Majers Coin Laundry in San Fernando can be any laundry. And yet, since March 2020, it has become one of the most famous landmarks in Los Angeles thanks to the filming of “All(“Everything and everywhere, and all at once”).

Tucked away between an auto repair shop and a RV stop, Majers Coin Laundry has tall windows that show off the chocolate vending machines. The entrance is surrounded by a row of metal carts that, when strong winds blow, move them to a nearby parking lot.

For a full six days, the store became a second home to Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the makers of Everything About Everything, which as of March 12 is the favorite of not one, but several statuettes. Oscar. The protagonist of the film Michelle Geo as Evelyn Wang, whose life will change when she starts jumping into parallel universes and meeting different versions of herself. Wang works at a dry cleaner’s, trying to avoid family problems and a maniacal tax inspector who is stalking her. The store has become the focus of these parallel universes into which history takes us.

Days before the 95th Academy Awards, the film won directors, producers, screenwriters and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards.

We got to chat with Kenny Myers at his Majers Coin Laundry in San Fernando, California, the location used by @allatoncemovie !@jonahmv with words!

In the LA laundry where it was made, the Oscar contender reflects “25 years of me” https://t.co/10yrFS5nPC pic.twitter.com/okHsFaU4KZ

— Jay L. Clendenin / next… (@jaylclendenin) March 10, 2023

From neighborhood business to tourist attraction

From the film’s release in March 2022 until today, a large number of fans from Burbank, California to Singapore have visited the now popular Majers Coin Laundry. According to the Los Angeles Times, visitors pose for selfies in front of the building’s recognizable green roof and distinctive red sign at the entrance. Some go to watch the washer and dryer, trying to relive scenes from the movie.

For them, dry cleaning belongs to sci-fi comedy protagonists Evelyn and Waymond Wang (Ke Hui Quan), Chinese immigrants trying to balance their personal and professional lives. But for the residents of the area, the business is owned by a married couple. Kenny and Irene Majors.

The importance of the film and the recognition it brought is no small matter to the owners of Majers Coin Laundry. “Everything and everywhere, all at once” acts as a multifaceted mirror that reflects the experiences, emotions and personalities of the audience.

For 20 years, the couple worked together to create a business that would be popular with society while raising their only daughter. Irene was more involved with paperwork, writing checks, paying bills, preparing paperwork, etc. Kenny was in charge of machines, repairing broken parts, buying and installing new washer and dryers.

“I’m like Michelle (Geo),” Irene told the LA Times. “When I saw Michelle sitting in the office or talking to clients, I saw myself. It seems ironic, but it’s true.”

As for the store as a backdrop to the story, Kwan – one of the two directors – was inspired by his father’s family, who, after immigrating from the US to Hong Kong, owned a similar dry cleaner’s with an attached apartment as they did on the second one. floor of the building. However, Majers Coin Laundry is in a building with no upper floors.

A few days after filming ended, the pandemic affected production. Majors wondered if the film would ever hit theaters. At the end of 2021, one of Kenny’s friends sent him a trailer.

Cleaning

A few months later, Kenny and Irene watched the movie with their daughter, a regular customer, and his wife. As the end credits rolled and the lights came on again, Kenny looked at his wife and daughter, who were crying with excitement. But he tried to hold back his tears. The catharsis came earlier, during production in his business.
As the film continues to win film awards, Kenny and Irene feel like they’re joining the celebration from afar.

“I’m proud,” said Irene, who, after fighting so hard to keep Majers Coin Laundry afloat, is now a nurse in the oncology department of a local hospital. “Both for the husband and for the business.”

According to the Los Angeles Times