Hector My Realtor Blog Page

  All images: Kellogg Doolittle Residence On the edge of Joshua Tree National Park stands a 10-acre lot of land with one of the most fascinating examples of Organic Architecture ever built. It may look like some stately take on a Flintstones home or the futuristic remains of a mechanical mammoth from afar. But it’s a finetuned architectural orchestration handmade to blend with its arid environs. Behind its guarded exterior lies an intricate work of art decades in the making. Today, we brave the desert heat for a closer look at the famed Kellogg Doolittle House.  The Perfect Storm for an Icon of Organic Architecture The Kellogg Doolittle House wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the open minds (and bank accounts) of Bev and Jay Doolittle. An artist renowned for her intricate paintings of the wilds of the western United States, Bev Doolittle held an intimate reverence for the creative process. She knew that she didn’t want to live in a cookie-cutter home....

  Featured image credit: Visitor7 We often talk about the history of Los Angeles on this blog, but today we’re going back to the very beginning. Sort of. Indigenous people lived in the area we call Los Angeles for centuries before the city’s first stone was laid. But if you ask locals to take you to the beginning, most will guide you to a vibrant pocket at the border of Downtown LA called Olvera Street. You may have also heard of this storied pedestrian street under its Spanish name, Calle Olvera . Here you’ll find some of the oldest surviving buildings in the city, along with plenty of kiosks, shops, and restaurants with a decided focus on Mexican culture. Or at least a tourist-approved facsimile of it, depending on who you ask. But the true story of Olvera Street (not to mention El Pueblo de Los Ángeles ) began about a block northwest of its current placement.    The Spanish Settlers That (Sort of) Started It All Under a decree of King Carlo...

  Featured image credit: Warner Bros. At the end of August, our sister site covered the residential sale of the home memorably used in the 1982 horror classic Poltergeist . At the time, we assumed it was simply a residential transaction. But new information reveals that the Poltergeist house was actually purchased as an investment property with the idea of marketing it as a themed short-term rental. And though it’s still got a long road of renovation ahead of it, it’s already shaping up to be a sound investment. How to Sell a “Haunted” House   The Mandela Effect may leave you swearing that Steven Spielberg helmed 1982’s Poltergeist . However, the Jaws director was only responsible for the film’s story and co-authoring its screenplay. Director Tobe Hooper ( The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ) took on directing duties for the film about a suburban family plagued by apparitions from the netherworld. And everything in the film leads back to the house its...

  Featured image credit: Alexander Migl It’s not quite the Hotel California, but it’s still allegedly quite difficult to check out of the Roosevelt Hotel Hollywood. At least if you believe the rumors. The ones about haunting melodies carrying down corridors from unidentifiable sources. Or shadows moving in ways that shadows shouldn’t move. Even the occasional account of incorporeal cads getting a bit handsy. It’s nothing new for haunted Hollywood. But what sets the Roosevelt apart from other alleged hubs of paranormal patronage is that a few of its rumored revenants are quite famous… even decades after their demise.  The Halcyon Days of the Roosevelt Hotel Hollywood Photo credit: Andy Gnias In the early 1920s, a group of notable investors including Douglas Fairbanks, Sid Grauman (yeah, the Chinese Theater guy ), and Mary Pickford raised $2.5 million to bring Hollywood’s swankiest hotel into being. That figure would be over $45 million today, but these ...

  Featured image credit: Jim Heimman from his book California Crazy & Beyond – Roadside Vernacular Architecture It’s understated to be sure, but there’s something special about the autumn in Southern California. You wouldn’t think our arid, sunny, and often sweltering atmosphere would be particularly welcoming of cinnamon and spice. And, sure, you won’t find many trees changing their colors. And you’ll definitely sweat through your first few pumpkin spice lattes if you don’t get them iced. But people in the Greater LA area tend to love Halloween. You can feel it in every lengthening shadow and scorching Indian summer afternoon. Perhaps this gives us some clue into the giant pumpkins that have punctuated SoCal’s landscape over the decades. Yes, that’s right, enormous pumpkins. And we’ll give you a moment to recover from your giggling fit before we clarify that we’re not speaking in euphemism.  The Burbank Pumpkin Building: The Oldest of SoCal’s Giant Pump...

  Featured image credit: Russ Allison Loar The Queen Mary has quite the reputation. No, we don’t mean a disgraced monarch. We’re talking about the ocean liner RMS Queen Mary permanently moored in the Port of Long Beach . You know, the allegedly haunted Queen Mary? She ferried the world’s ultra-wealthy across the globe’s blue highway for nearly three decades under the Cunard banner before dropping anchor for the last time in 1967. And during that time, she’s said to have picked up around 150 seafaring souls with enough poltergeist power to earn a spot on Time Magazine ’s list of most haunted places in America in 2008. But are the haunted Queen Mary claims more solid than the ghosts they claim? Or is some high-seas hornswogglery going on behind the scenes?  From Luxury Liner to Grey Ghost Photo credit: Jezzred On September 26, 1934, the Queen Mary set sail on her maiden voyage. Queen Mary (not the haunted Queen Mary, the human one) was there to christe...

  Few cities highlight the bond between humans and animals quite like Los Angeles. Have you really been to LA until you’ve stood behind an influencer cradling her Frenchie in the line at the Trader Joe’s on Vine? No matter where you turn in this city, people are treating their dogs, cats, and even the occasional parrot, like exalted deities gracing our lives. And rightfully so. It only makes sense that we’d seek their comfort in death as well. You’ll find hallmarks of the importance of animals in virtually any Los Angeles cemetery you visit. Today, we’ll look at a few unusual examples of animals standing at the veil between life and death.   The Pink Tiger of Evergreen Cemetery Photo credit: emilyd10 A tiger is an understandably startling sight in a Los Angeles cemetery. Now, a pink tiger? There can’t be any other graveyard in the world with one of those. Yet, it’s the crowning glory of the Pacific Coast Showmen’s Association plot in Boyle Heights’s Evergr...