I enjoyed reading the memories of 2100 Sunset Plaza Drive recently posted. This address is not far from my house. I have a dim memory that when I moved in (1988) the previous owner gave me a newspaper clipping about the Fields property that involved some crime whose details I do not remember. I wondered if I could find out what it was all about.
Here is the property as it looked this afternoon:
The address shows up in the Times in the '30s as the "French Norman" style chateau of silent film comedian Chester Conklin. The mid '30s must have been tough times for him because his furnishings went on the auction block twice, in 1935 and 1937:
LAT 9-8-35 via newspapers.com
LAT 10-19-37 via newspapers.com
As can be seen from the first photo, 2100 Sunset Plaza has undergone multiple additions, which include a tennis court, observatory, disco, etc. The LADBS provided the date and perpetrator of these "upgrades": 1977 and one Joel D. Nelson:
LADBS
In the 70s and 80s, Joel D. Nelson was a frequent subject of stories in the Times, as was his wife:
San Pedro Pilot 10-17-78 via newspapers.com
I think I remember those billboards. Alas, all good things must come to an end. Front page news on January 20, 1982:
LAT via newspapers.com
Arrested!
LAT 6-6-84 via newspapers.com
The inevitable plea bargain:
LAT 8-28-84 via newspapers.com
And the sentence:
LAT 1-9-85 via newspapers.com
A few years later, an LA Times writer had an attack of snark:
LAT 8-29-88 via newspapers.com
Nelson's second wife is still active in the entertainment industry, at least according to her Wiki page:
Wikipedia retrieved 2-28-20
Unfortunately, the Conklin/Fields/Nelson house does not look long for this world:
my photo
I am not sure I understand the intent of the bars on the facades, looks rather jail-like.
Richard Landry's Wiki page calls him the "King of the Megamansion." Wonderful.