Hollywood Hills filming locations

November 5, 2012November 4, 2012

The Reichman Mansion from “Major Crimes”

The weather in L.A. has finally turned and there is now a crispness in the air ensuring that jacket season is finally upon us. It is also, unfortunately, time to bid adieu to this year’s Haunted Hollywood postings. Sadness! For the next eleven months, I will just be writing about regular ol’ stalking locations. So here goes. In early October, when the Season 1 episode of Major Crimes titled “Dismissed with Prejudice” aired, I became absolutely enthralled with the gorgeous ultra-modern mansion that was featured in it. So I immediately set about searching for the place (before the episode was even over) and, thanks to the fact that the residence is currently for sale, it was not too hard to track down. A simple Google search of modern-style houses in the Hollywood area yielded this real estate listing, so I immediately dragged the Grim Cheaper, along with my good friends, fellow stalkers Lavonna and Kim who were in town visiting from Ohio, right on out to stalk it.

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In person, the house did not disappoint! The abode, which was originally built in 1958, but has since been extensively remodeled (we’re talking completely gutted both inside and out), currently boasts 4 bedrooms, 5 baths, 3,906 square feet of living space, and a 0.25-acre plot of land. Thanks to the Berg Properties website and fellow stalker E.J.’s The Movieland Directory, I learned that the dwelling has a fairly vast list of former celebrity residents. For a time the place belonged to character actor Frank Marth and it was later owned by comedian Jack Black and his then girlfriend Laura Kightlinger, who purchased the pad in 2002 for $1,075,000. When Jack and Laura broke up, he bought out her stake of the residence for $699,000 and then subsequently sold the place in 2007 for $1,210,000. The remodel/knock down took place at some point thereafter.

The dwelling that originally stood on the property looks to have been Spanish in style (as you can see in the image below which I got from the Historic Aerials website) and, measuring 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and 1,959 square feet, was much smaller than its successor. You can check out a (not very great) photograph of the original home on an old real estate listing here. At the time, the property was described as being a “spectacular ‘50s post & beam hacienda”.

As you can see in the Google Street View images below, the house was changed drastically during the remodel.

The result is nothing short of spectacular! The dwelling, which was constructed primarily of steel and glass, features a butterfly roof, cruciform columns, polished concrete floors, a large saltwater pool, a waterfall, a koi pond, a BBQ area, and a master suite with a spa-like bathroom that encompasses the structure’s entire second floor. And, if you have an extra $2,795,000 lying around, it could be yours! You can check out the home’s real estate listing here. According to several websites (which you can see here and here), the place is currently owned by a celebrity, though, much as I tried, I could not figure out by whom.

In the “Dismissed with Prejudice” episode of Major Crimes, the residence belonged to Will Reichman (William R. Moses), an architect whom Lieutenant Mike Tau (Michael Paul Chan) put away for murder eight and a half years prior. And I just have to say here that I absolutely LOVE me some Major Crimes! While I was initially doubtful as to how The Closer spinoff would fare sans Kyra Sedgwick at the helm, I am very happy to report that the series is fabulous. Bringing in the Rusty Beck character (played by the brilliant Graham Patrick Martin, who also starred as Eldridge Mackelroy on Two and a Half Men) was genius and gave the show – and Captain Raydor (Mary McDonnell) – a heart. I cannot wait for it to start up again next season.

For whatever reason, only the backside of the property was used in the episode.

The interior – which is all open spaces, towering plate glass windows, and high ceilings (drool!) – was featured extensively, though. Man, what I wouldn’t give to live there!

The staircase is absolutely to die for! LOVE IT!

Thanks to fave website Curbed L.A., I learned that the dwelling was also featured in the Season 1 episode of Selling L.A. titled “Rock Star Real Estate”, as the home that former actress/Playboy Playmate-turned-Keller-Williams-broker Martha Smith showed one-time Guns N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum.

The episode aired on October 27th, 2011 and, at the time, the residence was for sale for $3.395 million and looked very much the same as it did in Major Crimes (although the yellow accent walls have since been painted over, thank God!)

In the episode, Martha talks about the fact that the “small, sort of low-profile kitchen” was designed for a celebrity who “just didn’t care much about kitchens” (someone after my own heart! Winking smile ). I am not sure if said celeb ever lived on the premises or if he or she put it on the market as soon as the remodel was complete. Either way, I am fairly certain that the place is currently vacant.

You can find me on Facebook here and on Twitter at @IAMNOTASTALKER. And be sure to check out my other blog, The Well-Heeled Diabetic.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Reichman mansion from the “Dismissed with Prejudice” episode of Major Crimes is located at 8538 Eastwood Road in the Hollywood Hills.

November 22, 2011November 21, 2011

The Skyline Residence – Jacob’s House from “Crazy, Stupid, Love.”

