Ann Dvorak’s Los Angeles, Pt 10: 7208 Santa Monica Blvd – Caddo Co. (The Lot)
Year of Ann Dvorak: Day 265
Los Angeles Public Library
Today on our road trip, we cross over into West Hollywood to a film production studio now known as The Lot. The Lot, located at Santa Monica Blvd. and Formosa Ave. was the onetime studio of Mary Pickford & Douglas Fairbanks, United Artists, and Samuel Goldwyn among many many others. It also served briefly as the headquarters for the Caddo Co., Howard Hughes production company which occupied offices at the studio located at 7208 Santa Monica Blvd. (the address for the Pickford-Fairbanks Studios was 1041 N. Formosa). This is the space where Ann Dvorak would have gone to sign her Scarface contract in 1931 and where parts of that film and Sky Devils were shot. It also would have been the place Ann visited on a regular basis in late 1931, anxiously viewing the daily rushes of Scarface see how she was coming across onscreen. Ann’s time at Caddo was fairly short lived and by December 1931 she was working at Warner Bros.
As for The Lot, it’s still standing – though unfortunately last year a number of the historic buildings were demolished by the current owners.
It has been said before, but so shall it be said again — ‘Ann Dvorak’s Los Angeles’ kicks a$$.
Argh!So, too bad some of those historic buildings are no more!
So how far is 7208 Santa Monica Boulevard from 6636 Orange Street? How would you suppose Ann would have made the daily trek in those 1931 days?
Thanks again Scott.
The studio was only around 3 miles away. I am guessing Ann would not have had a car at the time, and it looks like the easiest route would have been to take the Los Angeles Motor Coach east on Wilshire and north on La Brea to Santa Monica.
www.lapl.org/sites/default/files/visual-collections/maps/map0035.jpg