Life at the Marmont: The Inside Story of Hollywood's Legendary Hotel of the Stars

I first visited the Chateau Marmont, a Gothic European inspired hotel located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, about eight years ago. A friend of mine was celebrating a birthday and her boss had rented one of the large suites on the upper floor. I had heard some of the stories about the Marmont - how Marilyn Monroe stayed at the hotel or rock stars like Led Zeppelin crashed at the place - so I was excited to experience the hotel for myself. As soon as I entered the hotel I got the feeling I was walking into a mythical place. I remember the hallways being dark and narrow, little European architectural details, seeing some high profile guests hanging out in the lobby and when I got to to the top of the hotel - the amazing view of Los Angeles that looked out from our suite. I could see for myself why so many of Hollywood's biggest stars have chosen to make the Marmont their home. 

The Chateau Marmont on the Sunset Strip.

I've always wanted to learn more about this hotel, so as part of my Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Out of the Past - A Classic Movie Blog, I chose to read Life at the Marmont: The Inside Store of Hollywood's Legendary Hotel of the Stars - Chateau Marmont, by Raymond Sarlot and Fred E. Basten. The book is an interesting in-depth look at the hotel's history and filled with stories of the many celebrities that stayed there over the years. The book goes in chronological order, so it begins with some background on how the hotel was founded in the 1920s, in what was at the time a little strip in the middle of nowhere, halfway between Hollywood and Beverly Hills. We then learn about the different guests who have visited and how things changed at the hotel over the passing decades.

Chateau Marmont, 8221 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood.

Some of the guests that have stayed at the Marmont include director Billy Wilder, Jean Harlow, William Holden, Glenn Ford, Howard Hughes, Montgomery Clift, Marilyn Monroe, Marlon Brando, Warren Beatty,  Boris Karloff, Judy Garland, Humphrey Bogart, Roddy McDowall and many, many others. 

When Harry Cohn got a young 21 year old William Holden and a 22 year old Glenn Ford to work at his Columbia studio under contract, he didn't want his business investments getting into trouble, at least not where anyone would find out, so he rented them a room at the Marmont. In the book Ford recounts his time at the Marmont:

"Harry really worried about Bill and me. He had put us under contract at approximately the same time, and we were constantly getting into trouble - going places where we shouldn't have gone and mixing with the wrong people. In his eyes, rather bad company. One day he sent for us and said, 'If you must get into trouble, go to the Marmont.' He made it clear that he had rented the small penthouse there just for us, to protect us. As upset and concerned as he was, he never raised his voice. But he made sure we got his point."

Throughout 1939 Ford and Holden shared the suite with actor David Niven. I like to think that maybe during my stay at the Marmont that I was in the same suite - regardless - I know many old Hollywood stars have.

Nicholas Ray, James Dean, Natalie Wood, Jim Backus and the Rebel Without a Cause cast.

Following his divorce from actress Gloria Grahame, director Nicholas Ray moved into the Chateau Marmont and lived here for a few years off and on. Ray stayed in one of the private bungalows next to the main building. He worked on many of his films from here, including his most famous film, Rebel Without a Cause. During Rebel, Ray held the early script sessions at his bungalow, inviting the cast over for readings, including James Dean, Natalie Wood, Jim Backus, and Dennis Hopper.

Ray was known to be a partier and his Sunday soirees were quite popular at the hotel. He was also a bit of a ladies man, and one of the people seduced by Ray was his young actress, Natalie Wood. Wood became infatuated with Ray, even though he was old enough to be her dad. Wood would always be the first to show up to Ray's bungalow and the last to leave. No one suspected anything at first, but one night, Dennis Hopper, who had dated Wood prior to Rebel, showed up to the bungalow without knocking. Not finding anyone on the first floor he wandered up to the second floor where he spotted the seventeen year old Wood in bed with Ray. Hopper was outraged and made things difficult during the remainder of filming Rebel. 

