Spaulding Square Bungalows in “Excessive Force”
Lots of photos of upscale Hollywood bungalows from 1919 follow.
Central Division patrolling the Valley never ceases to
amuse me, but Hollywood bungalows from 1919 make this my favorite of all
Adam-12 locations. The historic preservation zone of Spaulding Square [south of Sunset, east of Fairfax] is the
setting for the serious portion of “Excessive Force,” season 7, episode 8.
These
houses are more upscale than many of the other now hundred-year-old bungalows
being demolished to make room for large-occupancy monster crapboxes [my milder term for them] and thus have
thankfully survived until now. Fortunately, Spaulding Square now has Historic Preservation Overlay Zone [HPOZ] status to help protect it.
Given that the house across the street from the
fictional child molester’s home recently sold for $3 million, these homes will
probably escape the wrecking ball a little while longer [as historic status has been unable to save many fine homes of the past, but money always talks.] Sadly, another similar
bungalow not under Spaulding Square’s historical preservation overlay zone
protection was sold for $1.3 just to be demolished for another hideous monster
box. No building is safe in Hollywood (the gorgeous deco Mole Richardson
building immediately comes to mind.)
Let’s bring in the screen caps and 21st century
shots. I have taken these from Google maps instead of my own collection for
three reasons. One, I finally escaped from Los Angeles earlier this year so I can't go take any fresh ones; two,
past years show better views than you could get now; three, regrettably I never
walked Spaulding Square on any of my photography walks in the 80s and 90s, back
when I liked walking around Hollywood. Kicking myself now.
The home of the missing little girl is at 1328 N. Ogden
Drive, built in 1919.
Although in the show it appears the molester’s home is
around the corner, it’s actually up the road at the beginning of the next
block, 1400 N. Ogden Drive.
Also built in 1919, it last sold in 2015 for $2,650,000. Yes, you read that right. In a city where the streets are lined with homeless drug addicts, and crime is no longer prosecuted. This is not Adam-12’s Los Angeles.
For people elsewhere, please know Hollywood is just an area
of Los Angeles. Johnny Grant was only the “honorary” mayor, as Hollywood is not
a separate city. Although at one point both the Valley and Hollywood voted on
escaping from LA, residents of the whole city were allowed to vote, and thus
nobody got to leave. [Side note: the Valley voted overwhelmingly to leave, but
the rest of the city made them stay because something like 60% of tax revenue
comes from there.]
In this shot of Pete at the molester’s door, you can see
the historic deco building Hayworth Towers in the distance. Built in 1931, it
is located in the adjacent city of West Hollywood (which is in fact a
separate city, although only 3 square miles; they don’t use LAPD but instead
contract with the sheriff’s department.)
The busy street he’s crossing is no less than Sunset Boulevard. What prompted them to deal with shutting that down for their scene? Surprised they were allowed to. Thanks to my dear friend Candy Stackowitz for seeing through the remodel on the corner building.
She also discovered that where Pete chased him behind the building back on the Spaulding Square side of Ogden was demolished, becoming a Bank of America in 1980. That Alpine looking building can probably be located in old photos or films with enough effort, as most of Sunset Boulevard has gotten photographed at some point. What happens after they cross south on Sunset will have to go under "Extra Excessive Force" in a future post.
As late as the early 80s,
Los Angeles still felt like it had some space. Now I find it so overbuilt with
oversized soulless structures – Los Angeles, “which intrigues me, like a beautiful, sensual
morgue,” as Phil Ochs put it 50 years ago. If you’ve ever been in the garden
section of Home Depot and looked up at how they have stacked concrete pavers on
the tops of 10 foot shelves and wondered if they would all crash down on your
skull and crush you in an earthquake – that’s how LA feels to me. Thus my love
of the single-story bungalow. Who else hears Jim Morrison in their heads
singing about a little girl in a Hollywood bungalow? This rather shocking for
Adam-12 storyline puts a vile spin on that.
