Douglas Honnold (August 17, 1901 – March 14, 1974) was an award-winning Canadian-born American architect. He designed many residential properties and commercial buildings in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. He won an Honor Award from the Southern California Chapter of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

in January 1947 for his design of the Embassy Shop in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

alongside architect John Lautner. He turned down the offer to design the famous

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...

golden arches.

Early life

Douglas Honnold was born on August 17, 1901 in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

, Canada. He attended

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 1920–1921, and the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1922–1923.

Career

Honnold designed the Dolores del Río House at 757 Kingman Avenue in

Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles Pacific Palisades is a neighborhood in the Westside region of Los Angeles, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles. Pacific Palisades was formally founded in 1921 by a Methodist organization, and in the years that followed bec ...

for Mexican actress Dolores del Río and Irish production designer

Cedric Gibbons Austin Cedric Gibbons (March 23, 1890 – July 26, 1960) was an Irish-American art director for the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed the ...

in 1929. He also designed the Samuel Goldwyn Estate in Beverly Hills, California in 1934. Additionally, he designed the Stars' Dressing Room Building and Stage 8 at the studios of

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

, and the Westwood Music Center in Westwood. He also designed the Westminster Gardens Project in

Duarte, California Duarte () is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 21,727. It is bounded to the north by the San Gabriel Mountains, to the north and west by the cities of Bradbury and Monrovia, ...

. With Arthur W. Hawes and George Vernon Russell, he designed the Hollywood Reporter Building on

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in ...

in 1937. A decade earlier, circa 1927, he had designed the Alexander Kiam House in Los Angeles with Russell. With John Lautner, he designed the Beverly Hills Club. They also designed the Embassy Shop in Beverly Hills, which won an Honor Award from the Southern California Chapter of the

in January 1947. Additionally, they designed the Coffee Dan's Restaurant buildings on

Vine Street Vine Street is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that runs north–south between Franklin Avenue and Melrose Avenue. The intersection with Hollywood Boulevard was once a symbol of Hollywood itself. The famed intersection fell into d ...

in Hollywood as well as on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

in Downtown Los Angeles in 1946. With John Leon Rex, he designed the Anderson House at 621 Perugia Way in Bel Air in 1951. The same year, they designed the Romanoff Center and Restaurant in Beverly Hills. In 1955, they designed the Edward Albert Adams House at 2331 Cove Avenue in Silver Lake to the designs of Harwell Hamilton Harris. They also designed the Piness Medical Building in Beverly Hills in 1955. They also designed the Psychology Building on the campus of the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

in 1965. They designed the William Morris Offices in Beverly Hills in 1955. They also designed the McKinley Home for Boys in

San Dimas, California San Dimas ( Spanish for "Saint Dismas") is a city in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 census, its population was 34,924. It historically took its name from San Dimas Canyon in the San Gabriel ...

, as well as the Portola Middle School in

Tarzana, California Tarzana is a suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Tarzana is on the site of a former ranch owned by author Edgar Rice Burroughs. It is named after Burroughs' fictional jungle hero, Tarzan. Histo ...

. They also designed the Los Angeles Federal Savings and Loan Association building in

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...

in 1960 and its Hollywood building on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street in 1963–1964. They also designed the Raymond Hommes Office Building in Beverly Hills. With Rex and fellow architect Piercy K. Reibsamen, he designed the Barclays Bank Building in Tarzana. They also designed the John K. Kenny Library at 5151 State University Drive on the campus of

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

in 1969. Additionally, they designed the Campanile, or the Memorial Bell Tower, on the campus of

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...

in Claremont in 1960-1961; ceramicist Malcolm Leland designed the grillework. They also designed the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company Office Building at 888 West 6th Street in Downtown Los Angeles in 1973–1974. They also designed the Linder Plaza Office Building at 1,000

Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue in the Financial District of downtown Los Angeles. One of the principal ...

. They also designed the Hollywood-Wilshire Health Center at 5505 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood in 1968. With Rex, fellow architects

Frederick Earl Emmons Frederick Earl Emmons (December 19, 1907 - August 23, 1999) was an American architect. With A. Quincy Jones, he designed many residential properties, including tract houses developed by Joseph Eichler in the Pacific Palisades, Orange, Palo Al ...

, Arthur Gallion, A. Quincy Jones, Maynard Lyndon and

Raphael Soriano Raphael S. Soriano, FAIA, (August 1, 1904 – July 21, 1988) was an architect and educator, who helped define a period of 20th-century architecture that came to be known as Mid-century modern. He pioneered the use of modular prefabricated ...

, he designed the San Pedro Community Hospital at 1300 West 7th Street in San Pedro, Los Angeles in 1958–1960. Meanwhile, Honnold, Rex and fellow architect Welton Becket designed the Centinela Valley Community Hospital in Inglewood, California in 1961. In 1963, with fellow architects Richard Neutra, Herman Charles Light, Robert Evans Alexander and James R. Friend, they designed the County of Los Angeles Hall of Records Building at 320 West Temple Street in Los Angeles in 1963. Honnold declined the offer to design the golden arches of the

restaurant chain because brothers

Richard and Maurice McDonald Richard McDonald (February 1909 – July 14, 1998) and Maurice McDonald (1902 – December 11, 1971), together known as the McDonald Brothers, were American entrepreneurs who founded the fast food company McDonald's. They opened the original Mc ...

were too opinionated about the design. Instead, they hired architect

Stanley Clark Meston Stanley Clark Meston (7 January 1910 — 30 December 1992) was an American architect most famous for designing the original golden arches of McDonald's restaurants. In an article about the origin of McDonald's golden arches, architectura ...

Personal life and death

With his wife Elizabeth and their daughter, also named Elizabeth, Honnold resided at 245 South Burlingame Street in

Brentwood, Los Angeles Brentwood is a suburban neighborhood in the Westside region of Los Angeles. History General Modern development began after the establishment of the Pacific Branch of the National Home for Disabled Soldiers and Sailors in the 1880s. A sma ...

, which he designed in 1970. Honnold died on March 14, 1974 in Los Angeles County, California, at the age of 72. After his death, his widow married architect John Lautner.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Honnold, Douglas 1901 births 1974 deaths Anglophone Quebec people Architects from Montreal Architects from Los Angeles Canadian emigrants to the United States Cornell University alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni 20th-century American architects People from Brentwood, Los Angeles