Dodge House 1916 (1965)

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Dodge House 1916 (1965)

This film, produced by architectural historian Esther McCoy, documents the Walter Luther Dodge house in West Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, and the life of its architect, Irving John Gill. The film was made to advocate for its preservation during a 7-year battle to save it fropm the wrecking ball. The campaign failed, and the house was destroyed in 1970. This film, created to help save the house, now serves as the building's best surviving visual record. For more information on Dodge House and Esther McCoy, see her papers at the Archives of American Art (http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/esther-mccoy-papers-5502/more). We are grateful to McCoy scholar Susan Morgan for helping us to identify this film and its significance. Many thanks to the Women in Film Preservation Foundation for funding the preservation of this film.

17 min 7 sec

Smithsonian archives art american history