From academics to dance—top Valley schools that aim to enrich our children’s lives.
Spectacular local listings.
The nature-inspired designs of Block Shop.
The latest in bridal footwear.
Arte Bottega in Sherman Oaks.
Movie poster artist Robert Tanenbaum.
High-end home builder Rob Diaz.
Lodge
Heat-tolerant greens for summer gardens.
Remembering your wedding through the eyes of your kids.
SEPT 4–OCT 6
Broadway star and storyteller SARA PORKALOB embodies dozens of characters in a trigenerational tour-de-force performance that fuses killer karaoke with laugh-out-loud comedy to tell her family’s incredible origin story.
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Ajay Peckham
Yuiko Sugino
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Paul Fisher
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Monica Orozco
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Michelle Lillywhite
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The first year of my marriage was a turbulent one. I had quit my news anchor job in Florida to move to New York City to marry my husband after 10 years of dating—most of them spent with us living in different cities building our careers. It was time. My William Morris agent cautioned me not to move to New York. “They are looking for ethnicity, not blonde white women.” But love prevailed. I soon found myself sharing a bachelor pad on the Upper East Side. I got a reporter job after hand-delivering my résumé tape to WNBC at Rockefeller Center.
Cut to seven months later, and my husband gets a big promotion that entails a move to LA. He was gone from dawn till dusk, and I was unemployed again. Not knowing a single soul in LA, every day I sat at our small ranch-style rental in the hills of Bel Air gazing at the large lush lot with terraced levels. Most of the planting beds were empty.
I noticed a man who lived across the street who worked in his garden every day, digging, sprinkling and clipping. One day I introduced myself and asked for some gardening tips. That was the beginning of my friendship with then70-year-old Wally Scott—and also the beginning of my life as a gardener.
I’d pop over several times a week, legal pad in hand, and Wally would patiently answer my questions. There were tutorials on roses and the best shade perennials (“nothing beats Clivia”), and warnings about invasive plants
(“morning glory vine and bamboo are the enemy!”). Wally explained that, even though you’d occasionally see perennials like peonies and tulips at the nursery, they are a waste of money here. “You might get a blossom or two or have one good season, but best to stick to what works in SoCal.” I have tried to defy that advice dozens of times and have come to the same conclusion: Wally was right.
After our move to Sherman Oaks a couple years later, Wally came over to map out a plan. “Cut back these birds of paradise!” When a large branch from one of our gigantic oak trees landed on the back patio, I called Wally. A half hour later he was on that patio with his chainsaw and his lovely and somewhat bewildered-looking wife, Elaine. Wally must have been 75 years old at that point.
A few years later, Wally was assessing the yard of our current home, this one in Encino. “Wow, this is going to be a lot to take care of,” he noted. (Oh, how right he was.) As a housewarming gift, he brought me some pink amaryllis bulbs he had dug up from his yard, which I planted along the front of the house in between some white iceberg roses.
Wally and Elaine have passed but the pink amaryllis is still alive. Just when you think the August heat has nuked everything, those long sturdy stalks gracefully emerge by the roses and then burst out an elegant pink. I think of Wally every summer. And I think about how grateful I am he introduced me to the wonders, the magic, of gardening.. ■
Follow me on Instagram @she_sez
Linda Grasso, Editor-in-Chief
PHOTOGRAPHED BY MICHAEL BECKER
GUSTAVO
RODRIGO Y GABRIELA
MIDORI
Indelible Impressions
FROM BIKE RIDES ON FRESHLY PAVED FREEWAYS TO TREE CLIMBING IN MATURE CITRUS GROVES, GROWING UP IN THE VALLEY HAS INSPIRED NEARLY A HALF CENTURY OF CREATING FOR PAINTER AND SCULPTOR CHARLES FINE.
Written by Chloe King
Photographed by Monica Orozco
Charles next to an original plaster sculpture that was used to cast three bronze versions. It was inspired by “an inch-long appendage that grows in Pacific Ocean kelp beds.” Of the tall structure in the foreground, the artist says it is “open for interpretation. Growth, living structure and regeneration come to mind.”
Walk into Charles Fine’s studio in Inglewood, and you’re immediately struck with its size and scale—ceilings impossibly high, light in excess— followed by the visual enormity of the art that graces it. Though this is very much a working artist’s studio, the space feels and looks like a highend gallery. On display throughout are Charles’ monumental creations, all grounded fundamentally and symbolically in nature.
“My work deals with how histories inhabit the present,” is how Charles explains it. “The histories I’m referring to are environmentally related. And how that environmental thought translates into form.”
In multiple mediums over the past half century— painting, sculpture, drawing, photography and video— this nature-based connective tissue runs throughout, as if one piece is a natural extension of the other. Whether it be his showstopping Table of Contents—a series of large metal and glass viewing tables that display fragile, organic found objects; or his bronze sculptures, some freestanding, some wall-hung—the experience is visceral and poetic. You find yourself wanting to touch them, to experience their sensual, organic shapes firsthand. His paintings similarly draw you in. Though they seem abstract at first glance, a deeper look reveals that they too appear to be an extension of and inspired by the natural world.
“My initial thought was to create a body of work that not only referred to the natural world and living structures, but one that also acknowledged ever-increasing environmental issues and the psychological state they perpetuate. I felt then, and still do, that this thought is all-inclusive, as we inhabit this one planet, together,” Charles says.
A prolific creator since the early 1980s, Charles has had numerous one-man shows, most notably at
the internationally recognized Ace Gallery here in LA (closed in 2016), and in New York and Mexico City. His final show at Ace Gallery, “A 30 Year Survey,” spanned 14 rooms and 33,000 square feet. His work is also represented in several private and museum collections, including LACMA, the Orange County and Santa Barbara Museums of Art, the LA-based Frederick Weisman and Marciano Collections, and the Andrea Nasher Collection in Dallas. Among Fine’s public works: a monumental bronze sculpture that graces the entrance to the AKA Beverly Hills (hotel) on Crescent Drive in Beverly Hills.
Although the artist’s fascination for all things organic stems in part from his travels to places like South America and Mexico, his preoccupation with natural forms and the pursuit of visual detail started here in the then-rural and verdant San Fernando Valley.
“The Valley of my youth (he was born in 1951) was rich, endlessly interesting, and utterly insular. It was nature-filled and safe. A world unto itself.”
Charles’ first childhood home was on the border of Encino and Sherman Oaks on Firmament Avenue. As the artist describes it, it was “just down the street from Liberace’s house on the corner of Valley Vista and Sherman Oaks Avenue. The cluster of houses beyond that would soon be destroyed via eminent domain, making way for the construction of the 405 Freeway.”
After the creation of the first Sepulveda on-ramp, Charles and his boyhood friends would ride their bikes up that ramp and onto the just-paved freeway, which was not yet open to traffic. They would “sail like the wind all the way to the Sepulveda Dam, where we’d ditch our bikes and explore the rain overflow tunnels, full of frogs and tadpoles. And from there to the cornfields where Balboa Park now resides.”
A few years later, Charles and his family moved to a property on Encino Avenue. “It was a large, deep lot, full of every kind of fruit-bearing tree you could imagine. Plums, citrus, apricots, peaches … I climbed every one of those trees at least a thousand times.”
His boyhood also included some more-refined Valley experiences. In 1955, Charles’ father, Don Fine, and his uncle, Raymond Fine, bought the famed Sportsmen’s
“My work deals with how histories inhabit the present. The histories I’m referring to are environmentally related. And how that environmental thought translates into form.”
Lodge. The Fine brothers expanded the popular hot spot into what soon became a star-studded gathering place. Charles remembers riding from Encino to Studio City in his father’s Jaguar XK120, top down rain or shine, whizzing down Ventura Boulevard, past the blinking neon of the movie houses and watering holes.
“There were no sidewalks, and as you approached Coldwater Canyon, the Boulevard was flanked by massive, old-growth trees. Like a forest to either side.” When they arrived at Sportsmen’s Lodge, they’d enter the massive porte cochere, where if it happened to be a Sunday, Howard Hughes’ limousine would be parked. The phobic billionaire and producer would wait with whatever starlet had caught his fancy until his meal was delivered to him through the car’s window.
But it wasn’t the stars or the infamous that fascinated Charles. Rather, it was the Garden of Eden-like wonderland that stretched to the banks of the LA River beyond the lodge’s massive walls of glass at the back. It was here that Charles would explore the trout lakes,
Three of Charles’ “Furnace Flowers” sculptures, with the oil on canvas painting “Elemental Forces” in the background. Lower right: A series of sculptures named “Table of Contents.”
waterfall, the dense and mysterious jungle of mature trees—the essence of which remains apparent in all of his work to this day.
Another location in the Valley helped form Charles’ artistry: the classroom. His first stop was Hesby Street Elementary School in Encino. “My teachers would set up little easels, and we’d paint outside under the shade of the trees for what felt like hours.” It was about that time that his mother signed him up for an art class outside of school. “It was in a little shack on a huge, wild lot in Sherman Oaks that Mosel Oglesby, a self-declared beatnik, taught me about oil paints. I was 7 years old.” Then on to Mulholland Middle School, where he honed his skills in industrial drawing, drafting and woodshop class that helped to form his sculpting skills. And finally, Birmingham High School in Van Nuys.
“That’s where things began to get real,” he recalls. “I took classes in advertising and album cover design and illustration. In 1969 I entered a competition that LAUSD held every year. I won the #1 prize with a Black Power
poster. Power to the people! I still have it to this day.”
