 |
| Landmark #961 | Los Angeles County | Visited: Sept. 18, 2011 | Plaque? NO. 🙁 |
| What is it? | One of the most famous estates of Hollywood’s golden era. |
| What makes it historical? | THE GUIDE SAYS: Greenacres, one of the greatest estates of Hollywood’s Golden Era, was built in 1929 for the internationally known silent screen comedian, Harold Lloyd. With its formal gardens, it is one of the finest Mediterranean/Italian Renaissance style residential complexes remaining in the state. The 44-room house was designed by Sumner Spaulding and the gardens planned by A. E. Hansen. The estate is patterned after the Villa Gamberaia near Florence, Italy.
OTHER TIDBITS: If you don’t recognize the name, Harold Lloyd, right away, remember the popular scene from Safety Lastof a man hanging from the hands of a clock atop a skyscraper? That was him! He was able to afford his Greenacres estate on his whopping $1 million per year salary! Imagine what he would think of today’s actor salaries! This landmark is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places! |
| How can I Help the Helpers? | HERE’S HOW:
|
| Where is this place? | LISTED DIRECTIONS: 1740 Green Acres Place Beverly Hills, CA 90210 ANNOTATIONS: From Los Angeles: ~13mi (21km) — 0.3hrs |
| When should I go? | Harold Lloyd originally wanted his estate to become a museum of motion picture history, but his wealthy neighbors fought to keep their neighborhood from becoming a tourist destination. Now it is in a heavily-monitored neighborhood, so visit the entrance during the daylight to avoid having the cops called on you! |
Is it possible to walk the actual grounds of the Harold Lloyd’s Green Acres, or can you just stand at the gate? Thanks, Jim
Hi Jim! Great question! Sadly, though Harold Lloyd left his estate to the public as a museum, his wishes were not respected, and Greenacres was sold to a developer in 1975. It has since been private property and, to my knowledge, not open for tours.