midnight Romance'' (1919), ''
Dreamgirls
''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others,Gro ...
'' (2006), ''
Water for Elephants
''Water for Elephants'' is the third novel by the Canadian–American author Sara Gruen. The book was published in 2006 by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. The historical fiction novel is a 20th century circus drama. Gruen wrote the book as part ...
'' (2011), ''
Spider-Man 3
''Spider-Man 3'' is a 2007 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. It was directed by Sam Raimi from a screenplay by Raimi, his older brother Ivan and Alvin Sargent. It is the final installment in Raimi's ...
'' (2007), and ''
Domino
Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...
'' (2005). The video for Dwight Yoakam's 1987 hit song, "Little Sister", was filmed in one of the ballrooms.
References
External links
The Alexandria Ballrooms websiteHotel Alexandria on the USC LA Walking Tour
{{Eppley
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
Buildings and structures in Downtown Los Angeles
Historic district contributing properties in California
National Register of Historic Places in Los Angeles
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
Hotel buildings completed in 1906
Hotel buildings completed in 1911
1906 establishments in California
John and Donald Parkinson buildings
Defunct hotels in Los Angeles