Back in August, I received an email from a fellow stalker named Brandon who wanted to let me know that he had tracked down the ultra-modern abode where Jacob Palmer (aka Ryan Gosling) lived in Crazy, Stupid, Love. At the time I had yet to see the movie, but added the address to my To-Stalk list anyway and am so glad that I did because, as I have mentioned more than a few times before in recent posts, I have since become just a wee bit obsessed with the flick . . . and its cutie leading man. So I dragged the Grim Cheaper right on out to the Hollywood Hills to stalk the place this past Saturday afternoon.

Due to a slight snafu with my GPS, though, I was unable to get to the actual house and could only snap a few pictures of it from afar. While I always research locations to make sure that they are accessible to the public before leaving to stalk them and while Jacob’s house was visible on Google Street View, for some reason, my navigational system just could not seem to get me there.

It was not until I returned home that evening that I was able to figure out why. As you can see in the above aerial view, Skyline Drive, where Jacob’s house is located, dead-ends at a certain point and then picks up again a short distance later. My GPS, thinking Skyline Drive was a through-street, directed me to the wrong end of it, where the abode was nowhere to be found.

So the next morning, paper map in hand, I dragged the GC back on out to the Hollywood Hills to re-stalk the property. As you can see above, it was POURING rain at the time, which I was none too happy about. You see, there is nothing in this world that this stalker hates more than rain, except for maybe Kyle Richards. Winking smile But once I remembered that it was also raining in the scene in Crazy, Stupid, Love. that took place at Jacob’s house, me being there during a downpour seemed quite apropos. The GC could not stop laughing at me posing for the above picture, though, as he said that I looked as if I was dressed for “the tundra”. Hmph! I happen to like my rain coat, thankyouverymuch!

In real life, Jacob’s house is known as the Skyline Residence and it was built in 2007 by Hagy Belzberg, of Belzberg Architects, to be used as his private residence. According to this fabulous Architectural Record blog post, several previous owners had tried to build a home on the narrow plot of land on which the Skyline Residence now stands, but had not had any luck in securing permits. Belzberg said, “I decided that instead of trying to fight the topography I would work with it and create a very narrow building that sits lightly on the land with minimal to no grading.” The architect’s design called for a 20- by 120-foot structure made out of concrete, glass, marble, and wood.

As you can see above, the finished product is nothing short of magnificent! As Pinky Lovejoy, from the Thinking Pink blog, would say, it is “amazeballs”! Love it, love it, love it! The property is pretty much my dream abode.

From the view pictured above, which I got off of the home’s former real estate website, the dwelling is extremely reminiscent of the Stahl House, or Case Study House #22, which I blogged about way back in March of 2009. The Skyline Residence, which according to fave website CurbedLA was sold to new owners for a cool $5.995 million on December 21, 2009, boasts 4 bedrooms, 5 baths, a 1-bedroom, 1-bath detached guest house, a 65-foot long infinity pool, a spa, floor-to-ceiling glass windows, a large, open kitchen and dining area, outdoor terraces, sweeping views, and a whopping 5,200 square feet of living space!

My favorite aspect of the house, though, has to be the outdoor movie deck, which sits atop the garage and in which films are projected onto a wall of the detached guest house. How amazing is that???? A girl I was friends with in high school had an actual full-sized movie theatre located inside of her home and at the time I thought it was just about the coolest thing ever, but I can honestly say that this pretty much blows that right out of the water! I mean have you ever seen anything more incredible??? You can check out some more fabulous interior and exterior photographs of the Skyline Residence on The Contemporist website here.

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Jacob’s house only shows up briefly in Crazy, Stupid, Love. in one of the best scenes of the movie in which Jacob brings Hannah (aka Emma Stone) home and tries to seduce her by showing her his “big move”. Of the property, the Crazy, Stupid, Love. production notes state, “Jacob’s home also reflected his current lifestyle. To serve as his stunning, if stark, bachelor pad, the filmmakers chose the renowned Skyline Residence designed by internationally recognized architect Hagy Belzberg. Located off the Sunset Strip in the Hollywood Hills, the glass-enclosed, ultra-modern home is considered a prime example of world-class contemporary architecture. As no one was residing in the home at the time, it was easy for [production designer William] Arnold and his team to make the few necessary adjustments. ‘We just removed what we didn’t need, and put in a few of our own signature furnishings, leaving it somewhat austere,’ he says. ‘Jacob’s house is a comment on the character’s own emptiness, really. He rattles around in there; it’s very impersonal, yet very tasteful.’”

The main area of the property used in the film was the living room and it appears as if the home’s hanging Fireorb fireplace was removed for the shoot, which was a good call as I personally think the space looks much better without it.

The kitchen area also made a very brief appearance during the montage scene towards the end of the movie.

A photograph of that kitchen is pictured above.

