Larry Edmunds Bookshop: Eighty-Plus Years of Refuge for Film Buffs on Hollywood Boulevard

If you collect movie history the way other folks collect parking tickets on the Boulevard, you already know exactly where I’m pointing you. The glass front at 6644 Hollywood Boulevard holds a lifetime of cast lists, stills, and set gossip under bright lights. The bell on the door gives a small ring, and then it’s just you and the stacks. We open the cases at 11 am most days and wave goodnight at 6 pm Monday through Saturday, with a shorter 12–6 pm window on Sundays. The meter outside runs on Hollywood Boulevard and on Cherokee, and there’s a paid lot up Cherokee just north of the Boulevard if you’re settling in for a long dig.

I’ve watched people step in off the Walk of Fame and replace a mental picture of Hollywood with something they can hold in their hands. This shop has done that since 1938, and we’ve sat on Hollywood Boulevard since the mid-fifties. Jeff Mantor started here as a stock boy, then took the keys in 1991, and he treats a shelf like a screening calendar. Between the photo files and the poster drawers, you’re looking at a working archive that runs to more than 20,000 books and around 500,000 movie photographs. When folks say it’s a refuge, this is what they mean: you can lose an hour deciding whether you want Garbo in satin or Mitchum in a trench coat, and no one hurries you along.

The storefront that never stopped caring about the movies

We’re not a general-interest bookstore that happens to have a cinema corner. The whole shop reads like a studio lot. The first case on your right will likely have fresh signings because we run author events as often as the calendar allows. Over the years you could pick up a book personalized by Leonard Maltin or Eddie Muller and then see them later at the Egyptian across the street for a screening night. We’ve hosted signings tied to American Cinematheque shows from the Egyptian and the Aero; the trick is to check our board when you come in and ask at the counter what’s next. There’s no ticket to browse and no admission to be here, just a door you can open and a counter that will tell you where to start.

Because the inventory turns with the business, the price signal that helps most is right in the cases. We carry new and used film books, and you’ll find signed copies marked clearly. A strong seller like Film Noir Style sits at $45 when we’ve got autographed stock. If you’re poster-hunting, the range is wide on purpose. We’ll put a handsome one-sheet like The Naked Spur in the cabinet at around $450 when it’s the real thing and the condition warrants it, while a clean studio lobby card such as Blue Hawaii might sit in the drawer at around $95. Those are the kinds of anchored numbers we can stand behind, and you’ll see them right on our own tags.

Hours here are steady because regulars plan their week around them. It’s 11 am–6 pm Monday through Saturday and 12–6 pm on Sunday, with the phone on the counter at (323) 463-3273 if you want to check on a title before you burn gas. If you like to stack your errands, you’re standing between two Metro B Line stations: Hollywood/Highland to the west and Hollywood/Vine to the east. Amoeba’s new Hollywood address is a straight shot down the Boulevard at 6200 Hollywood Blvd, so a lot of collectors work both in one loop and get back on the train at the end.

How to work the shop like a regular

Shopping Larry Edmunds is different from typing in a search bar. Start with the new-arrivals case and then take a left into the film-history wall, where the spines tell you who wore which hat on what set. Ask for photo files by star or title; we pull photos in the back by request so the light doesn’t work on them all day. If you’re after a specific still, a clerk will bring out a folder and a black felt pad to protect the gloss while you look. You won’t pay to look. You will pay what’s marked if you decide you can’t leave a particular shot of Stanwyck behind.

Bring a tote and a short list. If you’re new to movie ephemera, think in categories. Books first: biographies, craft sections like editing and cinematography, studio histories, and award-season tomes. Then paper: posters, one-sheets, lobby cards, window cards, pressbooks, and stills. We can usually tell you if we’ve seen a title in the last month. If it’s not on the floor, ask about the back stock; some of what we own isn’t on the shelves because it’s safer filed. We keep hours that suit collectors who like to browse without weekend elbows: weekdays at 11 am sharp the place is quiet, and the counter can give you more time. Sunday’s 12–6 pm is steady with tourists, so locals hit us early in the week.

Parking gets asked about ten times a day, so here’s the honest version. If you’re lucky, snag a meter on Hollywood Boulevard or on Cherokee. If you expect to be longer than an hour, the lot up Cherokee just north of Hollywood Boulevard is paid, predictable, and close enough to carry a poster tube without a sweat. If you’re threading the Metro, you already know both stations on this stretch are on the B Line and each sits within an easy walk. That’s how plenty of industry folks come by during lunch and still make their call time. The more you work the routine, the less you think about it. Once you’ve got a rhythm, you’ll shop like a regular.

Prices make sense once you understand what you’re holding. We’ll show you the difference between a reprint and a studio-issued still, and we’ll get a magnifier if you want to check grain before you buy. Remember the cabinet numbers I gave you earlier: a signed new book at $45 is all pleasure and no auction stress, while a genuine poster at $450 is the sort of thing you frame right and insure. If a title goes out of print, the shelf talker changes, and you’ll see that before you reach for your wallet. If you need to ship a stack, we’ve got a published policy and can quote your options at the counter before you commit.

What will you spend on books, posters, and photos?

