Melanie’s House from “Truth Be Told”

Apple TV+ sure has hit the ground running!  Everything released on the new platform thus far seems to be television gold!  I’ve made no secret of the fact that I consider The Morning Show one of the best series to ever grace the small screen and was thrilled to find For All Mankind and Truth Be Told just as gripping.  The latter, based on Kathleen Barber’s 2017 novel Are You Sleeping, centers around a journalist-turned-podcaster named Poppy Scoville-Parnell (Octavia Spencer) who begins re-investigating a decades-old murder to make sure the right man is behind bars, à la Serial.  Obviously, as soon as I read the synopsis, I had to tune in!  And my crime-loving heart wasn’t disappointed.  Minutes after the end credits for episode one started rolling, I, of course, began hunting for locales and was ecstatic to learn that, while set in Northern California, filming largely took place in L.A.  During my perusing, I came across a 2018 Backstage article which noted that some footage was shot at a house at 509 North June Street in Hancock Park.  From there it wasn’t hard to piece together that the site portrayed the supposed Menlo Park abode belonging to Melanie Cave (Elizabeth Perkins), mother of convicted killer Warren Cave (Aaron Paul), on the series.  So I ran right out to stalk it shortly thereafter.

Melanie’s house is featured throughout Truth Be Told’s eight-episode run.  Though we only get a limited view of it, the place first shows up in the pilot, titled “Monster,” in the scene in which Poppy bombards Melanie in her driveway in the hopes of securing an interview with Warren.

I obviously couldn’t get images matching what was shown in the scene, but the driveway is pictured below.

We don’t actually see the full exterior of the pad until episode 3, “Even Salt Looks Like Sugar.”

I have to say that producers did a great job in choosing the residence because while watching the scene below from episode 2, “Black People in the Neighborhood,” the Grim Cheaper, a native San Franciscan, turned to me and said, “I can pretty much guarantee that home actually is in the Bay Area.”  I had already read the Backstage article by that time and when I informed him that it was actually in Hancock Park, he refused to believe me.  Ah, the magic of Hollywood!

The adorable little property is just as charming in person as it appeared on the series.  With its peaked roof and rounded front door overhang, it reminds me quite a bit of Denise’s house from I Love You, Man as well as the Lawrence residence from the 1976 series Family, so it is not at all hard to see how it made its way to the screen.

I believe that the inside of the dwelling was also utilized on the series, but could not find any interior images with which to verify that.

It appears that the actual backyard was used briefly, as well.

In real life, the 1925 pad boasts 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, 3,236 square feet, 2 stories, and a 0.18-acre lot.

With it’s charmingly idyllic Anywhere, U.S.A. appeal, I am shocked it hasn’t appeared in more productions, but I was unable to dig any up.

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!

Stalk It: Melanie’s house from Truth Be Told is located at 509 North June Street in Hancock Park.

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