Marion Davies Guest House

We are back at the Marion Davies Guest House in Santa Monica, where I dropped you all off on Monday. William Randolph Hearst purchased 4.91-acres of beachfront property so that he could build a "home" (if that's what you can call a three-story, 34-bedroom Georgian mansion) for his mistress, Marion Davies. She needed to be near Hollywood which is where she worked as an actress. Although the main mansion was torn down, the Guest House, designed by Julia Morgan (who also did Hearst Castle/San Simeon), still remains. This is where Marion's family stayed when they came to visit, so that they could be far from the Hollywood "riff raff" that often occupied the main mansion.



Here are new friends Mary, Melissa, and Gayle who all came out to California to celebrate Shirley Temple's birthday (more on this later). They helped arrange the tour that we took together of the Guest House.



What an entrance!



Pictures of Marion Davies were hanging in the foyer. For those of you who only know of Marion through the movie "Citizen Kane" which was loosely based on Davies and Hearst, you are doing her a terrible injustice. Although Orson Welles created a masterpiece, he forever caused the public to associate Marion with her very untalented fictitious movie counterpart, Susan Alexander Kane. In real life, Davies was known for her comedic talents, her kindness, and especially her generosity.



The living room was spacious and had a wonderful view of Santa Monica Beach.



A detailed view of the fireplace:



We all listened as tour guide supreme Elaine Cohen told us the story of Davies and the mansion.



Oh the view...



Looking back from the opposite side at the Guest House:



The dining room was gorgeous, and the shades were imprinted with vintage photos of Davies, Hearst, and various movie stars of the era.



We were told that this chandelier was Tiffany. However, I didn't see any blue box nearby.



And then we got to go upstairs.



I think I'll stop the story for now before I take you to the bathrooms, where I was in vintage tile heaven.

More Marion Davies Guest House photos at my main website.

The Annenberg Community Beach House

An undiscovered gem (to me, at least) in Los Angeles is the Annenberg Community Beach House. Originally the site of a 100-plus room mansion for actress Marion Davies (a gift from William Randolph Hearst), it later became a hotel (Oceanhouse) and the Sand & Sea Club, a limited-membership beach club. The main mansion was torn down in 1956, and the Sand & Sea Club almost followed suit when it suffered damage from the 1994 earthquake. In stepped Wallis Annenberg of the Annenberg Foundation, who held fond memories of visiting the Sand & Sea Club. She helped the city of Santa Monica by providing a $27.5 million grant that made it possible to reopen the site to the public as the Annenberg Community Beach House. The Beach House combines elements of the historic Marion Davies Estate with new amenities to create a truly unique community destination that's open to all.

The bougainvillea at the entrance was in full bloom when I arrived.



There are brand new facilities in this complex:



...that share the property that was once part of the Julia Morgan designed Marion Davies/William Randolph Hearst estate. When I got a glimpse of the pool, I had a hunch it was part of the original, and a tour guide later confirmed that I was correct.



These kinds of details are from days gone by.



Unfortunately the pool was still not open during my visit, so I couldn't get any better shots of the ornate tile below the water.



The landscaping is very well done; not difficult to see how this complex was awarded Gold LEED certification.



Until next time, I will leave you at the doorstep of the Marion Davies Guest House.



More Santa Monica photos at my main website.

Los Altos Hotel & Apartments

On my last trip to LA, I found a hidden treasure as I sought out the building used for the exterior of the now defunct series “Angel.” The Los Altos Hotel & Apartments Building is from 1925 and has undergone a top-notch restoration. Here are some views of this architectural gem, including a few of the Julia Morgan designed Hearst Suite.









The Hearst Suite:











For more Los Altos photos, visit my regular website