What prompted veteran actor Sandy
Kenyon to accept the role, I don’t know. Of course the story goes from “I can’t
believe he said that” to “whoa, Pete!” and then to “what I did was wrong.” The
officer’s job is to make the arrest, not mete out the punishment. But still the
viewer wants Jim to take a slow walk around the block while his plump partner
introduces the perv’s head to the wall a few times, surely. After six seasons
of Malloy holding his emotions in, he finally reacted to something. Then the
viewer gets to see the process of dealing with an officer who does.
Actor note:
Marty Milner spent most of the series just being surly, breaking up light comedy domestic disturbances, and occasionally checking out girls. The search for the little girl and the pursuit of her attacker actually gave him a chance to do a little serious acting in between cigarettes. Well played, Freckles.
Other observations:
Why do the women on this show always come across as idiots? Mom and her PTA phone call gives the pedo time to snatch the little girl. Dad is the principal from “The Breakfast Club,” Paul Gleason. Whatever prompted them to have Jim explain how the couple make a good living but not enough to pay a ransom? Maybe so that viewers of the future watching reruns post-housing bubble would understand those Woodrow Wilson-era homes were affordable in 1974. It wouldn’t be a millionaire neighborhood until the next century.
Back to bungalows:
The house across from the molester’s is on full display in
this episode, and they all look like a giant can of white paint fell on them.
That house is now well-hidden behind a fence and bushes, as most all of them
are.
The house just northwest across the street from the molester's home where Reed checks the crawl space:
I’d say the crew took some black tape to the DeLongpre
street sign, making it illegible. The ivy still abounds. Yes, there should be a space between the De and the Longpre.
De Longpre:
Paul De Longpre was a French painter who had a beautiful home and gardens in Hollywood. His estate was a tourist attraction and was featured on postcards of the era. He passed away in 1911 and his wonderful home and gardens were demolished in the 1920s. Destruction of beauty remains the Hollywood way.
Disclaimer:
Here I should add the standard disclaimer, if you decide to
visit these residences, do not disturb the residents. Do not trespass on their
property.
What would happen if they saw you taking pictures and
didn’t like it? Would an attractive young officer like Jim Reed pull up to say
there had been a complaint? No. Here’s the 2021 reality:
Residents: “There’s a stranger outside taking pictures of
our house!”
“Call the police.”
“Where’s the non-emergency number. Ok. Here. It’s ringing.”
“You have reached the Los Angeles Police Department. Para servicio en Espanol…”
Ten minutes of multi-lingual menu later:
“Officer Mendoza. Is this an emergency?”
“No, but…”
On hold for twenty minutes.
“Officer Garcia.”
“Hello, officer. Someone is shooting pictures outside our house.”
“Someone is shooting outside your house? Are shots being fired now?”
“Shooting pictures.”
“No gun?”
“Shooting with a camera.”
“Bullets are not being fired?"
“No, officer. A stranger is outside taking pictures of our house.”
“And you called the police?”
“This person could be dangerous. They might be a stalker….”
“And you don’t want them taking pictures of your house?”
“No. What can we do?”
“Put up a fence.”
“But, officer…”
Click. Click.
“You have reached the Los Angeles Police Department. Para servicio en Espanol..."
This is not the fault of the officers. I stress, I do not
blame the officers. This is a Los Angeles political problem. However, if you
live in a nice-looking home, expect it to be photographed from the street.
The man in the storm drain is at the corner of Cahuenga Blvd and something. [My hunt for this residential street isn't high on the list.]
In this Google image, you can see they've put up barriers to stop as much trash from falling in, which will make it harder for the man to wave his white flag for help in the future.
You will learn nothing about Los Angeles streets from this series other than the names. Every intersection is nonexistent, and the streets they name are normally on the other side of town from where they’re supposed to be, and it’s a BIG town. It’s the geographical equivalent of every TV movie phone number starting with 555. The viewers’ favorite must be the fictional street of McWhirter. I kept waiting for them to get called to the very real Milner Road in Whitley Heights, but I guess that never happened.
That fine old home Pete goes past in the show and in the 21st century, again via Google Street View over the years.