Robert Mitchum washes dishes at the Marmont in 1949.

Life at the Marmont is filled with fascinating stories about some of Hollywood's biggest stars and also music stars. I recommend the book for seasoned classic movie fans who would be familiar with all the old stars mentioned in the book or for Los Angeles history buffs.

Visit Out of the Past - A Classic Movie Blog for more summer book challenge reviews.

Perfect Strangers (1950) - Film Locations

Dennis Morgan and Ginger Rogers

When I watch classic movies I often watch them differently than contemporary films. With classic films I can get sucked in just by the vintage fashions and sometimes the real world film locations. That's the case with Perfect Strangers (1950), a court room drama starring Dennis Morgan and Ginger Rogers.

The film is a day in the life of Los Angeles jurors forced to live together during a trial. Morgan plays a married man who falls in love with another juror, a woman separated from her husband, played by Rogers. The story is interesting for its look into the juror process circa 1950, but the drama is a bit lackluster. What really won me over was the fantastic Los Angeles film locations and also that the film features some of my favorite actors. In addition to Morgan and Rogers, the film also features, Thelma Ritter, Paul Ford, Alan Reed (the voice of Fred Flintstone), and other recognizable character actors.

Here are some of the Los Angeles filming locations that appear in Perfect Strangers.

Click on images to see larger.

United States Post Office Terminal Annex

Los Angeles Terminal Annex, 900 N. Alameda Street

The film begins with a scene of Los Angeles residents being selected at random for jury service and the notices being processed for delivery at the United States Post Office Terminal Annex located at 900 North Alameda Street, in downtown Los Angeles. In the comparison above is a screenshot of the Terminal Annex as seen in the film and an image of how the historic post office building appears today.

In the comparison below, we see a helicopter take off from the roof of the Terminal Annex. In the background, we get a glimpse of Olvera Street, the oldest part of downtown Los Angeles. One of the structures that can bee seen and is still standing is La Plaza United Methodist Church, which stands at the entrance to Olvera Street. See inside the yellow rectangle.

Terminal Annex rooftop. Olvera Street can be seen inside the yellow rectangle.

Bird's Eye View of Olvera Street as it appears today.

In the next comparison the helicopter takes off from the Terminal Annex rooftop and we see, from left to right, Los Angeles City Hall, the United States Courthouse building, and the historic Hall of Justice building.

From left to right: City Hall, Courthouse, Hall of Justice buildings.

A view of the three buildings as they appear now.

One of the people called for jury service is Ginger Rogers. In the scene below, Ginger Rogers arrives via trolley in front of Los Angeles City Hall, located at 200 north Spring Street. She gets off the trolley and walks across the street from City Hall towards the Hall of Records building.

Ginger Rogers arrives by trolley in front of City Hall.

Los Angeles City Hall, 200 N. Spring Street.

Below we see Rogers walking towards the Hall of Records building located directly across from City Hall. After Rogers arrives at the Hall of Records building she then walks next door to the Hall of Justice building. The Hall of Records was a 12-story building constructed between 1909 and 1911 and then demolished in 1973. The Hall of Justice building, which was damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, has been closed ever since the quake, but is still standing and undergoing a 231 million dollar renovation.

Rogers walks towards the LA Hall of Records building.

A photo from 1954 looking down Spring Street showing the Hall of Records, Hall of Justice, and on the right, the United States Courthouse and City Hall buildings.

Looking down Spring Street in front of City Hall as it appears today.

Rogers first arrives at the Hall of Records building.

After Rogers arrives at the Hall of Records building, she then heads over to the Hall of Justice building next door. Below is a historic photo from 1947, three years before the film, showing how the Hall of Justice building appeared at the time. The building stands at the corner of Temple Street and Spring Street. The yellow circle next to the green arrow marks where Rogers can be seen walking up the sidewalk. In the second and third images, the red rectangle marks where the United States Court House building can be seen in the background.

