Dear Old Hollywood

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Witness to Murder (1954) - Film Locations

Witness to Murder (1954)

How would you like to rent Barbara Stanwyck's apartment? Maybe you would prefer the posh pad of her neighbor George Sanders? But, what if there was a murder in the neighborhood? Would you still want to move in? Well, you can! Both buildings have units ready to move into. Of course, I'm not talking about Stanwyck's or Sanders's real homes, but the apartment buildings where their characters live in the 1954 film, Witness to Murder.

In Witness to Murder, Stanwyck plays Cheryl Draper, a single working girl, who from her apartment window one night, witnesses a murder being committed in the apartment across the street. The always delightfully smarmy George Sanders plays Albert Richter, a former Nazi and intellectual type, who commits the murder. From the beginning, we know that Sanders is the murderer and Stanwyck tries to prove to the police that Sanders committed the murder, but the police don't believe her. Sanders, using his charm and cunning abilities, leads the police to believe that Stanwyck is a bit delirious. Stanwyck does everything she can to prove that Sanders is the murderer, but the harder she tries, the more crazy the police think she is.

The story isn't groundbreaking and the writing is a bit weak in spots, but what is luring about this film is the performances by Stanwyck and Sanders. In fact, Sanders is so good in my opinion, that I don't care that he speaks with an English accent even though he is supposed to be German. If you want to see a more melodramatic version of a film in the vein of Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, which came out the same year I might add, then you should give Witness to Murder a view.

After watching Witness to Murder I was curious about the apartment buildings featured in the film and so I decided to track the buildings down. I had seen some buildings with a similar architectural style in a book on the historic Los Angeles neighborhood, West Adams, so I decided to start looking in that area first. After about 15 minutes of touring the area street by street, via Google, I found the apartment buildings in an area now known as Koreatown!

In the below screenshot and photo, we can see Barbara Stanwyck's apartment on the right (with the awning) and George Sanders apartment straight ahead and to the left. The intersection is S. Serrano Ave at San Marino Street.

S. Serrano Ave at San Marino Street

Stanwyck at her apartment. 939 S. Serrano Ave

Stanwyck's apartment. 939 S. Serrano Ave

Stanwyck's apartment is available to lease.

There is a unit a available in the building that was used as Stanwyck's apartment. If you want to move in, there is a phone number listed in the above photo. Below is a full shot of the apartment building.

939 S. Serrano Ave, Los Angeles

The next few images are comparisons of the building that was used as the apartment for George Sanders. From a real estate listing on Trulia, it appears that this building which was built in 1922 and known as the Miramonte Terrace, is now a condominium, with one unit for sale. The price for the 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom unit is $325,000. It comes with one secure parking space, shared access to the rooftop deck, and a rec room/billiards room in the basement. To view photos of the inside of the building, click here. The exact address for this building is 3400 San Marino Street, Los Angeles.

Sanders arrives at his apartment. 3400 San Marino Street

3400 San Marino Street, Los Angeles

The entrance to the Miramonte Terrace

This plaque can be seen in the film.

The next few images show comparisons of the intersection from different angles. The first is of Stanwyck walking from her apartment on Serrano and heading to Sanders apartment on San Marino. The view in the background is looking down San Marino. The second comparisons show the view looking down Serrano.

Stanwyck crosses San Marino Street

Looking down San Marino Street.

Looking down S. Serrano Ave (left side of street).

Right side of Serrano Ave.

As I mentioned, Stanwyck plays a working professional. She is an interior designer at a store in Beverly Hills. The building that was used as the business still stands, although the outside has been slightly modified. What was at one time the home of W. & J. Sloane, located at 9560 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, is now home to Burberry and Niketown. To read more about this building and to see interior photos from the 1950s, click here.

