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December 2, 2007
Raymond Chandler Lived in Twenty-Four L.A. Homes - Do You Know Where They Are?
Judith Freeman's just-out book, The Long Embrace: Raymond Chandler and The Woman He Loved is a must-read for any Angeleno worth their salt. Why? Not only does Freeman detail the fascinating life of Chandler, one of L.A.'s most famous writers, but she documents, researches and visits almost every one of the thirty-five homes he lived in during his life in Southern California.
Twenty-four of those homes are in Los Angeles. Twenty-four! Chandler and his wife moved constantly, always seeking a change of scenery, a switch-up in the vibe, a new place to call home until yet another new place called out to them.
Los Angeles was the city that Chandler loved to hate. L.A. became the main character in many of Chandler's tales and he painted her as a dirty, gritty, harlot that took all and gave nothing back. Yet when Chandler moved away from Los Angeles, he was uninspired. For all of L.A's sleazy charms, Chandler needed our city to fuel his mysteries, his hard-boiled thrillers. His Philip Marlowe the only one who could tame our wild city, could live in it without being eaten up entirely.
Freeman's book offers a rare glimpse inside Chandler's world - from the insanity on set of Double Indemnity to the truly bizarre manner in which Chandler finished the screenplay for The Blue Dahlia. If you love Chandler and his work, or if you just love L.A., this is a book that will cast our city in an entirely new light. Or it will remind you of L.A.'s storied past. Or it will make you feel lucky to walk the streets that Chandler walked.
So where did he live in L.A.? Find out after the jump...
Not all of Chandler's former residences are still standing, but there are plenty of his homes and other haunts all over Los Angeles that are worth checking out. One easy way to do it is to take Esotouric's "Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles" tour...which just happens to be next Saturday, December 8th @ 1pm. Go on, embrace the dark side of L.A. Or read the book. Or both.
Map illustrations from The Long Embrace, designed by Wesley Scott
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Wow! No Valley residence where Chandler Blvd. is named after him? It's a very beautiful street in the Sherman Oaks area.
fascinating. thanks, callie!
Isn't Chandler Blvd. named after the Chandler family (erstwhile publishers of the L.A. Times)?
Interesting book, however Ms Freeman is a bit off on some of the locations:
#2) 100 Olive should be #3, not #2
#4) Julian Pascal lived at 1343 Westlake in 1920 - no proof Chandler lived there
#5) Chandler didn't live there although his mother may have for a short time before moving to a location where the LA Convention Center is today, 1918-1920
#6) No proof Chandler lived in Redondo, let alone for four years
#7) The MacShane Bio has Cissy living in Hermosa, not Huntington
#8) There has never been a 733 Stewart Street in Santa Monica, not now and especially not in 1924. Chandler lived at 733 Stewart Street in Los Angeles in late 1923 after his mother died on Sept. 26 1923. Stewart Street was renamed in 1932
#10) 700 SOUTH Gramercy Place, NOT 700 North
#11) Lived on Longwood in 1932 after living at #14 in 1929 - wrong order
#17) Chandler and his mother lived in Santa Barbara in 1916-1917. No record of he and Cissy living there in the 1930s - but it can't be ruled out
Numbers 9, 11, 12 are still standing.