[2] On December 23, 1969, Newport Beach police seized a reel of the controversial Swedish erotic film I Am Curious (Yellow) from the Balboa Theater just before its second showtime.

A month later, police acted on a warrant from a county judge and seized two pornographic film reels, French Blue and Dynamite, from the theater.

City police chief B. James Glavas said that he acted on protests from Newport Beach residents and the Orange County District Attorney's office announced it was prepared to prosecute the theater for exhibiting obscene material.

[4] Although the Pussycat Theater remained in operation at the Balboa, police continued to crack down on its film showings – by June 25, 1975, authorities had conducted five raids in four weeks.

[10] Despite the trial acquittal, city police continued to seize films from the Balboa Pussycat: officials confiscated reels of When a Woman Calls and Sex Ray Machine during a raid in November 1975, allegedly because they contained homosexual content.

[12] In November 1976, the parent company of Pussycat Theaters decided to retain ownership of the Balboa but cease the screening of adult films.

In 1998, the city of Newport Beach acquired the property for about US$450,000 and rented it to Balboa Performing Arts Theater Foundation, a nonprofit tasked with the building's renovation, for $1 per year.

LAB Holding proprietor Shaheen Sadeghi announced plans to redevelop the Balboa Theater building as a music venue.