1972 to 2007
SSA Globe Playhouse
Recognized as the world’s first authentic half-replica of Shakespeare’s 1599 London Globe Theatre Interior.
In late 1972 SSA Administrators relocated to 1107 North Kings Road in west Los Angeles where R. Thad Taylor was instrumental in the design, building and operation of an authentic half-size replica of William Shakespeare’s 1599 London England Globe Theatre Interior, built inside the location known as the Globe Playhouse.
It was a landmark for Southern California theatre stakeholders and became a travel destination of Shakespearean enthusiasts from around the world. Located at 1107 North Kings Road, the area was Incorporated as the City of West Hollywood in 1984.
Ray Bradbury
One of the last lectures at the SSA Mansion on Alta Loma Road was presented by the famous science fiction writer Ray Bradbury. A few years earlier Ray was nominated for an Academy Award for writing the feature film script Moby Dick, Directed by John Huston, starring Gregory Peck. Ray did not receive an Academy Award. He did a rewrite: the Ocean became Space; Moby Dick became Leviathan. The feature film set at Samuel Goldwyn Studios staged Ray Bradbury’s new space age science fiction thriller Leviathan 99.
1972-2006
1107 North Kings Road1972. SSA Stakeholders designed, built and operated an authentic half-replica of Shakespeare’s 1599 Globe Theatre interior in the Globe Playhouse in west Los Angeles, CA.
Programs At The Playhouse
Organizational activities at the Globe Playhouse included hosting and promotion of: Shakespeare Theatre Productions; Modern and Classic Period Theatre Productions; Shakespeare Scholars, Students and Festivities; Southern California Area school field trips.
SSA Globe Playhouse Alumni include: Robert Vaughn, Steve Allen, John Houseman, Gloria Grahame, Ray Walston, Talia Shire, Annie Potts, Ed Harris, John Ritter, Sally Kirkland, Julia Duffy, Linda Purl, Perry King and many more …10,000+
SSA provided Public Programs to about 500,000 people by late 2006 when R. Thad Taylor, Founding President of the SSA passed away triggering a series of events that forced the non-profit to relocate, reorganize and rebrand for the digital age without a stage.
In January 2007 SSA Administrators vacated the Globe Playhouse with the SSA Collection shipped by cargo trucks to storage in the San Francisco Bay Area. Administrators searched for affordable space finally relocating in May 2007 to a warehouse near Freedom, California in Santa Cruz County where reorganization would begin.