THIS IS PART 1 OF LUCY SITES. ENJOY!
From ILoveLucy-sender@bolis.sf-bay.org Tue Sep 12 16:03:46 1995
Date: Mon, 11 Sep 1995 11:36:56 -0400 (EDT)
From: Doug Ramsey
Subject: ILL sites 1 of 19
The following is the list of ILL sites around the hollywood area, sent to
me, scanned, and then sent to members of this group. Enjoy!
Doug Ramsey, Heidelberg College, Tiffin, Ohio! =:)8 (ILL!)
*********************************************
5/93
LUCY PLACES
In February of 1993, Mike and I spent several wonderful days
exploring sites related to Lucy in the Los Angeles area. As far as I
could find, there wasn't a guide to help us find these sites...so these
notes are what I put together to help during our trip (and then revised a
lot afterwards). Hope you find it helpful too! I've already received so
many nice letters requesting this guide...I feel like they should read,
"Please send me one quart of Aunt Martha's Old Fashioned Salad
Dressing!" Several people thought I was charging for this information.
No way--what could be more fun than sharing Lucy trivia with other
fans?! Feel free to copy and share this with anyone you know.
Now here's my disclaimer: Please remember that this was my first
trip to California, so all I can promise is that to the best of my
knowledge--all of the information here is correct. Have fun! (And let me
know if you find corrections. Also let me know what all you find on your
trip. I plan to return someday!)
There are two books that I found absolutely essential in finding
these places. They both have great maps along with information on lots
of other things to see also. I really do recommend them.
***************************************************************************
The Ultimate Hollywood Tour Book--The Incomparable Guide to Movie Star's
Homes, Movie and TV Locations, Scandals, Murders, Suicides, and All the
Famous Tourist Sites, by William A. Gordon, North Ridge Books (P.O.
Box 2314, Toluca Lake, California 91610-0314), 1992, $15.95.
Permanent Californians--An Illustrated Guide to the Cemeteries of
California, by Juli Culbertson and Tom Randall, Chelsea Green Publishing
Company (Chelsea, Vermont), 1989, $16.95.
***************************************************************************
CANYONS:
COLDWATER CANYON:
Lucy heard a Japanese spy's code in her dental work as she was
driving past four vacant lots where Birmingham Hospital
was later built--no address in phone book for this
hospital. (She had earlier heard music through her
dental work at the corner of Moorpark and Coldwater, as
she "came into the valley over Coldwater Canyon.") Lucy & Desi would
meet at the top of this canyon at Mulholland
Drive at 5:30 a.m. on his way home from the nightclub
and her way to the studio. (One book said they met at
the Sepulveda Tunnel.) Lucy drove her mother here the first night
her mother arrived
in Hollywood. Because they were hugging each other, a
policeman thought they were lesbians and told them to leave.
Lucy later went on a date here with Oscar Levant.
HORSESHOE CANYON (at the end of Laurel Canyon):
The cast watched the first "I Love Lucy" broadcast at Marc &
Emily Daniels' home here. (William Frawley went back to
the Hollywood Knickerbocker Hotel to watch the fights
instead.)
MANDEVILLE CANYON:
At what had once been Robert Taylor's ranch, the memorial
gathering was held for Lucy on Mother's Day, one month
after her death.
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CEMETERIES:
LUCY--Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive
Take Route 101 (the Hollywood Freeway) to Route 134 (the
Ventura Freeway) and go east on Route 134 to Forest Lawn
Drive. Park hours are 9 - 5. At the gate to the cemetery, ask the
guard for directions to
the Courts of Remembrance. (The cemetery doesn't give
directions to a specific grave, but you will get a map
of the cemetery roads.) At the first intersection, turn left. (Wait
until the first
full intersection, not the first possible left turns.)
Drive toward the big building up on the hill, The Courts
of Remembrance. If you park in front of the building,
you will see Bette Davis' large crypt on the left. Walk through the
first courtyard until you come to the largest
central courtyard. The Columbarium of the Radiant Dawn
is in the back left corner of this central courtyard.
When you enter the Columbarium of the Radiant Dawn,
Lucy's plaque is on the wall to your right, toward the
center, about half-way up. DeDe, her mother's plaque is
next to hers. (Be prepared--it's very small but it's
what Lucy supposedly wanted.) There's a flower shop by the entrance
to the cemetery. If
there's no vase for Lucy's grave, you can pick one up as
you walk into the central courtyard. Just attach it to
the holder on the wall next to her plaque.
WILLIAM FRAWLEY--San Fernando Mission Cemetery, 11160 Stranwood Avenue
Take Route 405 (the San Diego Freeway) north. Exit east on
San Fernando Mission Blvd. The entrance to the cemetery
is on the left. There's a flower shop on the right just past the
office.
