Don’t forget to read my latest post for L.A.mag.com, about Calamigos Ranch from Wet Hot American Summer. My articles typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.
Category: This and That
-
New “L.A.” Mag Post – “The Gift” House
Be sure to check out today’s Scene It Before post for L.A.mag.com, about the house from the new movie The Gift. My articles typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.
-
Going on Vacation!
I am currently on vacation in L.A. with my family and will not be publishing any new blog posts for the next week or so. Our trip is planned to last two weeks, but we are keeping things up in the air depending on how my dad is feeling. I will definitely be back to regular postings the week of August 17th, but could also be back sooner. Either way, my weekly articles for Los Angeles magazine will still be posted each Thursday, so don’t forget to check them out. I hope all of my fellow stalkers have a fabulous two weeks!
-
Movie Locations in the Great Outdoors
Be sure to check out my latest post for Discover Los Angeles, about L.A. movie locations that celebrate the great outdoors.
-
Latest “L.A.” Mag Post – About the “Vacation” House
Don’t forget to read my latest post for L.A.mag.com, about the Griswold house from National Lampoon’s Vacation. My articles typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.
-
The Complete “Clueless” Guide to L.A.
I could NOT be more excited about my latest Discover Los Angeles article. In fact, it might be my favorite blog post that I have ever written! I present to you The Ultimate (and Complete!) Guide to Clueless Movie Locations in Los Angeles: Part I and Part II. This one was truly a labor of love and took me countless hours of research to put together, but I don’t think I’ve ever had more fun stalking! I cannot tell you the number of emails I sent out, people I talked to, doors I knocked on, or time I spent on Google Street View, but in the end it was worth it as my list includes every. single. locale. featured in the movie – right down to the pot Cher (Alicia Silverstone) hits on her way to school. I hope all of my fellow stalkers enjoy reading the post as much as I enjoyed putting it together.
-
That Pink Door
I have yet to really hop aboard the Pinterest bandwagon, but I know I’m in the minority on that one. Those who are Pinterest-philes are most definitely familiar with what has come to be known as “That Pink Door.” That Pink Door is actually the brightly-hued front door of a residence in the Indian Canyons neighborhood of Palm Springs. The home also pops up regularly on Instagram (do a search for #thatpinkdoor and you’ll be inundated with blush-colored images) as well as on countless fashion blogs, which is how I came to discover it. I have long been obsessed with fashion blogger Julia Engel, of Gal Meets Glam. Back in May, Julia, her BFF Jordan Jones and their friend Vero Suh visited Palm Springs for what they dubbed a “Best Bebs Weekend.” While in town, they snapped some photos at That Pink Door. When I saw the pics pop up on Julia, Jordan and Vero’s respective websites, as well as the Style Me Pretty website, a few weeks later, I became enamored of the place – and was shocked that I had never heard of it before. So I immediately added it to my To-Stalk list and finally made it over there last week.
[ad]
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that I totally stalked Julia while she was in town. I follow her on Snapchat (@galmeetsglam) and could tell from one of her videos that she was eating at Norma’s at the Parker Palm Springs. So I dragged the Grim Cheaper right on over there in the hopes of getting a pic with her. As it turns out, Julia could not have been nicer! Jordan and Vero were incredibly sweet, as well, and we all wound up chatting for a good ten minutes. I also ended up later purchasing the romper that Julia had on when we met, much to the GC’s chagrin. As I said, I am obsessed! I just think she’s adorable and has such a fabulous and unique fashion sense. If you haven’t checked out her website before, you definitely should! But I digress.
The That Pink Door residence is absolutely massive in person, much larger than I expected it to be.
The post and beam-style home was originally built in 1968 and boasts four bedrooms, five baths, 5,310 square feet and a 0.57-acre plot of land.