Let’s talk dollars in a way that helps you plan. On the book side, new releases and signed editions tend to live between $25 and $60, with coffee-table titles and specialty histories sometimes higher. Signed store stock carries a clear price card, like that $45 copy of Film Noir Style. Used finds are a different game but always stickered before they hit the shelf. We don’t do hazy numbers at the register; if it’s for sale, it’s marked. Photos and lobby cards vary by title, rarity, and condition. A studio lobby card such as the Blue Hawaii piece tagged around $95 gives you a good middle-of-the-road anchor. Stills usually price under that unless you’re into marquee names or scarce shots, in which case the tag will explain why.

Posters are where people either fall in love or get serious. A cabinet piece like The Naked Spur around $450 tells you where the higher end starts for a classic one-sheet in real collector shape. If you’re building a wall, ask us to lay out three options at three price points and we’ll go condition by condition, crease by crease. The aim is to send you out of here happy and informed, not surprised. Bring a tape measure if you’re matching a frame you already own; one-sheets are standard but your frame might not be.

Events don’t cost to stand and listen inside the store, and you buy the book you want signed. That’s the fairest model we know. When signings are tied to screenings at the Egyptian or Aero, the theatre has its own ticket and seat policies, and we handle the books. It keeps the line moving and the author’s hand fresh. If you’re traveling in just for an event, call (323) 463-3273 ahead to check stock and we’ll set the right pile aside for show night.

Where else do LA film buffs actually shop, and why choose Larry Edmunds instead?

Hollywood is a small town once you’re on a first-name basis with the clerks. People combine stops, and the best afternoons include us plus one or two of our neighbors in the larger sense. Here’s how the regulars compare the usual suspects when they’re stocking a shelf, filling a binder, or adding a disc to the player.

That’s the practical circuit. If you’re on foot or using the Metro, we sit between Hollywood/Highland and Hollywood/Vine on the B Line. Amoeba sits across from Hollywood/Vine and keeps later hours on weekends, so some collectors leave our counter at 6 pm with a book and finish the night with a Blu-ray at Amoeba before its 9 pm close. If you’re making a Westside day of it, CineFile’s doors run late on Fridays and Saturdays, and their Thursday screenings post at 8:30 pm with a clear price: $10 for non-members, $8 for Pay-As-You-Go members, free for monthly members. Up in North Hollywood, Iliad’s 11–7 block and the lot behind the store make slow browsing feel sane.

What sets Larry Edmunds apart from those good neighbors is not size or decibels. It’s the way the collection leans into the city’s own memory. We shelve Joan Crawford next to her pressbook and then point you to a restored still when the spine wakes up a question. When you ask what a fair price is for a candid or whether that poster is a reissue, the answer walks out from behind the counter with a pair of cotton gloves. We’re retail, sure. We’re also the hallway between what Hollywood printed and what fans saved.

Quick takeaways for shopping like a pro at Larry Edmunds

• Plan around hours: 11 am–6 pm Monday through Saturday and 12–6 pm Sunday. If you want floor space to yourself, open the door right at 11.
• Use simple parking: meters on Hollywood or Cherokee for short visits, the paid lot up Cherokee for longer browsing. If you’re car-free, both nearby stations are on Metro’s B Line.
• Know the price anchors: signed new books hover in the $25–$60 band, with a popular signed title around $45. Lobby cards often price around the low hundreds, and a collectible one-sheet can run a few hundred dollars when it earns it.
• Ask for the back files: stills, lobby cards, and some posters are pulled on request so they aren’t sunbathing all day. A clerk will bring what you need to the counter.
• Stack your day: we’re a short walk to Amoeba at 6200 Hollywood Blvd for evening shopping, and a quick B Line hop from there gets you on your way home.
• Build a physical-media plan if you’re mixing stops: CineFile’s memberships start at a $5 signup and $5.50 rentals, with late hours on Fridays and Saturdays for Westside nights.

Reader Q&A

What are the current hours, and do I need a ticket to browse?

Doors are open 11 am–6 pm Monday through Saturday and 12–6 pm on Sunday. You don’t need a ticket to come in or to listen during in-store author talks; you simply buy the book you want signed.

How much should I expect to pay for a real movie poster or lobby card?

A studio lobby card can sit around the low hundreds, as with a Blue Hawaii card around $95. A classic one-sheet like The Naked Spur priced around $450 shows you where serious, authentic posters begin when the condition is right.

Is there easy parking or should I take the Metro?

Short visits are fine on the meters along Hollywood Boulevard and Cherokee. For longer digs, use the paid lot up Cherokee north of Hollywood Boulevard, or ride the B Line to either Hollywood/Highland or Hollywood/Vine and walk.

If I want to add movies and music to my run, what’s the closest next stop?

Amoeba’s Hollywood store at 6200 Hollywood Blvd is a straight walk and stays open 11 am–9 pm on weekends with 75 minutes of validated parking with purchase in the El Centro garage. If you’re Westside-bound, CineFile Video runs 12 pm–12 am on Fridays and Saturdays, with rentals at $5.50 and weekly in-store screenings.

There’s no wrong way to do this, but there is an efficient one. Start at Larry Edmunds for the paper and the history while the counter is fresh, then use the B Line or a short drive to add discs and soundtracks at a neighbor that fits your hours and budget.

Published: September 10, 2026 · Reviewed by the Holywood editorial team