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Wilshire Tower

Buildings and structures in Los AngelesLos Angeles stubsMid-Wilshire, Los AngelesRetail buildings in California
Desmond's Tower at 5514 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Desmond's Tower at 5514 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Wilshire Tower is a nine-story tower at 5514 Wilshire Boulevard on the Miracle Mile in the city of Los Angeles. It was designed by Gilbert Stanley Underwood, who was also the architect of the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park, the North Rim lodge at the Grand Canyon, and the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. The style of the building combines two Art Deco variations: Zigzag Moderne and Streamline Moderne. It was the earliest significant structure in the neighborhood and helped the founder of Miracle Mile, A. W. Ross, bring more stores and offices to the area. The Los Angeles Conservancy describes the building as"an eight-story Zigzag Moderne rectangle of offices that vaulted skyward from a wide Streamline Moderne base, a striking and optimistic structure that helped set the architectural standard for Wilshire Boulevard. The lobby featured fourteen-karat gold ceiling detailing; the sidewalk display windows were trimmed in rich black and red granite. Desmond's and Silverwoods department stores based in Downtown Los Angeles, opened branch stores in each of the respective the ground floor wings. Much of the tower space was rented by doctors and dentists for offices. Desmond's branch, at the time of opening of this branch in March 1929, was the largest men's clothing store in the Los Angeles downtown.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Wilshire Tower (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Wilshire Tower
Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles Mid-Wilshire

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Wikipedia: Wilshire TowerContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 34.0621 ° E -118.3489 °
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Address

Wilshire Boulevard 5527
90036 Los Angeles, Mid-Wilshire
California, United States
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Desmond's Tower at 5514 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Desmond's Tower at 5514 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
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Museum Square
Museum Square

Museum Square or the SAG-AFTRA Building, originally the Prudential Building is a landmark building at 5757–5779 Wilshire Boulevard, spanning two city blocks along that street, on the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles housing SAG-AFTRA. It was opened in 1949 and was the tallest and, at 517,000 sq ft (48,000 m2), the largest privately owned structure in Los Angeles at that time. Welton Beckett of Wurdeman & Becket was the architect who designed it in the International Style. The building was part of the decentralization program by Prudential (1948-1965), with Rubin arguing that it included a "deliberate" urban-shaping policy: dazzling office buildings with large parking lots were constructed at the edges of established business districts. Arts & Architecture magazine described the building as a symbol of Los Angeles and the western way of life. During the 1930s and 1940s, the Miracle Mile had become one of the most important shopping districts in the city, with several large department stores and several junior department stores. This building was symbolic of the district's addition function as a major office district. Prudential Insurance Los Angeles offices were located here as was an Ohrbach's department store until it moved down the street in 1965, and a branch of Security-First National Bank. Addition of an office building by Prudential furthered the spread of office space along Wilshire Boulevard, with the land around turning into a high-density office district by 1960s.

Yeshiva Gedolah of Los Angeles

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