The William O. Jenkins House— also known as the "Phantom House", the J. Paul Getty mansion and 641 South Irving Boulevard — was a Mediterranean-style property in Los Angeles, California, built for businessman

William O. Jenkins William Oscar Jenkins (1878–1963) was an American businessman who made great wealth in Mexico. He was born May 18, 1878, in Shelbyville, Tennessee. He was originally a mechanic who moved to Mexico. He served during the Mexican Revolution as ...

(reputedly the "richest man in Mexico") in 1922 and '23. Although demolished in 1957, it lives on in movie memory owing to its use in location shooting for two celebrated Hollywood films — ''

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 t ...

'' (1950) and ''

Rebel Without a Cause ''Rebel Without a Cause'' is a 1955 American coming-of-age drama film about emotionally confused suburban, middle-class teenagers. Filmed in the then recently introduced CinemaScope format and directed by Nicholas Ray, it offered both social co ...

'' (1955).

History

The house was designed by American civil engineer and architect Thomas Beverley Keim, Jr. (1884-1926), who committed suicide soon after its completion. It cost $250,000 ($ in dollars ). Jenkins, a wealthy American expatriate living in Mexico, lived at the residence with his family for only one year (1925-26). It then sat vacant for a decade, prompting locals to dub the impressive edifice the "Phantom House". It was sold to oil magnate

J. Paul Getty Jean Paul Getty Sr. (; December 15, 1892 – June 6, 1976) was an American-born British petroleum industrialist who founded the Getty Oil Company in 1942 and was the patriarch of the Getty family. A native of Minneapolis, he was the son of pi ...

(1892–1976) in 1936. The home was occupied by one of the five (former) Mrs. Gettys at the time of the 1950 filming of ''

'' by

Paramount Studios Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production and distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldest film studio in the world, the second-oldest ...

. As a condition for the rental of the property, she requested that the studio build her a new swimming pool, which became the site of the famous scene with

William Holden William Holden (born William Franklin Beedle Jr.; April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor, and one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film ''Stalag 17'' (1953) ...

's floating corpse at the beginning of the film."Wilshire Phantom House Soon to be Only a Memory", ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', 24 February 1957, p. B1. The house was two blocks west of Hollywood favorite restaurant

Perino's Perino's was a restaurant located on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. The original location at 3927 Wilshire Boulevard was opened in 1932 by Italian-American restaurateur Alexander Perino, immediately becoming popular with Hollywood's ...

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 ...

. On 21 February 1955,

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

was granted permission — for the sum of $250 per day ($ in dollars ) — to film scenes for ''

'' on the site on April 16, 18, 20 and 21, 1955. The same swimming pool, now dry, was again used extensively. The shoot was a rushed affair because the crew and owner anticipated demolition at any time. Having only recently won a lawsuit brought by 169 of his

Windsor Square Windsor Square is a small, historic neighborhood in the Wilshire region of Los Angeles, California. It is highly diverse in ethnic makeup, with an older population than the city as a whole. It is the site of the official residence of the mayor of ...

neighbors (which had sought to prevent demolition), Getty was keen to have the place destroyed before the locals had a chance to successfully seek alternative legal avenues. Mrs. Getty then sold the property in 1957 to the developers of the present white marble high rise office building known as the

Tidewater Oil Tidewater Oil Company (rendered as "Tide Water Oil Company" from 1887 to 1936) was a major petroleum refining company during that period. Tidewater was sold many times during its existence. Brands included Tydol, Flying A, and Veedol. The Veedo ...

Building (1958). Another nearby former Getty property — at 605 South Irving Boulevard — also known as the "

Getty House The Getty House is the official residence of the mayor of Los Angeles, California. It is located at 605 South Irving Boulevard in Windsor Square, a historic district east of Hancock Park, about five miles west of the Los Angeles City Hall. H ...

", is a 1920s

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

mansion and is the official home of the

Mayor of Los Angeles The mayor of the City of Los Angeles is the official head and chief executive officer of Los Angeles. The officeholder is elected for a four-year term and is term limit, limited to serving no more than two terms. (Under the Constitution of Califo ...

. It was given to the city by J.P. Getty's son,

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

References

External links

"641 South Irving Boulevard" @ Historic Los Angeles: Wilshire Boulevard, When it was Residential
(2015) by Duncan Maginnis. Russwin ad

Houses completed in 1923 Houses in Los Angeles Getty family residences History of Los Angeles Crenshaw, Los Angeles Central Los Angeles Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire, Los Angeles Sunset Boulevard (Los Angeles) Mediterranean Revival architecture in California Buildings and structures demolished in 1957 Demolished buildings and structures in Los Angeles {{LosAngeles-struct-stub