A 1947 photo of the Hall of Justice.

The yellow circle shows Rogers in front of the Hall of Justice.

Looking down Temple Street in front of the Hall of Justice. The red rectangle marks where the United States Court House building is located (hidden behind the trees).

United States Court House building.

In the next scene, Morgan can be seen leaving a restaurant after dining with fellow juror, Rogers. The restaurant where Morgan and Rogers eat was clearly a fake created on a sound stage, but in the background of the screenshot below, we see a restaurant called the Court House Sandwich Shoppe. This was a real restaurant located on the corner of Broadway and Temple, near the Hall of Records building. Like the Hall of Records building which was demolished in 1973, the Court House Sandwich Shoppe building has also been demolished.

Morgan at the corner of Broadway and Temple. The Court House restaurant can be seen in the background.

A photo from 1954 shows the Court House Sandwich Shoppe.

The red rectangle marks the site of the Court House restaurant.

All the jurors are housed in what is supposed to be a downtown Los Angeles hotel with a view looking over City Hall and the Court House; however, I'm not 100% on this one, but I'm pretty sure that the hotel was really a facade located on the Warner Bros. Studio New York Street backlot in Burbank. Below is a screenshot of the jurors arriving at the hotel and an image of the facade I believe to be used as the location of the hotel. The signage, lamps and other details on these facades are changed all the time, but the skeleton of the building looks like it could be a match - plus, the fact that this is a Warner Bros. film, makes it likely that they could have used this facade.

The jurors arrive via bus at what is supposed to be a downtown hotel.

A Warner Bros. backlot facade I believe to be the real location.

During the trial, the jurors are taken by bus to the scene of the murder. I assumed that the bus was going down Sunset Boulevard along the Hollywood Hills, I just needed to find the right cross street, which I did when I came to Kings Road. In the scene below, the bus passes a restaurant called Leon and Freddie's, located at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Kings Road, where the popular Saddle Ranch bar is now located.

The bus takes the jurors down Sunset Blvd at Kings Rd.

The corner of Sunset Blvd. and Kings Rd.

The "murder" took place near the cliff side of a Hollywood Hills home. This was the most interesting part of the film for me. The hills look so different today. Where at the time of the film there was mostly open land, there are now so many homes dotting the hills. After combing the hills with a few different aerial views I was finally able to pinpoint the location of the home that was used for filming. The home is located at 8412 Franklin Avenue, West Hollywood.

The bus heads up Kings Road to the scene of the crime.

Looking up Kings Road in West Hollywood.

The Hollywood Hills home sits on a cliff on Franklin Ave.

The yellow oval marks the home as seen from Kings Road.

The bus winds up Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood Hills.

The same view from Franklin Ave as it appears today.

Below the jurors get to see a reenactment of what might have been the way things played out the night of the crime. Behind them is the house that is located on Franklin Avenue up in the hills. Just below that is an image showing the home as it appears today. I was actually quite shocked when I found the home to see that it hadn't been demolished and replaced by some modern Hollywood Hills mansion. After I found the home, I did some more digging and learned that the house was built in 1944, six years prior to this film. While the jurors are at the crime scene walking around we get views of some landmark buildings as seen from the Hollywood Hills, including the Sunset Tower Hotel and the Granville Towers apartment building.

The jurors see a reenactment in front of the Franklin Ave home.

Over 65 years and the home is still standing. An eternity by LA standards.

Below, jurors take in the view from the Hollywood Hills. The art deco Sunset Tower Hotel can be seen in the background. The hotel has long been a residence for Hollywood celebrities, including John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Paulette Goddard, Preston Sturges, Billie Burke, and Zsa Zsa Gabor.

The Sunset Tower Hotel as seen in the film.

A Bird's Eye View of the Sunset Tower Hotel.

In another scene we get a view showing the Granville Towers, a posh West Hollywood apartment building built in 1930 by legendary architect, Leland Bryant. The Granville Towers has been the home to many notable celebrities, including Marilyn Monroe, Rock Hudson, and singer David Bowie.

