Beverly Hills Historical Society

Happy Halloween! 🎃
It's time to celebrate two beloved "witches" who just happened to have been civically minded, Beverly Hills hometown ladies. We aren’t talking about the witches from Wicked! We are highlighting the witches from the classic TV show BEWITCHED and the film THE WIZARD OF OZ!

Elizabeth Montgomery, Samantha Stevens in Bewitched, was a champion of women's and gay rights as well as an AIDS advocate. She lived at 1230 North Benedict Canyon Drive.
Margaret Hamilton, the Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz, became an educator who helped establish the first preschool at the Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church on the corner of Rodeo Drive and Santa Monica Blvd. Ms. Hamilton also served on our Beverly Hills Unified School District's Board of Education from 1948-1951.
Both AMAZING women did so much for our hometown.
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“It's a good thing, I suppose, that I eat simply during the day, for in recent months I have developed the habit of stopping off at Wil Wright's ice cream parlor for a hot fudge sundae on my way home from my evening drama classes. I'm sure that I couldn't allow myself this indulgence were it not that my normal diet is composed almost totally of protein foods.” – Marilyn Monroe

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Here is the September 2024 issue of Luxury Portfolio International Magazine that includes an article about Beverly Hills- past and present. Our beloved former President PHIL SAVENICK was quoted extensively in this article before he passed this last June. This interview really highlights so much of all he knew and could speak about at a moment's notice. One would bring up a subject and Phil would have an incredible story about it.. usually with a wink and a little nod to fun.
Please enjoy it.

Love Beverly Hills LOST ANGELES You know you're from Beverly Hills, CA if.... Beverly Hills Experience The Beverly Hills Hotel Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce Rodeo Drive

Luxury Portfolio International Magazine Vol. 14 No.2 Read Luxury Portfolio International Magazine Vol. 14 No.2 by UniqueHomes2023 on Issuu and browse thousands of other publications on our platform. S...

Things sure have changed since 1915! Can you imagine how peaceful it must have been to meander around The Lily Pond in Beverly Gardens Park without lines of noisy traffic on Santa Monica Blvd. and tourists taking selfies? At least we have photos. But, it’s still a beautiful and iconic place to be.
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We remember our magical Beverly Hills Library from our youth. The library (444 N. Rexford Drive) opened on October 10, 1963. Its designer, Martin Stern, was helping Las Vegas develop its look at the time. He worked on the iconic Flamingo Hotel for Bugsy Siegel. Stern also designed Ships’ space-age coffee shops in Los Angeles. (We remember the aroma of cinnamon toast as it got golden brown while it popped out of individual toasters on our tables).

Before the new library was open in the 1960’s it had been set up in a temporary wing of the Beverly Hills’ City Hall. But, when this state-of-the art, light filled building opened we felt it was just for us. Where else could you sit on the rug in the children’s section and enjoy our famous neighbors read books to us? We spent many hours here doing homework, “studying” and hanging out.

The library underwent extensive renovation in 1990. As we have witnessed so many times ~ “progress” changes things. But, not our memories.

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Things sure have changed since 1920. Here is Sunset Blvd. when it was known as Beverly Blvd. Looking east where it curves just west of Beverly Hills.

LOST ANGELES Beverly Hills, California BELLE EPOQUE to ART DECO. The First 40 years of 20th century Beverly Hills Experience History Defined

Things sure have changed since 1912! Here is Crescent Drive looking north towards The Beverly Hills Hotel in the distance.

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Our neighbors…comedy legends at Hillcrest Country Club rear patio in Beverly Hills (OK, one block away on Pico)
Arthur Marx wrote:
“The Hillcrest Round Table of Comedians, a comedic moniker playing off the renowned New York Algonquin Round Table of writers and intellectuals of the '20's, didn't begin as a club at all. It came about because Jack Benny, Milton Berle, Harpo, Chico and Groucho Marx, George Jessel, Eddie Cantor, Lou Holtz, the Ritz Brothers, Danny Kaye and George Burns all liked to play golf, and in order to play they had to belong to a club. Because they were Jewish, however, they couldn't join most of the swank clubs like the Bel Air, Wilshire, Riviera and Los Angeles country clubs, which back in the '30's and 40's were open only to gentiles. So they wound up at Hillcrest.”
Since most had been friends since their vaudeville days, when they used to eat regularly at a greasy spoon called Wolpin's off Times Square, waiting for the day they would finally get a booking at the famed Palace Theater next door, they naturally gravitated toward one another and shared the same table at lunch. And thus was born the notorious Round Table.
Lou Holtz and George Jessel had no other reason but the food to join Hillcrest; neither played golf.
Both, in fact, were careful never to stray from the dining room or card rooms into the outdoors. Once when they accidentally opened the wrong door and found themselves out on the terrace facing the panorama of green fairways and blue sky, Jessel exclaimed,
"My God, how long has that golf course been here?"
LOST ANGELES Beverly Hills, California Hillcrest Country Club You know you're from Beverly Hills, CA if....Beverly Hills Experience History Defined Back In The Day (60s, 70s, 80s)

Our beloved Franklin Canyon has been one of television and film’s most used locations and backdrops. From a Rolling Stones’ album cover to the iconic opening as Mayberry for The Andy Griffith Show... its well-worn path is still around for anyone to walk with Hollywood’s angels.

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“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”
~Will Rogers

HAPPY NATIONAL DOG DAY!
In 1926, entertainer Will Rogers was appointed first “Honorary Mayor” of Beverly Hills. Will was known as a performer and humorist. But, we mostly remember him for his social commentary. One of his most memorable quotes captures what many of us feel deeply… our love of dogs.
In honor of NATIONAL DOG DAY we celebrate some of our neighbors and past residents playing second fiddle to their beloved canines.

