Quote:
Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire
 LAPL
Looks like the house wasn't built by Chaplin but was rather part of the property he bought--formerly the estate of an R.S. McLellan.
The 1921 Baist map--the house's address was 7062 Sunset Blvd.
Some more Chaplin studio history...
 
LAT Oct 16. 1917/The Billboard Nov 3, 1917 |
[QUOTE
]"At the end of the Mutual contract," Chaplin wrote in his autobiography, "I was anxious to get started with First National, but we had no studio. I decided to buy land in Hollywood and build one. The site was the corner of Sunset and La Brea and had a very fine ten-room house and five acres of lemon, orange and peach trees. We built a perfect unit, complete with developing plant, cutting room and offices." The site was formerly owned by R.S. McClellan .
http://echopark.patch.com/groups/bus...ywood-e7630558[/QUOTE]
I have been curious about the origin of the fruit trees and who was responsible for their planting. Not clear whether R.S. McClellan's five acres of fruit trees constituted a business or a hobby, and what he may have done with the fruit. The McCellan name has more than one spelling. Don't see an "R.S.M" in the '09 or '15 directories, but one version of the name appears in connection with the LA Law Library, circa '22.
http://books.google.com/books?id=yVE...lellan&f=false Guessing fruit was harvested and some of it marketed prior to Chaplin's purchase of the property. Hard to envision the "Hollywood" area full of agricultural workers. Also difficult to envision a huge nursery and (later) a public hiring hall at 2nd/3rd and La Brea.
http://skyscraperpage.com/forum/show...ostcount=10736
*Wonder if anyone won the Studio naming contest.