The Ravenswood Explained

Ravenswood Apartments
Location:570 N. Rossmore Ave.
Coordinates:34.0811°N -118.327°W
Built:1930
Designation1:Los Angeles
Designation1 Date:November 2003[1]
Designation1 Number:768

The Ravenswood is a historic apartment building in Art Deco style at 570 North Rossmore Avenue in the Hancock Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was designed by Max Maltzman, and built by Paramount Pictures in 1930 just five blocks from the corner of Paramount's studios on Melrose Avenue.[2]

Mae West lived in the penthouse from its 1930 opening until her 1980 death.[3] [4] [5] West, who invested in property throughout the Los Angeles area, bought the building when the management barred her then-boyfriend, African American boxer William "Gorilla" Jones, from entering the premises.[6] James Timony, West's long time manager, close friend, and one-time boyfriend (pre-1930s), lived in the building until his death in 1954.[7] Other residents have included Anna Faris, Clark Gable and Ava Gardner, at different times.[8] [9]

The Ravenswood was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 2003.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) List . Office of Historic Resources . Department of City Planning . . 2017-04-18.
  2. Book: Los Angeles Art Deco. Suzanne Tarbell. Cooper. Amy Ronnenbeck. Hall. Frank E.. Cooper. 50. Arcadia Publishing. 2005. 978-0738530277. 28 April 2019.
  3. Web site: Mae West Lived in Hollywood's Ravenswood Apartments . Hartmann . Lawrence . . 2014-09-20 . 2017-04-18.
  4. News: Mae West, Stage and Movie Star Who Burlesqued Sex, Dies at 87 . The New York Times. November 23, 1980.
  5. Book: Lord, Rosemary . Hollywood Then and Now . 2003 . Thunder Bay Press . . 978-1592231041 . 77.
  6. Book: Watts, Jill . Mae West: An Icon in Black and White . Oxford University Press . April 17, 2003 . 207 . 978-0195347678. 28 April 2019.
  7. Book: Eels. George. Musgrove. Stanley. Mae West: A Biography. registration. William Morrow & Co.. 1982. 55–61, 39–146, 188–191, 241. 978-0860515807.
  8. Web site: The Ravenswood: Luxury Apartments . Commercial Property Management, Inc. . 2017-04-18.
  9. News: Arnold, Shayna Rose . Anna Faris – Los Angeles Magazine . Los Angeles Magazine . Lamag.com . September 23, 2013 . January 30, 2016 . live. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304113148/http://www.lamag.com/lastory/anna-faris/ . March 4, 2016 .