Against the blissful backdrop of his childhood, troubling events were brewing in the world. “Smog and the Vietnam War,” he recalls. As the pollution that gripped LA (and particularly the Valley) in the 1970s escalated, so too did the war. To avoid the draft, Charles left the paradise that was his childhood home. Though he would eventually return, putting down roots here once again, his childhood experience would continue to make an indelible mark on his body of work.
“Growing up in the Valley left lasting impressions on me—the interface of a burgeoning metropolis and the remnants of its natural past,” he says. Today, when reflecting on the Valley, the artist can’t help but take a pragmatic viewpoint. “With the last orange groves and cornfields came development and the onslaught of traffic and stifling smog. Fortunately, the smog has been abated, but definitely not the traffic!” ■
Pattern Play
THE TALENTED SISTER TEAM AT THE HELM OF BLOCK SHOP CONTINUES THEIR EXPRESSIVE JOURNEY WITH A NEW WALLPAPER COLLECTION.
Written by Jessica Ritz
Since founding Block Shop design studio in 2013, sisters Lily Stockman and Hopie Stockman Hill have created new ways to revel in color and pattern, all the while adhering to a SoCal-honed aesthetic sensibility. Beginning as an endeavor that incorporated Lily’s accomplishments as a painter with the entrepreneurial savvy Hopie developed at Harvard Business School, the business has evolved into a growing brand that now includes a boutique in Atwater Village (blockshoptextiles.com).
Even before they launched the store earlier this year, the sisters’ clients were eager to find creative uses of their textiles. These include items with bold geometric patterns combined with eye-catching colors made by skilled dyers, printers and weavers whom Lily got to know when she lived in Jaipur, India. Block Shop’s distinctive oversized scarves could be spotted doubling as wall hangings, such as one in the erstwhile Echo Park restaurant Ostrich Farm. Today, with sister Grier
Block Shop’s Grier Stockman and Hopie Stockman Hill
Stockman on board as head of brand and chief marketing officer (Lily has recently stepped away from her Block Shop duties to focus on her career as an artist), their product portfolio encompasses throw pillows, rugs, blankets, wall art and table linens. Robes that encourage lounging and unstructured, oversized jackets are also in the lineup.
So when you’ve explored the possibilities of goods and accessories that infuse softness and joy into homes, what might be next? Wallpaper seemed like the logical next step. “We are all about world-building through pattern and texture, and wallpaper has to be the most thrilling application of pattern writ large,” Hopie explains. “Wallpaper felt like a natural extension of our art pieces and fabric, and we love the way it transforms the energy of a room.”
The collection—which includes seven new patterns printed on paper, fiber and grass cloth—was introduced
this past spring. As it turns out, creating wallpaper has become a special way for this team to tap into rich possibilities. Both love a deep-dive research project and synthesizing various influences. “The theme we keep coming back to is living your art,” reflects Hopie.
Inspirations include: bucolic 17th-century modernist farmhouse Charleston in Sussex, England (now a museum and gallery), multidisciplinary Austrian artist and designer Dagobert Peche, painter Lois Mailou Jones, and even 19th-century American maritime knot boards. For all this eclectic global input, the designs still feel California casual. Valley Dot suggests the motion of waves—imagery that resonates in the Golden State— and incorporates the earthy imperfections of Japanese katagami stenciling traditions. The alternating circles and rectangles in cheerful People Person are an outgrowth of the Stockmans’ admiration for abstract artist Mavis Pusey.
A certain rigor also grounds these efforts. “Our pattern language is rooted in the choreography of dots and stripes moving at different speeds across a flat plane,” Hopie says. This approach that blends emotional responses with the practical realities dictated by interior design adds cohesion to the expressive motifs, whether it’s Hopie’s lush rendering of kumquat branches inspired by a tree at their former studio space, or peony blossoms in a jaunty grid. “We went heavy on nostalgia with our florals,” she adds. “I was pregnant when I designed the collection, so with this new life in mind, I wanted to make patterns that would bring warmth and light into the rooms they inhabit.”
The production process begins with sketches and physical wood-block prints made in Jaipur. Then a specialized printer in Connecticut digitally produces each order on the specified materials. Like all of Block Shop’s endeavors, the end result has depth and tactile appeal.
“THE THEME WE KEEP COMING BACK TO IS LIVING YOUR ART.”
Intentional partnerships and ethical sourcing are at the core of company’s mission. Block Shop dedicates 5% of its profits to supporting community organizations in Jaipur and youth-oriented arts programs in Los Angeles. They also maintain close ties with a network of independent craftspeople and artisans, both domestically and abroad. Relationships at all points in the process matter—including the end user. “When a client trusts us to fill their room floor-to-ceiling with one of our designs, we see it as a great honor,” Hopie states. ■
Hopie Stockman Hill with some of Block Shop’s wallpaper designs. Far left: A display case filled with pillows at the Atwater Village boutique. Left: A Block Shop wallpaper design provides the perfect backdrop for a bathroom vanity.
HEADLINED BY THE GETTY’S PST ART, A ROUNDUP OF THE BEST IN ARTS AND CULTURE THIS FALL.
GOING ON NOW
BEST IN LOW: LOWRIDER ICONS OF THE STREET AND SHOW
A deep dive into the creation of the lowrider car. At the Petersen Automotive Museum through spring 2025; petersen.org
MICKALENE THOMAS: ALL ABOUT LOVE
An exhibition of over 80 works that highlight how Mickalene Thomas has mastered multiple disciplines, from mixed-media painting to photography. Through September 29 at The Broad; thebroad.org
SIMONE LEIGH
Sculptor Simone Leigh showcases dozens of key works from her career in this joint exhibit presented at LACMA and the California African American Museum (CAAM) through January 20, 2025; lacma.org
The Autry presents an exploration of the rise of futurism in contemporary Indigenous art. September 7–June 21, 2026; theautry.org
DUEL REALITY
The 7 Fingers acrobatics troupe makes its Center Theatre Group debut at the Ahmanson Theatre. “Duel Reality” features a mix of circus, theater, illusion, music and dance. September 1–22; centertheatregroup.org
Eric Clapton
Best in Low: Lowrider Icons of the Street and Show
2024/25 ONE CTG SUBSCRIPTION PACKAGES NOW ON SALE!
Photo by Danny Kaan.
Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga star in Cameron Mackintosh’s Production of Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.
PST ART: ART & SCIENCE COLLIDE
The sprawling Getty initiative PST ART (formerly Pacific Standard Time) returns for its third year with more than 800 artists and 50 locations across SoCal, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, CalTechLive, Crenshaw Dairy Mart, LACMA’s Art + Technology Lab and the New Children’s Museum. With the theme Art & Science Collide, this year’s topics include ancient cosmology, artificial intelligence, Indigenous science fiction and environmental justice. September 15–February 16, 2025; pst.art
REFRAMING DIORAMAS: THE ART OF PRESERVING WILDERNESS
Part of this year’s PST ART event: a newly restored diorama hall that had been closed for decades at the Natural History Museum. Visitors can examine these illusions of wilderness through a series of displays and engaging programs. September 15–September 15, 2025; nhm.org
OCTOBER
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM WITH DUDAMEL
Walt Disney Concert Hall transforms into Shakespeare’s magical forest when Gustavo Dudamel conducts Mendelssohn’s whimsical incidental music from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. October 3–4; laphil.com
ERIC CLAPTON
Rocker Eric Clapton, with special guest guitarist Jimmie Vaughan, takes center stage at the Hollywood Bowl. October 12; hollywoodbowl.com
ANCIENT WISDOM FOR A FUTURE ECOLOGY: TREES, TIME AND TECHNOLOGY
Artists Ken Goldberg and Tiffany Shlain reimagine ways of understanding trees at a time when technology distances us from the natural world. The Skirball exhibit, which is also part of PST ART, opens October 17; skirball.org
PHOTO BY MARCUS ERIKSSON
Duel Reality
Mickalene Thomas: All About Love
Ballet BC
Belong
Randall Goosby
Randy Newman’s FAUST: The Concert Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Edward Gardner, conductor Randall Goosby, violin
Aida Cuevas
Canta a Juan Gabriel
Lark, Roman & Meyer
Tessa Lark, violin
Joshua Roman, cello
Edgar Meyer, double bass ONSTAGE SESSIONS
Coco Live-to-Film Concert
Featuring Orquesta Folclórica Nacional de México
Explore the full 2024-25 Season
Conrad Tao
Mummenschanz
50th Anniversary Tour
Emanuel Ax, piano
Leyendas del Mariachi
Reuniendo a Los Mejores Talentos del Mariachi
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra
Avi Avital, mandolin
Estelí Gomez, soprano ONSTAGE SESSIONS
Conrad Tao & The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra
Gershwin’s Rhapsody in JAZZ
Christopher Rountree, conductor with musicians from Wild Up
Ballet BC
New Works by Medhi Walerski and Crystal Pite
RUFUS-RETRO-WAINRIGHT-SPECTIVE
After premiering at the Philharmonie de Paris, Rufus Wainwright reignites his COVID-born digital phenomenon with three concerts at The Wallis for the show’s U.S. debut. October 30–November 2; thewallis.org
NOVEMBER
BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL
The 1980s hit sci-fi film about a teenager who finds himself transported back to 1955 in a time machine built by an eccentric scientist has been turned into an award-winning musical. At the Pantages, November 5–23; broadwayinhollywood.com
WAITING FOR GODOT
Samuel Beckett’s tragicomic masterpiece at the Geffen features Conor Lovett (I’ll Find You), Aasif Mandvi (The Daily Show) and Rainn Wilson (The Office). November 6–December 15; geffenplayhouse.org
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES
Pasadena Playhouse presents the Tony Award-winning musical comedy that focuses on the happenings at a St. Tropez drag club. November 12–December 15; pasadenaplayhouse.com
BALLET BC
Two new pieces by choreographers Medhi Walerski and Crystal Pite mark the return of The Soraya’s resident dance company. November 23; thesoraya.org
Ancient Wisdom for a Future Ecology: Trees, Time and
Waiting for Godot costar Rainn Wilson
The exhibition Crossing Over: Art and Science at Caltech—part of PST ART
MEET ARTIST ROBERT TANENBAUM, WHOSE FUNNY, DRAMATIC, SCARY, AND OCCASIONALLY LASCIVIOUS MOVIE POSTERS TOLD STORIES AND DREW FANS INTO THEATERS FOR MORE THAN 40 YEARS.
