Pussycat Theaters
The Pussycat Theaters were a chain of porn theaters in the 1960s to the 1980s. Pussycat Theaters had 47 locations in California. They were known for their cat-girl logo.
History
David F. Friedman and Dan Sonney founded the first Pussycat Theater. Dan Sonney invented the name, based on Woody Allen film What's New Pussycat. Friedman has also cited the Pink Pussycat burlesque club on Santa Monica Boulevard as having previously established the word "pussycat" in relation to "pink" porn, since the early 1960s. The first Pussycat Theater opened its doors in March of 1966 on 444 South Hill Street, Los Angeles. Two years later, there were almost a dozen locales, from San Diego to San Francisco.
In 1968, Vince Miranda bought a 50% share of The Pussycat. Miranda was unable to stop those outside California from using the Pussycat name. Miranda spent $1 million to improve the decorations of the theaters. They were also known for being cleaner and of higher quality than other porn theaters. The interiors featured red and gold carpeting, velveteen fixtures, beveled glass, mirror walls, chandeliers, oil paintings, murals, and merchandise bearing the Pussycat logo. Some Pussycat theaters sold popcorn from the ticket box to pedestrians on the sidewalk, with no obligation to buy a ticket.
Vince Miranda and George Tate (who were lovers) shared ownership of Walnut Properties, the company that owned the Pussycat Theaters. Miranda may have had an exclusive California license to show Deep Throat, a big moneymaker. His main competitors were the Mitchell Brothers.
Residents who lived near the theaters complained to the city governments that children could see the images of women on posters, ads, and cardboard stand-ups. The residents wanted the theaters shut down. The citizen's groups and government sued Walnut Properties under a variety of laws, including obscenity, public nuisance, rezoning, eminent domain, The Red Light Abatement Act, and the U.S. Supreme Court's "preponderance" redefinition of porn theaters. Walnut Properties was served with over 100 civil lawsuits filed between 1973 and 2005. Between 1977 and 1994, at the Pussycat Theater in Santa Monica, "the Los Angeles Police Department made 2000 arrests for lewd conduct on the premises." In 1981, an ordinance was passed banning adult movie theaters in Santa Monica.
In 1983, porn videotape sales began to compete with porn theaters, reducing theater attendance. At the age of 52, Vince Miranda died of complications related to cancer in 1985. George Tate and his new paramour Jonathan Cota inherited Walnut and the Pussycat Theaters. The IRS imposes a federal tax lien of $6,047,760.00 on Miranda's estate. The theaters were losing money fast. Many theaters are given to debtors in place of money, and/or converted to general admission theaters.
By 1990, less than 20 California Pussycats remained, and by 1992, only a dozen were still open. In 1994, Walnut Properties filed for bankruptcy, claiming liabilities of $17.7 million. George Tate spent all the money and died the same year. Jonathan Cota inherited Walnut and its debts.
By 2001, all the theaters were lost except one at 7734 Santa Monica Boulevard. Filmmaker Roger Corman saved the last Pussycat Theater by brokering a deal with an unnamed buyer. In 2004, Cota threatened to file a lawsuit against the "Pussycat Dolls" for trademark infringement on the Pussycat name. The U.S. Patent Office declared the Pussycat trademark to be "abandoned" and the case was dropped. Today, Cota runs the last Pussycat Theater. Now it shows gay porn. The name was changed to the Tomkat and then to Studs.
Trivia
- In the 1980s, Quentin Tarantino worked at the Pussycat Theater in Torrance.
- A Pussycat Theater appeared in the background of the Hardcore (film) (1979) starring George C. Scott.
- New Wave Hookers had its world premiere at the Los Angeles Pussycat Theater in 1985.
External links
- San Diego Reader - Pussycat Theater History When Cathouses Ruled CA (50 new pages 5-24-09) by Rock Around the Town
- Pussycat Theaters - xyclopedia - the history of pornography and sexual expression
- Pussycat Theaters - a Comprehensive History by Jay Allen Sanford, published 6-30-10
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