A 1930s Long Beach house with classic period details such as curved walls and nautical elements has been lovingly restored.
Architect Hugh Davies designed this classic, light-infused Streamline Moderne home in Long Beach as an example of modern architecture in 1936, the height of the movement. The popular style embraced the modern gleam of streamlined trains, zeppelins and luxury ocean liners, and incorporated chrome and glass in light fixtures and decorative details.
True to the Streamline Moderne style, which emphasized flowing forms, long horizontal lines, copper piping and nautical elements such as portholes, this painstakingly restored house is a showcase of double-curved soffits, built-in bookshelves with radial corners, original French steel casement doors and vintage wood paneling with copper accent strips.
The home, decorated for a 1937 exhibition with $10,000 worth of designer furniture from Bullock’s, was open to the public for viewing. Reportedly about 100,000 people walked through it.
The longest occupants of the home were the Kellogg family, whose patriarch, Joe Kellogg, was an oil contractor and founding member of the Long Beach Petroleum Club, a social gathering place. The family bought the house in 1952 more for its sturdy construction than for aesthetic reasons, according to daughter Kathie Kellogg Taxe. The swing set that still occupies one yard was built by a family friend who welded together oil equipment, and the play set is “indestructible,” Kellogg Taxe said.
About this house: After the death last May of matriarch Helen Kellogg, who occupied the house for 52 years, designer Michael Albanese bought the post-Art Deco classic and returned it to its original elegance. He installed “ship lights” in the living room and on the front porch and added half-moon pulls on built-in drawers throughout the house. He reproduced period light fixtures and combined original and new period-style bathroom and kitchen tile.
Asking price: $1.49 million to $1.59 million
Size: The 3,152-square-foot house is on a 7,749-square-foot lot, with five bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms.
Features: The home includes classic period features such as curved walls and porthole windows. It has a large living room with a masonry fireplace, a custom Dutch-style door in the kitchen, an elegant winding staircase with the original copper railing, a large master bedroom suite with a built-in vanity and sundeck overlooking the courtyard, original walnut parquet floors, designer Moderne-style bathroom fixtures, and maid’s or guest suite. The property also has a large, covered front porch with an oversized entry door.
Where: The Bixby Knolls neighborhood of Long Beach. Open house from 1 to 4 p.m. today at 4401 N. Myrtle Ave.
Listing agent: Douglas Kramer of SoCal Modern, (562) 627-1001
To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send color interior and exterior photos on a CD with caption information and a brief description of the house, including what makes the property unusual, to Ruth Ryon, Real Estate section, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012; homeoftheweek@latimes.com.