Written by Robert Earle Howells
To visit artist Robert Tanenbaum in his Calabasas studio is to be surrounded by brilliance and whimsy in equal measure. You’ll see skeletons and skulls. Jumbo vases containing hundreds of paintbrushes beside an easel holding a giant, rather tawdry work in progress. By contrast, an affectionate portrait of his twin granddaughters, Morgan and Madison, at age 5. Lots of cowboys—mostly John Wayne—and lots of Indians. Sports stars: Dodger greats, Y.A. Tittle, Mel Blount. What appears to be a Norman Rockwell original but you know it isn’t because one of the figures looks suspiciously like Bob (as he likes to be called) himself. A tin of Contadina tomato sauce. A St. Pauli Girl in a “c’mon, big boy” pose proffering big frosty mugs of beer. And off in a corner of the cluttered room, a poster from the 1986 Paul Newman/Tom Cruise film The
Color of Money
.
All of the art in the room represents the work of the most widely admired and covetously collected movie poster artist from the 1960s into the ’90s. Bob painted more than 200 posters for films as famous as The Greatest, Super Fly, and A Christmas Story and as forgettable as The Scum of the Earth and Silent Night Evil Night. If each of those posters could only speak, what stories they’d tell. Happily, Bob, at 87, is around to tell those stories, which he does with a twinkle in his eye and a twitch of his bushy mustache. For instance, The Color of Money may feature Newman’s handsome mug, but the body beneath it is none other than Bob’s own.
“I’ve always said that Paul Newman won the Oscar for that film because his head is painted on my shoulders,”
the artist says.
A stickler for accuracy, Bob almost always used live models to pose for his movie paintings. He’d typically start with stills from the film (“I almost never saw the actual movies”), but for the poster to imbue interest and action, he needed to photograph models. “You’d never find the head on the body doing what you wanted. So I’d go through the still books and find headshots. Then I’d hire models, get them in the right clothes, and pose them. The trick was to make sure the model’s head was turned in exactly the same angle as the photo.”
Rarely were the stars themselves available to pose, but for the film Outrageous Fortune starring Bette Midler and Shelley Long, he needed a more terrified expression of Long, hanging precipitously by her fingers from a cliff beside Midler. The studio arranged for Bob to visit the actress at her home, and to pose her appropriately.
“Well, it turns out she’s one of these method actors. She sends her little daughter off into another room with a nanny, then kneels down over a hassock, puts her hands on the hassock, and starts to yell: ‘Oh f***! Oh sh**!’
The art director is going nuts, laughing, but I had to stand there with a straight face and take pictures!”
Movie posters basically had a single function—to tell a story. “People would look at the poster,” Bob says, “and if it or the movie ad excited them, they would go see the movie. Two weeks after that, it was word of mouth. But it was the posters that brought the people in. They had to make you want to know what was going to happen in the movie.”
A skilled artist like Bob could convey a story with a sly expression, with a montage of famous faces, or with action that the movie stills failed to capture. He honed his craft as an ad agency illustrator, first in his hometown of St. Louis, then in LA for an agency whose clients included Datsun and Sunkist. (He’s lived in the Valley since 1964 with his wife, Trish, and raised son David and daughter Jill here.) “I learned doing fruit art for Sunkist that there’s a certain way to paint the dimples on the skin of citrus. In five years of doing Datsuns, I learned how to read reflections, horizon lines, how the sun hits on a car.”
Along with his expertise in portraiture—including an amazing ability to channel Norman Rockwell—all of these skills went into his quiver to be called upon
as needed for movies, for record albums (to wit, a Rockwellesque Christmas album cover for the singing duo the Carpenters), for Franklin Mint collectible portraits of John Wayne.
Still, Bob modestly asserts, “I can take absolutely no credit for being born with an ability to draw. It’s just like somebody’s being born with the ability to hit a baseball. It’s like saying I take credit for being born with blue eyes.”
The advent of Photoshop in the 1990s and a move toward heavily retouched photography sunsetted the era of movie poster art—one more example of analog yielding to digital, craft yielding to computers. But the good news is that author Dennis L. Prince has compiled hundreds of Bob’s pieces in a thing called a book. It’s filled with wonderful art and great stories. Thumbing through it is the next best thing to spending time with the brilliant, whimsical artist himself. ■
The Movie Poster Art of Robert Tanenbaum is available at tanenbaummovieposterbook.com.
“I
Flour Power
WHEN IT COMES TO FRESH-BAKED BREAD, NOTHING TOPS LODGE BREAD IN WOODLAND HILLS. BUT GET THERE EARLY...
Written by Linda Grasso | Photographed by Jakob Layman
My husband and I were on a no-carb kick a few years ago. No rice, bread or potatoes. It went on for several years, and it didn’t really seem too bothersome—until I discovered Lodge Bread in Woodland Hills.
It was in 2019, and I had ventured west on the Boulevard to check out the new Valley Country Mart. The outdoor mall was sleepy; mine was one of four or five cars parked in the large lot. One of the few tenants was Lodge Bread, so I popped in for a look. Just to the right of the counter: shelves stacked with beautiful loaves of fresh-baked bread. One was called Country Loaf; another was tagged Ancient Grain. There were six or seven other options, including rye and spelt, as well as a small selfserve refrigerator filled with homemade hummus and stewed tomato-based shakshuka, which is often served as a nest for poached eggs. As I gazed at the gorgeous loaves, the friendly employee at the counter quipped, “They taste even better than they look! We can slice up a loaf so you can use it for sandwiches if you like.”
I couldn’t resist. I bought a dark, seedy loaf and
some fava bean hummus and chowed down right then and there in the car. Hello, carbs. I’ve missed you.
I am no longer carb-free, as my head has been hit by another ping-pong ball—a new school of thought, summed up by a nutritionist at a spa seminar I attended: “Carbs should be 40% of your food intake; it is the body’s preferred food source over protein and fat.” Needless to say this mindset jibes wonderfully with my discovery of Lodge Bread.
A lot has changed for the eatery in the past five years. Visit Lodge today—particularly around noon— and the parking lot is packed and there is often a line snaking out the door. People have caught on to the bread—which is naturally leavened—and the dishes. Thanks to the addition of patio tables in the adjacent courtyard, you can order at the counter and have your food brought to you when it is ready. From breakfast through lunch, people are dining on the patio, noshing on fresh salads piled inches high, brightly hued pizza, and an array of toast dishes. Toasts of all kinds: with
Co-owner Or Amsalam at Lodge Bread. Below: The popular shakshuka and egg dish.
“OVER THE YEARS THE NEIGHBORHOOD FOUND US, AND IT HAS REALLY EMBRACED WHAT WE’RE DOING.”
cultured butter or ricotta and seasonal house-made jam, cinnamon and sugar, or almond butter.
The most popular version? Avocado toast topped with thinly sliced radishes, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt.
“My favorite way to order it is to add an egg on top. We serve it with a steak knife so you can make a mess of it,” says co-owner Arthur Sherman.
When you learn that Lodge was a finalist for a James Beard Award in the baking category a few years ago, you might assume its origins are snooty. Perhaps Lodge originates from a classically trained baker raised on baguettes in France? Not so. Lodge started as a dare between Or Amsalam and his cofounder, Alex Phaneuf. They were both working at a West Hollywood restaurant where Or was developing a bread recipe. He created a version so tasty that other restaurants wanted to purchase it. The duo took the leap, quit their jobs, started cooking in Alex’s backyard, and ultimately opened their first location in Culver City in 2015.
Alex eventually left the company and Arthur came on board as co-owner. Arthur says he is grateful that, despite the slow start, the Woodland Hills location took off. “Over the years the neighborhood found us, and it has really embraced what we’re doing. We’re blown away by the support and appreciate all our guests who frequent that shop. The best part is to see how my team interacts with guests and the genuine friendships they’ve made with our regulars. It’s why we’re in this business.”
Some parting advice: if you plan to visit on the weekend to buy bread, get there early. By 11 a.m. there is little selection left. Just crumbs. ■
Runaway Burger
SELF-DESCRIBED VALLEY BOYS MAX MILLER AND DANNY GORDON BRING THEIR SMASHBURGER SENSATION, HEAVY HANDED, TO STUDIO CITY.
