That's correct. The novel's opening scene --with the rubber sidewalk tiles being torn out for a WWII scrap rubber drive-- was based on an actual event which occurred in front of the Oviatt Building in 1942. The "pale, bareheaded man" described on the first page was in fact Lewis Oviatt, the building's manager (and James Oviatt's nephew). The character of Derace Kingsley was strongly based on James Oviatt himself.

.

I don't know about that particular lot, but awhile back, Brian Hsu, on his Urban Diachrony blog, said that the Wilshire lot linked to below has never been developed. Who can afford to pay property taxes on a vacant lot for a whole century and allow the place to remain fallow? Actually, there's no way the original owner can still be alive, so this property must have been handed down or sold over generations as a vacant lot. 'Tis a puzzlement, indeed. :shrug:

http://goo.gl/maps/ZDhpK

There are several big empty lots along this stretch of Wilshire and the bordering office buildings have low occupancies. It's a little bit of a dead zone. The Scottish Rite Masonic Temple, no longer in use, is also along this stretch.

I found an advertisment for sale on ebay. In the 1940's, the compnay used a PO Box at the "Wilshire-La Brea Station". This gizmo looks pretty awkward compred to today's models, and the guy is violating about a half-dozen OSHA rules--no hard hat, no vest, no lane closures. What a bad example he's setting!

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/CA/95649777_zpid/

Sold in '91 for 1.5M (!) property tax is a whopping $836/yr. My guess is that some developer thought someone could use a commercial building in their backyard and found himself with a zoning change/stalemate. :tup:

Building a home there would probably take an easy million+ and I doubt he'd ever get his money back unloading the vacant lot, so it's pretty much going to remain in limbo until someone figures it out. Personally I think there are much better locations for living in a custom-built home, but we've all seen worse.

This seems to be about the lot at the NW corner of Wilshire and Rimpau (at least that is the lot that the Zillow map is pointing at). I was referring to the lot at the NE corner.

I'm very fond of the Farmers Insurance Group Building (Walker & Eisen, 1937) on the SE corner of Wilshire and Rimpau (I'm a sucker for exterior black glass), 4680 Wilshire. It always looks so maintained, sparkling white. The Annex on the SW corner, 4700 Wilshire, isn't distinguished.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-J...23634%2BPM.jpg
http://www.you-are-here.com/building/farmers.html

The area of Wilshire with the empty lots is called "The Park Mile". It was zoned R1 with an eventual expiration date. Developers held the land waiting until the date passed. It has now and all lots will be built.

Isaias W. Hellman Building - 4th and Main - Old Building Signage
 

I've been meaning to share this for sometime. I have lived for a number of years in the Hellman Building, the one named after Isaias, not the other Hellman Building across 4th Street. I'm about to move out soon, and I wanted to share this before I'm out the door. When I saw Chuckaluck's post about the signage for the Dewey Building, I remembered it's time to post my own signage discovery.

Basically, my loft is located at the juncture of the old section of the building and the newer section of the building that was built a few years after. The "newer" section of the building starts above Harlem Alley and connects to the Continental Building. I live on the top floor, the 6th Floor.

One of the cool things about the top floor units is the bi-level that the owner/redeveloper put in when this building was converted into lofts. I have been using my second floor unit as a recording studio of sorts, but perhaps the coolest thing about it is this:

http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/w...e59c82741f.jpg
http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/w...01/photo-4.jpghttp://i719.photobucket.com/albums/w...01/photo-3.jpg

That's the original handpainted backside signage of my building, once visible to everyone walking eastwards on 4th Street, now - over 100 years later - only visible to me!

I've been trying to locate a photo or postcard of the signage as it was before the newer section was installed. As I mentioned, the newer section starts at above Harlem Alley, and connects to what's now the Continental Building on the SEC of 4th and Spring. If there ever was a postcard, it would probably be a view eastward down 4th Street, perhaps from Spring, Broadway or even Hill. I know there's an old postcard showing a similar sign for the Isaias W. Hellman Building on the Main Street side, which is now covered up thanks to the parking lot building connecting to it.

