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Commercial mystery
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Away from prying eyes, Alvaro.
psst. for married men who don't want to get caught. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img924/701/jlvoJ2.gif .................."I told you not to go to that place!" . |
Here is a fantastic family photograph that was posted on eBay, yesterday.
"c.1914 Family Photo of Ford Touring Car on Vermont and Hollywood, L.A., Calif." https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...921/EUE68b.jpg eBay The seller added this: "This photo taken by my Grandmother about 1914 of my father (age 3 or 4) next the the family Ford Touring Car parked on Vermont Ave at Hollywood Blvd in front of his dad's store, viewing north on Vermont toward Griffith Park and the Hollywood Hills, Southern California. This and other photos were reprinted by my father in the early 1950s for local newspaper articles on the history of East Hollywood. This image is from one of a few sets of these original gelatin silver images he printed from the original negatives. The photos were taken by my grandparents between 1902 and 1918." note the large mansion in the hills at the end of the street. (Vermont) Here's a closer look at the drug store on the right. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...922/21poWr.jpg If you look closely, a lady has started to cross the street in front of the drug store. (at first I thought she was a penguin) I was only seeing her white skirt and shoes. ....ha ha I think I see a group of three or four men in the shadows...farther down the sidewalk a man is walking his bike(?) Down the street I see...umm.. two young ladies...one has her back to us and appears to be wearing a mini skirt that is blowing in the breeze. :shrug: TIME FOR MY MEDS ;) Now let's take a closer look at the adorable child (the seller's father) standing in front of his family's touring car. (note the 1914 license plate) lady pushing her child across the street ..................... https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...921/oUMuGK.jpgDETAIL I wonder what book he's holding..................... I am intrigued by the large light mounted in the center of the car near the windshield. (it appears to swivel and move up and down like a searchlight) Oh, and one last thing. For you super-sleuths...there is a sign reflected in the automobile's windshield. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...921/WNIn1o.jpg The 'searchlight' again................................................................................................... Can anyone make out the writing? ...(I tried..it's virtually impossible) . |
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I think the sign may well not be a reflection but a business sign mounted on that house(?) back there beyond the car. One of my reasons for thinking so, is the lower edge of the sign perfectly tracks the lower eave of the house, a long shot if it were a reflection. My two cents. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...921/EUE68b.jpg eBay Also my best guess on the large mansion on the hill is it may be the Mead house, the original developer of Los Feliz William Mead, although his house was completed in 1917 or thereabouts. Still I think it's plausible that's his manse on the hill at 4533 Cockerham Drive. My two cents (total of four cents) Here we are nearly sixty years later with essentially the same view. The survivor drug store is showing over there at Kingswell (1750 N. Vermont) and William Mead's house is up there on the hill. https://live.staticflickr.com/1565/2...bb133a2c_o.jpgLooking north on Vermont Avenue at Hollywood Boulevard, ca.1972 |
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I'm a bit confused about the Mead house, however - if the year of the photo (1914) is correct, how can the Mead house be present? Is the date on the car's license plate incorrect? Or did the Mead house take over 3 years to be built? The eBay seller said “The photos were taken by my grandparents between 1902 and 1918”, but as the picture shows his father on the left, it seems the date would be somewhat easy to narrow down... I mean, a four year old looks a lot different than a seven year old... "This photo taken by my Grandmother about 1914 of my father (age 3 or 4)” |
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No, I think the child and the license plate date the picture to 1914. But it could be late in the year. And it's hard to tell exactly what 1917 has to do with the Mead house. Could be the date permits were pulled, making it less likely it would show in this shot but it could also be the date certificates of Completion or Certificates of Occupancy were issued meaning it could be here in 1914. Also construction on these large houses was a long process. The Leon Kaufman house overlooking the Pacific Coast Highway took five full years to completion. Also my source for the 1917 date is simply a realtor's brochure so not the most compelling source material. Maybe Hoss will happen along and pull a permit on the Mead address for us. For what it's worth, I'm pretty convinced this is the Mead house. Update: I've found an article listing Hudson & Munsell Architects for the period 1905 through 1935 and shows 1914 as the date of the Mead house. But again, we're left with not knowing what exactly they are saying has happened in 1914. Here's the Kaufman Mansion... https://live.staticflickr.com/8295/7...5c494939_o.jpgView of Pacific Coast Highway from the top of a cliff, ca.1931 This lovely view looking north from Castellammare shows the front façade of the Leon Kaufman Mansion, Villa Leon or Villa de Leon, which was designed by noted architect Kenneth MacDonald, took over five years to build at a cost of one million dollars, being completed in 1928. Mr. Kaufman, who made his fortune in wool, and his wife, Clemence, moved into the property but did not live to enjoy it, she passed in 1933 and he in 1935. Thereafter, it sat vacant and unoccupied for nearly twenty years selling at auction in the mid-fifties for $71,000. It is often mistaken for the Getty Mansion which sits well back from the coast highway. USCdigital archive/California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960 |
