Developer L. A. Schlesinger commissioned the theater in 1915 and architect James Flood Walker designed the building.

[1] Amidst its construction in June, the Santa Ana Daily Register called the venue a "handsome show house" and a "credit to the west end" of town.

It debuted with Juliet of the Spirits, which had only one prior premiere screening in Greater Los Angeles.

The building features a green and white enameled brick design and a hip roof tower above its second floor.

In 1966, when the venue reopened as the Guild Theater, it was renovated to include a new metal facade that obscured the original Walker design.