An Afternoon in Harlow Heaven

Thanks to my friend Richard Adkins of Hollywood Heritage, I was given the great treat Saturday of being able to attend the book signing for Darrell Rooney and Mark A. Vieira’s newest book, Harlow in Hollywood: The Blonde Bombshell in the Glamour Capital 1928-1937 (Angel City Press), which was held in Jean Harlow’s former home on Club View Drive in the Westwood Hills.

It is hard to imagine a more perfect day or a more perfect setting for the occasion, which was held just two days after Harlow’s 100th birthday. The house has been so lovingly maintained throughout the years that you could easily imagine Jean bounding down the stairs on her way to the studio or quietly curled up by the big fireplace in the sunken living room studying her latest script. Aiding in the effect were a series of photographs placed all around the house showing Jean in the same spot during her time there.

Then…

Now…

Then…

Now…

Then…

Now…

Jean, Norma Shearer and Paul Bern, Behind is Irving Thalberg, Mama Jean (Hidden) and Marino Bello

It’s one thing to be somewhere you think a famous person once was, but to be able to actually stand or sit exactly where they were was a special treat clearly enjoyed by the guests who ranged in diversity from Holly Madison to Leonard Maltin (How much more diverse can you get than that?). While Mark and Darrell graciously signed copies of their book in the sun filled breakfast room, the guests sipped on wine and noshed on snacks laid out in the spacious dining room. As I stood there happily munching on my cheese/salami/cracker combo, history suddenly tapped me on the shoulder again and I was reminded of the famous photograph, taken in this very room, of Jean and her new groom Paul Bern, cutting their wedding cake, surrounded by a “Who’s Who” of Hollywood royalty including Irving Thalberg and Norma Shearer, John Gilbert, David and Irene Mayer Selznick and others, on that long ago day in 1932.

The event’s hosts, Dr. and Mrs. Charles Chandler could not have been more charming – or trusting – as they allowed the guests free rein to wander about the house, both upstairs and down, which everyone did, all the while marveling at how beautiful the home was and how miraculous it was that it hadn’t been remodeled beyond recognition. Although a few of the bathrooms and the kitchen had undergone the inevitable march of progress, it was astounding to see such rare period details remaining untouched such as the rich mahogany woodwork featured throughout the house and the green and black tile work in what had been Jean’s own bathroom. What seemed to strike Richard and I as most amazing were the incredible gothic-looking doorknobs still in place after eighty-two years.

The name “Club View” is not a misnomer. All the houses lining this stretch of Club View have just that, a beautiful view of the Los Angeles Country Club and beyond from their ridge top perches. 1353 Club View was one of several speculative homes built on the street by developers I.W. Adams and Associates in 1929, but it appears they lavished extra attention on this particular one, declaring it to be their “masterpiece.” William H. Kraemer, the home’s architect, may not be a household name, but he did a truly fine job with his design of this stone and timber English Country home. It is filled with wonderful period details and its thoughtfully laid out design makes the home appear much bigger than it actually is. It is a very beguiling home that charms today as much if not more than it did back in 1929 and everyone who appreciates historic and beautiful old houses owes a debt of gratitude to its excellent custodians, Dr. and Mrs. Chandler. For more current pictures of the house click here.

The El Cortez (later Harvey) Hotel at 5640 Santa Monica Boulevard was another William H. Kraemer design (1927)

The Club View neighborhood has had an interesting celebrity history in itself. None other than the most famous dog in film history, Rin-Tin-Tin, was Harlow’s near neighbor down Club View, living in his own little house at the rear of 1336 Club View Drive until his death at the ripe old age of 14 in August 1932. Upon his death, his owner/trainer Lee Duncan and his wife arranged to have the great film dog buried in the backyard where he presumably still rests today. Jean Harlow, a great animal lover, must have enjoyed having Rinty so near and there is even an old Hollywood legend that the famed canine died in Harlow’s arms (!). A few years after Harlow’s departure, the “Invisible Man,” famed character actor Claude Rains, took up quarters across from the former Harlow home at 1354 Club View.

We cannot ever know just exactly how many beautiful young people have been drawn to Hollywood by the lure of the movies. We do know they are in the countless thousands. While a precious few have been able to grasp the elusive brass ring of stardom, even fewer have ascended to the level of Hollywood icon. Jean Harlow, who died at the tender age of 26, is one of those rare few. Her beauty, no matter how extraordinary, would not have been enough, however, nor even talent. There has to be something more, something unexplainable, something that connects with us in a way we cannot even adequately express, but we know is there, that elevates her to that lofty perch. Perhaps Marie Dressler, as Carlotta Vance in Dinner at Eight (1932) expressed it best when, after Jean Harlow’s character declares she’d read a book that said one day a machine would replace every profession, she deadpanned “Oh my dear, that’s something you need never worry about.”

I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Darrell and Mark’s beautiful Harlow in Hollywood. The Amazon link is here and Angel City Press is here. It is not only done with love, it is done with expertise and in looking through the incredible collection of rare photographs artfully assembled here you can easily understand why, a century after her birth, Jean Harlow will never go out of style.