#146: Bungalow Court at 940-948 N. Raymond Avenue (Pasadena)

#146: Bungalow Court at 940-948 N. Raymond Avenue (Pasadena)

April 4, 2023
Architecture
Back around 1910 - 1930, Pasadena was a laboratory for the bungalow court: a type of multi-family housing that placed a group of small dwellings around a central courtyard, with a driveway leading down to a garage in the back. This here court is one of 28 Pasadena bungalow courts listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it's a fine example of the Spanish colonial revival style applied to the bungalow court genre. Plus its architect has a very silly last name.
Read More
#145: Venice Beach House (Venice)

#145: Venice Beach House (Venice)

March 29, 2023
Architecture
This historic craftsman house has stood in the same spot in Venice since 1911, back when this area was just white sand dunes. It was the summer home of LA Daily Journal editor Warren Wilson, an important early settler of Venice whose daughters married into the family of Venice founder Abbot Kinney. The house was a popular stopover for local politicians, businessmen and the cultural elite. These days it's a posh B&B, beautifully restored with much of the original woodwork and craftsman detailing intact.
Read More
#144: Halifax Apartments (Hollywood)

#144: Halifax Apartments (Hollywood)

March 23, 2023
Architecture
The Halifax Apartments were constructed in 1923 to help address the influx of emigrants attracted to the exploding film industry. It's on the NRHP as a dignified Italian renaissance revival design by Walker & Eisen. But way more interesting is the story of its builder: Leach Cross, a Jewish dentist who moonlit as a mediocre boxer and eventually turned to real estate. And then the restaurant biz. And then back to dentistry and boxing.
Read More
#143: Louise C. Bentz House (Pasadena – Greene & Greene)

#143: Louise C. Bentz House (Pasadena – Greene & Greene)

March 17, 2023
Architecture
This house is a minor marvel from the craftsman starchitects Charles & Henry Greene. It was commissioned in 1906 by Asian art importer John C. Bentz, one of the developers of the fashionable Prospect Park Tract in Pasadena. The house was the very first built on the tract, and it set a sky high quality standard for the neighborhood. It's also a great example of how Greene & Greene could work with more modest budgets and still showcase their architectural mastery.
Read More
#142: Citizen Publishing Company Building (Culver City)

#142: Citizen Publishing Company Building (Culver City)

March 13, 2023
Architecture
Beginning in 1929, the Citizen Publishing Company printed Culver City's most popular local newspaper, The Citizen - a family-owned rag that championed civic reform and boosted the local film industry. Architect Orville Clark based his design on original plans by Kitty Donovan, wife of the paper's owner Eugene Donovan. Since 2020, the building has operated as a swank food court.
Read More
#141: Ebell of Los Angeles (Hancock Park)

#141: Ebell of Los Angeles (Hancock Park)

March 8, 2023
Architecture
Since 1927, the Ebell of Los Angeles has been the forever home in LA for this venerable women's cultural and philanthropic organization. Designed by the great Sumner Hunt, this Italian Renaissance marvel wears its 75,000 square feet well, with refined exteriors, richly decorated interiors, and a courtyard that ties it all together. The adjoining Wilshire Ebell Theatre has hosted historic appearances by too many celebrities to name, including Judy Garland, Amelia Earhart, Stravinsky, Michelle Obama - the list goes on.
Read More
#140: The Lanterman House (La Cañada Flintridge)

#140: The Lanterman House (La Cañada Flintridge)

March 2, 2023
Architecture
The unique kinda-sorta craftsman home was one of the first houses in Los Angeles made of reinforced concrete. It was the home of Roy and Emily Lanterman, scions of La Cañada Flintridge's first family. One of their two sons, Frank Lanterman, would establish a legendary career in the California State Assembly.
Read More
#138: Greystone Mansion/Doheny Estate (Beverly Hills)

#138: Greystone Mansion/Doheny Estate (Beverly Hills)

February 16, 2023
Architecture
This 55-room mansion in Beverly Hills was designed by Gordon Kaufmann for oil heir Ned Doheny and his family. Over the years it has been a residence and a public park; a popular place to get married or hold a fashion shoot; the site of a still-controversial murder-suicide case; a film school where David Lynch and Paul Schrader honed their chops; and the location of Beverly Hills' largest reservoir.
Read More
#136: Villa Francesca (Palos Verdes)

#136: Villa Francesca (Palos Verdes)

January 31, 2023
Architecture
This lovely Mediterranean revival compound in Rancho Palos Verdes was the longtime home of Harry E. Benedict, one of the peninsula's early developers. Though the Great Depression prevented the completion of a planned mansion, the gate lodge and farmstead still stand as fine examples of renowned architect Gordon Kaufmann's work.
Read More
#133: Exposition Park Rose Garden

#133: Exposition Park Rose Garden

January 3, 2023
City Planning
With over 19,000 rosebushes in hundreds of varietals, the Exposition Park Rose Garden is one of the largest public rose gardens in the United States. It's been open since 1928, and looks pretty much the same today as it did back then.
Read More