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{{short description|American architect (1899–1990)}} |
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{{Infobox architect |
{{Infobox architect |
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| name = Simeon Charles Lee<ref>{{cite web|title=Movie Theaters Designed by Simeon Charles Lee - Cinema Treasures|url=http://cinematreasures.org/architects/71|website=cinematreasures.org|publisher=Cinema Treasures, LLC|accessdate=13 July 2016}}</ref> |
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|name = S. Charles Lee |
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|image |
| image = |
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|image_size |
| image_size = (if image is smaller than 250px) |
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|caption |
| caption = |
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|nationality |
| nationality = American |
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|birth_date |
| birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1899|09|05}} |
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|birth_place |
| birth_place = Chicago, Illinois |
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|death_date |
| death_date = {{Death date|mf=yes|1990|01|27}} (aged 90) |
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|death_place |
| death_place = Los Angeles, California, United States |
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|alma_mater |
| alma_mater = [[Illinois Institute of Technology|Armour Institute of Technology]] |
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|practice_name |
| practice_name = |
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|significant_buildings= [[Los Angeles Theatre]], [[Max Factor Building]], [[Hollywood & Western Building]] |
| significant_buildings = [[Los Angeles Theatre]], [[Max Factor Building]], [[Hollywood & Western Building]] |
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|significant_projects = |
| significant_projects = |
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|significant_design |
| significant_design = |
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|awards |
| awards = Synergy Award (1975) |
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| practice = |
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}} |
}} |
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'''S. Charles Lee''' (September 5, 1899 - January 27, 1990) was an American [[architect]] recognized as one of the most prolific and distinguished [[motion picture]] [[theater]] designers on the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]].<ref name="fresno">{{cite web | last = Powell | first = John Edward | authorlink = John Edward Powell | title = S. Charles Lee | work = A Guide to Historic Architecture in Fresno, California | year = 1996 | url = http://historicfresno.org/bio/lee.htm | accessdate =2008-02-04 }}</ref> |
'''S. Charles Lee''' (September 5, 1899 - January 27, 1990) was an American [[architect]] recognized as one of the most prolific and distinguished [[motion picture]] [[theater]] designers on the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]].<ref name="fresno">{{cite web | last = Powell | first = John Edward | authorlink = John Edward Powell | title = S. Charles Lee | work = A Guide to Historic Architecture in Fresno, California | year = 1996 | url = http://historicfresno.org/bio/lee.htm | accessdate =2008-02-04 }}</ref> |
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===Early life === |
===Early life === |
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Simeon Charles Levi was born in Chicago in 1899 to American-born parents of German-Jewish ancestry, Julius and Hattie (Stiller) Levi. He grew up going to vaudeville theatres, nickelodeons,and early movie houses. A tinkerer interested in mechanical things, Lee built three motorcars as a teenager. His interest in mechanics led him to Lake Technical High School in Chicago, where he graduated in 1916.<ref name="ucla">{{cite web | last = Scheid | first = Ann | authorlink = Ann Scheid | title = S. Charles Lee: Architect | work = The S. C. Lee Collection | publisher = UCLA Library | date = 2000-03-13 | url = http://digital.library.ucla.edu/sclee/lee_bio.htm | accessdate =2008-02-04 }}</ref> |
Simeon Charles Levi was born in Chicago in 1899 to American-born parents of German-Jewish ancestry, Julius and Hattie (Stiller) Levi. He grew up going to vaudeville theatres, nickelodeons, and early movie houses. A tinkerer interested in mechanical things, Lee built three motorcars as a teenager. His interest in mechanics led him to Lake Technical High School in Chicago, where he graduated in 1916.<ref name="ucla">{{cite web | last = Scheid | first = Ann | authorlink = Ann Scheid | title = S. Charles Lee: Architect | work = The S. C. Lee Collection | publisher = UCLA Library | date = 2000-03-13 | url = http://digital.library.ucla.edu/sclee/lee_bio.htm | accessdate =2008-02-04 }}</ref> |
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===Education=== |
===Education=== |
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While in high school in 1915, he worked after school in the office of Chicago architect Henry Newhouse, a family friend who specialized in theater design: small motion picture houses, nickelodeons and remodeling storefronts into theaters. Lee attended Chicago Technical College, graduating with honors in 1918. His first job was as architect for the South Park Board of the City of Chicago. During World War I he enlisted in the [[Navy]]. After his discharge in 1920, he entered the [[Illinois Institute of Technology|Armour Institute of Technology]] to study architecture, where he was exposed to the principles of the [[École des Beaux-Arts]] which are reflected in his later work.<ref name="ucla" /> |
