Edward James Olmos Kicks Off Restoration Effort For Landmark Anthony Quinn Mural
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Actor Edward James Olmos joined city officials Wednesday to announce a $150,000 restoration effort for a landmark 70-foot mural featuring Oscar-winning actor Anthony Quinn that towers over downtown Los Angeles.
Councilmember Jose Huizar, who helped identify funding for the project to restore Quinn's "Pope of Broadway" mural, was also on hand for the ceremony at Third Street and Broadway.
The Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles will lead the long-awaited restoration work on this iconic mural, which features a larger-than-life Quinn in his 1964 film role as "Zorba the Greek" with his arms outstretched to the city.
Quinn - who is widely regarded as one of the top Latino actors of all time - was born in 1915 in Chihuahua, Mexico, raised in East L.A., and got his start as an actor performing at the Million Dollar Theatre near the mural's location.
Huizar described the mural is a "testament to the Latino community's importance to the history and vitality of Broadway in the '70s and '80s."
In 2013, Huizar led an effort to end an 11-year ban on murals on private property.