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Hollywood Jews: Transformation of the Los Angeles Jewish Community

Congregation B'nai B'rith

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Wilshire Boulevard Temple The story of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple began in 1862 when Joseph Newmark with the help of thirty-two families organized the first Jewish synagogue in Los Angeles, Congregation B'nai B'rith. Rabbi Abraham Wolf Edelman served at the temple from 1862 until about 1885, becoming the first Los Angeles rabbi. By 1873, the congregation, numbering forty families, met at the temple's first building located at Fort Street (now Broadway) between 2nd and 3rd Avenues. The Temple's president, Isaias W. Hellman, a German-born Jew would become a successful banker, philanthropist, and businessman, helping in the construction of trolley cars, to being a founder of the University of Southern California.

As the years passed, the Los Angeles population kept growing due to the real estate and oil boom, however the Jewish population barely saw any increase. The growth of the Los Angeles population did not last long as the nation faced an economic depression. Along with the depression, came the growth of the Reform Movement in the United States. This reform movement originated out of Germany, and made its roots in the U.S. during the 1820s. In 1896, Congregation B'nai B'rith dedicated their second synagogue building located at 90015 West 9th Street and South Hope Street. That same year, the congregation adapted a Reform prayer book.

Congregation B'nai B'rith grew to 267 members between 1899 and 1909, creating and growing several Jewish charitable organizations all under the leadership of Rabbi Sigmund Hecht. Yet the growth of the Jewish population outpaced the temples membership rolls. Between 1905 and 1907, the Jewish population in Los Angeles jumped from 2500 to 7000. With the population growth, five more Orthodox temples appear. The rift between Los Angeles's Western European Jewry and Eastern European Jewry becomes even more visible.

In 1914, Rabbi Hecht hired a new assistant, Rabbi Edgar F. Magnin, who would become instrumental in growing the Temples membership rolls, and eventually a key Jewish religious leader for the Hollywood Jews, such as Louis B. Mayer. Two years later the congregation grew to 329 members. As the congregation grew, so did the need for a new temple. In 1929, the new temple building was dedicated at 3663 Wilshire Boulevard, however it would continue to be called Congregation B'nai B'rith until about 1937, when it would become the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.

Financed by Hollywood moguls, who also provided craftsmen from their studios, the new temple building was constructed in the style of movie theaters. The murals that surround the congregation unfolding like a film strip were funded by Jack, Harry, and Abraham Warner, while the stained-glass windows were funded by Louis B. Mayer. Irving Thalberg and Carl Laemmle also provided the funding. There are no bad seats in this house of worship.