The Holiday Bowl has been a local Crenshaw area landmark since it was built in 1957 by architects Armet & Davis. Known as a place where anyone in the community could congregate, regardless of race or culture, the Holiday Bowl has served its community well.
Holiday Bowl(Rem.)
Los Angeles, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Bowling alleys have been
a form of entertainment since the early 20th Century. Some of the venues
still surviving sprouted after WWII and continue, though shakily, today.
The "Bowl" sign Photo courtesy Ralph Garcia
Close-up of front Photo courtesy Ralph Garcia
The Crenshaw district mainstay, Holiday Bowl, was recently boarded
up as plans to develop the block this alley is situated on into a strip
mall continue. However, according to a Los Angeles Times article, the
Cultural Heritage Commission of the City of L.A. voted 3 to 2 to recommended
the Bowl be designated a Historic-Cultural Monument.
Contact your city councilperson, as this recommendation still needs to
go through a special committee, then a full council, before designation.
Holiday Bowl during better times Photo courtesy Georg Balandran
The photo on the left is how the coffee shop area looked while still
in business.
Many thanks to Ralph Garcia and Georg Balandran for
pre-closing photos.
The Holiday Bowl was torn down in October 2003 and is now home to a shopping center. Starbucks now occupies what once was the coffee shop.
The "Bowl" sign
Holiday Bowl during better times
