By now, most of the Pico-Robertson/Beverlywood Jewish community is familiar with the idea that the community is expanding east to the neighborhoods of Faircrest Heights, south of Pico, and Carthay Circle, north of Olympic. But fewer people know how Carthay Circle got its name in the first place. After all, the neighborhood is not circular. It turns out that it was actually named for the Carthay Circle Theatre, opened in 1926, which did in fact have a circular auditorium, and was one of the most famous movie palaces of Hollywood’s Golden Age, hosting red carpet premiers and such legendary films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Gone with the Wind. The theater was eventually demolished in 1969, but a replica lives on at Disney California Adventure, which also boasts the Carthay Circle Restaurant. So to eat in a restaurant named after their neighborhood, residents would need to head to Anaheim!