+++++++++++++++++++++++NOTE: I am adding this++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++letter from Cathy here++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++ -Nancy S. ++++++++++++++++++++++
From ILoveLucy-sender@bolis.sf-bay.org Wed Sep 13 21:44:28 1995
Date: Wed, 13 Sep 1995 22:06:53 -0400
From: CATHYSUE@aol.com
To: ILoveLucy@bolis.sf-bay.org
Subject: cathy's closet misc.
hi all. :-)
re: wills -- i have a copy of all four of their wills. lucy, desi & viv
were all cremated. viv's ashes were scattered at sea, according to a
notation on her death certificate. desi, bill & viv's wills were all
interesting; lucy left everything to an already set-up trust, so not much to
read in hers.
cathy's closet
101 greenway
sunnyvale, tx 75182
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
From ILoveLucy-sender@bolis.sf-bay.org Tue Sep 12 16:03:03 1995
Date: Mon, 11 Sep 1995 11:39:31 -0400 (EDT)
From: Doug Ramsey
Subject: ILL sites 3 of 19
The large section to the left of the office is Section C.
Take the first possible left turn and locate the number
64 on the curb. Walk in five rows to find William
Frawley's grave. The stone next to William Frawley's grave bears the
names of
John and Paul Frawley and the inscription reads "Beloved
Brothers."
[three rows up and to the right is an Elizabeth Frawley?]***
(Does anyone know where Desi Arnaz and Vivian Vance are buried?)
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CHURCHES
GOOD SAMARITAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, 505 N. Bedford Drive, Beverly Hills
At Sunset Blvd. and Bedford Drive William Frawley's funeral was here. He
died 3/3/66. Fred McMurray & Desi were the lead pallbearers.
HOLLYWOOD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Rev. Clifton Moore was one of the consultants for the
pregnancy episodes. There's no listing in the phone book for the
Hollywood
Presbyterian Church, but the First Presbyterian Church
of Hollywood is listed at 1760 Gower.
OUR LADY OF THE VALLEY CHURCH IN CHATSWORTH
Desi and Lucy were married here on 6/19/49 by Father Michael
Hurley. There's no listing of this church in the phone book.
ST. MONICA'S CATHOLIC CHURCH, Los Angeles
A memorial service was held here for Lucy on 5/8/89. There's no listing
of this church in the phone book.
ST. VINCENT'S ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, 621 Adams Blvd.
Monsignor Joseph Devlin was one of the consultants for the
pregnancy episodes. He was the head of the Catholic Legion of
Decency.
WILSHIRE SYNAGOGUE
Rabbi Alfred Wolfe was one of the consultants for the
pregnancy episodes. The Wilshire Synagogue is not listed in the
phone book, but
the Wilshire Boulevard Temple is listed at 3663 Wilshire
Blvd.
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FAMILY
Fred Hunt, Lucy's grandfather
At the corner of Sunset Blvd. and Fairfax Avenue in Hollywood,
Mr. Hunt would lecture streetwalkers and offer them $5.00 to take the
night off.
Also at this corner, he gave speeches in 1936 to elect Eugene
Debs for President. (Debs died in 1926.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOMES
GRIFFITH PARK
Lucy lived near here with her mother and grandfather when they
first moved to Hollywood.
Lucy would organize family gatherings in the park.
Drive up to the Observatory at the top of Griffith Park; the
view is great. You can see the Hollywood sign and all
Angeles.
1344 NORTH OGDEN DRIVE, HOLLYWOOD
This is the home Lucy bought for her mother and grandfather. Grandpa Hunt
wanted to get rid of a big tree in front of the house. He dug around it
to weaken the root system and the tree fell over and hit Lucy's new
convertible.
CHATSWORTH, 19700 DEVONSHIRE STREET
Take Route 101 (the Ventura Freeway) west to Winnetka Street.
Go north on Winnetka to Devonshire Street. Then go east
on Devonshire to Corbin Avenue. This is the Desilu Ranch in the San
Fernando Valley. Lucy and Desi purchased 5 acres at the corner of Corbin &
Devonshire Blvd. for $14,500.00. They lived here from 1941 - 1955.
The house is still there! The rumor was that it had been torn
down but the spring 1993 issue of "Star Notes" definitely
proves otherwise. The acreage has been divided into lots
and the house is only on an average size lot now.
Unfortunately, because of the high wall and the secured
entrance to the housing development, you can't actually
see the house. You can still get a sense, though, of the
beautiful view of the mountains they had.
[Note the house was torn down sometime after 1994 Northridge earthquake.]
BEVERLY HILLS
Lucy had an apartment here during the first divorce
proceedings.
1000 NORTH ROXBURY DRIVE, Beverly Hills
Lucy and Desi bought this house for $85,500.00 in 1955 from
Mr. and Mrs. Bang. The houses on this street were built in the 30's
and 40's. The house is at the corner of Roxbury Drive and Lexington
Avenue. Notice the Lexington Avenue street sign when
Lucy and Ethel take the bus tour. The outside of Richard
Widmark's house was really Lucy's house here. A copy of
the wall around the backyard was built in the studio for filming. Lucie
Arnaz married Phil Vandervort in the backyard here on
7/17/71.
NEIGHBORS:
918--Rick Schroder's former home
921--Jimmy Stewart's former home
1002--Jack Benny~s former home. He was always joking that Ronnie &
Benita Coleman were buried in Lucy's basement.
