I dig the pop culture.
In 1958 Harvey Ortner and his wife Minnie built The Broiler restaurant on Firestone Blvd. on the site of an old chicken farm in Downey, California. Their architect was Paul B. Clayton who penned a classic example of what would become know as "Googie" style architecture. In Googie, according to www.bobsbigboybroiler.com, elements of space age are melded with neon, river rock and large panels of glass to create buildings that were visual works of art-vertising that so overwhelmed the view, they couldn't help but explore further.
Harvey's was topped by a 60 foot bent arrow shaped sign with 6 foot tall neon letters that could be seen from a mile away.
The place was a hit. And not just for it burgers, fries and shakes, it was a hangout for car clubs through the 1960's and 1970's. And it became a pop culture and car culture landmark. Harvey changed the name to Johnie's in the late 1970's, but he owned the Broiler into the 1980's. The next owner kept the doors open until New Year's Eve 2001.
Soon after that it was a used car dealership and movie filming location rented for such films as Pulp Fiction and Heat. But the building fell into decline and on January 7th, 2007 an illegal demolition of Johnie's. It was soon stopped by the city and concerned citizens, but not before most of Paul B. Clayton's creation lay in ruins.
The people organized. Committees like Friends of Johnie's Broiler and the Coalition to Save and Rebuild Harvey's Broiler were formed. The goal was clear: Save this icon. And they did. The city placed a moratorium on further destruction and in 2008 it was bought be the folks at Bob's Big Boy (another drive in icon) and was reborn as the Bob's Big Boy Broiler, which opened a couple of months ago. They even followed Paul Clayton's original 1958 buleprints.
Last week I took my kids there in our long-term 2010 Volvo XC60. We ate burgers, fries and shakes. You should go.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief
alex4515 says:
11:47 AM, 01/29/10
Would love to but I live in Texas. Cool story though!
octoberten says:
12:23 PM, 01/29/10
wow! i've been in LA for a over 5 years now, and was totally unaware that this place existed!
i'll definitely be hitting this place up really soon!
drewsrx says:
12:28 PM, 01/29/10
Gotta love the tail-lights on the XC60.
They fit in perfectly with the neon signs.
desmolicious says:
01:16 PM, 01/29/10
Nice piece of Americana. Which brings up the Vette in the LT fleet. The last entry was 9 days ago.
What's going on with that car?
rick8365 says:
01:42 PM, 01/29/10
Cool story - it is great that it was saved. I'd go if I didn't live on the opposite coast.
It made me think of this place in Utah that I ate at once on a coast to coast run.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30031259@N06/4289111040/
dougnash2009 says:
11:31 AM, 01/30/10
While never actually razed, the fantastic Bob's in Tuluca Lake has been preserved, by similar community activism. As I recall, at one point the owner wanted to drop the place, and put in multi-family housing. The local residents fought that, and succeeded in making the trademark sign, and other aspects of the building "Historical Landmarks". Thus, preserving the restaurant.
I can't imagine how the current owner isn't happy. That place is packed, 24-hours a day. No exaggeration, and anyone who has frequented that joint will easily confirm that.
lmbvette says:
06:36 AM, 02/ 1/10
Very cool story, thanks for sharing Scott. When/if I'm in LA next I'll see if I can check it out.
misterfusion says:
09:43 AM, 02/ 1/10
As a fan of L.A. history and architecture in general, I'd like to thank you for this post. Cool stuff.