30 minute read
Hidden Gems
The Riversider | April/May 2022
Butch’s Grinders
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WORDS: KEN CRAWFORD PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER
In 1982, the Mission Inn was dilapidated, the Tyler Mall was only one story, and the Raceway was a main economic driver. Pine Center, at the bottom of the hill where Pine Street splits from Palm Avenue, must’ve had 50 tenants between then and now. Alpha Beta, a church or two, a gym, a bartender school, a skateboard shop, and a donut store have all come and gone. Butch’s Grinders has been there for 40 years—standing alone on the corner through it all. There really is a lot to say about this little shop. It’s got a great location; close enough for the downtown crowd to come grab lunch, but far enough away that you can park a work truck without having to navigate downtown traffic. I’m not trying to diminish the food by saying it’s just sandwiches. Of course, you can get soup or a salad, but it’s a classic sandwich shop. There are no exotic spices or bold fusions. We all know what grinder shops sell, and Butch’s does it as well as anyone in town. I don’t need to do a food review. If you want a suggestion, however, my younger kid would recommend the meatball sub. I like the cold roast beef. Get the squaw bread if you’re lucky enough to be there before they sell out. The food is good, but that isn’t why I was so happy to get this assignment. My dad worked at California School for the Deaf for four decades. He had several jobs there, but when I was a little guy he was a dormitory counselor and worked a split shift. He’d go in early and get the students ready for school, then he’d come home for a few hours, and then return later in the day when school was over to supervise homework and get the boys back to bed. That gap in his shift allowed him to spend time with me during the day after preschool or kindergarten. We did a lot of things around town. We hiked by the river, explored the endless hallways of the abandoned Mission Inn, and climbed the Tank at Fairmount Park.
My favorite activity and most vivid memory of hanging out with my dad during those years was climbing Mt. Rubidoux. We’d go to Butch’s and buy sandwiches, and my dad would put them in his backpack. We’d park at the trailhead on 9th, and start our trek to the top. First stop was the empty water tank that was where the up and down roads meet. You could climb inside and throw rocks, or listen to the echo of your voice. Then my dad would run a little ahead of me and hide in one of the dugout bridges on the Boy Scout trails and do his best bridge troll impression: “Who’s that walking on my bridge?” he’d yell as I crossed above him. When we got to the Peace Bridge, we looked across the city to try and find our house and identify familiar landmarks like the cemetery and the courthouse. We’d eventually get to the cross on top of the mountain where we’d unpack our sandwiches from his bag and eat while we watched the pilots practice landing at Flabob Airport. I remember how close they got to the mountain—how loud those little engines were as they flew by again and again. It’s nice that Butch’s hasn’t changed much in 40 years. I like to grab a sandwich and eat it at Bonaminio Park, while my kid has soccer practice. I look across the park to the mountain and think about eating sandwiches up there with my dad. It still tastes the same. It’s just a sandwich, but that list of things in town that are pretty much the same as they were when I was a kid is getting pretty short. These local, family-owned businesses are special. You can get a good sandwich in a lot of places, but you can only get Butch’s on Pine and Tequesquite in Riverside.
Butch's Ultimate Italian Grinder
Butch’s Grinders 4602 Pine Street (951) 781-8511 butchsgrindersriverside.com @butchs_grinders
The Debonaires
Celebrating the life of Jason Napayon WORDS BY MANO MIRANDÉ
Riverside in the 90s was a significant contrast to the city we know and love today—particularly when it came to the live music scene. Venues like Spanky’s, The Barn, and the Showcase Theatre were packed with hundreds of concert-goers on any given night—hosting an array of touring and local bands of various genres, and catering to the all ages audience. Acts like Rage Against The Machine, No Doubt, Sublime, Korn, and Blink-182—who went on to gain international fame and commercial success—all graced these local stages in their early years. Riverside natives Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Skeletones, and Alien Ant Farm earned notoriety outside of the area through constant touring and album releases, many of which are considered classics in their respective scenes today. Promoters such as Bill Fold of 98 Posse—who eventually cofounded the Coachella Music Festival—spent prior years dedicated to the progression of the hometown music scene, and publications like Mean Street Magazine documented the scene and provided a vital source for promoting upcoming concerts. This was pre-internet, when printed promo was physically distributed to local shops, and passed out by hand outside of live shows. While a local music scene still exists today, All Ages venues have become scarce, and Riverside is no longer the mandatory tour destination it once was. This was an exciting time to be a young concertgoer and aspiring musician. Teenagers didn’t have cell phones and other modern distractions. Instead they picked up instruments, formed bands, and chased their dreams of transitioning from backyard parties to sharingstages with the very bands they grew up idolizing and connecting with through their music. I was among these young musicians of the era, and in 1995, at only fifteen years old, I excitedly accepted the invitation to join my first band, The Debonaires.
