According to production notes in AMPAS library files and a 3 Jan 1979 LAT article, Desmond Nakano’s original screenplay about Mexican American youth culture, written while Nakano was a student at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), attracted attention when it received the University’s prestigious Samuel Goldwyn Writing Award. Executive producer Tony Bill optioned the script with producer Bill Benenson, who had been interested in making a documentary about the Chicano car clubs of East Los Angeles, CA. They involved director Michael Pressman, who was eager to learn about a local culture that was completely foreign to him.
       The project was independently financed on a budget of $2.5 million. After the film was completed, Warner Bros., Inc. acquired worldwide distribution rights, as announced in a 13 Dec 1978 press release. A 27 Mar 1979 DV article noted that the studio allotted $2.5 million for advertising expenditures.
       Shooting began in late Aug 1978, as stated in a 15 Aug 1978 HR brief. According to production notes, filming took place entirely on location in Los Angeles, mainly within the Mexican American community of East Los Angeles. In LAT articles from 3 Jan 1979 and 18 Mar 1979, Pressman remarked that the production integrated the local Chicano community into the filmmaking process by employing residents to appear on camera and to assist behind-the-scenes. Actual gang members not only advised the lead actors, but also played members of the fictional “V.G.V.” and “11th Street” gangs. In a 23 Mar 1979 LAT article, assistant director Ramiro Jaloma called it a “breakthrough” that forty-eight adolescents from the community were able to appear on camera.
       Unlike Walk Proud (1979, see entry), another production about Chicano street gangs, Pressman noted that there were no hostile incidents nor a heavy police presence during filming, perhaps attributed to the atmosphere of cooperation and collaboration with the locals, who handled most of the security needs on set. The 18 Mar 1979 LAT article reported from the production headquarters at McBride Avenue and Whittier Boulevard that the film “has become part of the neighborhood.” A drug counselor at the Ayudate Community Center, a local organization that supported the filmmakers, commended the production for bringing new jobs to the area and for introducing the youth to other careers. The Imperials were one of several car clubs that contributed to the film by showcasing their customized “low-riders,” particularly during the cruising scenes shot along Whittier Boulevard. An Imperial member described the film as their version of American Graffiti (1973, see entry).
       Leading up to the release, incidents of violence, including three killings, occurred at theatres showing The Warriors (1979, see entry), yet another film about street gangs, as reported by a 28 Mar 1979 LAT article. In the immediate wake of this notoriety, Warner Bros. and the filmmakers tried to differentiate Boulevard Nights and downplay the gang association. In the 18 Mar 1979 LAT, they emphasized that the film was a “family story” about two brothers “set in a gang environment.” Nevertheless, many exhibitors in Los Angeles were anxious about the possibility of violence if rival gangs attended the same screening. Max Laemmle of Laemmle Theatres tried to obtain an alternate film after previewing Boulevard Nights. Others thought that there was little cause for alarm, since the film seemed substantially different from The Warriors.
       A 22 Mar 1979 article in LAHExam, reported that approximately fifty protestors, objecting to the film’s stereotypical portrayal of Mexican Americans as gang members, assembled at the 21 Mar 1979 premiere in front of the Picwood Theatre on Pico Boulevard in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. The demonstrations continued as the film opened on 23 Mar 1979 across 103 theatres in cities with sizable Latino populations. According to articles in the 24 Mar 1979 LAHExam and the 26 Mar 1979 DV, organizations participating in the picket lines included the Mexicano-Latino Anti-Defamation League, the Chicano Cinema Center, the Coalition of Chicano Community Workers and the student organization MECHA. Nosotros, a group that supports Latinos in entertainment, also denounced the film and refused a request by the filmmakers to sponsor a charity screening.
       As with The Warriors, several of the film’s showings were linked to violence by youth gangs. The 28 Mar 1979 LAT reported that the Mission Drive-In in Ontario, CA, and the Alhambra Theatre in San Francisco, CA, pulled the film after stabbing and shooting incidents occurred on opening night. At the Alhambra, San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein was responsible for the decision to cancel the screenings. The filmmakers defended the film, and Warner Bros. did not revise their publicity and exhibition strategy; although they did offer to contribute to security costs at theatres, as noted in the 27 Mar 1979 DV. Executive producer Tony Bill criticized Feinstein’s actions in a 30 Mar 1979 LAT article, explaining that “The people who should see this film, including members of gangs, would be better served if the movie continued to play.” In an interview in the 28 Mar 1979 Var, producer Benenson blamed the “flood of ‘gang’ films” for taking the attention away from the story of Boulevard Nights. In addition to The Warriors and Walk Proud (1979, see entry), two more gang-related films were set for release, Over the Edge (1980, see entry) and The Wanderers (1979, see entry).
       As reported by a 29 Dec 1982 DV article, Jocelyn Vargas was shot after leaving the Alhambra Theatre on opening night in 1979. In her subsequent lawsuit, she named as defendants, the producers, the director, Warner Bros and the theatre operators. In 1982, the filmmakers won the California appellate case, which ruled that they were not liable for injuries that occurred during a screening.
       Critical reaction was mostly negative, aside from comments about the film’s good intentions. Reviewer Michael Sragow in the 23 Mar 1979 LAHExam, cited the groundbreaking casting that featured Latinos in virtually every role, a “first” for a studio film, but he concluded that “because of this movie’s incompetence, fewer Latin-flavored movies might be made.” Similarly, in an 18 Mar 1979 LAT commentary, Frank Del Olmo, a reporter for Mexican American affairs, wrote that “the film has captured the feel, the color, the sound and the style of life among young urban Chicanos better than any fictional portrayal I’ve seen,” but he ultimately argued that because the film failed to explore character motivations and details of daily life, it missed an opportunity to contribute to a better understanding of the culture.
       Despite the controversy and poor reviews, the film was regarded as a box-office success. In the opening weekend, it grossed $832,384, according to the 27 Mar 1979 DV. After seventeen days, as reported by a 18 Apr 1979 Var brief, the gross was $2.2 million.
       As noted in the 3 Jan 1979 LAT article, Boulevard Nights was the first feature for John Bailey as a director of photography and for screenwriter Desmond Nakano. According to production notes, the film also marked the feature film debut for Marta Du Bois (“Shady Landeros”), Danny De La Paz (“Chuco Avila”) and Betty Carvalho (“Mrs. Avila).
      The end credits include “Special Thanks to” the following: Marian Brayton; Ayudate Community Center; Imperials Car Club; Los Angeles Police Department; and Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.