Mawby’s Bar from “Flashdance” – An Update

Typically, when a vacant space is built out for a production, it is dismantled as soon as filming wraps – though sometimes stranger things, ahem, do happen.  Take Gwinnett Place, for instance.  A wing of the largely deserted Duluth, Georgia shopping center was transformed (with breathtaking attention to detail, I might add) into Hawkins, Indiana’s Starcourt Mall for the third season of Stranger Things. It is one of my favorite locations ever to be brought to life onscreen and, incredibly, was left completely dressed in its destroyed ‘80s state up until earlier this month – almost a year after filming took place!  Atypical as that is, the same scenario appears to be true for Mawby’s Bar from Flashdance!  As I chronicled in an August 2017 post, the supposed Pittsburgh nightclub was not a real place, but a set created especially for the 1983 movie at a vacant warehouse located at 229 Boyd Street in downtown L.A.  While I assumed said set was disassembled following the shoot, fellow stalker Dave (you may remember his amazing research from this post) recently informed me that it popped up again two years later as Coyle’s Club & Cuff in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment!  Why producers (not to mention the building owner) chose to leave the bar space intact is beyond me, but I am so grateful they did!  Due to the many changes the warehouse incurred in the three-plus decades since Flashdance was shot, it is not at all recognizable, so prior to writing my 2017 post I attempted to dig up additional footage of it from other productions lensed around the same time to further verify its use in the movie.  I was unsuccessful, but, thankfully, Dave has now done the legwork for me!  So I figure an update is in order!

It is at Coyle’s Club & Cuff that the officers of the 16th Precinct regularly hang out in Police Academy 2.  As Dave explained to me, the small octagonal windows flanking the bar’s front door, the larger one situated on the wall beside it, and the glass block framing perfectly match Mawby’s exterior from Flashdance, giving away its location as 229 Boyd Street, despite looking completely different today.

Dave went on to explain that in one scene, Tackleberry (David Graf) is shown walking inside Coyle’s and, as he enters, it becomes obvious from the octagonal window visible behind him (denoted with a blue arrow below) as well as the glass block framing above the doorway (denoted with a pink arrow) that the warehouse was used for both interiors and exteriors.

Those exact same elements are also apparent in Flashdance, which cements the fact that the inside of the building was utilized in that film, as well – something I hypothesized about in my 2017 post, but could not prove at the time.

As Dave scrutinized the two movies further, he discovered even more matching details!  He called my attention to the two shots below, taken from practically the same angle, noting that although framing was built atop the bar for Police Academy 2 changing the look of it, the countertop was left untouched as were the doorway and hatch visible beyond it!

Seeing that doorway and hatch (denoted with pink and blue arrows below) gave me goosebumps!  I could hardly believe my eyes, but, sure enough, right before me was proof that the Mawby’s set was left intact long after Flashdance wrapped.

A clearer view of the octagonal hatch is pictured below.  (To quote Jake Peralta, “Literal goosebumps!”)

Thrilled at the new development, I excitedly began dissecting Flashdance and Police Academy 2 myself and dug up a few additional elements visible in both, including a vestibule with decorative wood paneling (shown from opposing angles below) situated just inside the front door of the two spaces.

A partition with seating that runs the length of the interiors is also apparent in both flicks.

The counter attached to said partition (shown from opposite angles below) boasts red siding in both productions, as well.

The lip of the bar and the tan and red paneling below it are also direct matches.  Oh, how I wish that interior was still intact today!

During his research, Dave unearthed an even more unusual twist!  Toward the middle of Police Academy 2, the outside of 229 Boyd appears in an undressed state in the scene in which Doug Fackler (Bruce Mahler) heads to a gas station looking for a public restroom.  As Dave wrote to me, “So at some point during production, either before or after Fackler drives past the building, the set designers will have given it quite a makeover!”  Though definitely odd, the segment provides a fabulous full view of what the property looked like in 1985 – which is pretty darn close to how it appeared in Flashdance (minus the Mawby’s accoutrements, of course)!  Dave notes, “Even the HOTEL lettering is still intact!”  Sadly, the location in its current state does not resemble its ‘80s self in the slightest.

As chronicled in my 2017 post, the warehouse pops up in a few other productions, as well, including 1984’s Night of the Comet.  In the screen captures below, the Mawby’s site, located just beyond the stop sign, is denoted with a yellow arrow.

Harry Washello (Anthony Edwards) and Wilson (Mykelti Williamson) drive by the building in 1988’s Miracle Mile.

And a reused shot of it from Flashdance appeared as an establishing shot in the 1990 made-for-television movie Perry Mason: The Case of the Poisoned Pen, though no actual filming took place there.

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HUGE thank you to fellow stalker Dave for figuring out this location’s Police Academy 2 connection. 

Until next time, Happy Stalking!

Stalk It: The building that portrayed both Mawby’s Bar in Flashdance and Coyle’s Club and Cuff in Police Academy 2 can be found at 229 Boyd Street in downtown Los Angeles.  The neighborhood where it is located is not the greatest, so please exercise caution when visiting.

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