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Today marks the 255th year that the area which would later be known as BEVERLY HILLS would be mentioned in history.

The expedition of Don Gaspar de Portolá camped near La Cienega park (the swamp) on August 3, 1769. Father Crespi noted, "the day started out with several earthquakes, then they arrived at a wetland where the natives ran around naked and howled like wolves. Our aboriginal Tongva tribe greeted the Spanish with seeds to show the abundance of the land."

Marker is in Beverly Hills, California, in Los Angeles County on La Cienega Boulevard south of Gregory Way, on the right when traveling south. It is at or near this postal address: 325 S La Cienega Blvd, Beverly Hills CA 90211.

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🍦To end National Ice Cream Month here’s Currie's Ice Cream Parlor on the northwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Gale Drive in Beverly Hills, 1930s! 🍧
Thanks for the find Terry Sp****la Schneider! 🧐

"I scream. YOU scream. WE all scream ... for ICE CREAM!"
It's National Ice Cream Day this Sunday!

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed a proclamation that the 3rd Sunday in July be 'National Ice Cream Day' and the month of July be 'National Ice Cream Month'!

Here are some of our former Beverly Hills neighbors at work and play while enjoying that cold, creamy, irresistible treat! Go to your local shop and get yourself a cone... make mine a triple!

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‘The Electric Fountain’ is an iconic sight to see which many of us drove and still drive by on the way to dinner, school, work or the doc. But, do you really know what it is?

The first photo shows the present day Electric Fountain. The fountain pays homage to the local Tongva Native American tribe with the Robert Merrell Gage sculpture perched atop. The park was first created in 1911 by Wilbur D. Cook and the Electric Fountain was a gift from Harold Lloyd’s mother with funding from the Women’s Club of Beverly Hills.

In the second photo, circa 1935, we see a Pacific Greyhound Lines bus making the right turn from Santa Monica Blvd, westbound to Wilshire Blvd. Overhead we see the lines carrying power for the Pacific Electric cars running along Santa Monica Blvd.
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What better way to celebrate than to enjoy lovely Cary Grant walking this Siamese kitty in the neighborhood? And, yes…the home is still standing. ~ 1955
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🇺🇸We wish you a Happy 4th of July🇺🇸celebrating our former neighbor, James Cagney who lived on Coldwater Canyon.
He is remembered for playing “tough guys” in films such as The Public Enemy (1931), Taxi! (1932), Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), The Roaring Twenties (1939).
But, he was a song and dance man at heart. Cagney was able to negotiate dancing opportunities in his films and ended up winning the Academy Award for his role in the musical Yankee Doodle Dandy in 1942 playing American composer George M. Cohan. Cohan wrote more than 50 shows and published more than 300 songs during his lifetime, including the standards "Over There”, “Give My Regards to Broadway”, “The Yankee Doodle Boy”, and “You're a Grand Old Flag”. Enjoy! 🎆

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Yankee Doodle Dandy - Jimmy Cagney Jimmy Cagney performs his signature number in this 1942 biographical film about George M. Cohan.

Wonderful tribute for Phil in today’s Beverly Hills Courier. 🧡

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We celebrate Mel Brooks 98th with another memory from old Rodeo Drive and this bizarre lunch with the cast of Young Frankenstein at The Daisy, 1974.

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Here’s a great story our Phil posted one year ago today. We thought you’d like it to honor Mel Brooks’ 98th birthday~

Growing up in Beverly HIlls, stars lived on almost every block. We would see them at restaurants, the supermarket, and school events for their kids. Occasionally, they were stopped for autographs. Some were gracious, some not so much. The sweetest was Mel. He would have lunch every Friday at Porta Via on Canon with his buddies and would stop by the "Mel Brooks Garbage Can" to sign items for every fan who wanted one. A few years ago I was helping Karen Caesar clear out her dad's film collection, she gave me some of Sid's shirts just back from the cleaners. I knew Mel and his pal Carl Reiner were writers on Sid's "Show of Shows". I dropped one off at Carl Reiner's house on his birthday and gave another to Mel as he was dining on Canon. Mel teared up, "I gotta give this to Carl". I said, "I gave him one already, this one is yours. "How do I know it's real?" he demanded. "You know it's real because who else would embroider SID on the tit?".... then like the Lone Ranger, I snuck off before he could say "thank you masked man"... It was an autograph "in reverse". I gave him something. Happy Birthday to the funniest guy in town.
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It is with deep sadness that we tell you of the passing of our beloved and devoted president, Phil Savenick.

Under Phil’s outstanding leadership, the BHHS took huge leaps forward on our mission to preserve, honor, and share the rich history of Beverly Hills and its residents.

Thanks to Phil’s creative vision, we found new and exciting ways to tell the fascinating stories of Beverly Hills. He eagerly embraced the technology that allowed us to reach new audiences around the globe. And, he worked tirelessly to make it possible for people to understand why Beverly Hills is “the most famous small town in the world”.

Phil's efforts on behalf of the City exemplified his family’s tradition of service established by his dad, Mayor Ben Norton (1983-84), and his mother, Rose Norton, who worked for eight years on the Planning Commission.

He was one-of-a-kind and we all loved him dearly.

The Beverly Hills Historical Society salutes the "beginning of summer" with a look back at some of our former neighbors lounging in the sun around town... at their homes, The Beverly Hills Hotel, The Hotel Bel-Air and The Beverly Hilton. Happy Summer! 😎

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.rosin and are back LIVE! Wednesday June 5 as they are looking at clips, comments, and reacting to the other podcasts. The controversy comments, opinions and funny. We will dive deep into it all! LIVE! 5PM PT 8PM ET beverlyhills90210show.com drop a comment below if you have something for us to see!
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