Photographed by Jakob Layman
When Max Miller and Danny Gordon met as middle schoolers (A.C. Stelle Middle School and Sierra Canyon School, respectively), there was not even a hint that years later as adults, they’d collaborate on a fast-casual restaurant. The idea was sparked when they ran into each other after college and discussed a collaboration. Max had been hosting Sunday night dinners for friends featuring his smashburger and Danny had been running a barbecue pop-up. Before long the two were running a pop-up tent with a grill and two fryers in Danny’s driveway in West LA, relying on Instagram posts to attract customers. “We’d test recipes in the garage,” recalls Max.
A year later the duo had a food truck, and in 2022 they launched their first brick-and-mortar outpost in Santa Monica. “It went gangbusters, better than we could have possibly imagined,” says Max.
This past April the two “Valley boys” (Max’s term) opened a second location in Studio City at the former Mister O’s restaurant, which had a sleek, mid-century modern vibe. Today the space, which offers indoor seating and a wraparound covered patio, could not be more different. “We wanted to be loud,” is how Max explains the bright orange and red paint on the boxy structure and tall sign emblazoned with the eatery’s graffiti-style logo
So what makes Heavy Handed’s smashburger special? Available in single, double or triple size, it is made, as the name implies, by pushing down the meat on a hot grill. The move, as Max explains it, is designed to “create a Maillard reaction, which happens when amino acids and sugars combine. You get a crispy top and that great beefy taste. We use a high-quality short-rib blend and we make our own bread-and-butter pickles and Thousand Island-type sauce.” Max learned to make his smashburger “with a lot of YouTube, trial and error,
“LOOK, AT THE END OF THE DAY, HEAVY HANDED IS A FUN HOUSE. YES, WE WANT PEOPLE TO COME AND EAT AND DRINK, BUT WE WANT PEOPLE TO REALLY ENJOY THEMSELVES TOO.”
and throwing things at a wall.” Danny, on the other hand, has a more formal culinary background; he’s a graduate of International Culinary Center in the Bay Area (the school closed in 2019).
Rounding out the menu are soft-serve ice cream “piled really high” with dip options for kids, and a nice wine and beer selection for adults. The wines are biodynamic and organic. The eight beers on tap (and even more options in a can) range from LA-based Highland Park Brewery to wheat beers from Germany. Meatless options include a grilled cheese sandwich and lettuce wraps.
“Look, at the end of the day, Heavy Handed is a fun house,” Max says. “Yes, we want people to come and eat and drink, but we want people to really enjoy themselves too.” ■
Let’s Dance
Start with your complimentary lesson and mention this ad to receive 10% off your first purchase.
Did you know LA’s top Ballroom and Latin dance studio can be found right here on Ventura BIvd in Tarzana!
From the moment you walk in to JT Ballroom Dance Studio, you will find a safe, welcoming and encouraging environment that feels like a second home, filled with a brilliant team of instructors committed to your dancing goals and growth. Here, dance is for everyone. People of all ages, backgrounds, dance abilities, all grow together here, support one another and create lasting memories.
At JT Ballroom Dance Studio you can learn all the popular dances including Salsa, Tango, Cha-Cha, Swing, Waltz and much more. No partner or experience is necessary! Perfect for all singles or couples of all ages and abilities.
MEET THE OWNERS
Husband and wife team, Jim and Tania Clark are professional dancers, successful competitors, choreographers, coaches, and proud owners of JT Ballroom Dance Studio.
With a combined 45 years of experience, Jim and Tania have perfected their own highly successful method of instruction, The JTB Method and have the unique ability to create strong dancers at any age, from the ground up. They along with their highly trained staff are dedicated to continuing to provide the highest level of dance in a space filled with love and community.
JT Ballroom Dance Studio
Trevor Noah Emmy AwardWinning Host, Comedian, and Author October 2024
Emily
Dr. SANJAY Gupta CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent, Award-Winning Journalist, Author, and Neurosurgeon January 2025
KEVIN FEDARKO & PETE McBRIDE Park Protectors and National Geographic’s “Adventurers of the Year” February 2025
WOMEN WHO LEAD
Are you an accomplished professional or philanthropist who should be in the spotlight? Coming up in the next issue of Ventura Blvd: our annual Women Who Lead profiles special section. We tell your story in our signature beautiful editorial style—and one of our photographers takes your photo. The upcoming October/November issue is a once-a-year opportunity to share your story with our affluent, educated readers in the Valley.
For more, contact our Director of Brand Partnerships Clemmy Closson at 213-509-6645 or clemmy.closson@thegoldenstatecompany.com SATURDAY
BACK TO SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE PROFILES
When it comes to raising children in Los Angeles, there is no better place to do it than in the Valley. Whether you are interested in a traditional, progressive or arts education for your child, the Valley is home to some of the best schools in SoCal. And when it comes to extracurricular activities, the plethora of dance classes, arts programs and sports leagues can’t be beat. In our new Back to School | Open House profiles section, we introduce you to some of the area’s top-tier resources. Each one offers skilled and committed professionals who are eager to help children grow into educated, well-rounded, happy human beings. These professionals realize the importance of sparking interest, curiosity and passion—all essential elements for a journey of learning that will continue throughout life.
EDITED BY LAURA L. WATTS
THE COUNTRY SCHOOL
For more than 75 years The Country School has offered progressive education to students from all over Los Angeles, embracing personalized learning and overall student wellness. Students from transition preschool through middle school enjoy a project-based curriculum and enrichment program.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR UPCOMING OPEN HOUSE EVENTS.
For the 2024–2025 school year, our open houses will be held from 10 to 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, September 17; Saturday, September 28; Wednesday, October 16; and Saturday, November 16. Bring your child and come see what we’re all about.
DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC FOCUS.
The Country School provides a rich, rigorous academic environment that equips our students for their next phase in life as young scholars and, more importantly, as young people. Our approach focuses on recognizing students’ challenges and harnessing their strengths as a means for academic growth.
Oftentimes our students operate beyond grade level. Our signature Movers Program is an example of our personalized education, allowing for subject matter acceleration across all grades. If a student is advanced in a particular subject, he/she/they can move up while remaining in a primary class filled with students of their same age and emotional level.
As part of our holistic approach, we believe students learn best experientially and that magic happens when they are exposed to a variety of new subjects and ideas. We offer an abundance of enrichment courses, including technology, violin, Spanish starting at pre-K, art, rock band, chess, stop-motion animation, theater, sports and so much more!
Every year, our students go on to attend some of the most prestigious independent high schools in the Los Angeles area. We pride ourselves on helping them and their families reach their goals. But at TCS we are most proud to lead by example, measuring students’ academic understanding and social-emotional health to define our success.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR SCHOOL'S VALUES.
We offer one-of-a-kind, child-centered education. Our curriculum is designed to focus on each child’s strengths with personalized instruction and assessment. We are proud to offer a holistic education, ensuring that our kids reach their academic potential and maximize their full capacity in every walk of life. Our goal is for our students to grow into healthy, happy, empowered adults with the self-confidence to embrace real-world challenges and overcome them.
The Country School has led the way in providing an equitable and enriching learning environment by actively celebrating the unique cultural identities, expressions and experiences of students, families and staff. We do more than promote diversity, equity,
inclusivity and belonging; we practice these principles by seamlessly interweaving them into our classroom curriculum and school culture.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR NEW FACULTY MEMBER.
We are proud to welcome Matt Melnick to The Country School as our new assistant head of academics and wellness. In addition to his strong administrative background, Matt has been an integral leader for The Contentment Foundation—writing and teaching the curriculum behind the Four Pillars of Wellbeing program and integrating these focal points (mindfulness, community, self-curiosity and contentment) and transformative practices in classrooms for over 10 years. The benefits include increased attention spans, greater self-confidence, more positive interactions and conflict resolutions among peers, and enhanced emotional regulation—to name a few.
This new program is a natural continuation of our commitment to student wellness. Countless studies as well as decades of experience guide our simple philosophy: Kids learn best when they have the tools to manage their stress and anxiety. Kids become their best selves—academically and emotionally—when we are attentive to the needs of the whole child.
DESCRIBE SOME OF THE COUNTRY SCHOOL’S NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS.
For postsecondary school, our students have gone on to attend the best colleges and universities across the country, including top liberal arts schools. We are committed to helping our students find the right fit for them. We are proud to serve as founding members of The Southern California People of Color in Independent Schools, Private School Village and Private School Axis, which foster greater diversity and belonging in independent schools.
WHAT WELLNESS PROGRAMS DO YOU OFFER?
For decades The Country School has sought to address the epidemic levels of stress and anxiety our society places on children. We have fostered an environment that “does right by kids” by prioritizing student wellness. We successfully eliminated homework for students in kindergarten through the beginning of fifth grade while enacting a “no cell phone” policy. Both have proven to reduce stress and buy more time for our kids to be kids. Additionally, we teach daily meditation and recentering practices so our children learn how to effectively handle anxiety, with the ultimate goal of cultivating independent and secure teenagers ready to take on the challenges of high school.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR ATHLETICS PROGRAM. We pride ourselves on a phenomenal athletics program that competes in the San Fernando Valley Private School League. We offer year-round athletics: boys flag football, basketball, volleyball and soccer, and girls basketball, soccer and volleyball.
THE HELP GROUP
The Help Group, a nonprofit organization, offers nine specialized schools for students with social, emotional and learning differences from preschool through high school and transition-age school, with year-round open enrollment. Certified by the California Department of Education, the schools provide prescriptive teaching, small classes, individualized curriculum and enrichment activities, as well as counseling, speech and language, and occupational therapy.
