With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Then & Now: The Landmarks of L.A. Noire
It's 1947: Earlier this year, Elizabeth Short was found dead in Leimert Park, KTLA channel 5 made its television broadcast debut, and LAPD Det. Cole Phelps is out on the streets busting the bad guys. OK, so that last bit is fiction, but thanks to the newly-released L.A. Noire video game, Angelenos can travel back in time to visit downtown L.A., Hollywood and parts of mid-Wilshire in all their post-WWII grit and glory.
In an interview with the L.A. Times (who published an interactive 1947 crime map online) the video game's Sydney, Australia-based developers recounted how they studied over 180,000 historical photos, including Robert Spence's aerial photos, to bring '40s Los Angeles back to life.
True, the art and design team took some liberty with some of the game's locations and details: The La Brea Tar Pits were renamed Westlake Tar Pits and relocated near 8th and Vermont, and the designers admit to growing the era's then-3-foot palm trees to full size in the game. And when historic L.A. expert Nathan Marsak of the 1947Project took the game for a test drive, he found many "oft-photographed buildings" and landscape details missing, and Bunker Hill Avenue and Angels Flight Pharmacy that existed in '47 were nowhere to be seen, among other anachronisms.
Despite the inconsistencies, more forgiving historicphiles will still get a kick out of the cameos by spots like Clifton's Cafeteria, the Herald Examiner building and Hollywood's Cross Roads of the World.
Support for LAist comes from
Click on the photos above to see some of the game's locations as they were circa the '40s and in 2011, along with just a few as they appear in the game (we don't want to spoil it for you!). That is, if you're not to busy driving that Studebaker Commander all over town, or into mailboxes, sidewalks, street lights and the occasional pedestrian--this was brought to you by the folks of Grand Theft Auto, after all.
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The rock legend joins LAist for a lookback on his career — and the next chapter of his music. -
Yes, it's controversial, but let me explain. -
What do stairs have to do with California’s housing crisis? More than you might think, says this Culver City councilmember. -
Doctors say administrator directives allow immigration agents to interfere in medical decisions and compromise medical care. -
The Palisades Fire erupted on Jan. 7 and went on to kill 12 people and destroy more than 6,800 homes and buildings. -
People moving to Los Angeles are regularly baffled by the region’s refrigerator-less apartments. They’ll soon be a thing of the past.
Best of LAist