mid-century modern Archives

#264: Frank Thomas House (La Cañada Flintridge)

August 15, 2025

This gorgeous mid-century modern residence was once the home of Frank Thomas, one of Disney's elite group of animators called the "Nine Old Men." Thomas worked on key scenes in Snow White, Bambi, Pinocchio, Lady and the Tramp, The Jungle Book and more. And when he was done with another day of making 2D drawings come alive, Thomas came home to this light and wood-filled nest, designed by architect Ted Criley.

#256: Stahl House / Case Study House 22 (Hollywood Hills)

May 13, 2025

Architecture

The Stahl House is one of the great works of mid-century modernism, and one of two Case Study Homes designed by Pierre Koenig. Its story is inextricable from the family that commissioned it, and the Julius Shulman photo that made it famous.

#220: Winona Boulevard Mid-Century Modern Historic District (Los Feliz)

June 28, 2024

Architecture

The Winona Boulevard Mid-Century Modern Historic District includes 13 apartment complexes in a grab bag of MCM styles, built from 1950-1964. Collectively they offer a snapshot of a neighborhood in transition during the post-WWII population boom.

#189: John Lautner’s Walstrom House (Beverly Glen)

January 23, 2024

Architecture

John Lautner's Walstrom House from 1969 is a deceptively simple treehouse of a home. It's just 1400 square feet and almost entirely made of wood and glass – worlds away from his big-budget concrete experiments of the '60s, more in line with his compact wood-clad homes from the '40s. But there is plenty of Lautner's spatial inventiveness here, and a sculptural quality to every part of the building.

#163: John Lautner – Harvey House (Hollywood Hills)

July 16, 2023

Architecture

John Lautner's Harvey House from 1950 represented the first time that this idiosyncratic architect could carry out his unique ideas about spatial geometry and texture with a sizable budget. In the late 1990s it was purchased by Kelly Lynch & Mitch Glazer, and lovingly restored by several of Lautner's most trusted collaborators.

#149: Killingsworth, Brady & Smith Office (Long Beach)

April 25, 2023

Architecture

Long Beach architect Edward Killingsworth honed the mid-century modern aesthetic into 3D poetry, creating sanctuaries out of right angles, high ceilings, open plans, expansive glass and natural light. One of the purest distillations of his design philosophy can be seen in the office he designed for his own firm in 1955.