When the Chandler family relinquished ownership of the Los Angeles Times in 2000, it sounded a discordant note all across the southland.
For while the Chandlers and ancestor Col. Otis before them were imperfect stewards, they were undeniably devoted to the growth and dignity of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Times, that city’s newspaper. Chicago-based Tribune’s tenure has been closer to Animal House than Pulitzer territory, as the once great paper has hemorrhaged staff while failing miserably to comprehend the challenges and opportunities of the digital era.
Which brings us to this week’s announcement that Tribune Tronc is close to selling the “landmark” Times-Mirror compound at 1st and Spring Streets, landmark in quotes because not one part of this magnificent compound is a protected Historic-Cultural Monument. Not Gordon B. Kaufmann’s broad-shouldered 1935 Art Deco jewel box with its glowing neon clock, not Rowland Crawford’s boldly vertical 1948 Times Mirror addition, not William Peirera’s elegant, and widely misunderstood, 1973 black glass corporate headquarters.
Although the lobbies of the Kaufmann and Crawford buildings are accessible, much of the compound remains a mystery to the public and sadly, in recent years to newspaper staff as well.
With a sale possible and no civic protection for these important buildings, as a public service we share these interior photos, shot last fall while scouting locations for an Angels Flight Railway benefit. In the end, we held it at the Million Dollar Theater. But we sure did enjoy our spin around the old Times HQ, and think you will, too. Long may she stand.
* * *
Post updated to include a link to our colleague Nathan Marsak’s appearance on “Press Play with Madeleine Brand” talking about the preservation concerns surrounding the proposed sale.
- Cornerstone, Gordon B. Kaufmann’s 1935 building
- Entryway to the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Million dollar view from the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Times Building reflection from Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Broken masonry visible from the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Broken masonry visible from the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Norman Chandler Pavilion shelving
- Hidden cupboard in the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Norman Chandler Pavilion light fixture (on)
- Norman Chandler Pavilion light fixture (off)
- Kitchen off the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Understated font in the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Understated font in the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- Sleek walls in the Norman Chandler Pavilion
- A glimpse of the Peirera corporate HQ atrium
- Peirera corporate HQ atrium
- Peirera corporate HQ atrium
- Architectural historians Richard Schave and Nathan Marsak in the Peirera corporate HQ atrium
- Architectural historian Nathan Marsak checks for bugs in a reflective door pull in the Peirera corporate HQ
- A small conference room in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Patio view from the Peirera corporate HQ
- City Hall reflected from a window in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Faded symbolism in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Gorgeous paneling in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Gorgeous paneling in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Gorgeous paneling in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Futuristic board room in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Futuristic board room in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Wide halls in the Peirera corporate HQ
- Kaufmann elevator lobby eagle that survived the 1910 bombing
- Kaufmann elevator lobby eagle that survived the 1910 bombing
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Kaufmann Eagle elevator lobby detail
- Crawford addition lobby telephone booths
- Crawford addition lobby detail