Silver Lake in Los Angeles in Los Angeles County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

The Music Box Steps

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

— 1932 —

The Music Box Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker, 2017

1. The Music Box Marker

Inscription. This plaque marks the site of the making of "The Music Box,” winner of the 1932 Academy Award for Short Subject - Comedy. The film starred comic legends Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, who also employed this location in their 1927 film, “Hats Off.” Both films were produced by the Hal Roach Studio.

Erected by Hollywood Heritage Inc., The Society of Operating Cameramen, The Silent Society, The Hollywood Studio Museum, The Silverlake Improvement Association.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • Notable Places. A significant historical year for this entry is 1932.

Location. 34° 4.984′ N, 118° 16.511′ W. Marker is in Los Angeles, California, in Los Angeles County. It is in Silver Lake. It is on Vendome Street 0.1 miles south of Sunset Boulevard, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 935 N Vendome St, Los Angeles CA 90026, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in California’s Transverse Ranges.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Black Cat Tavern (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Black Cat (approx. 0.7 miles away); Canfield-Moreno Estate (approx. 0.8 miles away); Taix Square (approx. 0.8 miles away); Mack Sennett Studios (approx. 0.9 miles away); Angelus Temple (approx. 0.9 miles away); José Martí Monument (approx. 0.9 miles away); Cahuenga Branch Library (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Los Angeles.

Regarding The Music Box Steps. Laurel and Hardy immortalized

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this public stairway in their film The Music Box. Dressed in overalls, the duo struggles against gravity as they attempt to deliver a piano to a house at the top of the steps. Since the movie was shot, the stairway's surroundings have changed dramatically, with vacant hillside lots now filled with houses and trees, and a small park nearby, now called Laurel and Hardy Park.

In the film Hats Off, they carry a washing machine up the stairs. The film no longer exists.

Also see . . . Movies Filmed on the Music Box Steps. Eric Brightwell blog includes photos and videos. Excerpt:

The Descanso-Vendome Stairs – long ago renamed the Music Box Steps – are the centerpiece of the annual Music Box Steps Day. The Silver Lake Improvement Association’s Music Box Steps Day takes place in October in Silver Lake’s Laurel and Hardy Park … In recognition of this occasion, I thought it might be nice to focus to all of the known appearances of Silver Lake’s stair streets in film. Given the attention paid to The Music Box, it may surprise some readers to learn that not only was it not the first comedy to feature that stairway, it was not even the first Laurel and Hardy comedy to do so. Furthermore, at least three of Silver Lake’s public stair streets have been prominently featured in films.

(Submitted on December 23, 2024.)

Additional keywords. Music Box Steps

Music Box Steps and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker, 2017

2. Music Box Steps and Marker

Music Box Steps image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker, 2017

3. Music Box Steps

Music Box Steps Street Signs image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker

4. Music Box Steps Street Signs

“The Music Box” - 1932 image. Click for full size.

5. “The Music Box” - 1932

“Hats Off” - 1927 image. Click for full size.

6. “Hats Off” - 1927

Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 24, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. This page has been viewed 2,430 times since then and 114 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 24, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. 4. submitted on May 9, 2025, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. 5, 6. submitted on November 12, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.