Shrine Auditorium

Al Malaikah Temple
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location:	665 W. Jefferson Blvd Los Angeles, California
Coordinates:	34°01′23.55″N 118°16′53.55″W
Built:	1925
Architect:	John C. Austin
Architectural style:	Moorish Revival
Governing body:	Al Malaikah Auditorium Company
NRHP Reference#:	87000577
Added to NRHP:	April 2, 1987

The old Shrine Auditorium, 1910.

The Shrine Auditorium is a landmark large-event venue, in Los Angeles, California. It is also the headquarters of the Al Malaikah Temple, a division of the Shriners.

History

Opened in 1926, the current Shrine Auditorium replaced an earlier 1906 Al Malaikah Temple which had been destroyed by a fire on January 11, 1920. The fire gutted the original building in just 30 minutes, and nearly killed six firefighters in the process. The new auditorium was designed in the Moorish Revival style by San Francisco-based theater architect G. Albert Lansburgh, with local architects John C. Austin and A. M. Edelman associated. When built, the auditorium could hold 1,200 people on stage and seat an audience of 6,442. An engineer who consulted on the project said that the steel truss supporting the balcony was the largest ever constructed.

In 2002, the Auditorium underwent a $15 million renovation that upgraded the auditorium's stage with state-of-the-art lighting and rigging systems, and included new roofing and air conditioning for both the Auditorium and Expo Center, modernized concession stands, additional restrooms, repainting of the Expo Center, and a new performance plaza and parking garage. The entire complex follows a Moroccan architectural motif.

The Shrine Auditorium seats approximately 6,300 people (reseated during the 2002 renovation from the original 6,700 capacity) and has a stage 194 feet (59 m) wide and 69 feet (21 m) deep.

Notable events

The Shrine Auditorium has hosted a number of events, mainly for entertainment. The Academy Awards were held at the Shrine from 1947–1948 and for eight times between 1988 and 2001 until it moved to the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. The Shrine has hosted several Grammy ceremonies until 2000 when it had moved to the nearby Staples Center. The Primetime Emmy Awards were also held at the venue for a decade beginning in 1998. However, the Primetime ceremony was moved to the nearby Nokia Theatre (which is next door to Staples Center).

Among other entertainment events the Shrine has hosted were the American Music Awards, BET Awards, NAACP Image Awards, People's Choice Awards, the Soul Train Music Awards, My VH1 Music Awards in 2000 and 2001, and the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

For 33 years, Shrine Auditorium was home to the University of Southern California Trojans basketball team. The Trojans' home court was on the Shrine's stage. The Los Angeles Lakers also briefly played some playoff games in the theatre, when the nearby Los Angeles Sports Arena was unavailable. The Shrine Circus, concerts, stage shows and other events are also held here. The Shrine Auditorium was also the venue for the 55th Miss Universe beauty pageant.

The 1933 movie King Kong filmed the audience in the Shrine Auditorium for the scenes where Kong was displayed manacled on stage.

On August 24, 1968, The Grateful Dead performed and recorded their show, later released as a live album, entitled Two from the Vault.

On January 27, 1984, Michael Jackson was filming a Pepsi commercial, when pyrotechnics accidentally set his hair on fire. He suffered second degree burns to his scalp, as a result of the incident.

On November 8–9, 1995, Fugazi performed two sold-out concerts at the venue.

The auditorium has hosted KIIS-FM's Jingle Ball three times, on December 16, 2000, December 19, 2001 and December 6, 2005.

The Shrine is featured in the video game Midnight Club: Los Angeles, part of its "South Central Map Expansion".

The Auditorium features two boxes above the orchestra level holding 40 people each and seven loges on the balcony holding between 36 and 47 seats each (total capacity of the loges: 274). Of the remaining seats, 2,964 are on the orchestra level and 2,982 on the balcony level.

Shrine Expo Center

Adjacent to the Shrine Auditorium is the Shrine Expo Center, which features 54,000 square feet (5,000 m²) of exhibit and meeting space—34,000 in the main level and 20,000 in an open mezzanine. The Expo Center has a capacity of 4,000 patrons. Trade shows, banquets, conventions and electronic music festivals, among other events, have been held there.

See also

• List of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in South Los Angeles
• List of Registered Historic Places in Los Angeles

External links

• Shrine LA! Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall Official Site

Preceded by Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Los Angeles	Host of the Academy Awards 1988 - 2001	Succeeded by Kodak Theatre Hollywood
Preceded by Impact Arena Bangkok, Thailand	Miss Universe Venue 2006	Succeeded by Auditorio Nacional Mexico City, Mexico
Preceded by Pasadena Civic Auditorium Shubert Theatre	Host of the Primetime Emmy Awards 1998-2000 2002-2007	Succeeded by Shubert Theatre Nokia Theatre
Preceded by Santa Monica Civic Auditorium	Host of the Screen Actors Guild Awards 1997-Present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by Hollywood Palladium Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall	Host of the Grammy Awards 1978-1980 1982-1987 1989-1990 1992-1993 1995-1996 1999	Succeeded by Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall Madison Square Garden Staples Center
Preceded by American Airlines Arena	Host of the Latin Grammy Awards 2004-2005	Succeeded by Madison Square Garden