W. & J. Sloane, 9560 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills

Burberry / Niketown, 9560 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills

Are you ready to move into Stanwyck's or Sanders's apartments? By the way, if you have Netflix, this film is currently available for streaming.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

In a Lonely Place (1950) - Film Locations

Bogart as screenwriter, Dixon "Dix" Steele

In 1950, Hollywood produced three amazing films revealing a dark side to show business: Sunset Boulevard, All About Eve, and In a Lonely Place. In my opinion, Sunset Boulevard and All About Eve are the much stronger films overall, but In a Lonely Place is certainly no slouch. Humphrey Bogart's electrifying performance as down-on-his-luck screenwriter, Dixon Steele, really makes In A Lonely Place a gem to watch. Add in Nicholas Ray's melodramatic directing touches and noir starlet Gloria Graham and you got the ingredients for a delicious cinematic treat. Like Sunset Boulevard, In a Lonely Place features a few Los Angeles area locations and I decided to track some of those locations down.

The film opens with Bogart driving. Bogart comes to a stop at an intersection and turns to a pretty girl who is sitting with her husband in the next lane over. On a hunch, I figured that this intersection would be in Beverly Hills, so using Google Street View, I picked a commercial street and started comparing the buildings to the screenshot below. I couldn't have been more lucky. I found the intersection after scrolling just three blocks from my starting point. The intersection is North Beverly Drive at South Santa Monica Boulevard. The way I spotted this was from the unique detailing on the building which I've circled with the red oval.

N. Beverly Drive at S. Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills

N. Beverly Drive at S. Santa Monica, Beverly Hills

The only building still standing at this intersection that can be seen in the film is the one that I've circled. The rest have been torn down and replaced. The next two comparisons give a different view of the intersection.

Bogart at the intersection of Beverly & Santa Monica

Looking south down Beverly Boulevard. The store in the background is now replaced by a modern glass building.

Looking south down Beverly Boulevard.

Looking north up Beverly Boulevard.

One interesting note about In a Lonely Place, is that Nicholas Ray modeled the set of Bogart's apartment building after the Villa Primavera apartments in West Hollywood, the same apartment building Ray lived at when he first came to Hollywood. Although the apartment courtyard and interiors were recreated on a soundstage, in one scene we do get a glimpse of what is across the street from the actual apartment location. In the screenshot below, Bogart is walking up to the entrance of the Villa Primavera apartments located at 1300 North Harper Avenue. The view in the background is the intersection of Harper and Fountain Avenue.

Bogart at the Villa Primavera apartments.

Fountain Ave at Harper, West Hollywood

Bogart in the apartment courtyard.

The apartment is gated, but below is the entrance to the Villa Primavera apartments. You can see a fountain in the center by looking through the gate, similar to the one Ray recreated on a soundstage.

1300 N. Harper Ave, West Hollywood

Later in the film Bogart is seen leaving the Beverly Hills post office which is located directly across from the Beverly Hills City Hall building. Below is a screenshot of Bogart and the City Hall building. As of present, the area between City Hall and the Post Office is fenced off and under construction, so I couldn't get a good photo of the City Hall building. Instead, I have a Google Street View screenshot for comparison.

Bogart in front of Beverly Hills City Hall

Beverly Hills City Hall (c) Google 2011

In another scene, Bogart is taken into the Beverly Hills Police Station for questioning in a murder case. Below, Bogart is seen leaving the police station, which is a side entrance to the City Hall building. Today the bushes have been cut away and now palm trees have been planted in front of the entrance.

Bogart leaves the Beverly Hills police station.

Side entrance to Beverly Hills City Hall.

Below is a scene of Bogart driving off with Gloria Graham after a beach picnic. In the background we see the Canyon Market, located at the intersection of Chautauqua Blvd, Channel Road and the Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica. Just below the screenshot is a historic photograph of the Canyon Market that gives us a better view of how this intersection once looked. Following that image is a photo I took showing how the intersection looks today. I believe the building that is standing there today is the same building, only greatly modified.

Photo Credit: Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives

Former site of Canyon Market, Santa Monica

As Bogart drives off in a rage, another building we see him pass is the Casino Lunch building. This is located across the street from the Canyon Market building. Below is the screenshot of the Casino Lunch building as seen in the film. Below that is a historic photo providing a better view of the Casino Lunch building, followed by a photo I took showing the intersection as it appears today.

Bogart drives by the Casino Lunch building in Santa Monica.

Photo (c) California Historical Society

Former site of Casino Lunch, Santa Monica

Of the three show biz related 1950 films, Sunset Boulevard, All About Eve, and In a Lonely Place, what's your favorite? (I say "show biz" because I know All About Eve is more about Broadway than Hollywood.)