https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...921/EUE68b.jpg
EXCELLENT detective work, guys I believe you're correct about the sign showing through the windshield of the car, MR. Thanks for pointing out your reasoning. So this is the survivor!? :eek: https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...923/nWPeKW.jpg I remember we discussed this building quite some time ago on NLA. If I remember correctly, I had found a business card for some kind of esoteric 'health' studio that was located on the 2nd floor back in the 1930s or 40s. https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...921/mv3OAd.jpg Does anyone remember what I'm talking about? :shrug: (sometimes..I don't know what I'm talking about) . |
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Luckily, GW posted this article back in 2012, which seems to confirm that the William Mead house was nearly complete in 1913: Quote:
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I hope you might forgive my excessive curiosity about this little stretch of Vermont Ave. I spent many years walking up and down those blocks. I was a regular at the Onyx Cafe, which would be about where the men in the distance are standing. I've had friends who lived at the Hollymont Apartments. I've been a patron of the Dresden since around 1991, and still have close friends who work there... in fact, I'm wearing a Dresden t-shirt at this very moment! I could blather on endlessly about this strip of Vermont, but suffice it to say that it is very dear to my heart - and I'll be emailing this photo (and your information about it) to several friends of mine, so thanks again (you too, ER, BillinGlendaleCA, and HossC)! |
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To bring back some NOIR into this thread about NOIRISH LA, I was in the neighborhood to visit Thelma Todd’s Sidewalk Cafe - which is just a few blocks away from the Kaufman Mansion. I also visited the double garage where Thelma Todd's body was found. https://i.imgur.com/lg2TXEC.jpglink https://i.imgur.com/185b4LE.jpglink https://i.imgur.com/FynLt2R.jpgGoogle Maps PS: It looks like someone converted the original double doors into a single door... but when they did they put the halves together incorrectly and ruined the symmetry! :mad: https://i.imgur.com/0Ea0KOw.jpg |
:previous:
Leon Kauffman made a lot of money in wool; before he built on the Pacific, he lived at the southeast corner of Wilshire and Wilton, which he had moved from Alvarado Street.... The history of that house is here: https://wilshireboulevardhouses.blog...e-see-our.html https://i.postimg.cc/HWz2K95n/3986-M...xshort4-FB.jpg I recently came across a full view of 3986 Wilshire: https://i.postimg.cc/qqkBhTMs/3986new1.jpg http://www.charliechaplinarchive.org/it |
Six Years Behind
Since I joined this forum I've been reading from both ends, from that day to now and also from the beginning. Slowly I'm gaining ground; today I made it to July 31, 2013, six years ago. Page 792, for the record, about a third of the way counting the recent months I've read. Yes, I am mad as a hatter, but I'm loving every minute of it, and to celebrate I wrote you all a little song (with apologies to Hoagy Carmichael):
It's not the bright sun that excites me, That thrills and affrights me, oh no, It's just the noirness of YOOOOOOO.... That's all I've got so far. It just popped into my head a minute ago. I think I've had too much coffee. Now back to reading what I believe is the greatest thread in the history of the internet, not just buildings or L.A. or noir. Thank you all. |
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Ha! That's the kind of blather we all understand. We all pretty much feel the same way about this town. |
Thanks, Michael!
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Both Sunset Blvd images have appeared on NLA before, but not together. The original Hamburger Hamlet was at 8931 Sunset (NE corner Hilldale and Sunset) (The '42 CD lists the same address as an antique store presumably operated by one Ray "Hampton," the last name coincidentally associated with the Highland Ave burger establishment.) The wide image depicts a business named "The Galaxy" along with a Galaxy Overflow room. The smaller image depicts "The Opera House" which evidently predated the nearby Galaxy. :shrug:
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http://hollywoodhistoricphotos.com/i...set%20Blvd.jpghttp://hollywoodhistoricphotos.com/i...set%20Blvd.jpg |
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Can't help but notice the NLA-ever-popular stop sign. ;) http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/t...ightedstop.jpghttp://i597.photobucket.com/albums/t...ightedstop.jpg http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...ostcount=11938 http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...ostcount=21716 |
Drug Store Survivor
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