While in high school in 1915, he worked after school in the office of Chicago architect Henry Newhouse, a family friend who specialized in theater design: small motion picture houses, nickelodeons and remodeling storefronts into theaters. Lee attended [[Chicago Technical College]], graduating with honors in 1918. His first job was as architect for the South Park Board of the City of Chicago. During World War I he enlisted in the [[United States Navy|Navy]]. After his discharge in 1920, he entered the [[Illinois Institute of Technology|Armour Institute of Technology]] to study architecture, where he was exposed to the principles of the [[École des Beaux-Arts]] which are reflected in his later work.<ref name="ucla" /> |
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While in Chicago, Lee worked for [[Rapp and Rapp|Rapp & Rapp]], a highly regarded Chicago architectural firm well known for movie theater design.<ref name="fresno" /> Lee was also influenced by [[Louis Sullivan]]'s lectures in his architecture classes and Frank Lloyd Wright's work, particularly Midway Gardens and Wright's Oak Park studio. Lee was also impressed by the 1922 [[Tribune Tower|Chicago Tribune Tower]] competition, which juxtaposed historicism with modernism. Lee considered himself a modernist, and his career revealed "both the Beaux Arts discipline and emphasis on planning and the modernist functionalism and freedom of form."<ref name="ucla" /> |
While in Chicago, Lee worked for [[Rapp and Rapp|Rapp & Rapp]], a highly regarded Chicago architectural firm well known for movie theater design.<ref name="fresno" /> Lee was also influenced by [[Louis Sullivan]]'s lectures in his architecture classes and Frank Lloyd Wright's work, particularly Midway Gardens and Wright's Oak Park studio. Lee was also impressed by the 1922 [[Tribune Tower|Chicago Tribune Tower]] competition, which juxtaposed historicism with modernism. Lee considered himself a modernist, and his career revealed "both the Beaux Arts discipline and emphasis on planning and the modernist functionalism and freedom of form."<ref name="ucla" /> |
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In 1922, Lee moved to Los Angeles. His first major [[movie palace]] was the [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)|Tower Theatre]], a Spanish-Romanesque-Moorish design that launched a career that would make Lee the principal designer of motion picture theaters in Los Angeles during the 1930s and 1940s. He is credited with designing over 400 theaters throughout [[California]] and Mexico. His palatial and Baroque [[Los Angeles Theatre]] (1931) is regarded by many architectural historians as the finest theater building in Los Angeles.<ref name="fresno" /> |
In 1922, Lee moved to Los Angeles. His first major [[movie palace]] was the [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)|Tower Theatre]], a Spanish-Romanesque-Moorish design that launched a career that would make Lee the principal designer of motion picture theaters in Los Angeles during the 1930s and 1940s. He is credited with designing over 400 theaters throughout [[California]] and Mexico. His palatial and Baroque [[Los Angeles Theatre]] (1931) is regarded by many architectural historians as the finest theater building in Los Angeles.<ref name="fresno" /> |
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Lee was an early proponent of [[Art Deco]] and [[Moderne architecture|Moderne]] style theaters, including [[Fresno]]'s [[Tower Theatre (Fresno, California)|Tower Theatre]]. The [[Fox Bruin Theater|Bruin Theater]] (1937) and [[Academy Theatre (building)|Academy Theatre]] (1939) are among his most characteristic. The latter, located in [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]], [[California]], is a prime example of Lee's successful response to the automobile.<ref name="fresno" /> After World War II, Lee recognized that the grand theater building had become a thing of the past, and began to focus on new technologies in industrial architecture. His work in the field of tilt-up building systems was published in Architectural Record in 1952.<ref name="fresno" /> |
Lee was an early proponent of [[Art Deco]] and [[Moderne architecture|Moderne]] style theaters, including [[Fresno]]'s [[Tower Theatre (Fresno, California)|Tower Theatre]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://historicfresno.org/bio/lee.htm|title=S. Charles Lee|website=historicfresno.org|access-date=2019-05-11}}</ref> The [[Fox Bruin Theater|Bruin Theater]] (1937) and [[Academy Theatre (building)|Academy Theatre]] (1939) are among his most characteristic. The latter, located in [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]], [[California]], is a prime example of Lee's successful response to the automobile.<ref name="fresno" /> After World War II, Lee recognized that the grand theater building had become a thing of the past, and began to focus on new technologies in industrial architecture. His work in the field of tilt-up building systems was published in Architectural Record in 1952.<ref name="fresno" /> |
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===Buildings=== |
===Buildings=== |
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* [[La Puente Valley Woman's Club]], [[La Puente, CA]] (1923) |
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* [[Hollywood Melrose Hotel]] (1927) |
* [[Hollywood Melrose Hotel]] (1927) |
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* [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)]] (1927) |
* [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)]] (1927) |
