ablaze

Hollywood club Basque, along with three other businesses that shared the same building, burned to the ground early this morning at the fabled corner of Hollywood and Vine, according to reports. The 5:30 a.m. blaze was apparently spectacular and could be seen for miles. It took 115 firefighters 2 hours 27 minutes to knock down the flames at 6263 Hollywood Blvd. (and 1707 Vine St., among other addresses). No injuries were reported.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the property recently changed hands. Basque was a celebrity spot and played a minor role in Oceans Eleven. It was one of those cheesy, bottle-service clubs with go-go dancers and crap pop and hip-hop DJs that certainly wasn't the new kid on the celeb-nightspot block anymore.

Question: What other kind of businesses besides clubs and restaurants so frequently go up in smoke in early morning darkness?

Another question: What ever happened to the February reopening of North Hollywood club Bank Heist, which also burned in the early morning darkness of Jan. 7? That venue was co-owned by The Crystal Method's Ken Jordan and featured some DJ-centric nights.