WHICH STUDENTS BENEFIT FROM YOUR PROGRAMS?
Our students with special needs, including autism spectrum disorders, learning disabilities, ADHD, developmental delays and emotional challenges, flourish in our specialized educational programs. We customize pathways to their goals, whether they’re college-bound or focused on vocational or independent skills.
WHAT MAKES YOUR SCHOOLS EXCEPTIONAL?
The Help Group schools are uniquely positioned to cater to a wide range of abilities, focusing on the strengths of each student. We offer a variety of specialized programs designed to meet the diverse needs of our students with special needs and those across the autism spectrum. We emphasize individualized learning plans,
small class sizes and a holistic approach that integrates therapy and counseling, allowing each student to grow. Our highly trained clinicians provide individual and group mental health services and offer therapeutic support during challenging moments.
HOW DO YOUR SCHOOLS HELP KIDS THRIVE?
We offer a wide range of academic and enrichment programs to help students explore their interests, foster compassion and make a difference in the world. These programs range from our award-winning STEM and robotics to competitive California Interscholastic Federation athletics and intramural sports, student councils, creative and performing arts, and much more.
HOW CAN THE HELP GROUP SUPPORT MY CHILD?
We provide a dedicated learning environment to enable students to realize their fullest potential of independence and skills across all academic areas. With year-round rolling admission, families can apply and access our support when they need it most. We offer individualized attention from staff using an interactive, hands-on, multisensory approach. Intensive intervention and supportive services are integrated into the curriculum.
Founded in 1961, Viewpoint School educates children in grades TK–12 on a scenic 40-acre campus in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains. The school operates under the leadership of head of school/president Mark McKee, a leader in education for more than 20 years.
DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC FOCUS.
Love of learning does not emerge necessarily from a quest for grades or even from sustained academic success as defined by grades. Rather, love of learning emerges naturally from authentic engagement in the process of learning—when students are emotionally engaged in the work and have “bought in.” Viewpoint teachers incorporate a set of core competencies into their classrooms and curricula: Collaboration, Creativity, Classroom Climate and Application. Perhaps the most important of these is Classroom Climate, since establishing a trusting, safe space is an important part of inspiring students to engage with learning. We believe firmly that the future will belong to those who know how to work successfully in diverse, creative, problem-solving teams.
HOW DOES VIEWPOINT CELEBRATE DIVERSITY?
Viewpoint families value and honor unity in diversity. We all strive
to work collaboratively, continuously deepening much-needed levels of trust, curiosity and respect—especially during these challenging times. Our annual Diversity Leadership Day offers nearly 60 sessions—most created and led by students—covering timely topics that are most important to them. Parent Partners for Diversity and Inclusion host an annual multicultural potluck, when families from some of the 75+ countries represented at Viewpoint gather to share foods that have been passed down through generations. We offer a variety of opportunities to learn more about traditionally marginalized folks from guest and in-house speakers and through specially curated events and celebrations.
HOW DO YOU NURTURE KIDS’ CREATIVITY?
At Viewpoint, the arts are valued, nurtured and emphasized for all students. One example is our annual Arts Fest, where we welcome the community for a celebration of the arts. All ages are invited to enjoy an afternoon of music in the canyon; visual art displays and demos; scenes from this year's musical and theater productions; screenings of award-winning student films; and a showcase of our dance program. Mark McKee says, “It’s important that we celebrate the signature strength of our arts programs, which promote all of our core values and especially imagination.”
EF ACADEMY PASADENA
EF Academy is a private day and boarding high school with a 16-acre campus in Pasadena. The school’s curriculum is highly individualized and hands-on for its students from 30+ countries. EF Academy Pasadena first opened its doors in 2022 and had its first graduating class this year.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR UPCOMING OPEN HOUSE.
Join us on November 2 or December 7 to learn about our global community, curriculum, extracurriculars, immersive learning philosophy and highly personalized approach. Hear from current students, faculty and school leadership as you experience what makes the EF Academy community so special.
DO YOU OFFER PROGRAMS THAT FOCUS ON GLOBAL ISSUES?
EF Academy’s signature program, Innovation & Impact, aligns student projects with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We aim to equip students with innovation and global change-making skills that will serve them in their careers and lives. Students are in classes alongside other students from around the world to understand identities, perspectives and cultures different from their own. Our graduates are uniquely prepared for university
and the real world, having gained global perspective, cultural competency and understanding of people and how to work with others.
DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC FOCUS.
EF Academy takes a student-centric approach to teaching through competency-based learning (CBL) and personalized education. CBL creates more options for students, placing them in an educational environment that allows them to learn at their own pace and gain a mastery of skills rather than a memorization of facts. CBL enables students to progress at the pace that works for them while growing their skills.
HOW DO YOU CONNECT CLASSROOM LEARNING WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD?
Our classes are designed to help connect classroom learning with the outside world by integrating project-based learning and field study. Within each course, faculty members take students on field study trips. These trips are both engaging and educational, but most importantly, they enable students to see and apply how their learning is used in the real world. For example, physics classes take trips to the Santa Monica Pier to understand the physics behind roller coasters.
BACK
THE WESLEY SCHOOL
The Wesley School is a coeducational K–8 independent day school in North Hollywood. It was founded in 1999 by a group of concerned parents after the closing of St. Michael’s in Studio City. Wesley’s new mission statement is: “Within a community of belonging, we nurture joyful, confident learners to think critically, creatively and compassionately.”
TELL US ABOUT YOUR UPCOMING OPEN HOUSE.
We are thrilled to offer open house events and individual campus tours beginning in September. We strongly encourage attending an open house event to learn more about The Wesley School. If none of the open house dates work for you, please schedule a campus tour instead. If you have attended an open house and want a second look, campus tours are there for you as well. We look forward to getting to know you and your family throughout the admissions process. Visit wesleyschool.org/admissions/ admissions-events for more information.
WHY DOES YOUR SCHOOL DESERVE THE CONSIDERATION OF PROSPECTIVE FAMILIES?
We truly believe that the K–8 model is the best choice for children. It provides a safe space for them to come of age at an
appropriate pace, and a place where they can avoid some of the social pressures found in a secondary school environment. Our middle schoolers have the opportunity to be mentors to younger peers and to be campus leaders. Our well-rounded, exemplary academic program ensures that when students finish eighth grade, they are ready to succeed in the best independent high schools in the Los Angeles area. They are more mature and better equipped to handle the rigors of their next educational chapters, thanks to the extra two years we give them to blossom and prepare.
IN WHAT WAYS DO YOU CELEBRATE DIVERSITY, INCLUSIVITY AND MULTICULTURAL AWARENESS?
We believe our community is stronger and our program is more dynamic when we make diversity, equity and inclusivity central commitments of our school. These efforts enrich the lives of our school constituents and deepen student learning—helping children become more creative and collaborative problem-solvers, empathetic friends, engaged citizens and productive contributors to a global society. One way we do this is through our morning community gatherings for the entire school, where we tackle difficult questions, share experiences, and celebrate our differences by sharing experiences and learning from one another.
DEGAS DANCE STUDIO
Anacia Weiskittel, Artistic Director/CEO
Degas Dance Studio is dedicated to instructing, educating and inspiring students ages 3 to adult in the art of dance. The studio was named after the French painter Edgar Degas, known for painting dancers. Degas Dance Studio offers recreational instruction as well as preprofessional opportunities and career guidance, with a focus on technique and artistry.
DESCRIBE THE UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS OF DEGAS DANCE STUDIO.
Our business model is truly unique—from our original contemporary concert productions to our supportive community. We are not merely a classical ballet studio nor just a competition studio. We dedicate equal effort to training both our recreational dancers and our preprofessional dancers, as we believe in the values and life skills that dance imparts. Instruction is offered by top industry professionals who are the best in each dance style, so our students get a well-rounded and diverse education.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR LOCATIONS.
Our flagship location in Encino was established in 2009. In 2021 we expanded with the opening of Degas International Dance Academy in Delft, Netherlands. In 2023 we launched our franchise business and are now actively selecting franchisees for new locations across the United States and Europe. With proven systems and extensive mentorship, we aim to support the next generation of dance studio entrepreneurs in achieving their goals and fostering vibrant communities. Join us and become part of our successful franchise network!
HIGHLIGHT SOME OF YOUR STUDENTS' SUCCESSES AND ACHIEVEMENTS.
Degas Dance Studio has produced unprecedented talent from the ground up. Our alumni are currently dancing all over the world in renowned dance companies and as freelance dancers and choreographers. Our students have been recipients of prestigious awards, year-round programs and invitations to top college programs. They continue to use their skills to help them succeed in whatever they set their minds to achieve. Former students say that dance helped them tremendously in building life skills including time management, work ethic, discipline, creativity, confidence, goal-setting and strong character values, and in finding a community of supportive, likeminded individuals who have helped them be successful.
Students of Degas Dance Studio
MILKEN COMMUNITY SCHOOL
Milken is a private day school committed to incorporating Jewish values in a rigorous, college preparatory education for children in grades 6–12. The school serves a diverse student body of more than 775 students from across Los Angeles.
DESCRIBE THE UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS OF MILKEN.