The pad’s pink door came courtesy of interior designer Moises Esquenazi, who purchased the residence with his partner, Bryan Graybill, in 2004. At the time, the property was unkempt, outdated and begging for a remodel. The two quickly began redesigning the space into a mid-century modern dream home with such features as glass walls, two fireplaces, a billiard room with a sunken bar, a 75-foot pool with an inlaid tanning shelf, a 12-person spa, two outdoor bars, three fire pits, and an outdoor movie theatre. You can check out what the interior of the home looks like here. While pretty, I had hoped there would be a lot more pink.
The home’s cherry on top, of course, is the pastel pink front door. While Moises and Bryan sold the pad for a whopping $1,820,000 in 2008, the new owners have, thankfully, not touched the color of the door.
The residence has won many accolades, including being featured as one of the “Best Homes in America” in the 25th Anniversary issue of Metropolitan Home magazine. Palm Springs Life also published a piece on it in November 2006. And while the property is said to have been featured on an HGTV program, for the life of me I cannot figure out which program. If anyone happens to know, please fill me in.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Until next time, Happy Stalking!
Stalk It: “That Pink Door” is located at 1100 East Sierra Way in the Indian Canyon area of Palm Springs.
-
The Bates Motel
Today’s location would be better suited for a Haunted Hollywood post, but because it is set to be torn down by the end of the year, I figured time was of the essence. While spending the week in L.A. last month with my good buddies Kim and Katie (that’s Katie pictured above), a friend named Becky mentioned that I should stalk the abandoned Sunset Pacific Motel in Silver Lake. The property is more commonly known as the “Bates Motel” thanks to both the fact that it sits at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Bates Avenue and that it has been in a decrepit state for decades. The 3-story, 37-room structure was recently painted white as part of a temporary art exhibit, which only serves to make it all the more eerie. Becky thought I would enjoy seeing it in person and she was right! The place did not disappoint!
[ad]
From what I can gather from the Historic Aerials website, the Sunset Pacific Motel was built sometime between 1954 and 1964. While the property provided a home away from home for tourists in its early years (it even had a pool that has since been cemented over), by the 1980s it had fallen into a serious state of disrepair and had become a haven for drug use, prostitution and violent crime. A 2002 Los Angeles Times article described it as “one of the city’s most dangerous properties.” Concerned neighbors had been trying to get the facility shuttered for decades, to no avail. Finally, in December 2000, longtime owner Edward Eng was charged with two dozen housing code violations at the property and was eventually forced to close it in March 2002 when the city revoked his operating license. The Sunset Pacific Motel has sat boarded up ever since. You can check out what it looked like during its boarded up phase here and here.
In September 2009, the Board of Commissioners of the Department of Building and Safety voted to raze the motel. Before the demolition took place, though, the site was purchased by Frost/Chaddock Developers with the intent of building a large mixed-use project on the site. Those plans have met with some opposition, though, and while on hold, Frost/Chaddock decided to allow French artist Vincent Lamouroux to paint the property as a temporary art instillation.
In mid-April, Lamouroux began his instillation which he titled Projection. He and his crew used sprayers and hoses to coat every square inch of the Sunset Pacific Motel with an eco-friendly lime wash.
Lamouroux also painted the back of the motel’s billboard;
its sign;
and its palm trees.
It really is a sight to see!
The lime wash will fade over time (it has already begun to disappear from the palm trees) and the motel is slated to be demolished at the end of the year, so if you would like to see it in all of its blindingly white glory, I would get over there as soon as possible.
For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.
Big THANK YOU to fellow stalker Becky for telling me about this location!
Until next time, Happy Stalking!
Stalk It: The Sunset Pacific Motel, aka the Bates Motel, is located at 4301 Sunset Boulevard in Silver Lake.
-
Happy Fourth!
I would like to wish a very happy Fourth of July to all of my fellow stalkers. I hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday weekend.
-
New “L.A.” Mag Post – About the U.S. Bank Tower from “Independence Day”
Be sure to check out today’s post for L.A.mag.com, about the U.S. Bank Tower from Independence Day. My articles typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.
