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This Rare Film Shows What DTLA's Shoe Game Looked Like 100 Years Ago

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If you, too, have secretly hoped that those extreme tidying benders would uncover a trove of mistaken closet castoffs, perhaps this long-lost film gem will give you some sort of comfort. After unearthing a rare and damaged copy of pioneering female director Lois Weber's fashion film Shoes in its archives, Amsterdam's Eye Film Museum painstakingly restored the nearly-100-year-old clip—revealing the ultimate OG footwear flick shot in our very own DTLA.

Lensed at the still-glorious (and still shameless) Pershing Square—one of LA's oldest parks—the short film is a story of major turn-of-the-20th-century shoe envy. The re-released piece is part of the LA Visionary Association's effort to retransform the "confused and ugly park" into its original design, complete with "a central fountain, sculptures placed in their historic locations, diagonal paths," and more. (We're not fans of that weird '90s Miami Vice vibe, either).

Check out the fully-restored clip below and sign the petition for a more stylish Pershing Square here.

Pershing Square

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