Milken Community School roots academic excellence in ethical action and fosters individual growth through engagement in a pluralistic community. Milken guides our students to fulfill our “Portrait of the Graduate: Think Well, Belong to Something Greater Than Yourself and Take Positive Action.” With students from over 70 feeder schools and 20+ zip codes and eight languages spoken in homes, Milken’s diversity creates a richer environment for learning, growth and connection.
HOW DO YOU
FOSTER AN ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET?
At Milken, we believe fostering an entrepreneurial mindset among students and giving them the encouragement and freedom to innovate are essential to their long-term success. Milken’s Finance & Entrepreneurship Signature Program is just one pathway where students have the opportunity to explore finance and investing at
an introductory level or dive deeply into advanced investing and asset management.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR MISSION.
We believe that the world our children will create tomorrow is born in the school we build today, and our mission is to educate our children so they can surpass us. We think education is about more than what students know—it is about channeling that knowledge to unlock their unique potential and create a better world. The support they receive from Milken on the journey to self-discovery gets them ready to make a difference and positions them to thrive.
HIGHLIGHT SOME OF YOUR NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS.
With the early 2024 purchase of Milken East, our campus tripled in size, enhancing the student experience and fueling our growth. Our academic decathlon team won the Southern California Division IV championship, and our literary magazine, Responsa, earned a Superior rank in the 2023 NCTE Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines program. Our robotics team clinched the Innovate Award at the FIRST Robotics competition. And our recent graduates have been recruited to Division I collegiate and professional international athletic teams.
Head of school Dr. Sarah Shulkind with students
Photo by Apple Cheese Photography
WEDDINGS
Making Memories
FROM THE CUSTOM MIRRORED AISLE TO THE FINALE FIREWORKS, MCKEEL AND DAVE THOMPSON PULL OFF A STUNNING WEDDING AT EL ENCANTO IN SANTA BARBARA.
Written
by Chelsee Lowe
Photographed by Michelle Lillywhite
As a certified sommelier, McKeel Thompson knows a good wine when she sips one. And for many years, she hoped to find a man as fine as the wine she pours.
Having moved to Los Angeles from the Midwest in 2009, McKeel says she dated her fair share of “characters” over the years. When she met Dave Thompson at an event in 2015, something felt different.
“I was looking for a regular guy, someone easypeasy,” she says. “Dave was polite, charming and really likable. I was pouring wine; he was drinking it. I like to say we’ve been happily tipsy ever since.”
Dave is a retiree who had a long career in retail logistics. He and McKeel dated for two years before they moved in together in Westlake Village. Two years later the couple got engaged. According to Dave, living together allowed them time to get to know one another, weathering the ups and downs of life and appreciating what makes each of them unique.
“McKeel has this amazing energy,” Dave says. “She emits an open and transparent vibe, which is not always easy to find. I was instantly drawn to her.”
When it came time to select a wedding venue, the couple’s preferences aligned. Dave suggested they tour a few venues in the Santa Barbara area. A weekend getaway to El Encanto (part of the Belmond hotel group) persuaded them to choose the hillside hideaway. Dave loved its architectural style and McKeel was impressed with the level of service she found at every turn.
“When you’re in hospitality, you have certain standards,” McKeel shares. “And El Encanto checks all the boxes. The grounds are immaculate, the view is beautiful, the people are gracious and warm and welcoming. I fell in love with its charm.”
McKeel dreamed of a wedding that was both personal and timeless, and El Encanto’s walled arbor and lily pond felt like the perfect backdrop for achieving that goal. The bride used Pinterest to research design ideas. Her most important find? A mirrored aisle, which wound up being installed directly atop the pond.
The couple jumps over a broomstick, an African wedding tradition that stems from the belief that brooms hold spiritual value, signifying the sweeping away of evil spirits and past wrongs.
“The way the walkway reflected the light and trees was just heavenly,” McKeel recalls. “It made the wedding feel so much more elegant.”
Wedding planners Event of the Season came on board to help manage details, including numerous personal touches. Dave’s children and grandchildren helped set the scene as flower girls and ring bearer, and grandson Caden and young family friend Grant acted as “broom bearers.”
“In African culture, jumping over brooms is a symbolic way of saying that we’re sweeping away the past and making way for a new beginning that’s clean and fresh,” McKeel explains. “I wanted that to be part of the event.”
Even Dave and McKeel’s labradoodle, Cognac, walked the mirrored aisle with his brother, Sir Bastian, who is owned by the bride’s brother.
McKeel wore a Pronovias dress, purchased from Corona del Mar’s The White Dress, with a hint of blush pink to its ivory hue. That soft rosy tone became a throughline, from the bridesmaids’ dresses to the floral arrangements by Camellia Floral Design. Pastel ranunculus, garden roses, sweet peas and orchids were prominent in the arrangements, with accents of tiny red fountain bush blooms and jasmine vine. The groom and groomsmen were striking in classic navy suits with pink striped ties from Men’s Wearhouse.
After the “I do’s,” guests enjoyed cocktails and canapés on El Encanto’s Channel Islands Terrace. The dinner and reception events took place in the property’s
ballroom. The main entrée options were red snapper and flat iron steak—with specific instructions to El Encanto’s chef to prepare the beef well-done, which McKeel notes was perfectly achieved. The dessert table overflowed with sweets by Santa Barbara’s Lelé Pâtisserie, including a three-tiered wedding cake with three distinct flavors—carrot, lemon vanilla, and chocolate and vanilla marble—with meringue buttercream frosting. Other treats: powdered coconut donuts, Goleta lemon pie and Tahitian vanilla bean pot de crème.
When it came time for dancing, the bride swapped her Jimmy Choo heels for custom bridal platform sneakers (procured on Etsy). A playlist of DJ-spun tunes kept the energy high, and the newlyweds wowed their guests with a choreographed number, which Dave learned to please his beautiful bride.
“Dancing isn’t really my forte, but I loved that it was something we could do together,” he says. “And it came out really well; I don’t think we missed a beat.”
Up until the very end of the event, McKeel’s eye for detail was sharp. The couple exited their party illuminated by the sparkles of cold-fusion fireworks—which produce a nonhazardous effect that resembles traditional fireworks—and to the tune of “I’ve Had the Time of My Life.”
“I wanted a wedding that was classic, elegant and timeless,” she says. “I wanted to be able to look back 50 years from now and not feel like it was dated—and I think we did it. It was the most magical day of my life.” ■
The bride’s brother Kwiince Lipscomb walks Dave and McKeel’s labradoodle, Cognac, and Cognac’s brother, Sir Bastian, down the aisle. Below: The bride’s platform dancing sneakers and the pink pashminas that were gifted to the bridesmaids.
Nuptial Numbers
A LOOK AT SOME EYE-OPENING FIGURES FROM AVERAGE AND ASTRONOMICAL WEDDINGS.
2.3 MILLION
The number of weddings each year in the United States.
$50 BILLION
33 CARATS
The weight of the famous Krupp natural-cut diamond engagement ring that Richard Burton gave to Elizabeth Taylor in 1975 for the couple’s second wedding.
25 FEET
The length of the train of the ivory silk taffeta and antique lace gown worn by Princess Diana when she married Prince Charles in 1981.
1840
The amount of money people spend on weddings each year in the U.S. (wedding, reception, honeymoon and gifts).
$800
The amount that the average American bride spends on her dress.
The year that Queen Victoria wore a white silk-and-lace gown for her wedding to Prince Albert, giving rise to the popularity of the big white dress as bridal attire.
$22,000
The average amount of money that American couples spend on a wedding.
28 YEARS
The average age of an American bride.
16 MONTHS
The length of the average American engagement, according to a Condé Nast Bridal Group wedding survey.
BELLE OF THE BALL
A CHERISHED FAMILY LEGACY ENDURES AT TWO BRIDAL BOUTIQUES.
Lisa Litt’s parents opened a small shop for her grandmother Lili in 1958, and soon it became a Los Angeles institution for brides. Lisa has added modern touches—focusing on new designers and the latest trends—while maintaining the warm, welcoming ambience her family’s shop has always been known for. She also owns Della Curva, a plus-size bridal salon upstairs from Lili Bridals. With gorgeous gowns for brides and their mothers, both boutiques are certain to become a special part of your cherished memories.
THE RANGE OF BRIDAL FOOTWEAR TODAY HAS NO BOUNDS, ALLOWING BRIDES TO MAKE CHOICES THAT EXPRESS THEIR PERSONALITY.
FOR DRAMA QUEENS
Flavia Sandals by Gianvito Rossi; $1,195 at Neiman Marcus Westfield Topanga or neimanmarcus.com
FOR ROYALTY WATCHERS
Amalfi 95 D’Orsay Ecru heels by Arteana; $495 at arteanafashion.com
FOR ENVIRONMENTALISTS
Faux Leather Persona Slingback
Pumps by Jeffrey Campbell; $155 at Bloomingdale’s Westfield Fashion Square or at bloomingdales.com
FOR LABEL LOVERS
Rockstud Pump with crystals and micro studs by Valentino; $1,590 at valentino.com
FOR DANCERS
Sidny Crystal Pave Platform
Sneaker by Betsey Johnson; $89 at Nordstrom Westfield
Topanga or nordstrom.com
FOR COWGIRLS
The Annie Boot by Tecovas: $295 at tecovas.com
FOR COMFORT-MINDED GALS
The Sofia in Silver Metallic With Crystals by Inez; $258 at inez.com
THE FASHION CONCIERGE
CREATING BEAUTIFUL CELEBRATIONS FROM HEAD TO TOE.
