Melrose Ave. - Then And Now

A Sunset on Melrose Ave. 30 years ago.

This building, was my first job in Los Angeles. Melrose Avenue wasn't trendy, it was full of many things, including that body shop on the corner.
I worked in a photo lab. Atkinson Stedco. We did prints from slides.
The front had the counter, where people came and dropped off and picked up stuff and then over to the left, was where my boss would color correct the slides, before we put them into the machine and made the print. The back of the place was where the chemicals were that we used to run the exposed film through to be developed. Big rolls of film, that then were cut into individual prints and packaged for the client. I did not make much money, but I loved working with the photographs, for there were lots of talented photographers who used our services. There was also the seamier side of Hollywood, which was an eye opener to this pretty sheltered 24 year old, but I did survive seeing that, too. All part of that LA Education, I guess. ;-)




I haven't been back to that area for decades and definitely only on a drive by.
The other day I went to a storefront a block away and couldn't resist seeing what had happened to the place where it all began for me. Melrose Ave. is obviously the trendy capital now days and why was I totally not surprised to see that my photo lab was now a place selling high end, fashion jeans. lol

I walked into the place and yeah, they gutted it...but you could still feel some of what was there. I asked the sales girl if they still had the door that led out into the alley in the back and she said yeah. They must have their stock back there.

A real blast to the past, for me.