Jason playing bass at The Debonaires Thanksgiving Celebration in 2018.
Dave Sakover—a saxophone player who attended North High School that had a devout love for Jamaican Ska, Rocksteady, and Reggae—founded the band. He recruited fellow musicians and classmates, and connected with me and a few other friends attending Poly High School. This included Tony Greene on vocals, Mike Presser on lead guitar, Ryan Tomazin on keys, and Tom Cook on trombone. While several lineup changes occurred early on, by 1997, the band became solidified with Woody Diaz joining on drums, and Jason Napayon on bass. The Debonaires began performing regularly throughout Southern California, including notable LA venues like The Whiskey-A-Go-Go and The Troubador, along with respected local venues mentioned above. They had the opportunity of opening for such Jamaican legends as The Skatalites, Justin Hinds, and Laurel Aitken, as well as 2-Tone originators The Specials and The Selecter—all while joining the ranks of the thriving LA Traditional Ska scene. The Debonaires released their first album in 1998 before graduating high school, and were introduced to Kip Wirtzfeld of The Skeletones, who was featured on sax and back-up vocals on the album, and would eventually become the band’s lead singer. With this momentum, an unbreakable bond, and lifelong brotherhood was born—a bond that still exists today, nearly three decades later. Over the following years, The Debonaires became a staple within the Riverside music scene, hosting their annual Thanksgiving Eve show, playing popular hometown events like the Orange Blossom Festival, and countless other shows in the area. Three more albums would follow, as well as numerous tours throughout the US and Canada, and in 2018 they embarked on their first European tour backing legendary Jamaican vocalist Susan Cadogan, in addition to performing their own original material. The memories made on the road—and the connection shared with fans internationally through their music—were experiences that not only shaped them as a band, but as individuals as well. Each member has contributed to the writing process, but one band member—whose songwriting exuded a significant weight, raw talent, and dynamic versatility—is that of bassist Jason Napayon. Jason always maintained a level of respect and integrity, not only as a talented musician, through intricately crafted bass lines and insightful lyrics, but also through his personality as an individual. His demeanor at times may have been perceived as serious, even stoic, but to those that truly knew and loved him understood that beneath it was a kind, caring, and loyal person and friend. In December of 2017, Jason was diagnosed with cancer, undergoing surgery soon after to remove a tumor from his stomach. The news shocked and devastated his bandmates, friends, and family, but all had faith and knew he would fight with everything he had. Jason valued his privacy and never wanted pity or sympathy from anyone—a true testament to his strength and character. Despite
2018
his condition, he continued performing with The Debonaires, as well as other projects The Electric Howlers and The Counterfeits, while discretely keeping the news away from the public eye. Jason found true love in Jessica Angelo, and they happily married in March of 2020, with an intimate ceremony surrounded by loved ones. Jessica became a source of love and support through his battle, and an inspiration for the lyrics he continued to write throughout his struggle. The Debonaires began rehearsing his new material in hopes of recording and releasing it, but the process was halted by the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic. Unable to perform live for their annual Thanksgiving Eve concert due to mandated restrictions, The Debonaires instead recorded and streamed a live performance with Jason in November of 2020, featuring an unreleased instrumental track he wrote titled, “Blue Sunday.” His bandmates were unaware at the time that this would be his last live performance with them. On Thanksgiving Eve of the following year in 2021, Covid mandates were lifted, and The Debonaires hosted a fundraiser for Jason’s medical expenses at The Concert Lounge in downtown Riverside. Jason, unfortunately unable to perform due to his quickly worsening condition, gave his blessing to close friend and longtime fellow musician Chiquis
The original line-up in 1998.