A full-service bridal boutique, True Romance by Orsolina ensures that every bride looks beautiful and feels special. Owner Orsolina is an in-demand master seamstress with more than 35 years of experience. She creates unique, custom gowns with exclusive fabrics and laces from Italy, France and Switzerland. She also remakes vintage dresses and provides alterations. The store carries dresses and accessories, and Orsolina’s on-site services include dressing the bride and the entire wedding party on the big day.
True Romance by Orsolina | 153 S. Robertson Blvd., Beverly Hills 424-332-2702 | 626-664-9588 | @trueromancebyorsolina
Made for the Modern Explorer.
Headquartered in a small beach town in California, Paradise & Main is a travel and place-based lifestyle brand made for the Modern Explorer. Whether you’re headed around the corner or across the ocean, our perfectly oversized, unisex collections will bring style and comfort to your adventures, wherever they take you.
While apparel is our business, our mission is to make the world a happier place by inspiring human connection through travel and exploration. Because life's not really about the destination. It's about how we feel along the way, who we’re with and how we connect with the world around us.
Shop now at www.paradiseandmain.com
LEGENDARY PERFORMANCE.
ICONIC STYLE.
The 5 Series Range brings professional performance home with Viking’s iconic style and power. Equipped with a Pro Sealed Burner System, VariSimmer™ Setting, and SureSpark™ Ignition System—bring performance and style home, with Viking.
SANTA MONICA PASADENA VAN NUYS
Prime Seat
MEET THE CREATIVE BUILDER AND DESIGNER WHO IS MAKING A MARK ON STUDIO CITY. MORE ON PAGE 76.
HOME
Global Treasures
FROM PRECIOUS TO DISTRESSED, THE ITEMS OFFERED AT ARTE BOTTEGA ARE AIMED AT HOMEOWNERS WITH A SOPHISTICATED EYE.
Photographed by Nicholas Tatone
Walk down the Boulevard in Sherman Oaks, and as you hit a corner just west of Fulton, among the shops butted up to the sidewalk, one storefront is dramatically set back. The space that just a few years ago was a used-car lot is now a charming, landscaped, pebblefilled yard highlighted by large potted plants, fountains and attractive outdoor furniture. A lanai is trellised with jasmine vine; a black wrought iron fence is lined with a ficus hedge. You almost feel like you are at an oldworld European sanctuary. And that is exactly the vibe the owners of the new Arte Bottega were going for.
“Our expertise lies in capturing the raw beauty of natural elements and blending them with warmth and simplicity,” says Gio N. Kabessa, who co-owns the shop with Tom Elyahu. “Our designer/merchandiser has an astute eye for authenticity. She procures unique, well-loved pieces with earthy, textured and neutral elements.” Gio and Tom are longtime friends who also own and operate the construction company Topteam Builders. Arte Bottega is their attempt to satisfy their clients’ desire for imported antique pieces.
“We import from all over globally. We pride ourselves in curating rare and unique pieces that showcase the
Arte Bottega owners
Tom Elyahu and Gio N. Kabessa.
“OUR EXPERTISE LIES IN CAPTURING THE RAW BEAUTY OF NATURAL ELEMENTS AND BLENDING THEM WITH WARMTH AND SIMPLICITY.”
craftsmanship of talented artisans. With Arte Bottega, we envisioned a one-stop shop for all things home,” shares Gio.
Sleek teak furniture—some pieces with contemporary lines—and crisp white umbrellas fill the outdoor space, along with a large assortment of aged pots of all colors (priced from $150 to $650). Inside the store, which visitors enter from a fully retractable sliding door, a charming assortment of accessories ranges from antique breadboards to handsome marble bowls to distressed wooden tables, stools and mirrors.
When Gio describes Arte Bottega as a “one-stop shop,” he means it. The building also serves as the headquarters for Topteam Builders. The owners hope the storefront will be an opener to a conversation that can go in endless creative directions. ■
TELL US ABOUT THIS PROJECT.
We were given the opportunity to reinvent the recently purchased townhome of our clients, who happen to be friends of mine. This home was a new build, so we wanted to infuse it with warmth and personality while keeping it clean and contemporary. The Southern California home, while modern, lacked a high-quality and personalized touch.
To do this, we worked with the homeowners to curate bold artwork pieces tailored to each space. Our approach emphasized strategically placing vibrant artwork throughout the home to highlight otherwise lost areas.
In addition, the home lacked storage, and we’re big fans of built-ins! One standout addition was the built-in bench banquette adjacent to the kitchen, which not only provides extra seating but also cleverly incorporates storage. We utilized custom furniture where possible, such as the custom-designed storage bed featuring integrated drawers. In smaller spaces like these, the versatility of multifunctional furniture is so important.
WHAT WERE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES OF THIS PROJECT?
The home had so much potential, and our clients’ vision was clear: to infuse their new home with a distinct luxurious style that would resonate with their personalities. Also, the home
VICTORIA HOLLY INTERIORS
Victoria Holly, Interior Designer
INFO@VICTORIAHOLLY.COM
VICTORIAHOLLY.COM
@VICTORIAHOLLYINTERIORS
lacked adequate storage space, so we needed to create spaces that were not just beautiful but also functional, maximizing utility without compromising aesthetics.
HOW DO YOU DIFFERENTIATE YOURSELF FROM OTHER DESIGNERS?
We are committed to delivering unparalleled quality and have an eye for perfection in every detail of a project. From meticulous measurements to inspection of every piece of furniture, we scrutinize all elements of a project. We also deeply value the privilege of designing our clients’ homes and take seriously the significance of this responsibility. Our specialty is capturing our clients’ styles. We focus on everything from new builds to remodels to light remodels with furniture and decor. We mostly work on residential projects with a mix of commercial here and there—in Southern California and also across the country.
TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS.
We are a full-service interior design firm that takes a comprehensive approach to creating exceptional interiors, focusing on our clients’ styles and lifestyles. We love to design warm, welcoming and unique spaces with well-curated pieces that stand the test of time. We work on renovations, new builds, and a mix of residential and commercial projects.
JEFFREY FITERMAN
Rob Diaz (right) with Mark Alexander
Design Dynamo
WHEN IT COMES TO BUILDING SPEC HOMES, ROB DIAZ LOVES ARCHITECTURAL INTEGRITY, NATURAL MATERIALS AND SOPHISTICATED DETAILS. BUT WHAT REALLY SETS HIM APART IS HIS PALPABLE PASSION FOR DESIGN.
Written by Linda Grasso |
Photographed by Shane O’Donnell
When it comes to spec homes in the Valley, whether it is the large contemporary boxy structure with black framed windows or the black-andwhite “farmhouse,” the new builds you see often feature similar designs.
Builder Rob Diaz takes a unique approach. He vows never to do the same house twice. “I get bored easily. I like a challenge,” he explains. Indeed all the spec homes that Rob Diaz Designs (the company he co-owns and runs with Mark Alexander) takes on are markedly different—whether it is the one in Studio City’s desirable Silver Triangle that sold for $4 million or the one
A spec home that sold for $7.8 million— the highest sales price in Studio City last year. “We took a bento box and created an A-frame out of it,” says Rob, who likes to build expansive upper decks that offer additional square footage.
in Longridge Estates that sold last year for $7.8 million. At $1,244 per square foot, that property was one of the most expensive homes ever sold in Studio City. (Strip away the exterior decks and just include interior living spaces, and the actual square-foot price on the home jumps above $1,700.)
Rob’s creations do share a through line, though: materials like limestone, travertine and wood. “I use only natural materials—no concrete, for example. I want it to feel simple and organic. Also no recessed lights.” He also has a penchant for A-frames and expansive upper terraces that offer additional living space.
Explaining how he designs each spec home to have its own look and vibe, Rob gave us a tour of his latest and largest project to date: a sprawling abeche woodclad, 20,000-square-foot home in Fryman Canyon on the estate formerly owned by Jeopardy host Alex Trebek. The game-show host and his wife, Jean, lived in the coveted Studio City neighborhood for more than 25 years. When Trebek died in 2020, Rob and Mark bought the property for $6.5 million.
“We are building a full-blown compound. The style will be the Hamptons meets California lifestyle,” Rob shares. Construction is also underway behind the main house on two other structures, both fully clad in limestone: a wellness center with a steam room and sauna, and a gym. In between the main house and the two smaller structures: a 75-foot lap pool, set off by a row of recently planted mature olive trees.
“This is a huge undertaking for us,” says Mark, as he gazes around the meticulously clean construction site.
Currently in year two of what Rob estimates will be a three-year project, the house already conveys a sense of the finished product—particularly its grandeur. The library and formal living room have 30-foot-high cathedral ceilings and large windows that allow in light at every angle. The house has two kitchens—a “service kitchen” near the formal dining room (don’t think galley kitchen; its size and scale are larger than most), and a main kitchen that opens onto an expansive living area. One thing the builders didn’t touch on the property: a ginormous majestic oak tree that canopies
over an expanse of the front yard and shades the entry. Priceless—at least in the Valley.
Although he typically works with interior designers, Rob is very hands-on with decor, finishes and furnishings. In fact, he often designs custom furniture for his spec homes and sells them fully furnished. (He is currently working on a bespoke furniture line called Studio Rob Diaz.) For the Fryman Canyon home, Rob is handling interior design himself. He and Mark estimate the price tag for the completely furnished home will be priced around $45 million. If they do get a sales price in that range, it would be the most expensive home ever sold in Studio City by tens of millions. Rob acknowledges the price is high but says, “Nothing like this home exists in the Valley. It is on two flat acres and the lot size is 20,000 square feet. Every room is curated and furnished by renowned designers, making it truly one of a kind and incomparable.”
