DEATH, GLAMOUR, MODERNIST ARCHITECTURE AND GIANT DONUTS IN THE SKY – MUST BE LA: PART 7

DEATH, GLAMOUR, MODERNIST ARCHITECTURE
AND GIANT DONUTS IN THE SKY – MUST BE LA

By Steve Wright

Black Dahlia Confidential

It had the makings of a cinema thriller: a young, pretty actress-wannabe and a horrifically brutal unsolved killing. The mystery of the Black Dahlia murder provides glimpses into the seedy underbelly of post-World War II Los Angeles, the LA of Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe, a city of lost innocence and broken dreams.

If you haven’t seen the Brian De Palma film or read the books, Beth Short, aka the Black Dahlia, was a Massachusetts girl with striking features who came to LA with movie star dreams. Her plans never materialized and, at age 22, on a January morning in 1947, her nude, severed body was discovered in a vacant lot. While the murderer has never been caught, one man named Steve Hodel believes it was his own dear old, now deceased, dad who did the deed.

OK, so it’s not a picture postcard image, but what would Tinseltown be if some of the tinsel didn’t scrape off now and then? Take a drive to the trendy Los Feliz neighborhood of LA to have a look at Hodel’s boyhood home, where he believes daddy committed the infamous crime. Built in 1926 by Frank Lloyd Wright’s son, Lloyd Wright, the Sowden House is an incredible example of an architectural style called Mayan art deco. Built from earthen blocks in a geometric pattern, the structure conjures up images of a temple. If you watched Cycle 6 of the TV show, America’s Next Top Model, then you’ve seen this breathtaking home from the inside as well.

Now that you’ve had your daily dose of architectural history, coupled with LA’s sleazy side, find a parking space on North Vermont Avenue and have a look around this neighborhood with a mid-century retro feel. The comfortably walkable streets are made picturesque with citrus trees. Browse the boutiques or nurse a latte at an outdoor café. If you’re ready for some hearty, hip diner fare, stop in at Fred 62 and order up a stick-to-the-ribs breakfast or maybe a chili burger.


TOMORROW: Farmers Market in Faux City