Poly High, 1998 1999
Lozoya to fill in on bass. The Debonaires were joined by an all-star lineup of well-respected musicians and friends from the So Cal Ska scene. Hundreds of attendees generously donated, and showed an overwhelming outpour of love and support—many of which learning of his condition for the first time. The event was an unforgettable celebration of Jason’s life, talents, and the love that he generously shared with so many. Only a few weeks later in December of 2021, Jason succumbed to his battle with cancer, but his memory will live on through the songs he shared, and countless memories created with those he loved. His passing was not only a devastating loss to the band, friends and family, but also to the Riverside music scene and the global Ska and Reggae community as a whole—a scene which he impacted greatly through decades of dedication, love, and passion for the music. His contributions and influence are truly immeasurable. Jason was a devoted husband, proud father, loving friend, brother, and son. The Debonaires will continue as a band, knowing he would’ve wanted it that way, and they plan to record and release the songs he left behind in the near future. The flame that Jason lovingly lit in the hearts of so many will continue to burn bright forever.
The Riversider | February/March 2022
Designing a More Perfect Mediterranean Jekel, Spurgeon, Wilson: Riverside Architects of the Spanish Colonial Revival, 1914-1940
WORDS: H. VINCENT MOSES, PHD
Benedict Castle, 1928
—Riverside Daily Press, Jan. 26, 1927
The Riversider | February/March 2022
Fred Krinard Estate, Victoria Hill “Lion Head”
Introduction
By 1925, the Spanish Colonial Revival (SCR) defined Southern California. National travel journals and newspapers baptized the region as the new, improved Mediterranean. Already a worldwide tourist mecca—with the Mission Inn and the navel orange landscape—Riverside provided the 1920s and 1930s a beating heart for the new architectural style. Three primary Riverside architects fueled that beating heart: Henry L. A. Jekel, Robert Spurgeon, Jr., and G. Stanley Wilson. They built their designs on the ubiquitous Greco-Roman courtyard houses seen across the Mediterranean regions of Europe and North Africa. SCR versions of the courtyard house facilitated an easy passage to the courtyard and the immediate outdoors, ideal for Riverside and Southern California. Often arranged to offer a vista of mountains and surrounding terrain, courtyard houses evoked the ambiance of Spain or Italy.
Henry L. A. Jekel: Arts and Crafts Architect of the SCR
By the end of the 1920s, Riverside hosted superb examples of SCR residential and commercial architecture. In particular, the Fred Krinard and Harry Hammond Estates, both located on Victoria Hill in the exclusive Country Club Park overlooking the Victoria Club golf course. Henry L. A. Jekel, Riverside’s SCR Arts and Crafts inspired architect and Buffalo, New York transplant designed the houses and grounds. Jekel spent his early career as a pioneer steel skeleton skyscraper designer on the East Coast. He didn’t study at university, but apprenticed with skyscraper architects and engineers before hanging out his own Buffalo shingle in 1895. Between 19211941, after moving permanently to Riverside, Jekel completed commissions for at least 72 houses and additional commercial buildings, including his bestknown SCR legacy structures in Riverside—the James Complex at California Baptist University, and Castillo Isabella (Benedict Castle) for retired New York financier Charles W. Benedict. By the mid-1930s, two of Jekel’s residential estates located on Victoria Hill had earned National Yard and Garden Awards for their California-style terraced landscapes. The Hammond House—in
Harry Hammond Estate, Victoria Hill
CBU James Complex
the mode of a Mediterranean villa—epitomized the villa suburbana (Roman country estate). The Krinard Estate also exemplified the form, especially in its terraced and thoughtfully planted front yard. It has an eclectic facade featuring a combination of Andalusian Farmhouse Vernacular, Monterey, and sophisticated Moorish detail, with Deco art glass and wrought iron light fixtures. Jekel shared the
Jekel's Studio Fred Krinard Estate fireplace
