THE EGYPTIAN; AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE BRINGS BACK CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD MOVIE HOUSE AFTER EXTENSIVE RENOVATION.

Byline: Story by Carol Bidwell

It was 1922, and this was the place to be.

Red carpets, klieg lights and screaming fans set the mood as Tinseltown's brightest stars stepped out for the first-ever Hollywood premiere at the exotic and mysterious Egyptian Theatre.

``On premiere nights, you couldn't move for the people,'' recalls philanthropist Lloyd E. Rigler, who in the 1940s lived just a block and a half from the famed movie palace. ``Everybody in the world would come out to see the stars walk down the red carpet. The police would have to hold them back.''

The venerable Hollywood Boulevard movie house, which wowed pharaoh-frenzied moviegoers when it opened, is getting ready to take another bow - 76 years later.

On Friday, 75 years to the date after Cecil B. DeMille's ``The Ten Commandments'' premiered there, the red carpet will be unrolled again as Hollywood's glitterati gather for an invitation-only gala marking the reopening of the theater, which has been restored and largely rebuilt to be the first permanent home of the 14-year-old, nonprofit American Cinematheque film society.

After the VIP gala, featuring a showing of DeMille's silent classic accompanied by a full orchestra, the film will be shown to the public (accompanied by organ music) the next four nights in the ornate old theater.

Rigler, who donated $1.5 million toward the $14.2 million project and for whom the 630-seat main theater is named, said the reopening is a vital step in the revitalization of a Hollywood whose glimmer has dimmed as porno palaces and souvenir stands have replaced posh restaurants and high-end clothing stores.

When Rigler moved to Hollywood from New York in the early 1940s, Tinseltown seemed to have a permanent prewar hustle and bustle about it. And so did the theater, which was a stopping-off point for tourists and local folk alike.

``I never went to a premiere there myself,'' said Rigler, 83. ``I couldn't even always afford a ticket back then. But I used to be there to see the (premiere) festivities, usually watching from across the street.

``Even going to a regular show there, it was an exciting theater to attend. It was different than any other theater in town.''

It still is.

Walking through its forecourt, past high stone walls, is akin to approaching an Egyptian temple built of block after block of desert-weathered sandstone. A giant wooden door, topped by the painting of a stylized eagle with wings spread wide, is flanked by two giant sculptures, the heads of some nameless pharaohs. Four giant pillars covered by Egyptian characters usher moviegoers into what almost appears to be a low-ceilinged tomb, dark and quiet after the brilliant sunlight outside, its ceilings and beams covered with mysterious hieroglyphs.

``The theater's on the National Register of Historic Places, so we have to be historically accurate,'' said Margot Gerber, spokeswoman for American Cinematheque, on a recent tour of the old theater. ``We're restoring it as much as possible to the way it looked in 1922.''

That has included restoring damaged original artworks and sculptures, repainting and replanting papyrus and palms in the forecourt. It has also meant major structural restoration and rebuilding to repair damage to walls and the ceiling caused by the 1994 Northridge Earthquake.

But American Cinematheque was thinking of more than restoration when it bought into a piece of Hollywood history. The plan is to bring back the crowds of yesteryear.

So along with the Egyptian architecture, there are also new, state-of-the-art sound and projection systems, a combination bookstore and souvenir stand, a new balcony that's accessible to movie buffs in wheelchairs, plush reclining seats and new wall panels to enhance the acoustics in a theater originally built to show only silent movies. The main theater is also equipped with a 1922 Wurlitzer organ to provide accompaniment for silent movies. A second, 83-seat theater, named after director Steven Spielberg, will provide viewing for small groups and students.

As the date for the reopening night gala draws near, the racket of workers' drills, the thump of hammers and the sound of shouted directions fill the rebuilt theater as crews work feverishly to finish the job.

Even the workers are caught up in the excitement of the old theater's rebirth, said Ron Lindsay, senior project manager for Turner Construction, which began renovating the Egyptian 13 months ago.

``After about the first five months, people started seeing it come together,'' Lindsay said. ``All of a sudden, the craftsmanship really kicked in, and even the plumbers and the electricians feel a part of it. They're very proud of this.''

Originally, the theater - which triggered a wave of Egyptian revival theaters across the nation - was to have a Moorish-Spanish theme.

But in 1922, Americans became fascinated by the dusty doings in Egypt's far-off Valley of the Kings, where archeologists searched tirelessly for untouched tombs. As fascinated as everybody else, theatrical entrepreneur Sid Grauman, who in 1927 would move on to build the Chinese Theatre two blocks down the street, scrapped the original design and decreed that instead of minarets, his new theater would have kingly sarcophagi, that ancient hieroglyphics should cover walls and that sculptures of the pharaohs themselves should greet moviegoers.

