Grauman's Egyptian Theatre
| Egyptian Theatre | |
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Grauman's Egyptian Theatre interior, 1922
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| Location | 1650–1654 McCadden Pl & 6706–6712 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California |
| Coordinates | 34°06′03″N 118°20′11″W / 34.10083°N 118.33639°WCoordinates: 34°06′03″N 118°20′11″W / 34.10083°N 118.33639°W |
| Built | 1922 |
| Governing body | private |
| Designated | 1993 |
| Reference no. | 584 |
 Location of Egyptian Theatre in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
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Grauman's Egyptian Theatre is a noted movie theater located at 6706 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California. Opened in 1922, it is an early example of a lavish movie palace and is noted as having been the site of the first-ever Hollywood film premiere. Since 1998 it has been operated by the American Cinematheque film archive.
The Egyptian Theatre was built by showman Sid Grauman and real estate developer Charles E. Toberman, who subsequently built the nearby El Capitan Theatre and Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Grauman had previously opened one of the United States' first movie palaces, the Million Dollar Theater, on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles in 1918. The Egyptian Theatre cost $800,000 to build and took eighteen months to construct. Architects Meyer & Holler designed the building and it was built by The Milwaukee Building Company.
The Egyptian Theatre was the venue for the first-ever Hollywood premiere, Robin Hood, starring Douglas Fairbanks, on Wednesday, October 18, 1922. As the film reportedly cost over $1 million to produce, the admission price to the premiere was $5.00. One could reserve a seat up to two weeks in advance for the daily performances. Evening admission was 75¢, $1.00 or $1.50. The film was not shown in any other Los Angeles theater during that year.
In 1927, Grauman opened a second movie theater further west on Hollywood Boulevard. In keeping with the public fascination in that era with international themes, he named his new theater the Chinese Theatre. Its popularity eventually rivaled and surpassed the Egyptian because of its numerous celebrity handprints, footprints, and signatures in the cement of its forecourt.
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