Posts by Historical Society
Adrian, American Designer, Hollywood Original
Wednesday, September 22nd. 7:00 PM. In 1933, “Fortune” magazine suggested to the American fashion industry that they could benefit from the showmanship demonstrated by the Hollywood designers in order to compete with the French couturiers. The Hollywood designer “Fortune” most praised was Adrian of M-G-M. It was a logical choice as Adrian’s design for Joan…
Read MoreBetter Luck Next Time
August 25th, 7:00 PM. Do you want to read something funny? Let’s say, a novel set at a divorce ranch in Reno in the 1930s? A book with memorably eccentric characters, sparkling dialogue, a satisfying plot twist, and some romance and sex? A feel-good literary comedy/western? Here it is, then, the book you’ve been looking…
Read MoreWSHPHS New Member Spotlight: Marci Pool and David Madden
Marci Pool: We moved to Hancock Park in January with our 16 year old daughter, Riley. Our two older children, Max and Hannah (mother to our precious grandson!), are grown and live nearby and visit frequently. David and I both grew up in Los Angeles and have always loved the area and decided it was…
Read MoreWSHPHS New Member Spotlight: Jackie and Jordon Kruse
Jackie Kruse: Jordon and I moved to Hancock Park/Windsor Square in 2001 from the Wrigleyville neighborhood in Chicago when he left practicing law and accepted a position at Oaktree Capital Management. We fell in love with the neighborhood as it felt familiar to our Midwestern roots (mature trees, 1920’s homes, city feel). We first rented on…
Read More425 South Plymouth
THE HISTORICAL OBSERVER The Windsor Square Hancock Park Historical Society was founded in 1976, the bicentennial of our nation’s birth. Since then almost a thousand stately homes in both Hancock Park, Windsor Square and the surrounding environs have been painstakingly researched by volunteer members. The Historical Observer is a venue to digitally document these archives…
Read MorePreserving Los Angeles: How Historic Places Can Transform America’s Cities
July 7th at 7:00pm. Ken Bernstein, the City Planner for the City of Los Angeles and a national advocate for historic preservation shares how Los Angeles has led the nation in historic preservation and shares how other cities can do the same. Los Angeles has an image as the “City of the Future”―a city always…
Read MoreVIRTUAL HOME TOUR 303 N. JUNE ST.
Wednesday May 26th at 7:00 PM. A prime Hancock Park 1927 Mediterranean Revival Architectural Masterpiece has been fully renovated, restored, decorated and enhanced into its present pristine condition by the legendary design firm of Ron Wilson Interiors and its owner, Joseph Guidera as his personal residence. This distinctive estate has all the hallmarks of a…
Read MoreJudson: Innovation in Stained Glass
Please join us on May 12, 2021 at 7pm. Five generations of Judsons have worked with artists, architects, and designers to create Old World-style stained glass whose quality and craftsmanship has often been compared to the work of Louis Tiffany. Famed for its Craftsman glass, Judson arts-and-crafts era windows have been celebrated by experts in…
Read MoreMaster Architects of Southern California 1920-1940: Paul R. Williams
Please join us on April 21, 2021, 7pm. Paul Revere Williams’s inspirational story has fascinated historians for the simple fact that his journey was so improbable. The orphan son of an African American fruit-and-vegetable merchant, he was repeatedly told he had no chance of ever realizing his childhood dream of becoming an architect. And yet,…
Read MoreCLUBHOUSE TURN, THE TWILIGHT OF HOLLYWOOD PARK RACE TRACK
Please join us on MARCH 17th at 7:00pm. On December 22, 2013, the world-famous Hollywood Park Race Track closed its doors forever. In 2014, demolition began on the landmark race track, effectively erasing seventy-five years of history, while at the same time making space for an entire new neighborhood to suddenly arise in the middle…
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