Sunday, June 12, 2011

The Fireball (1950) - Film Locations

The Fireball (1950)

Whenever I think of the Roller Derby I usually picture tough Derby Girls and a theatricality similar to WWF wrestling. I've never really thought of it as a true sport or one that men play for that matter, until I saw the Mickey Rooney film, The Fireball. Like the recent Ellen Page film, Whip It (2009), where Page plays an awkward teenager who puts on skates and learns she could be a great Roller Derby girl, The Fireball is a similar coming-of-age type story.

In The Fireball, Rooney plays the orphan Johnny Casar, a rebellious teen living at the St. Luke's Home For Boys. Johnny has no outlet for his frustrations and is regularly getting into trouble. When Johnny is confronted by Father O'Hara, played by the priest when you need one, Pat O'Brien, Johnny decides to run away from the orphanage.

While roaming the streets, Johnny stumbles across a pair of roller skates. He tries the skates on, finds that they fit, and then the next minute Johnny is rolling wildly down a hill, nearly knocking over anyone standing in the sidewalk. Johnny isn't a great skater at first, but he visits a local skating rink where he meets Mary Reeves (Beverly Tyler), who offers him free skating lessons. After a few lessons and a lot of practice Johnny becomes a superb skater, eventually joining a men's roller derby team. Johnny gains many fans with his outspoken personality and his athleticism. All the attention poured on Johnny from his fans only boosts his ego. At the same time Johnny's cocksure attitude is alienating him from his teammates.

During the international championship, Johnny, who will do anything to win, injures a few other players when he intentionally knocks over a teammate, forcing a pile-up of all the other skaters. The crowd and even Father O'Hara who is watching in the audience, are disgusted by Johnny's unsportsmanlike conduct. Although, disgust turns to concern when Johnny later collapses.

Doctors discover that Johnny has polio. Upset by his condition, Johnny attempts suicide but Father O'Hara and Mary give Johnny the encouragement he needs for recovery. After a few years of therapy and training, Johnny finds himself back in the rink. When Johnny hears the crowd roar his cocky attitude returns too. But, after a conversation with Father O'Hara, Johnny realizes he should help out others just as people helped him when he needed it most. Instead of trying to be the star on the team, Johnny helps out one of the new younger players on the team.

Raquelle at the blog Out of the Past, who reviewed this film a few months ago, sums up this film pretty well. "Fireball is pure novelty! From the campy plot, to Marilyn Monroe's supporting role, to Mickey Rooney on roller skates. " These really are enough reasons to give this silly and fun film a view, but if I would add one more, it is to see a few Los Angeles locations. Here are a few of those locations.

St. Luke's Home For Boys

The film opens with scenes of St. Luke's Home For Boys, the orphanage where Mickey Rooney lives. See the screenshots above and below. I wasn't familiar with this building so I looked through a few historical photos of Los Angeles area orphanages and even Catholic schools. Eventually I came across a photo of the St. John's Military Academy in Los Angeles and it was very clear that this was the location used for the film.

St. Luke's Home For Boys, really St. John's Military Academy

The photo below, from the Los Angeles Library photo collection, shows the entrance to St. John's Military Academy. The palm trees are a lot taller in the film and the building looks to have been expanded. According to "Patterson's American Education, Volume 60," under their listing of military schools, they have the address for St. John's Military Academy listed at 1927 10th Avenue, Los Angeles. It appears that this building has been demolished.

St. John's Military Academy, 1927 10th Ave, Los Angeles

Photo Credit: Los Angeles Library Photo Collection

Mickey Rooney runs from the orphanage.

Above Mickey Rooney is seen running from the backside of the orphanage. Below is another photo of St. John's Military Academy showing how this view once looked. From this view, things don't look that much different. The basketball courts are even there in the older photo.

St. John's Military Academy.

Photo Credit: Los Angeles Library Photo Collection

Rooney climbs the fence at the orphanage.

The next few images are from the scene where Rooney tries on the roller skates and rolls wildly down the hill. That hill is Temple Street in Los Angeles, beginning near the intersection of Belmont Avenue. What seems like a really long hill in the film, is really only a few blocks long.