Jai Alai Building Taft Avenue, Manila Mid '50s Photo

Sift through this magic chest of amazing vintage photographs! Take a peek and let them transport you back to a time almost lost forever. Discover places you've never been, or revisit the places you always thought you knew; that is until you see what these places used to look like! Travel back in time and rediscover the Philippines.

The Jai Alai building was completed in 1940, designed by architect Welton Becket, a friend of Hollywood celebrities and designer of the homes of such screen legends as James Cagney and Cesar Romero, as well as of Los Angeles airport. The Art Deco style building had a sleek, cylindrical glass front was said to evoke the velocity of the Jai Alai game, in which pelotaris use curved scoops to hurl a rubber ball at speeds of up to 200 km an hour against three walls of a court.

Among the jewels of that period was Taft Avenue, a mini-Champs Elysee, with grand homes, sparkling movie houses, colleges and spectacular Art Deco buildings. One of the finest buildings was the Jai Alai stadium, opened in 1940 as a home for the Basque game of the same name and quickly adopted as a playground by the rich and glamorous. Unfortunately, demolition began on July 15, 2000 on the orders of Mayor Lito Atienza.

Many thanks to Philippine Heritage Watch.

More Mahiwagang Baul photos: Ayala Avenue Mid '80s Photo

Many thanks to everyone at www.skyscrapercity.com, and the www.pinoyexchange.com forums.

Technorati Tags:50s, old photo, nostalgia