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* [[Saban Theatre|Fox Wilshire Theatre]], [[Beverly Hills, California]] (1930) |
* [[Saban Theatre|Fox Wilshire Theatre]], [[Beverly Hills, California]] (1930) |
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* [[Fox Theater (Bakersfield, California)]] (1930) |
* [[Fox Theater (Bakersfield, California)]] (1930) |
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* [[Fox Phoenix Theatre]] (1931)<ref>{{cite web|title=Fox Phoenix Theatre|url=http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/2645|website=Cinema Treasures|accessdate=13 July 2016}}</ref> |
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* [[Los Angeles Theatre]], Los Angeles (1931) |
* [[Los Angeles Theatre]], Los Angeles (1931) |
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* [[Hollywood & Western Building]], [[Hollywood, Los Angeles, California|Hollywood]] (1931) |
* [[Hollywood & Western Building]], [[Hollywood, Los Angeles, California|Hollywood]] (1931) |
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* [[Max Factor Building]], Hollywood (1935) |
* [[Max Factor Building]], Hollywood (1935) – currently [[Hollywood Museum]] |
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* [[Fox Bruin Theater|Bruin Theater]], [[Westwood, Los Angeles, California|Westwood]], Los Angeles (1937) |
* [[Fox Bruin Theater|Bruin Theater]], [[Westwood, Los Angeles, California|Westwood]], Los Angeles (1937) |
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* [[Fox (Alpha) Theater]], [[Bell, California|Bell]], California (1938) |
* [[Fox (Alpha) Theater]], [[Bell, California|Bell]], California (1938) |
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* [[Tower Theatre (Fresno, California)]] (1939) |
* [[Tower Theatre (Fresno, California)]] (1939) |
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*Academy Theatre, Inglewood, California (1939) |
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*[[De Anza Theatre]], Riverside, California (1939) |
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* [[Fremont Theater]], [[San Luis Obispo, California]] (1942) |
* [[Fremont Theater]], [[San Luis Obispo, California]] (1942) |
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* [[Huntridge Theater]], [[Las Vegas, Nevada]] (1944) |
* [[Huntridge Theater]], [[Las Vegas, Nevada]] (1944) |
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* Star Theater, [[La Puente, California]] (1947) |
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* [[Bay Twin Theatres]], [[Pacific Palisades, California]] (1948) |
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* [[Temple Israel of Hollywood]] (1948)<ref name="AR100-4p104">{{cite journal |title=California Synagogue in Mission Tradition |journal=[[Architectural Record]] |date=October 1946 |volume=100 |issue=4 |page=104 (PDF p. 96) |url=https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/archives/backissues/1946-10.pdf?-733777200 |accessdate=2018-10-19 |publisher=[[F. W. Dodge Corporation]] |location=Concord, NH and New York, NY |format=PDF}}</ref> |
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*[[Fox Theatre Inglewood|Fox Theatre, Inglewood]], California (1949) |
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===Awards=== |
===Awards=== |
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*Lee's work on the Los Angeles [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)|Tower Theatre]] was featured in the regional architectural journal ''Architect & Engineer'' in 1928. |
*Lee's work on the Los Angeles [[Tower Theatre (Los Angeles)|Tower Theatre]] was featured in the regional architectural journal ''Architect & Engineer'' in 1928. |
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*In 1934, Lee was honored for architectural excellence by the Royal Institute of British Architects at the International Exhibition of Contemporary Architecture in London, for his 1931 "Spanish American Mission style" design for the Fox Florence Theatre in Los Angeles.<ref name="fresno" /> |
*In 1934, Lee was honored for architectural excellence by the Royal Institute of British Architects at the International Exhibition of Contemporary Architecture in London, for his 1931 "Spanish American Mission style" design for the Fox Florence Theatre in Los Angeles.<ref name="fresno" /> |
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*One of Lee's non-theater projects, a Jewish synagogue designed in the California Mission tradition, was featured in ''Architectural Record'' in 1946. |
*One of Lee's non-theater projects, Temple Israel of Hollywood, a Jewish synagogue designed in the California Mission tradition, was featured in ''Architectural Record'' in 1946.<ref name="AR100-4p104" /> |
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*Lee received the highest recognition of the Society of Registered Architects, the "Synergy Award," in 1975. |
*Lee received the highest recognition of the Society of Registered Architects, the "Synergy Award," in 1975. |
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*The UCLA Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning established an endowed chair honoring Lee in 1986.<ref name="fresno" /> |
*The UCLA Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning established an endowed chair honoring Lee in 1986.<ref name="fresno" /> |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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{{commons category}} |
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* [http://cinematreasures.org/architect/71/show=all List of theatres by S. Charles Lee] |
* [http://cinematreasures.org/architect/71/show=all List of theatres by S. Charles Lee] |
