Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA, circa 1930

Subjects: Automobiles Theaters & Opera Houses
Card type: Linen
Date: c. 1930 (White Border)

Back of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA, circa 1930, Los Angeles, CA, USA, c. 1930 linen postcard — Back

About this postcard

Street view of Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, with its pagoda-like central roof, flanking towers topped by tall green finials, and red-and-gold vertical signs reading "CHINESE"; dark, boxy automobiles are parked along the curb. The theatre was opened in 1927 by showman Sid Grauman, its Chinese-style facade designed by Raymond M. Kennedy of Meyer & Holler, and its forecourt became famous for celebrity hand- and footprints set in concrete. The sender's mention of a Santa Monica earthquake and a trip to the Rose Tournament in Pasadena, together with the automobiles, dates the card to the early 1930s.

Postcard Details

Message · English, in pen

This is the [illegible] Chinese Theatre in Hollywood - I was over to Eliza's - the maid told me Mrs. Butler was out of the city. Did you see in the paper that Santa Monica had earth quake? We did not know what it was - we thought - there had been an explosion some where - it was over in a second - Eliza + I went to Pasadena to the Rose Tournament - It was a grand sight - just beautiful and oh! Such a crowd of people - It was much as your life was worth to get into the city or out of it again.

Addressed to

No address detected

Postcard record

Publisher	Pacific Novelty Co.
Series	A-87
Condition	Good
Place depicted	Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA
Publisher	Pacific Novelty Co., San Francisco, CA
Notes	White border; visible linen/canvas texture in the sky. Pencil inscription "This is the ... Chinese Theatre in Hollywood -" along the front bottom margin; penciled dealer/collector code "# 2 AA 0" at top edge of back. No postmark or stamp. Divided-back "POST CARD" with Pacific Novelty Co. (San Francisco & Los Angeles) imprint; handwritten message in pen across both halves; light toning/aging.

Cite this card

Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA, circa 1930, postcard, c. 1930. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/graumans-chinese-theatre-hollywood-ca-circa-1930. Accessed November 2, 2026.