{{Short description|Apartment building, Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument}} {{about|the apartment complex|the film|Bad Times at the El Royale}} {{use MDY dates|date=September 2019}} {{Infobox historic site | name = El Royale | native_name = | image = El Royale Apartments.jpg | coordinates = {{coord|34.07856|-118.326874|display=inline,title}} | location = 450 North Rossmore Avenue, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | built = 1929 | architect = William Douglas Lee | architecture = Spanish Renaissance Revival | website = {{URL|elroyaleapartments.com}} | designation1 = LAHCM | designation1_offname = El Royale Apartments | designation1_date = September 2, 1986 | designation1_number = 309 }}
The '''El Royale''' is a historic apartment complex located at the intersection of Rosewood Avenue and Rossmore Avenue in the Hancock Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. It was designed by famed architect William Douglas Lee<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.elroyaleapartments.com/|title = El Royale Apartments|website = www.elroyaleapartments.com|access-date = 2016-05-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url = http://la.curbed.com/2015/6/2/9954274/el-royale-history|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160322215439/http://la.curbed.com/2015/6/2/9954274/el-royale-history|url-status = dead|archive-date = March 22, 2016|title = The Story of the El Royale, the Most Glamorous Apartment Building in LA|last = Meares|first = Hadley|date = 2015-06-02|website = Curbed LA|access-date = 2016-05-17}}</ref> and completed in 1929.
The apartment building is known as a home for celebrities, and for its iconic green neon rooftop sign, which had been unlit for 50 years.<ref>{{cite news|title=Neon's lasting glow|last=Hawker|first=Philippa|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|date=28 May 2016|page=18}}</ref>
== History == thumb|Entrance to the El Royale
The El Royale was constructed in 1929, underwritten by the Barco Investment Company.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://la.curbed.com/2015/6/2/9954274/el-royale-apartments-history-celebrities|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170504010900/https://la.curbed.com/2015/6/2/9954274/el-royale-apartments-history-celebrities|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 4, 2017|title=LA's most glamorous apartment building|first=Hadley|last=Meares|date=June 2, 2015|website=Curbed LA}}</ref> William Douglas Lee, architect of the famed Chateau Marmont, was conscripted for the design.<ref name="auto"/> It was created as a fusion of Spanish Colonial Revival, French Rococo, and Renaissance styles and featured modern state-of-the-art amenities such as an elevator, neon sign, and putting green. It also showcased luxuries including marble floors, elaborate chandeliers, panoramic penthouse views, and hand-carved wood.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://calisphere.org/item/fd6a50f6500315d0a98c7ee2e4510fcb/|title=El Royale Apartments|website=Calisphere}}</ref><ref name="auto"/>
In 1952, the apartments purchased the Union Oil Building at S Hope Street and 7th Street in Downtown Los Angeles as an investment for $2.2 million<ref>{{cite news|title=Union Oil Co. Building Sells for $2,200,000|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=29 Feb 1952|page=B1}}</ref> (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|2.2|1952|r=1}} million in {{Inflation/year|US}}). In November 2012, the El Royale was purchased by Kamran Hakim and Farhad Eshaghpour for $29.5 million in cash.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204840504578089160651281902 |title=A Hollywood Icon's Turning Point |first=Lauren Schuker |last=Blum |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=1 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/iconic-el-royale-sells-30-million-377105 |title=Iconic El Royale Sells for Nearly $30 Million |first=Joelle |last=Katz |newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter |date=8 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/business/la-xpm-2012-oct-07-la-fi-property-report-20121006-story.html |title=Celebrity magnet El Royale tower said to sell for record price |first=Roger |last=Vincent |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=7 October 2012}}</ref>
== Legacy == thumb|Façade of the El Royale The El Royale has been known as a home for celebrities over the years, including Nicolas Cage,<ref>{{cite news|title=Rattled his cage|newspaper=The Ithaca Journal|location=Ithaca, New York|date=26 June 1991|page=24}}</ref> Huell Howser,<ref>{{cite news|title=Lights Go On Again All Over El Royale|last=Thompson|first=Zan|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=24 Aug 1986|page=10|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-08-24-vw-17508-story.html}}</ref> Al Jolson,<ref>{{cite news|title=Celebrity Homes, Landmarks on Itinerary: Taking a Bus Tour Through L.A.'s Past|last=Ryon|first=Ruth|author-link=Ruth Ryon|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=25 Jan 1987|pages=H1–6|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-01-25-re-6034-story.html}}</ref> and George Raft.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=George Raft|last=Sikov|first=Ed|author-link=Ed Sikov|magazine=Architectural Digest|location=Los Angeles|volume=53|issue=4|date=Apr 1996|page=160}}</ref>
Scenes for ''Double Indemnity'' (1944) were filmed in the building's garage.<ref>{{cite news|title=Looking at Hollywood|first=Hedda|last=Hopper|author-link=Hedda Hopper|newspaper=Chicago Daily Tribune|date=Nov 23, 1943|page=19}}</ref> The front facade of the building has been used in scenes for the TV series ''All of Us'' and ''Girlfriends'',{{cn|date=June 2023}} implying that one of the fictional characters from each show lived at the apartments. The El Royale, however, is ''not'' the setting of the 2018 movie ''Bad Times at the El Royale''.
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == * {{Official website|https://elroyaleapartments.com/}} * {{cite web|url=http://preservation.lacity.org/files/HCMDatabase111510_0.pdf|title=Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument List}}
Category:Apartment buildings in Los Angeles Category:1929 establishments in California
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