E

Third and Hill yet again
 

http://i699.photobucket.com/albums/v...BDM5AJA28L.jpg
California State Library

I seem to recall this being mentioned here in the past, but what is the name of the house in the foreground above, and when was it built? Thx for the help!

Thanks for sharing.

For starters? (Be careful, some paint takes a while to dry. ;) )

1922
http://catalog.library.ca.gov/exlibr...U47H1H2EFA.jpghttp://catalog.library.ca.gov/exlibr...U47H1H2EFA.jpg

And of course, Isaias Hellman is remembered as a founder of USC. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaias_W._Hellman

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...iasHellman.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...iasHellman.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0...2520AM.bmp.jpg

Well, not your west-facing sign, but rather a photo of the one you mentioned that's on the south side of the building, blocked by the parking building...but there must be shot of the other somewhere.


https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-m...2520AM.bmp.jpg

USCDL/LAPL


PS Sorry, chuck--I missed your post while digging up those pics

There were. ......even in the few minutes I saw of Safety Last and The Freshman........:)

I taped many of them......There's one nice shot of the Hall of Records in Safety Last. I'll go through them and see what else turns up.

A little background on Pierce and Blanchard, 515 N Main:

circa 1890:
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-7...25040%2BPM.jpg
Photo by CC Pierce / http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/si...id/13727/rec/6


"Photograph of seven people at work around a table, near cameras, or an easel at the Pierce and Blanchard Plaza Photo Gallery, 515 North Main Street, Los Angeles, ca.1890. Pictured are (left to right): photographers Eddie McConnell (behind large camera), James A. Blanchard, a Mexican man who went to Manila and started a photography business, L.M. Clendenen (at easel), Blanchard, Miss Blanchard and Gould (at small camera). Behind the group a large sign reading "Plaza Gallery" leans against a wall on which hangs five photographs.; The Plaza Gallery was located about 100 feet opposite the Los Angeles Plaza in an adobe building south of the Los Angeles Mission known as the Andres Pico residence but not owned by him. This location was first started by Shoemaker [?] and afterwards run by A.C. Golsh, then by Bertrand & Stine, and then by Pierce & Blanchard. Pierce dissolved the Gallery and with A.E. McConnell moved to the north part of the same building and conducted a view and commercial business known as Tourist View Depot -- Pierce & McConnell."

One nice shot
 

I'm glad you are back, malumot. Can you post this nice shot of the Hall of Records in 1923 ?

Was the Ferguson house - replaced by buiding of same family name--year of origin- 1880 ??

Los Angeles Brewery workers toast the upcoming end of Prohibition. They worked in three shifts around the clock to get ready to legally ship Eastside Beer:

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-l...403%2520PM.jpg

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-4...416%2520PM.jpg
ACME photo / vintageimagephotos / eBay

More: http://articles.latimes.com/1997/sep/07/local/me-29791
"In an era when Los Angeles was characterized by bad relations between workers and management, the Eastside Brewery was a happy exception. Brewery workers--unionized from the day the plant opened--always were among the city's best-paid and had excellent working conditions... As the years went on, the workers' benefits mounted. Lunch periods at Eastside were paid--a rarity at the time--and vacation benefits were among the most liberal available, ranging to eight weeks annually after 20 years. But to some, the most important perks were the guaranteed seven-minute beer breaks every hour (beer was free and unlimited) and employee rights to buy take-home beer at 40% to 50% off retail."

Sounds pretty good.

Thanks rick m! :)

It looks like the end he's using is for horizontal surfaces, the opposite end looks good for vertical surfaces. Just a guess.



The lot would be a good noirish place to hide a body.

This is the first advertisement that I've found for the Crescent Heights tract.

Los Angeles Herald 1905
http://imageshack.us/a/img46/9754/aa...eightslots.jpg
http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/


http://imageshack.us/a/img15/7111/aa...eightsaeri.jpg
google aerial

Notice several street name changes.
Hays Ave. has become Havenhurst Dr.
May Ave. has become Hayworth Ave.
Crescent Ave. has become Fairfax Ave.



__

e_r left some really nice posts on the Lo Altos (it just shows to the right in the photo above) back on page 229. It must have some noiry stories.