The Pantages Theatre formally opened on June 4, 1930 with the premiere of MGM’s The Florodora Girl starring Marion Davies. Opening night at the Pantages Theatre, view from Argyle Avenue (California State Library) Hundreds of fans lined traffic-jammed Hollywood Boulevard, all hoping to catch a glimpse of their favorite stars: Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, Gloria Swanson in white velvet, Maureen O’Sullivan, Billie Burke and Florenz Ziegfeld, Phyllis Haver in pink lace, Delore

On Dec. 29, 1938, Iris Waltrip was crowned Miss Hollywood! The 18-year-old high school senior — who was actually from Glendale — unanimously beat out four other finalists, whittled down from a pool of 1,000 contestants, at the Roosevelt Hotel. Miss Hollywood 1939, Iris Waltrip (USC) Clad in a white satin swimsuit “and a charming smile,” the 5'4" stunner was noted for being 114 pounds with brown hair and hazel eyes.

Anyone could live like a movie star at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard: the Garden Court Apartments. Opened in 1917 to accommodate players in the burgeoning motion-picture industry, the four-story’s neoclassical exterior featured Corinthian columns, dentil cornice, and figural corbels “holding up” the second-story molding. At the entrance, a trio of cherubs embraced a fountain, flanked by a pair of globe light posts.

On Hollywood Boulevard, there is one last vestige of residential architecture: the home of pioneering sisters Mabel, Carrie, and Grace Janes. Now, No Vacancy cocktail bar. The Misses Janes School (Hollywood Historic Photos) In 1905, the trio moved with their parents Herman and Mary Janes from Illinois into this majestic Queen Anne on Prospect Avenue, as it was then known — built in 1903 by none other than H. J. Whitley, the Father of Hollywood. Its architects, Dennis & Farwel

The Circus Cafe was not for kids — the cocktail lounge inside Albert Sheetz Mission Candies at 6656 Hollywood Boulevard served up adult beverages in a whimsical atmosphere. Circus Cafe (The Huntington Library) According to the 12-page menu: “Our drinks, whether cocktails or mixed, are smooth enough for a lady, strong enough for a man, a velvety escape from stark reality; we mean, that they are like moonbeams of Romance.”

Before Hollywood Boulevard catered to tourists, it was a destination for locals — and J.J. Newberry at the corner of Whitley Avenue was a one-stop shop. The Five-and-Dime chain popped up at 6602 Hollywood Boulevard in March 1930, inside a custom turquoise and gold Art Deco building that “presents a hint of magic in its decorative treatment,” noted the Hollywood Citizen News, “and more than a hint of modern efficiency in its general arrangement.”

The finest jewelry shop in Hollywood, Robert Gail was a cut above the rest. Its grand opening in 1929 was treated as a movie premiere — klieg lights illuminated the building on Hollywood Boulevard; inside, motion picture actresses served as hostesses, as a live band entertained. Every female in attendance received a French compact as a souvenir.