From 2001 to 2006 I worked near the site of the famous Ambassador Hotel, beloved Los Angeles landmark. In 2001 the Los Angeles Unified School District bought the site to build a new school, with the plan to demolish the entire historic structure. This prompted a lawsuit by the Los Angeles Conservancy, which was settled in 2005, clearing the way for the demolition of most, but not all, of the structure. When I learned of the settlement, I began photographing the demolition for posterity. These images will be donated to the Conservancy for use in future preservation efforts. “Don’t let this happen to your historic building,” will be the message. What follow are my favorite of hundreds of images I took for this project, The Death of the Ambassador.

--Robert Peate, February 2006

The Death of the Ambassador

Post-script, November 2006:

At the same time that I was shooting the demolition, Emilio Estevez was inside, filming scenes for Bobby, his story of disparate characters in the Hotel during the last twenty-four hours in the life of Robert F. Kennedy, Junior. On October 31, 2006, Mister Estevez and Martin Sheen appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show to discuss the project, and one of my photographs was used to enhance the discussion. The episode, entitled "Dreams Come True, with Emilio Estevez", aired on November 7, 2006 (screenshot in Media gallery). I am humbled and grateful to have my art respected by Oprah Winfrey and her guests. Special thanks to Lindsay Feitlinger and Marco Paramo at Harpo Productions, Inc., for their work on this.