In his posting about wonderful old buildings on Ocean View Avenue in the vicinity of 3rd and Alvarado, Flyingwedge re-posted a photo from David 3940dxer showing the old Mariposa Apartments (built 1914) and an adjacent neon sign pointing to the nearby Royal Viking Motel. Wedge explained that the 1950's-era Royal Viking is now called by the ungainly name of "The Pod Inn." The main entrance of the Royal Viking/Pod Inn is at 220 S. Alvarado, but there is a "back" entrance at 2025 3rd Street.
Mariposa Aparments and Royal Viking sign
page 1187 3940dxer photos
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The Pod Inn is one of those residence buildings, often down-at-the-heels, with a sometimes surprising connection to personalities of old Hollywood; i.e. silent star Mae Murray at the shabby Garden Court Apartments circa 1964 (Mae previously lived at the Lido Apts. on Yucca Street and the "Ardmore Riviera" apts. on Ardmore Ave.), B-movie tough guy Frankie Darro at The Saint Francis Apts. on Hollywood Blvd. near Western, Universal's teenage soprano of the 40's, Susannah Foster, at "The Bell Motel" (when she wasn't living in her car or sharing a fleabag apartment), singer Sam Cooke shot to death at the Hacienda Motel in Southwest Los Angeles/El Segundo. At the Royal Viking in 1963, the night manager was Hal LeSueur, Joan Crawford's brother.
Mae Murray
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Hal LeSeur and his sister Joan Crawford (formerly Lucille LeSeuur)
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When he was employed by the Royal Viking, Hal died in the hospital of a ruptured appendix at age 59, at a time when the Alvarado Street motel would've been fairly new and the neighborhood much less dicey than it is today. He lived - and was switchboard operator - at the Parkway Motel, now the "Casa Bella Inn Motel" at 1212 S. Alvarado.
Casa Bella Inn Motel, formerly Parkway Motel, 1212 S Alvarado, last home of Hal leSueur
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side entrance of Pod Inn/ Royal Viking Motel
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Good-looking Hal came to Los Angeles in the early 1930's, appeared in some 20 uncredited movie bit parts, did makeup at MGM for awhile, eventually worked at a sporting good store, then settled into "motel work." He was married twice and had a daughter named Joan Crawford Le Sueur, who had apparently "vanished," age approximately thirty, at the time of Hal's death. A touching 1963 article in The Los Angeles Times described his life:
https://www.joancrawfordbest.com/hallatimesobit63.htm
In 1954, Hal told an interviewer that it was not an appropriate time to explain why he and his sister had nothing to do with one another. There is a fascinating 1980 book called "Conversations with Joan Crawford" by Roy Newquist, in which Joan called her brother "an out-and-out bastard," and said that she "hated him." There is an author of books about classic Hollywood named Mark Vieira who claims that the book is a phony collection of bogus interviews, and since Crawford and the book's author are long gone, we'll never know. However, LeSueur's obituary says that Joan helped him financially for 32 years, sent telegrams to him in the hospital, had his belongings picked up at the Parkway Motel by a chauffered car - and presumably she paid for his burial at Forest lawn.
Joan Crawford, 1947
The best of everything - Joan Crawford encyclopedia
Joan Crawford, 1946/47
the best of everything - Joan Crawford Encyclopedia
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