The Los Angeles City Council has deemed a Streamline Moderne house on North Martel Avenue, once briefly owned by 1930s Oscar-winning actor Wallace Beery, a historic-cultural monument.

The home at 947 N. Martel Ave., briefly owned by the Academy Award-winning actor Wallace Beery, epitomizes the Streamline Moderne style with its smooth, aerodynamic lines. (photo by Michael Locke, courtesy of the Cultural Heritage Commission)

“It’s a part of Los Angeles’ architectural heritage,” said Los Angeles resident Steven Luftman, who co-authored with his friend Charles Fisher the application for the building’s monument status. “It really is a little gem in the city, just blocks from the studios on Santa Monica.”

The unanimous vote by the City Council came on Dec. 5, following the Cultural Heritage Commission’s recommendation for the building’s recognition on Oct. 4.

Beery, star of Academy Award-winning film “The Champ” and the David O. Selznick-produced “Viva Villa,” commissioned architect William Kesling to design the aviation-inspired house during a period when Kesling was working on more than 20 Streamline Moderne buildings in the Los Angeles area. Ultimately, Beery’s time with the home was short lived. The home was completed in 1936, and the actor sold it the following year in 1937.

The Beery home, located just south of West Hollywood’s Plummer Park, highlights the Streamline Moderne style, a 1930s architectural movement that emphasized simple aerodynamic lines. A single-story horizontal orientation with a flat roof, rounded corners, painted horizontal trim and unadorned walls are among the home’s many key elements that convey a sense of speed.

The Beery home also has added historical interest because of its connection with Kesling. The architect was indicted in 1937 for fraud over $24. He continued with his design career elsewhere in California, including in San Diego, but he never worked again in Los Angeles.

“Kesling is really an unappreciated part of the city’s move to modernism as a building style,” Luftman said, adding that he hopes the home’s historic-cultural status cements the architect’s influence.

The home’s path to recognition was not without contention, however. Luftman was spurred to nominate the building for the landmark status – which provides city oversight – when he learned that the building’s current owner, developer Ilan Gorodezki, had plans to build apartments at the site. Gorodezki, on the other hand, did not protest the nomination and final recognition of the home, but he said the building’s historical worth has been inflated considering Beery’s brief ownership of the property and the architect’s legal troubles.

“Is every home that a celebrity buys historical? We are in a huge shortage of housing – see the homeless in the street,” Gorodezki said. “So the building’s historic, then what? It’s just to stop development.”

Despite his personal beliefs though, the developer added that he still supports the council’s decision and will not fight it. He is now considering selling the building or possibly donating it to the city or to veterans.

Luftman acknowledged the city’s struggles with housing, but said multi-story apartments to address the issue were not appropriate for this particular neighborhood.

“There’s plenty of space in L.A. – the parking lots, the strip malls … If the developer bought a car lot, he could tear that down for housing. But this is not where development should be, around single-family residences,” Luftman said. “I hope the home stands there for a long time and it’s used for what it’s meant to be – a great living space.”