Los Altos Apartments
Encyclopedia
The Los Altos Apartments is a Mission Revival style apartment building on Wilshire Boulevard
in Los Angeles, California
. The structure was built in 1925 and designed by Edward B. Rust and Luther Mayo. In 1999, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
When built, the Los Altos Apartments began as a co-op and were later used as a luxury apartment and hotel catering to stars like Clara Bow
, Bette Davis
, Mae West
, Douglas Fairbanks
, and William Randolph Hearst
. The Spanish Colonial-style building went bankrupt during the Great Depression and fell into disrepair. In 1993, a local housing group Neighborhood Effort rescued the structure from demolition and obtained national historic site status by tracking down its original parts and design details such as floor tiles, doorknobs, and colors.
Los Angeles-based architectural firm M2A rehabilitated the 75-unit structure, and restored its original decor. The firm restored or recreated Los Altos’ original light fixtures, hardware, carpets, plaster work, awnings, and ornamental iron work. Today, Los Altos is the home to artists, screenwriters, and actors. In 1999, Los Altos received several preservation design awards from the California Preservation Foundation and the Los Angeles Conservancy
. The landmark also received a Historic Preservation Award of Excellence from the city of Los Angeles.
prominently featured exterior shots of the Los Altos Apartments, in seasons 2 - 4, it acted as the exterior of the Hyperion Hotel
, the home and base of titular character and his friends. The 'Los Altos Apartments' building was also featured in a season 1 episode of Angel called "I Fall To Pieces", where it was used as both exterior and interior for the apartment building of a guest character.
In the fifth episode of the second season of the television series Numb3rs
, called Assassin, the building was used as the exterior of the Rancho Verde Assisted Living building.
Wilshire Boulevard
Wilshire Boulevard is one of the principal east-west arterial roads in Los Angeles, California, United States. It was named for Henry Gaylord Wilshire , an Ohio native who made and lost fortunes in real estate, farming, and gold mining. Henry Wilshire initiated what was to become Wilshire...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. The structure was built in 1925 and designed by Edward B. Rust and Luther Mayo. In 1999, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
When built, the Los Altos Apartments began as a co-op and were later used as a luxury apartment and hotel catering to stars like Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
, Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
, Mae West
Mae West
Mae West was an American actress, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades....
, Douglas Fairbanks
Douglas Fairbanks
Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. was an American actor, screenwriter, director and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Thief of Bagdad, Robin Hood, and The Mark of Zorro....
, and William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst was an American business magnate and leading newspaper publisher. Hearst entered the publishing business in 1887, after taking control of The San Francisco Examiner from his father...
. The Spanish Colonial-style building went bankrupt during the Great Depression and fell into disrepair. In 1993, a local housing group Neighborhood Effort rescued the structure from demolition and obtained national historic site status by tracking down its original parts and design details such as floor tiles, doorknobs, and colors.
Los Angeles-based architectural firm M2A rehabilitated the 75-unit structure, and restored its original decor. The firm restored or recreated Los Altos’ original light fixtures, hardware, carpets, plaster work, awnings, and ornamental iron work. Today, Los Altos is the home to artists, screenwriters, and actors. In 1999, Los Altos received several preservation design awards from the California Preservation Foundation and the Los Angeles Conservancy
Los Angeles Conservancy
The Los Angeles Conservancy is an historic preservation organization in Los Angeles, California. It works to document, rescue and revitalize historic buildings, places and neighborhoods in the city. The Conservancy is the largest membership based historic preservation organization in the country...
. The landmark also received a Historic Preservation Award of Excellence from the city of Los Angeles.
Popular culture
The television series AngelAngel (TV series)
Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon, in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999...
prominently featured exterior shots of the Los Altos Apartments, in seasons 2 - 4, it acted as the exterior of the Hyperion Hotel
Hyperion Hotel
The Hyperion Hotel is a fictional home base for Angel in the television series Angel during the middle seasons of the show. The gang move into the Hyperion at the beginning of the second season, following the destruction of their offices in the finale of season one, "To Shanshu in L.A.".-History:In...
, the home and base of titular character and his friends. The 'Los Altos Apartments' building was also featured in a season 1 episode of Angel called "I Fall To Pieces", where it was used as both exterior and interior for the apartment building of a guest character.
In the fifth episode of the second season of the television series Numb3rs
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
, called Assassin, the building was used as the exterior of the Rancho Verde Assisted Living building.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Los Angeles
- List of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in the Wilshire and Westlake areas