Just outside of the Fryman Canyon neighborhood, Rob has another project underway in the Silver Triangle section of Studio City. The lots are smaller in this neighborhood than in Fryman (just above it), and it has a mix of old and new homes. Still, the area is highly desirable due to its proximity to the shops and eateries on the Boulevard—walking distance, really. The contemporary home with a limestone/travertine façade on Viewcrest Road is more modest than the Fryman property, but Rob is equally proud of it. The three-bedroom home, with interior design by Jessica Nicastro, will hit the market this summer. The price tag will be around $6 million—fully furnished. The home has a handsome vibe with solid oak floors and cabinetry throughout. The walls, a warm, sandy hue, are created with a plaster from the British company Clayworks. The application, done in three separate coats, is a meticulous process.
“It is natural and easy to clean—you don’t paint the walls in this house,” Rob explains.
Knobs on cabinetry are cool and unusual shapes in solid brass. A guest room bathroom features a unique solid wood, forest-green-stained medicine cabinet by Josh Greene. A sleek oblong concrete sink basin by Kast—in a matching hue—is perched below. In lieu of
Rob Diaz in the 20,000-squarefoot, work-in-progress spec home, the former Alex Trebek estate, in Fryman Canyon.
This spec home in Studio City’s desirable Silver Triangle pocket has two inner courtyards that open off bedrooms as well as large upper decks, offering a seamless indoor-outdoor vibe.
“I use only natural materials—no concrete, for example. I want it to feel simple and organic.”
a standard AC/heat system with vents, subtle long thin slats are cut in the ceiling for temperature regulation, “a very expensive option,” Rob acknowledges.
Of course, all Rob Diaz homes are smart homes, including this one. “From your bedside you can basically shut down the entire house, from lights to shades.”
A stickler for even the smallest of details, he taps a company called Meljac for old-fashioned switch plates and buttons that are engraved with their functions. For example, the light switch by the bed in the primary will have several buttons labeled “Goodnight” that shut off lights in various areas of the house.
Rob’s sense of style and refinement doesn’t derive from any formal education or training. He says he has had a sophisticated palate as far back as he can remember. Raised in the Valley by a single mother who worked for a Pacific Theatres executive, he had an elevated sense of style even during his days at Grant High School in Van Nuys.
“I was wearing Japanese denim! I always had an eye for scale and materials.”
After graduating high school, Rob attended college for a few years, but dropped out. In the late ’90s, he worked as a bartender at Skybar in LA’s Mondrian Hotel. At the time the open-air nightspot was something of a rage. “I had a lot of fun in my 20s,” he laughs. It was at Skybar where he met Mark Alexander, who worked as a doorman. “He was a pretty influential guy at the time,” Rob chuckles.
At the age of 29, Rob switched gears and embarked on a career as a real estate appraiser. “I did that for
four or five years, but was very bored.”
In 2007 he took a break from work to participate in CBS’s The Amazing Race. He didn’t win, but he did come in second. A year later, amid the stock market crash, he switched gears and flipped his first home. He made $80,000 on the Sherman Oaks sale—and was hooked.
One home led to the next and before Rob knew it, he had a busy career as a spec-home flipper. In 2013 he realized he need a major life change; his drinking was holding him back. He checked himself into rehab and got sober. What sparked the change? “One really bad night.” From a career standpoint, things really started to pick up after that.
Over the years Rob and Mark kept in touch, and often joined forces to work on small remodels together. They had a yin-yang that worked, and in 2020 the two decided to become partners. “I’m basically the budget guy,” quips Mark, who has a background in engineering.
The partnership has been fruitful. Most of the duo’s spec homes presell, never even making it to the market.
The firm got even more gas this past spring when Architectural Digest did a cover story featuring model Amber Valetta’s Studio City home. It was one of Rob and Mark’s projects, and the firm was flooded with requests. They turned down all of them. “There wasn’t anything interesting enough. Truthfully, I just prefer to do my own thing,” Rob says. In particular, he loves creating homes in Studio City, where he lives, and he won’t build anything in Encino. “Look, there are some pretty neighborhoods in Encino. I just don’t like that stretch of Ventura Boulevard. The commercial district is awful.”
As for his career success, he is pragmatic. He works hard. He knows he has a unique talent, and doesn’t apologize for being well paid for it. One does, however, detect a note of delight.
“I am an example of a self-made dream—how to make it in America,” he says, briskly stepping off the curb and into his shiny electric Porsche. As we said our goodbyes and he drove off, I couldn’t help but stare at the Porsche’s unusual greenish hue. Like everything else Rob selects, his car has a distinct sense of style. ■
Some Like It Hot
Illustrated by Yuiko Sugino
Extend your harvest of greens with varieties that will thrive in the Valley summer garden long after the traditional cool-season ones have stopped producing. Sow from seeds— easily purchased on Amazon—or hunt down seedlings at a nursery. From fresh zesty salads to salty stir-fries, let the creative process begin!
red, pink or purple stems add a pop of color to mixed-green salads.
Tip: Sauté it with garlic and olive oil or steam it as a simple, healthy side dish. Can also be added to soups and stews to add depth.
RED AZTEC SPINACH has tender leaves and stems that offer a rich spinach flavor, enhancing raw and cooked dishes. The seed heads are strik ing—they resemble miniature broccoli florets, offering a delightful crunch and mild flavor comparable to broccoli rabe.
Tip: Harvest young leaves for salads; use the more mature leaves for sautéing in olive oil with garlic, or for adding depth to soups and stews.
NEW ZEALAND SPINACH has a mild, slightly salty flavor and distinct succulent texture that adds a nice crunch to salads. Pinch off individual leaves, being careful not to remove too much foliage at once, as this can stress the plant.
Tip: Younger leaves can be used for salads, while older, sturdier leaves are ideal for stir-fries, frittatas and om elets. The slightly salty flavor pairs nicely with strong flavors like garlic, lemon and chili peppers.
MICHAEL BERGIN | LUXURY ESTATES DIRECTOR
Fresh Bloom
A WRITER REFLECTS ON HIS WEDDING DAY, WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM HIS KIDS.
Written by Richard Lowe | Illustrated by Yuiko Sugino
My wife, Chelsee, and I got married in 2007 at the Rose Garden of Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. It was a sweltering September weekend in which we handed out paper fans to our guests and blotting papers to the bridal party.
Cut to 2023. Not only is Descanso Gardens a popular wedding venue, every winter it hosts a nighttime event called the Enchanted Forest of Light. The winding paths and magnificent trees are decorated with lighted installations of all colors, some interactive, transforming the serene garden into something luminous—and frenetic. It seemed like something our daughters, ages 3 and 10, would enjoy. Plus it’d be our first trip back to where we tied the knot.
Chelsee and I were looking forward to it. Our wedding day had become a distant memory. In the nearly two decades that followed, our life had been filled with career changes, exciting world travels, new friends, a rescue dog we named Benny, two marathons, three relocations (from the Westside to Mid City to Studio City) and just the right number of marriage counselors.
Our wedding had faded into hazy nostalgia, and we assumed that seeing the Rose Garden with our kids would jolt the dusty memory into clarity. Why wouldn’t it? One of the greatest phenomena of parenthood is to see the world anew through the eyes of your kids. Even the most mundane things become exciting and charming. Have you ever seen a garbage truck through the eyes of your child? It’s no longer a rancid hunk of hydraulics but instead a mechanical wonder of curiosity. If they could work their magic on that
stinking vehicle, they could certainly do the same with our wedding venue.
Boy, were we wrong.
As we entered the grounds, the girls’ sense of wonder was consumed by the glimmering lights. We tried to keep them focused and escorted them to the Rose Garden. “This is where Daddy saw Mommy in her wedding dress.” “We exchanged vows under this arch.” “Here’s where Yeh Yeh gave a sweet but L-O-N-G speech.”
We should’ve known. How could our memories compete with floor tiles that light up when you stomp on them? Our oldest is at an age where she thinks romance is “barf.” She was not interested in where we “smoochy kissed” for the first time as a married couple. Suddenly, our youngest rallied the family with her battle cry: “Back to the stomp-y floor!”
Not exactly what we envisioned. But later, when our kids had gone to sleep, the experience was enough to inspire us to get out our wedding album. The forgotten details filled in, like our signature cocktail we called “The Hakolowe” (a portmanteau of our last names), and the truth became clear. We didn’t need to see it anew. We just needed to see it for what it was: a single night in the past, surrounded by our loved ones, ushering in a future full of adventure and wonder that would exceed even our wildest expectations. ■
Richard Lowe lives in Studio City with his family. He no longer considers his wedding album overpriced.
The Velvet Martini Lounge
Welcome to your dream estate with this charming gated Monterey Colonial-style home, located on a prestigious street south of the Blvd, represents a rare opportunity to own a piece of history. Built-in 1937, this estate is one of the first homes built in Tarzana, boasting over half an acre of lush gardens and timeless elegance.
4900 Brewster Dr, Tarzana, CA 91356
$2,500,000 5 beds | 6 baths | 4,718 sqft
Matt Epstein DRE# 01121162
818-681-2000 somatt@aol.com
Enjoy live music Thursday-Sunday host your next private event upstairs at Vitello’s