The Granville Towers as seen in Perfect Strangers.

A Bird's Eye View of the Granville Towers.

During the reenactment at the crime scene, we get this view looking down from Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood Hills towards the next street below, Hollywood Boulevard. Amazing enough, the homes located on Hollywood Boulevard at the time of the film still appear to be intact.

Looking down from Franklin Ave toward Hollywood Blvd.

Bird's Eye View of Franklin Ave. and Hollywood Blvd.

In one scene during the film we get a glimpse of a news ticker on the side of a building announcing an update to the trial. That news ticker was a big deal. According to a The Billboard magazine article from September 7, 1946, on a Tuesday night, August 6, 40,000 people showed up to see the premiere of that sign, the "Trans-Lux Flashcast news ribbon...brought to Los Angeles by Warner Bros. KFWB." The news ribbon was located on the side of of the historic Taft building at the intersection of Hollywood and Vine, in Hollywood.

The news ribbon as seen in Perfect Strangers.

A crowd gathers under the news ribbon at Hollywood and Vine. Photo from the Flickr page of AliceJapan.

The Taft building in Hollywood. The news ribbon has been removed.

During the final scenes of the film we see the jurors leaving the Hall of Justice building back in downtown Los Angeles. As I mentioned before, the Hall of Justice has been closed ever since the 1994 Northridge earthquake, this is a great glimpse inside of the historic building. Below is a screenshot from the film showing Dennis Morgan exiting the Hall of Justice and a contemporary image showing how the same location appears today.

Dennis Morgan leaves the Hall of Justice.

A contemporary view of the Hall of Justice.

The interior of the Hall of Justice appears in another film I've blogged about, the 1978 film The Big Fix, starring Richard Dreyfuss. 

Perfect Strangers is currently available to rent through Classicflix and through the Warner Archive collection.

The Racket (1951) - Film Locations

Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan, two classic Hollywood heavyweights, go head to head in the noir The Racket (1951). Ryan is a violent crime boss trying to elect a crooked prosecutor to a judgeship by using his corrupt methods. Mitchum is a police captain who wants to bring Ryan and his racket down.   Although the cinematography is not quite as dramatic as some top notch noirs, the strong cast do an excellent job of pushing this crime story along at an active pace. In addition to the superb Ryan and Mitchum, the cast includes other recognizable noir performers such as Lizabeth Scott, Ray Collins, Don Porter, and William Conrad.

The Racket was produced by Howard Hughes when he headed RKO Studios. It was a remake of a film he had produced in 1929 which was an adaptation of a stage play starring Edward G. Robinson and John Cromwell. Hughes selected Cromwell to direct the 1951 film version but was ultimately disappointed with Cromwell's direction. Hughes then brought in director Nicholas Ray to fix the picture. Additionally, Sherman Todd and Tay Garnett were also brought in to film some scenes. Despite a slew of directors and an interfering producer like Hughes, The Racket turned out pretty well.

I don't recall the city is ever named in the film, but I get the impression the story is supposed to be set in New York City. However, filming was actually done in California in downtown Los Angeles, Culver City and Encino. There is even one location with a connection to the popular classic film, It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - keep reading to find out.

Note: Click images to see larger.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

In this first location a man is killed in a parking lot that was once located on Wilshire Boulevard a couple blocks west of Grand Avenue. As you will see in the next few scene comparisons there are a few structures from the time of the film that are still standing, but overall, this area has vastly changed. The parking lot and the buildings that stood right next to the parking lot are now demolished but the buildings that we see in the background when looking in the direction of Grand Avenue are still there.

Looking down Wilshire Blvd towards Grand Ave.

Looking east from Grand Ave near Wilshire.