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* [http://digital.library.ucla.edu/sclee/ S. Charles Lee Collection at UCLA] |
* [http://digital.library.ucla.edu/sclee/ S. Charles Lee Collection at UCLA] |
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* {{Find a Grave|8055996}} |
* {{Find a Grave|8055996}} |
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{{Authority control |
{{Authority control}} |
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{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> |
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| NAME = Lee, S. Charles |
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| ALTERNATIVE NAMES = |
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| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American architect |
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| DATE OF BIRTH = 1899-09-05 |
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| PLACE OF BIRTH = Chicago, Illinois |
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| DATE OF DEATH = 1990-01-27 |
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| PLACE OF DEATH = |
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}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, S. Charles}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, S. Charles}} |
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[[Category:1899 births]] |
[[Category:1899 births]] |
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[[Category:1990 deaths]] |
[[Category:1990 deaths]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Architects from Chicago]] |
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[[Category:American theatre architects]] |
[[Category:American theatre architects]] |
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[[Category:Modernist architects from the United States]] |
[[Category:Modernist architects from the United States]] |
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[[Category:Architects from Illinois]] |
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[[Category:American people of German-Jewish descent]] |
[[Category:American people of German-Jewish descent]] |
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[[Category:NRHP architects]] |
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Simeon Charles Lee[1]
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|---|---|
| Born | (1899-09-05)September 5, 1899
Chicago, Illinois
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| Died | (1990-01-27)January 27, 1990 (aged 90)
Los Angeles, California, United States
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Armour Institute of Technology |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | Synergy Award (1975) |
| Buildings | Los Angeles Theatre, Max Factor Building, Hollywood & Western Building |
S. Charles Lee (September 5, 1899 - January 27, 1990) was an American architect recognized as one of the most prolific and distinguished motion picture theater designers on the West Coast.[2]
Simeon Charles Levi was born in Chicago in 1899 to American-born parents of German-Jewish ancestry, Julius and Hattie (Stiller) Levi. He grew up going to vaudeville theatres, nickelodeons, and early movie houses. A tinkerer interested in mechanical things, Lee built three motorcars as a teenager. His interest in mechanics led him to Lake Technical High School in Chicago, where he graduated in 1916.[3]
While in high school in 1915, he worked after school in the office of Chicago architect Henry Newhouse, a family friend who specialized in theater design: small motion picture houses, nickelodeons and remodeling storefronts into theaters. Lee attended Chicago Technical College, graduating with honors in 1918. His first job was as architect for the South Park Board of the City of Chicago. During World War I he enlisted in the Navy. After his discharge in 1920, he entered the Armour Institute of Technology to study architecture, where he was exposed to the principles of the École des Beaux-Arts which are reflected in his later work.[3]
While in Chicago, Lee worked for Rapp & Rapp, a highly regarded Chicago architectural firm well known for movie theater design.[2] Lee was also influenced by Louis Sullivan's lectures in his architecture classes and Frank Lloyd Wright's work, particularly Midway Gardens and Wright's Oak Park studio. Lee was also impressed by the 1922 Chicago Tribune Tower competition, which juxtaposed historicism with modernism. Lee considered himself a modernist, and his career revealed "both the Beaux Arts discipline and emphasis on planning and the modernist functionalism and freedom of form."[3]
In 1922, Lee moved to Los Angeles. His first major movie palace was the Tower Theatre, a Spanish-Romanesque-Moorish design that launched a career that would make Lee the principal designer of motion picture theaters in Los Angeles during the 1930s and 1940s. He is credited with designing over 400 theaters throughout California and Mexico. His palatial and Baroque Los Angeles Theatre (1931) is regarded by many architectural historians as the finest theater building in Los Angeles.[2]
Lee was an early proponent of Art Deco and Moderne style theaters, including Fresno's Tower Theatre.[4] The Bruin Theater (1937) and Academy Theatre (1939) are among his most characteristic. The latter, located in Inglewood, California, is a prime example of Lee's successful response to the automobile.[2] After World War II, Lee recognized that the grand theater building had become a thing of the past, and began to focus on new technologies in industrial architecture. His work in the field of tilt-up building systems was published in Architectural Record in 1952.[2]
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