A Magical Spanish Home In The Original Hollywoodland, $4.5M
Author:Philip FerratoWe all know the unforgettable, iconic Hollywood sign in the hills above Griffith Park, but not many know it originally read “Hollywoodland” to advertise an ambitious subdivision in the 1920s. Built in part because of the success of Whitley Heights in nearby Hollywood, Hollywoodland was intended to appeal to the stars of the newly-booming film industry. A hundred years later, it still does– a neighborhood of winding streets, steep canyons and many handsome “Storybook” houses, close to the studios. This one, dubbed Casa Canem, was designed by Danish emigre architect Carl Lindblom in 1927.
Current owners are screenwriter Renny Maslow and fashion stylist Erica Maslow, who purchased the home about eight years ago and embarked on an extensive but sensitive renovation, with a new kitchen, updated baths and a pool.
It was originally built for Gale Sondergaard, a (sadly) now-forgotten Danish -American actress who won the very first Academy Award for best supporting actress for her 1936 film debut in Anthony Adverse. Married to film director Herbert Biberman, one of the Hollywood Ten, Sondergaard’s career collapsed in the early ‘fifties when the couple was blacklisted, forced to sell the house and leave Hollywood for New York.
What’s In A Name?Casa Canem means “doghouse” in Latin. One of Lindblom’s most famous houses is La Casa Pacifica in Orange County, later Richard Nixon’s Winter White House.
What We Love: How the original Mediterranean vibe was tempered by Lindblom’s Scandanavian simplicity, plus the Maslows have done an admirable job bringing the house into the 21st Century. Below, the huge kitchen, and breakfast with the Hollywood sign.
More: Got to the dedicated site for additional images and details. Co-represented by Konstantine Valissarakos at Nourmand & Associates and Richard Yohan of Sotheby’s International Realty.
3259 Deronda Drive, Beachwood Canyon/Hollywood Hills
4-beds, 4-baths, 4009-sq-feet
$4,537,000