The building in green in the background outlined in the purple box is the Los Angeles Jewelery Center located at 629 Hill Street. It's a twelve-story office building that was built in 1930. The building located on the far right of the above image stands on Grand Avenue where Wilshire Boulevard dead ends. You can see more of this building in the below screenshot.

A view of Grand Avenue in background.

Looking at Grand Ave from Wilshire Blvd.

The next screenshot is a closeup of the parking lot where the man is murdered. The parking lot and the building in the background were located behind what was then Dawson's book store. Dawson's used to be at 627 South Grand Avenue at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard. To give a better idea of how this area once looked, below the screenshot of the parking lot there is a vintage photo from 1952 from the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) photo collection showing the view of Dawson's book store, the parking lot (see the green box) and the building just behind the parking lot. Today this location is the site of modern glass office towers as can be seen in the contemporary view.

Car lot on Wilshire Blvd one block west from Grand Ave.

Looking west down Wilshire from Grand ca. 1952. Car lot can be seen in the green square. Dawson's book store is on the corner. Photo: LAPL

Contemporary view looking west down Wilshire from Grand.

When some of the crooks are driving downtown they come to a stop at the intersection of 7th Street and Flower Street. In the screenshot below where the traffic officer is helping pedestrians cross the street we get a view looking down 7th Street from the intersection at Flower Street. Although the buildings immediately on the right of the screenshot are demolished the building on the left (in the yellow box) is still standing, as are some other buildings in the background.

Looking down 7th Street from Flower Street.

Looking down 7th Street from Flower Street.

The "7th District Police Station" was really the Los Angeles Central Division Police Station which was located at 318 West 1st Street. Although this building was demolished long ago, I recognized the stonework entrance from digging through old photos for another project. In the next three images we see 1) a screenshot of Ryan entering the police station, 2) an LAPL photo from 1936 showing a full shot of the Central Division Police Station and how it once looked, and 3) a contemporary view of the corner of 1st Street and Hill Street revealing the vacant lot where the police station once stood.

Ryan enters the Central Division station at 318 W. 1st St.

Central Division police station 1936. Photo: LAPL

318 W. 1st Street. Central Division demolished.

In the scene where Ryan enters the police station below, we get a glimpse of the Hill Street Tunnel in the background. The Hill Street Tunnel was made up of two tunnels that at one time allowed trolleys and automobiles to enter/exit downtown Los Angeles. This view is of the south side of the Hill Street Tunnel. In another noir, Criss Cross (1949) starring Burt Lancaster, Yvonne DeCarlo and Dan Duryea, we get a view of the north end of the Hill Street Tunnel. A few years after the making of The Racket the Hill Street Tunnel and the surrounding buildings would be demolished for future developments.

Ryan enters the Central Division Station.  The edge of the Hill Street Tunnel can be seen in the background.

Hill Street Tunnels being deconstructed in 1955. Photo: LAPL

Contemporary view of Hill Street from 1st Street. Tunnels demolished.

This last downtown Los Angeles location is just another view of 1st Street outside of the Central Division Police Station. This view is of 1st Street looking in the direction of Broadway. You can see from the comparison below that the buildings on the right towards the front are all demolished, however, in the background we get a glimpse of the historic Los Angeles Times Building which is still standing. When the Los Angeles Times Building opened in 1935 it was the largest building in the western U.S. designed and occupied entirely for the purpose of a daily newspaper publishing operation.

Looking down 1st Street towards Broadway. The Los Angeles Times building can be seen in the background on the right.

Looking down 1st St. towards Broadway. LA Times building still standing.

The It's a Wonderful Life (1946) connection. 