Big THANK YOU to fellow stalker Brandon for finding this location! Smile

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Skyline Residence, aka Jacob’s house from Crazy, Stupid, Love., is located at 8520 Skyline Drive in the Hollywood Hills. A great view of the property can be seen from Crest View Drive, just south of where it meets Skyline Drive. As I mentioned previously, Skyline Drive dead-ends at a certain point and then picks up again a short distance later. Because of that, my GPS took me to the wrong location when I inputted the address “8520 Skyline Drive”. If you have the same problem, I would suggest inputting the intersection of Skyline Drive and Greenvalley Road into your navigational system and then following Skyline Drive west until it dead-ends. Jacob’s residence is the last house on the east side of the street.

October 10, 2011September 29, 2017

The “Double Indemnity” House

A couple of weekends ago I dragged the Grim Cheaper out to the Beachwood Canyon area of the Hollywood Hills to stalk one of the most famous macabre movie locations of all time – the Spanish-Colonial-Revival-style abode that was featured in Double Indemnity. Incredibly, up until a few weeks ago I had yet to see the 1944 film noir classic, which was directed by Billy Wilder, even though it is largely considered to be one of the greatest movies of all time. And I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised when I finally did sit down to watch it. Not only did the film not seem dated, but I was absolutely riveted to my chair for the entire 107 minute run time. Sure, some scenes were a bit cheesy – especially the love scenes between Pacific All Risk Insurance Company salesman Walter Neff (aka Fred MacMurray) and disgruntled housewife Phyllis Dietrichson (aka Barbara Stanwyck), not to mention Walter’s silly pronunciation of the word “baby” – but overall the film was incredibly well-done and thoroughly suspenseful, which is shocking being that it was made almost a full seven decades ago. If you have yet to see it, I cannot more highly recommend doing so!

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In Double Indemnity, the supposed-Glendale-area hillside abode pictured above is where Phyllis lives with her abusive oilman husband, Mr. Dietrichson (aka Tom Powers), and his daughter, Lola Dietrichson (aka Jean Heather). It is while walking up to the home at the very beginning of the film that Walter Neff utters what is arguably its most famous line. Of the residence, he says, “It was one of those California Spanish houses everyone was nuts about ten or fifteen years ago. This one must have cost somebody about thirty thousand bucks – that is if he ever finished paying for it.” It is at the house that Phyllis and Walter first meet and fall in love. The two later cook up a scheme to purchase an accident insurance policy for Phyllis’ unknowing husband and then murder him to collect on the claim. The “double indemnity” of the title refers to a clause in the policy which stipulates that in the case of certain more unlikely accidents, i.e. a death on a train, the amount of the insurance payout would double.

Amazingly enough, as you can see above, the house has remained virtually unchanged since 1944 when Double Indemnity was filmed. I simply cannot express how cool I think that is!

The only real difference is the garage door, which has since been modernized. Otherwise though, the home looks pretty much exactly the same in person as it did onscreen in all of its black-and-white glory.

The view has obviously changed a bit in the ensuing years, though. Winking smile

The screenplay for the movie, which was co-written by Raymond Chandler and Billy Wilder, was based on an 8-part serial written by James M. Cain that was first published in Liberty Magazine in 1936. Cain based his story on the real life 1927 murder of Albert Snyder by his wife Ruth Snyder and her lover Henry Judd Gray, the trial of which Cain had covered while working as a journalist in New York. And amazingly enough, it seems as if the house that wound up being used in the movie was the very same house that Cain had written about in his story. In the book he calls the abode the “House of Death” and, of it, he says, “I drove out to Glendale to put three new truck drivers on a brewery company bond, and then I remembered this renewal over in Hollywoodland. I decided to run over there. That was how I came to this House of Death, that you’ve been reading about in the papers. It didn’t look like a House of Death when I saw it. It was just a Spanish house, like all the rest of them in California, with white walls, red tile roof, and a patio out to one side. It was built cock-eyed. The garage was under the house, the first floor was over that and the rest of it was spilled up the hill any way they could get it in. You climbed some stone steps to the front door, so I parked the car and went up there.” Cain’s words could not be a more perfect description of the residence that appeared in the movie, which leads me to believe that the abode must have served as the inspiration for the home in the story and that Cain then later suggested the place to producers to use for the filming. So incredibly cool!

According to an October 17, 2009 Los Angeles Times article, an almost exact replica of the interior of the house was recreated on a soundstage at Paramount Studios in Hollywood for the filming.

As you can see above, in real life the home’s front door is much closer to the bottom of the central staircase than it was onscreen. The actual residence, which was built in 1927 and boasts 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, and 3,077 square feet of living space, currently belongs to interior designer/set decorator Mae Brunken. You can check out some fabulous photographs of the actual interior of the property here. (The photograph of the home pictured above does not belong to me, but remains the sole property of the Los Angeles Times and photographer Ricardo DeAratanha).

In an interesting twist, as you can see above, producers had the address number of the Double Indemnity house changed from “6301” to “4760” for the filming. I would not have thought that sort of thing happened back in the days before DVD players, pause buttons, and the internet, but all evidence to the contrary.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Double Indemnity house is located at 6301 Quebec Drive in the Beachwood Canyon area of the Hollywood Hills.