1004--Peter Falk's former home
1019--George & Ira Gershwin's former home
Jose' Ferrer & Rosemary Clooney's former home
1021--Ira Gershwin & Roxbury Recordings' former home
1023--Agnes Moorehead's former home (She and Lucy became
friends in their movie "The Big Street.")
Hedda Hopper lived nearby but I don't know the exact address.
When Hedda died in 1966, she left her black and blue
Rolls Royce to Lucy. Lucy described her as her best
girlfriend besides Vivian.
HOLLYWOOD HILLS
Desi kept an apartment here.
OLD HOLLYWOOD KNICKERBOCKER HOTEL, 1714 Ivar Street
The hotel is located a few hundred feet north of Hollywood
Blvd. At the time of the beginning of ~I Love Lucy," William Frawley
lived here with his sister.
On 3/3/66 while walking down Hollywood
Blvd. with his male nurse after seeing a movie,
Frawley collapsed of a heart attack a week after
his 79th birthday. The nurse dragged him into the
hotel lobby to revive him but it was too late.
The hotel is converted into apartments and has a secured
entrance. You can't go inside but you can see the
beautiful chandelier through the front doors.
Go into the All Star
Theatre Cafe next to the hotel. The
entrance is just to the left of the front door to the
hotel. This was originally part of the hotel and was
once a speakeasy. It's currently billed as "The ultimate
1920's coffee house" and is run by several folks who
thoroughly enjoy talking to out-of-town guests about the
history of the hotel and of Hollywood. Notice the
chandeliers in the room where they have the bar--they're
out of Liberace's house. And I recommend the carrot
cake. Hours are Sunday - Thursday 12 noon - 2 a.m. and
Friday - Saturday 12 noon - 3 a.m.
EL ROYALE APARTMENTS, 450 N. Rossmore Avenue at Rosewood Avenue, Hollywood
William Frawley lived here at one time.
629 FRONTERA DRIVE in Pacific Palisades
Go west on Sunset Blvd. to Pampas Ricas and then left on
Pampas Ricas to Frontera Drive. This was Vivian Vance and Phil
Ober's home. It has a very comfortable look about it with the big grape
vines growing all along the front porch.
BRENTWOOD
Lucie Arnaz owns a home here. (Aside: If you ever get a chance to see
Lucie Arnaz perform, be sure and go. We went to a concert of hers last
year here in Washington and had the chance to meet her afterwards. She's
delightful!)
On the bus tour, Lucy and Ethel saw the homes of:
Joan Crawford, 426 N. Bristol Avenue
Alan Ladd
Betty Grable & Harry James
Shirley Temple, 209 N. Rockingham Avenue
Ava Gardner
They took the Tanner Casy Lines Motor Tours bus past:
La Brea Tar Pits, 5801 Wilshire Blvd.
Pacific Palisades
Holmby Hills
Beverly Hills
HOSPITALS
CEDARS OF LEBANON HOSPITAL
Lucy was taken here for her miscarriage in 7/26/50. Her
doctor was Dr. Krone. Lucie Arnaz was born here on 7/17/51. Desi Jr.
was born here on 1/19/53. He was delivered by Dr.
Joseph Harris.
CEDARS-SINAI MEDICAL CENTER, 8700 Beverly Blvd. in West Hollywood Lucy
was hospitalized here in 1988 for a minor heart attack
and stroke. Lucy had heart surgery here on April 18, 1989. Dr. Robert
Kass was the surgeon. (Gary Morton was driving down
Sunset Blvd. when he received a call on his car phone to
return home when Lucy had her heart attack.) Lucy's full
cardiac arrest at 6:04 a.m. on 4/26/89 was here.
VALLEY PRESBYTERIAN HOSPITAL
This was one of Lucy's favorite charities.
There's no listing in the phone book for this hospital.
HOTELS
BEVERLY HILLS HOTEL, 9641 W. Sunset Blvd., Beverly Hills
In Bungalow 5, Desi negotiated for more money for the 1954
55 season with William Paley, head of CBS, and his staff.
BEVERLY PALMS HOTEL
The Ricardos (Room 315) and the Mertzes (Room 317) stayed at
this hotel. There's no listing for this hotel in the phone book.
BILTMORE HOTEL, 506 S. Grand Avenue, downtown Los Angeles
A dinner with President & Mrs. Truman was held here. Guests
were Lucy & Desi, Humphrey Bogart & Lauren Bacall, Alan
& Sue Carol Ladd, and George Jessel.
THE BROADWAY HOTEL, HOLLYWOOD
This is the hotel sign you can see out of Lucy and Ricky's
hotel window. There's no listing for this hotel in the phone book.
CHATEAU MARMONT, 8221 W. Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood
Marc Daniels was staying here when asked to be the director
of "I Love Lucy." He suggested Vivian Vance as Ethel.
HOLLYWOOD ROOSEVELT HOTEL, 7100 Hollywood Blvd.
Desi had reservations here his first night in Hollywood.
VIVIAN VANCE's STAR is in front of this hotel.
STATLER HOTEL, 930 Wilshire Blvd. (now Hilton Center)
On 2/5/53, Art Linkletter presented Lucy with the 1952 Emmy
for Best Comedienne & 1952 Emmy for Best Situation
Comedy.