Pasadena: Then and Now

Posted on July 6, 2013 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

In 1888, the city of Pasadena, CA built an opera house at a cost of $125,000 ($3.15 million in 2012 dollars). The design used the Moorish revival style, which was very popular at the time. The building was razed in 1926.

PasadenaOpera

The Royal Laundry building, which replaced the opera house in the 30s, was built by Gordon Kaufmann, the same architect who designed the Santa Anita racetrack and Los Angeles Times building. The Royal Laundry complex was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.

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About Blowhard, Esq.

Amateur, dilettante, wannabe.
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3 Responses to Pasadena: Then and Now

  1. Paleo Retiree's avatar Paleo Retiree says:
    July 7, 2013 at 5:17 am

    It’s too bad the opera house isn’t still around. But Pasadena is really rich in cool buildings anyway.

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  2. Callowman's avatar Callowman says:
    July 8, 2013 at 4:00 pm

    The laundry building isn’t bad, and it’s probably nice to be in. It has big windows, and the classicizing modernist buildings of the 20s and early 30s usually have pleasant proportions and more luxurious interiors than the poky exteriors promise. The opera house was more dramatic, but was probably jerry-built if it was ready for the wrecking ball after just 48 years.

    Btw, Blowhard, Esq., I ran across a dead tumblr called Urban Geographer when I transferred my rss feeds last week. That’s you, no?

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    • Blowhard, Esq.'s avatar Blowhard, Esq. says:
      July 8, 2013 at 4:16 pm

      Yeah, I like the laundry building too. If you’re going to replace an opera house, might as well replace it with an art deco building.

      And yes, that was an old Tumblr that I haven’t updated in forever. I should nuke it seeing as I probably won’t ever use it again.

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