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All the United States California Los Angeles Richfield Tower's Art Deco Doors

Richfield Tower's Art Deco Doors

Though the original building has been demolished, these massive bronze doors were saved.

Los Angeles, California

Added By
James T. Bartlett
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The Art Deco doors.   jbartlett2000 / Atlas Obscura User
The Art Deco Doors.   jbartlett2000 / Atlas Obscura User
The doors were saved from the Richfield Building.   jbartlett2000 / Atlas Obscura User
  borjakarla / Atlas Obscura User
  borjakarla / Atlas Obscura User
  Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
Detail.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
From sidewalk above  
Back side   Avoiding Regret
The Art Deco designs.   jbartlett2000 / Atlas Obscura User
With human for scale   Avoiding Regret
The former elevator doors are around 20 feet high.   jbartlett2000 / Atlas Obscura User
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As if they were left behind when an Art Deco TARDIS failed to fully teleport, these huge, elaborate elevator doors stand proud near the rear of the twin tower skyscraper complex.

The complex, which is located in downtown Los Angeles, opened in 1972 and was constructed on the site of the gold and black Richfield Tower. The Richfield was demolished in 1968—save for these two grand elevator doors.

The two skyscrapers constructed were 52 stories high and were two of the tallest buildings in the United States at the time. The two massive buildings are home to an architectural firm, a bank, and several restaurants. Between the low building and the northern tower reside the fanciful doors.  

At the center of the plaza is a low fountain with a striking orange sculpture called "Double Ascension" by Herbert Bayer. The buildings and plaza were featured in The Omega Man (1971), Marathon Man (1976), Blue Thunder (1983) and as recently as 2015’s San Andreas, when the towers swayed, then collapsed.

Originally called the Arco Towers, the complex was renamed the City National Plaza in 2005, and it’s worth taking a walk through the plaza to seek out these oddities saved from a long-gone building.

Related Tags

Doors Art Deco Elevators Architectural Oddities Skyscrapers Architecture

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The doors can be found at the back of the City National Bank Plaza.

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Added By

jbartlett2000

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Avoiding Regret, Fred Cherrygarden, Goliren, brcrutchfieldgmailcom...

  • Avoiding Regret
  • Fred Cherrygarden
  • Goliren
  • brcrutchfieldgmailcom
  • borjakarla

Published

September 4, 2019

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Richfield Tower's Art Deco Doors
515 S Flower St
Los Angeles, California, 90071
United States
34.051401, -118.25694
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