El Capitan Theatre

The El Capitan Theatre, the most lavish of four on Hollywood Blvd. designed for live performances, opened in 1926. It featured stars such as Joan Fontaine, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Lon Chaney Jr., Buster Keaton, Clark Gable, Henry Fonda, Jason Robards, and Will Rogers. In 1941, it reopened as a movie theatre, with the premiere of Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane. It was renamed the Paramount Theatre in 1942. In 1990, the building and theatre were remodeled by The Walt Disney Co., and the original name, El Capitan, was restored. The exterior design is Spanish Colonial style with Churrigueresque motifs, while the interior is East Indian.