West Hollywood is getting ready to do the “Time Warp” all over again in 2025, as The Rocky Horror Picture Show hits its 50th anniversary. Long before it became the ultimate midnight movie, the show had its first big splash in the US at West Hollywood’s Roxy Theatre back in 1974.
Music producer Lou Adler, already known for his work with Carole King and the Monterey Pop Festival, came across Richard O’Brien’s strange little stage production in London. He later said it was unlike anything he’d ever seen – part glam-rock, part B-movie send-up, and unapologetically camp. Adler decided it belonged on the Sunset Strip and brought it to his own newly opened venue, The Roxy.
The Strip at the time was the perfect backdrop. Glam rock was thriving, with the Whisky a Go Go and the Troubadour hosting acts that would become household names. Against this neon-soaked scene, The Rocky Horror Show landed in March 1974. Rock stars, actors and curious locals packed the theatre to watch Tim Curry as Dr Frank-N-Furter in a show that was loud, risqué and impossible to ignore.
The Roxy run lasted nine months, drawing names like John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Cher and Jack Nicholson to its audience. That buzz convinced Adler the production could make the jump to film. Cameras rolled later that year in England, with Curry, Patricia Quinn, Nell Campbell and Meat Loaf reprising their roles.
When The Rocky Horror Picture Show premiered in 1975, it didn’t land straight away. The turning point came with late-night screenings, where audiences started shouting back lines, dressing up, tossing props and dancing the Time Warp in the aisles. It slowly grew into the worldwide cult ritual it’s known as today.
Many fans trace its rise back to those chaotic early nights at The Roxy, where the mix of rock, rebellion and camp comedy proved the show could both shock and delight.
The Roxy itself marked its 50th anniversary in 2023, having hosted everyone from David Bowie to Bruce Springsteen over the years. The venue remains a fixture on the Strip, still known for giving new acts a shot before they hit the big time.
So as Rocky Horror turns 50 in 2025, it’s a reminder that before the fishnets, call-backs and midnight screenings took over the world, the story started with a glitter-soaked stage in West Hollywood.
