Last week a
group of friends and supporters gathered on the roof of the Hollywood Roosevelt
Hotel to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Hollywood Heritage, the
non-profit organization that’s been “fighting the good fight” to preserve the
history that surrounds us in this ever-changing community. Current president
Bryan Cooper enumerated the many victories HH can claim over its long history,
including the listing of 13 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard (including more than
100 buildings) on the National Register of Historic Places. The eloquent actor
Michael York, a longtime supporter, reminded us that we all live in the
equivalent of a World Heritage Site: the problem is that too many people take
it for granted.
That can’t be
said for the steadfast supporters who gathered last Thursday, including Marsha
Hunt, Julie Adams, James Karen, George Takei, William Wellman, Jr., and Fred
Willard, as well as historical-minded Hollywood professionals like Marc
Wanamaker, Craig Barron, cinematographer John Bailey and his wife, editor Carol
Littleton, Suzanne Lloyd, Los Angeles magazine columnist and man about town
Chris Nichols, producer Larry Mirisch, and city councilmen Mitch O’Farrell and
Tom LaBonge, to name just a few.
Over the
years, Hollywood Heritage has saved innumerable buildings and historic
neighborhoods. Cofounders Frances Offenhauser and Christy Johnson McAvoy are
still active with the organization; that kind of loyalty is inspiring, to say
the least. It’s also exciting to have the active participation of Jesse Lasky’s
daughter Betty and Cecil B. DeMille’s granddaughter Cecilia DeMille Presley. Like
the Los Angeles Conservancy, the group is not opposed to progress or change: all they ask is that developers
be sensitive to history and tradition. Original
plans for the Arclight Theater in Hollywood would have encased the distinctive
Cinerama Dome in a ring of shops and restaurants and hidden it from public view.
After a series of meetings, the backers agreed to keep the Dome intact on
Sunset Boulevard and build around it.
That’s what I’d call a win-win.
The same can be said for the
current construction project at Columbia Square, the 1930s CBS radio facility
just a few blocks away. Because of lobbying and negotiations, the new mixed-use
high-rise will retain some of the original modern façade instead of demolishing
it.
Hollywood Heritage’s proudest achievement is the rescue and restoration of the DeMille-Lasky Barn, where The Squaw Man was filmed in 1913. Situated in a parking lot opposite the Hollywood Bowl on Highland Avenue, this volunteer-run museum is perhaps the best kept secret in
Los Angeles. It houses a world-class collection of Hollywood memorabilia—including
a replica of Cecil B. DeMille’s original office—and welcomes visitors to
special events and screenings all year long. (Right now the Museum is closed as
a new back deck is being constructed to house a replica of a silent-film
stage.)
This summer, Hollywood
Heritage and The Silent Society will once again host silent-film screenings
under the stars at the Paramount Ranch in Agoura Hills: Cecil B. DeMille’s Why Change Your Wife (1920) screens on
July 19 and Ernst Lubitsch’s Lady
Windermere’s Fan (1925) plays on August 16th, with piano
accompaniment by Michael Mortilla. Longtime supporters like Randy Haberkamp,
who co-founded the Silent Society (and now works for the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences) continue to lend support and encouragement to these
and other activities.
But the struggle
continues. Too often, thoughtless or greedy developers want to tear things down,
and some politicians are swayed by the big bucks involved. Smart, caring
citizens like the folks at Hollywood Heritage favor intelligent compromise;
that’s why they deserve everyone’s support. You can learn more by clicking here: www.hollywoodheritage.org.