THE RKO ENCINO RANCH

During one scene Mitchum visits the home of a friend and warns him not to cause trouble in his precinct. As Mitchum leaves the home a bomb explodes on the front porch. At first I had no idea where this home might be located, but I figured as this was an RKO film, that maybe they might have filmed the scene on their ranch property out in Encino. Eventually I found a screenshot from that popular film starring Jimmy Stewart, It's a Wonderful Life, on the amazing website Retro Web, and I recognized a few details from the house used in It's a Wonderful Life as being the same in the house used in The Racket. It's already known that It's a Wonderful Life was filmed on the RKO Encino Ranch so now I can confirm that The Racket also filmed on the RKO Encino Ranch. The home used in The Racket was the building used as "Ma Bailey's Boarding House" in It's a Wonderful Life. I've highlighted in purple details on the windows and the front porch columns on the screenshot from The Racket and on the image from It's a Wonderful Life so you can see how the two match up. By the way, if you have not visited the Retro Web site I recommend jumping on over. They have numerous images of different Los Angeles area studio buildings and other fun stuff to check out.

Mitchum leaves a house on the RKO Encino Ranch.

Ma Bailey's Boarding House from It's a Wonderful Life.

Mitchum stands inside a house located on the RKO Encino Ranch.

The RKO Encino Ranch was bounded by Burbank Boulevard to the South, Louise Ave to the West, Oxnard Street to the North and stopped at where the Balboa Park begins, just before Balboa Boulevard to the East. Below is a vintage aerial view of the RKO Encino Ranch showing where the residential neighborhood used for the scene where the bomb goes off in The Racket and where It's a Wonderful Life were both filmed. The purple box in the next three images shows the exact area where this part of the ranch set was located. 1) Vintage aerial of RKO Encino Ranch sets, 2) Vintage 1952 aerial view of Encino (see purple box for RKO ranch, and 3) an aerial view of Encino from 2013 (purple box outlines the former site of the RKO sets).

Aerial view of the RKO Encino Ranch.

Vintage 1952 aerial view of the ranch.

A contemporary view marking the site of the former RKO Encino Ranch.

CULVER CITY

Near the end of the film there is a chase scene between the police and Ryan who is attempting to get away. The chase cuts right through the heart of Culver City. You can tell I've forced my wife to sit through a lot of old movies because even she yelled out during the scene below, "that looks like the Culver Hotel." And indeed it is the historic Culver Hotel located at 9400 Culver Boulevard.

During the chase the cars race down the part of the street between the Culver Hotel and what is today a Pacific Theatre and then continues pass the site of the historic Culver Studios. The stretch of street between the Culver Hotel and the Pacific Theatre is now closed off to traffic but it is still open in the area in front of The Culver Studios.

The Culver Hotel in Culver City. 9400 Culver Blvd.

Looking east down Culver Blvd towards the Culver Hotel. Source.

Buildings located across from Culver Hotel, between Van Buren Place and the Culver Studios.

New buildings stand in the place of the ones that were once located across from the Culver Hotel.

Today, directly across from The Culver Studios is the location of a large parking lot. When The Racket was filmed we can see that there used to be many different commercial buildings that once stood at this location. In the next three images we see: 1) screenshot from The Racket showing the Chop Suey restaurant, liquor store and other buildings that used to be located on the site of the parking lot, 2) a vintage view from the LAPL showing the same buildings (but looking the opposite direction towards the Culver Hotel), and 3) a 2013 view showing the parking lot where the buildings seen in The Racket once stood.

Buildings located across the street from the Culver Studios.

A vintage view of buildings across from the Culver Studios. This view looks west towards the Culver Hotel. Photo: LAPL

The buildings across the Culver Studios and the Culver Hotel are now demolished and is the site of a parking lot.

Aerial view of the Culver City chase scene location.

The above aerial view shows the location of the chase scene through Culver City. The bright yellow arrow marks the path that the cars take when they pass The Culver Hotel and The Culver Studios. The orange box marks the parking lot where the Chop Suey restaurant and liquor store once stood. 

To use a baseball expression, The Racket may not be a grand slam, but it at least pounds a double with Mitchum and Ryan heading the picture. The great locations make the film all the more enjoyable to watch. The Racket is available on DVD, can be rented through ClassicFlix and Netflix, and is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant.

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