Buicks in the Hood

 

I'm obsessed with L.A. history, especially the history of our West Adams neighborhood. Our house just celebrated its hundredth birthday. Henry C. Jensen built it and lived here with his family until his death in 1944. Jensen created some of the earliest movie theatres in Los Angeles, from the Palace Grand in 1914 to Jensen's Raymond Theatre in 1921, one of the finest movie palaces in the country up to that time. I often think about what our street looked like when Jensen was driving from our house to the many movie theatres he owned and ran. As I wait for the new Buick LaCrosse to be delivered for the TCM Film Festival which begins tomorrow night, I wonder if Jensen ever drove a Buick like the 1910 model pictured above. I've been doing some research in the L.A. Times archives and discovered that Buicks were among of the most sought after cars in southern California when our house was brand new. They sold like hotcakes in our neighborhood, which at the time was one of the most exclusive spots in the city (before it suffered a massive decline during the Great Depression causing most of the grand homes to be abandoned, torn down, or turned into boarding houses). Jensen may have stored his Buick in our garage which still stands, complete with a mechanics' pit that allowed full access to the vehicle. 

It was tough going for many automobile manufacturers in those early days. Crises in the industry were as common then as they are now. In 1910, the field was littered with start-ups and wannabes and according to an article from September 20, 1910, Buick had just missed a meltdown of its own. With the headline, “Reorganization of Buick Plant,” the article describes how General Motors had been able to avert an impending crisis that would have caused the company to stop production of its popular cars. “An announcement came from Flint, Mich., today that the Buick Automobile Company, the backbone of the General Motors Company, has been reorganized with the aid of Boston capital, and was ready to proceed with work on its 1911 output.”

Since cars were still relatively new and being re-invented each year, shortages were a huge problem—there was just no way to keep up with the growing demand, especially in California. This January ad urges potential customers to be sure to order their new Buicks NOW because by spring they’ll surely be out of stock. 

The main distributor of Buicks in Los Angeles was downtown, just a few miles from my house. Owner C. S. Howard created the concept of the automobile showroom and he was constantly touting the new shipments arriving from Michigan. As a publicity stunt, he reprinted his correspondence with Buick’s offices in Flint. “We hereby accept your telegraphic order of January third for a solid trainload of 50 double-decked carloads of Buick automobiles to be shipped as a special train January 25th. All of these cars to be fully equipped with tops, glass fronts and presto-lite tanks. Value of shipment three hundred and nine thousand, one hundred dollars. This will be the largest single shipment of automobiles ever made to one concern and we hope that you will appreciate our efforts in giving you a shipment of this size at a time when we are so crowded with orders. Sincerely, Buick Motor Co.” When I tried to find out more about Howard, I quickly discovered that after becoming a multi-millionaire from his Buick showrooms, he gained fame and even more riches years later as the owner of the legendary horse Seabiscuit. His early cars had replaced horses on the roads of California, but he was drawn back to the animals in the end.

By the early 1920s, Howard broke all automobile distribution records. Howard told the L.A. Times that the wildly increasing orders “seemed to show that Buick hit squarely the bullseye of public taste and design and construction of the new models.” June 1923 saw the production of the millionth Buick automobile which caused Howard to encourage his loyal customers to wax nostalgic about their favorite Buick models of "yesteryear" and send in photographs of their old cars. One of the best, according to the Times, was “a photograph of what was known in 1908 as the Buick White Streak, and the mortal who drove it in those days was considered about the luckiest man in Los Angeles.”

 

And that’s how I feel today, waiting for my car which will transport me to screenings of some of the best films ever made at two of the grandest movie palaces ever built. The list of actors and filmmakers who will be on hand to introduce their films at the festival includes Luise Rainer, Esther Williams, Ernest Borgnine, Jerry Lewis, Mel Brooks, Eva Marie Saint, Tony Curtis, Jon Voight, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Martin Landau, Anjelica and Danny Huston, Buck Henry, Eli Wallach, Peter Bogdanovich, Stanley Donen, Alec Baldwin, Tab Hunter, Nancy Olson, Illeana Douglas, Susan Kohner, Juanita Moore, Darryl Hickman, Curtis Hanson, Richard Rush, Douglas Trumbull, and our friends Betty Garrett and Norman Lloyd, among others. TCM host Robert Osborne will be on hand, of course, along with weekend-daytime host Ben Mankiewicz. After the gala premiere tomorrow night, I’m planning on going to at least five films a day Friday through Sunday. My eyes may be permanently damaged, but it will be worth it. Most of the screenings will be at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and Grauman's Egyptian, both on Hollywood Boulevard. Headquarters for the festival will be at the nearby Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, site of the first Academy Awards presentation in 1929. As I drive my LaCrosse to Hollywood, I'll be imagining all of the classic Buicks that once stood in front of these grand venues. 

More soon from the heart of Old Hollywood.

Comments

[CB]

I am increasingly blown away by your enthusiasm and your research prowess for Buick history!
As a GM PR rep, I am darned proud to know you, Danny. I learned a lot! Really enjoying your blog posts.
Thank you.

[Kirk]

That's a fantastic photo of Hollywood Blvd. Over the years, I bet it inspired a lot young men and women to leave the old homestead behind

[Jane]

I loved this post, Danny! As usual, I learned a lot and had fun learning. I hope you have a great time at the festival!

[Heather]

Awesome post! However you must know that I am "pea-green with envy" (to quote Miss Scarlett), that you are getting to go to this festival! Seriously though, I hope you have a wonderful time and don't go blind!
;-)

[Judy]

Now I know for sure, you're haunted by that man who built your home. I can imagine your head spinning by five movies each day!!!
Ay carumba...feast for the soul!!!
Keep us posted, if you can see your computer at the end of the day.

[The Pliers]

I had both a '73 Buick Centurion and a '71 Buick Delta 88 from 1985 - 2005. The gas mileage, or lack thereof, and the weight of solid steel got the better of my wallet and my gimpy hands, respectively.

I am only "pea green" over your unbridled enthusiasm! Have fun!