It was always about the land, about the riches that could be unlocked if it were chosen carefully enough,
subdivided into parcels which called out to the right demographic, if access could be insured with rail or
improved roads or both, if water and electricity could find their way in, if enough hoopla could be conjured
so that they would come and look and buy, while the coming and looking and buying was good, before the
carrying costs caught up with the cash reserves. Yeah, it was always about the land. Of course, the key
was buying at an agricultural rate and selling at a residential rate.
The trick was turning a bean field into a view lot.
By 1910 Burton Green, Max Whittier and their various partners controlled 4,439 acres of bean fields, they
had the water and they had the electricity and now they needed the people. But they had to be the right
kind of people, the kind who would pay premium prices, build expensive houses and bring other people of
the right kind. They needed a trump card. They needed hoopla. Burton found it over on Hollywood Boulevard.
Knowing of the bitter feud between Almira Hershey, the owner of the Hotel Hollywood and her
long-time manager, Margaret J. Anderson, Green and the boys from Rodeo Land & Water decided to make the
formidable Ms. Anderson an offer she couldn’t refuse. They grubstaked her to a spanking new hotel in their
neck of the woods and the capital to cover operating expenses for the foreseeable future. It was an easy decision.
She came, bringing her son, Stanley, an experienced hotelier in his own right and as an added bonus they brought
with them a hotel-full of guests, cleaning out, as it were, the entire guest list of the Hotel Hollywood as they locked
the door behind them, the right kind of people one-and-all. It’s worked for a century. So far, so good.
1024px-Beverly_Hills_Hotel,_1911_drawing
Los Angeles Times, May 14, 1911
Beverly_Hills_Hotel_1912
1912 looking north across an unpaved Sunset Blvd, the Beverly Hills Hotel under construction nearing completion.
image from paulrwilliamsproject.org
BHH, 1912
Dirt roads and grace abound. Open for business just barely. image from paradiseleased.wordpress.com
hbz-beverly-hills-hotel-Hotel-Panoramic-1912-0512-lgn
looking southwest across Lexington and Crescent Drives, Sunset Boulevard beyond the hotel.
image from "The Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows - The First 100 Years" by Robert S. Anderson, Official Historian for The Beverly Hills Hotel
BHH Polo Ponies?
Will Rogers and friends? No, likely too early for that. Besides some of the men appear to be wearing skimmers.
Joe Lefors? (But) Lefors never leaves Wyoming, never. You know that. myloveofoldhollywood.blogspot.com
Beverly Hills Hotel looking northwest, circa 1921
image from the empressofdress.blogspot.com
BeverlyHills-Hotel looking south 1921
In the early years the hotel set aside an acre for the guests to plant flowers and vegetables.
image from plushhomerealty.com
BeverlyHillsHotel_1935_DorothyJordan
image from the empressofdress.blogspot.com
Beverly Hills Hotel, entrance, 1940's
Beverly Hills Hotel, Exterior, 1940's: Photographer Maynard L. Parker, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California
Beverly Hills Hotel pool 1948
image from the empressofdress.blogspot.com
hbz-beverly-hills-hotel-Rita-Hayworth-0512-de
Rita Hayworth in a comfy outfit down by the pool, circa 1934. by Robert S. Anderson
Polo Lounge
image by Julius Shulman for the BHH
hbz-beverly-hills-hotel-Marlene-0512-lgn
Marlene Dietrich in The Polo Lounge, where she successfully challenged the dress code that
stated women could not wear pants in the restaurant. I love this picture. by Robert S. Anderson
Beverly-Hills-Hotel-room detail
image by Julius Shulman for the BHH
Beverly-Hills-Hotel-room detail II
image by Julius Shulman for the BHH
BHH paulrwilliams
In the late 1940’s architect Paul Revere Williams was retained to spruce up the existing hotel
and design and oversee the construction of a major add-on.
He brought a bucket of pink paint and some banana leaf wallpaper.
image from CthulhuWho1's Blog
Beverly-Hills-Hotel-Addition-circa 1950
image by Julius Shulman for the BHH
BHH-Exterior
Fairy tales can come true.
image from empressofdress.blogspot.com
Beverly Hills Hotel, Lanai Room, 1950
Beverly Hills Hotel, Lanai Room, 1950:
Photographer Maynard L. Parker, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California
Historical-BHH-Entrance
image from Hawkins International Public Relations
Beverly Hills Hotel lobby
image from hotelchatter.com
hinson martinique banana leaf wallpaper beverly hills palm beach chic room
theastate.com
Beverly-Hills-Hotel cabana boy
Yes, I know, a dirty job but someone has to do it.
image from the empressofdress.blogspot.com
2012-01-09-WomanbythePool_AnthonyFriedkin_BeverlyHillsHotel1975
The pool area at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Truly a land of opportunity.
hbz-beverly-hills-hotel-Faye-Dunaway-oscar-0512-lgn
Faye Dunaway and friend by the pool on the morning of March 29, 1977. by Robert S. Anderson
hbz-beverly-hills-hotel-Marilyn-0512-lgn
Marilyn stayed in the Bungalows while filming "Let's Make Love." circa 1959
by Robert S. Anderson
Beverly Hills Hotel bungalow exterior walkway
Howard Hughes, bungalow number 5 for nearly thirty years,
maintained a standing order with the hotel kitchen to hide a
roast beef sandwich in the tree near his walkway every evening at about 10 pm,
presumably so that he could avoid having to see or talk with anyone.
image from anapettusdairies.com
Beverly Hills Hotel bungalow pool
And yes, some of the bungalows include private pools.
image from the empressofdress.blogspot.com
Beverly Hills Hotel bungalow interior detail
image from anapettusdairies.com
Beverly Hills Hotel bungalow interior detail II
image from anapettusdairies.com
Beverly Hills Hotel bungalow interior detail III
image from anapettusdairies.com
BeverlyHillsHotel interior Marilyn's bungalow, circa 1959
Marilyn and husband Arthur Miller, right, enjoy dessert and
after-dinner drinks with Yves Montand, back to camera, and his wife Simone Signoret.
image from beneathmagentaskies.com
BeverlyHillsHotel interior Marilyn's bungalow II, circa 1959
image from kiwicollection.com
BHH nighttime panorama
Beverly Hills Hotel nighttime panorama. image from dailymail.co.uk