It didn't hurt business, either, when - almost as if the master showman had planned it - a month after the October 1922 opening of the grand new movie house, King Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered.

It was at the Egyptian that the Hollywood premiere was born on Oct. 18, 1922, as Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks held court before the debut of Fairbanks' film, ``Robin Hood.'' Preceding the film, Grauman presented the Egyptian-themed opera, ``Aida.'' Tickets for the premiere were $5, a price far above the means of ordinary Hollywood residents.

The Egyptian, which had several owners, also underwent many changes during its lifetime, getting a new marquee, box office and courtyard renovation in the 1940s and '50s. In 1955, showman Mike Todd ripped out pillars, sphinxes, the proscenium arch decorated with hieroglyphs and the 30-foot stage on which live acts were performed between movies so he could install a massive curved screen for the road show engagement of ``Oklahoma!''

Despite the changes that altered its original character, the movie house remained an enormously popular venue. Unlike other theaters, where the bill changed from week to week, some movies played there for years, as successful live shows do on Broadway. Both ``South Pacific'' and ``My Fair Lady'' ran for more than a year, and ``Ben Hur'' ran for two years. The last premiere was staged in 1968, for ``Funny Girl,'' which also ran for a year.

After that, the theater fell into disrepair and eventually found itself playing third- and fourth-run films, with tickets selling in 1992 for the same $1.50 moviegoers paid 60 years earlier.

The Los Angeles Redevelopment Agency bought the theater for $1.7 million in 1992, intending to restore it and lease it out, but the damage from the 1994 earthquake made it a financial liability. So American Cinematheque, which was looking for a permanent home, bought it from the city in 1996 for $1. The city provided a grant of $3 million toward its repair and loaned another $2 million in earthquake recovery funds.

Others have donated funds, too. In addition to Rigler's contribution, AC received a donation large enough (but the amount still undisclosed) from Warner Bros. to name the smaller theater after Spielberg; other individuals and studios have also pledged cash.

But AC is still about $4 million short of being able to pay off the loans it took out to finance reconstruction. To make up the difference, it's selling practically anything you can carve a name into between the sidewalk and the front door: a paving stone in the foyer can be had for $5,000 to $50,000; for $75,000, donors can have their names engraved next to one of 12 palm trees in the forecourt; and donors of $100,000 to $500,000 can have their names permanently placed on one of the glass panels in the theater lobby.

This weekend's grand reopening will be short-lived. After the festivities, the doors will be closed again while crews who struggled to make the old movie house presentable renovate six small shops along the theater's forecourt and a rooftop area above that eventually will become a 130-seat restaurant and bar, said Gerber.

The theater is expected to open permanently - this time without fanfare - next spring, offering nightly showings of Hollywood classics, including silent movies, and independent films. During the day, the theater will be open to tourists, who'll be able to see a documentary film about the history of Hollywood, with a musical prologue on the Wurlitzer organ and historic newsreel footage.

Rigler said he can't wait until the Egyptian is part of the Hollywood landscape again, open to sightseers and moviegoers and visitors who just want to drop by to shop or enjoy a drink.

``If we can make Hollywood safe to walk through again, for people to come out and have a good time like they used to,'' he said, ``that will be my legacy.''

THE FACTS

What: The reopening of the Egyptian Theatre as the permanent home of the American Cinematheque film society.

When: After an invitation-only Friday reception, Cecil B. DeMille's 1923 epic, ``The Ten Commandments,'' will be shown Saturday through Tuesday for the public. The theater will open permanently next spring.

Where: The theater is at 6712 Hollywood Blvd., two blocks east of the Chinese Theatre.

Admission: Tickets cost $75 for the Saturday screening and reception; Sunday, Monday and Tuesday showings of the film cost $25 for American Cinematheque members, $35 for students and seniors, and $45 for general admission. Tickets will be available Saturday through Tuesday at the box office, subject to availability.

Information: Call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

7 Photos

Photo: (1--Cover--Color) EGYPTIAN FACE LIFT

AFTER YEARS OF DISREPAIR, HOLLYWOOD LANDMARK PLANS A GALA REOPENING

(2--Color) The Egyptian's main theater seats 630 and features new sound and projection systems, with special wall panels to enhance the acoustics.

(3--Color) Detail work abounds at the refurbished theater to highlight its Egyptian theme.

(4--Color) Ornate lighting welcomes visitors.

(5--Color) The courtyard today, with replanted palms, awaits its first guests.

(6) The Egyptian Theatre courtyard was packed, with room for the stars to arrive, of course, during a premiere screening in 1926.

(7) A pair of pharaohs overlook an entrance at the newly restored Egyptian Theatre.

Phil McCarten/Daily News