common penchant of his peers to assemble specific features from an array of Italian, Spanish, Moorish, and Southwestern influences—adapting them to American House types reinterpreted in California SCR style for Southern California. In Riverside, Jekel excelled in rendering SCR
Mermilliod House
Morris’s House
houses and larger structures in picturesque variant of SCR. His romantic SCR designs invoked medieval castles, with their great halls (living rooms), openbeamed cathedral ceilings, and loggias. Howard Heisler’s “Lion Head” on Rumsey Drive incorporated Spanish elements that reflected Jekel’s consistent resort to the medieval, including rusticated wrought iron fixtures and details, balconies, and art glass windows—evoking the venerability of medieval stained glass. Jekel also incorporated these elements in his plans for middle-class houses in the Wood Streets—Riverside’s well-known streetcar suburb. Jekel—who adhered closely to Arts and Crafts principles—retained the “natural” gray tone of stucco exteriors for his house designs, unless the client insisted on a different treatment. The architect always tried to stay true to his materials, leading him to oppose painting structural concrete exteriors, and lauded G. Stanley Wilson for not painting the reinforced slip-form concrete of the International Wing of the Mission Inn.
Robert Spurgeon, Jr. Beaux-Arts Architect of the SCR
Robert Spurgeon, Jr. designed about 23 superb SCR houses in Riverside in the 1920s before leaving for Santa Barbara, where he designed two or three large homes ahead of suffering a ruptured appendix and sudden death. Robert Spurgeon’s houses reflect classical principles of balance and harmony, marking him as an academically trained Beaux-Arts designer on the Parisian [or European] model. Spurgeon looked to the Renaissance for inspiration and not the Middle Ages, which appealed more to Arts and Crafts architects like Jekel than university trained architects. Spurgeon’s 1926 plan for five superb houses at Riverside’s western entrance never materialized, but five others continue to anchor the southern slopes of Little Mount Rubidoux Historic District. The terrain and distance from the developed urban core inspired Spurgeon to design there an enclave of villa suburbana. The first was a Mediterranean Revival villa wad designed in 1923 for his parents, using a combination of Italian and Spanish motifs to create an architecture that was quite romantic, but nonetheless resonating with his rigorous BeauArts training. Spurgeon’s hallmark 1927 Elijah Parker house on Ladera Lane reflects Andalusian and Monterey Colonial influences, superbly executed by Spurgeon.
The Riversider | April/May 2022 Soldiers’ Memorial and Municipal Auditorium
His SCR house at 5110 Magnolia Avenue clearly features his Beaux-Arts interpretation of the idiom, with its classic balance of projecting and receding elements on the front elevation. His most expensive houses in Riverside, including “Casa de Arroyo” overlooking Victoria Club golf course, and the $40,000 Roberts Leinau residence on Pachappa Hill, demonstrate Spurgeon’s understand of the Spanish Renaissance, and its purposeful and restrained application of ornament to otherwise unadorned flat surfaces. These houses presaged “Oaklodge”—the Montecito Mediterranean courtyard mansion designed for Spurgeon’s sister and her wealthy husband in 1930.
G. Stanley Wilson with International rotunda construction crew.
G. Stanley Wilson: Architect of the late Phases of the Mission Inn
G. Stanley Wilson moved to Riverside at age sixteen with his parents from Bournemouth, England. He obtained his architectural license through correspondence school after training as finish carpenter in Riverside. Wilson’s noteworthy SCR houses include “Casa de Anza Hotel”—Landmark no 85 of the City of Riverside. It began as Wilson’s own residence. He expanded it, and turned it into one of Riverside’s finest uses of SCR in commercial residential design. Wilson also designed the La Cadena Avenue home of actor William Boyd, who played Western hero Hopalong Cassidy on film. Wilson’s best-known and most important work, however, came as an architect for the latter stages of Frank Miller’s Mission Inn. There Wilson and his associate architect Peter Weber brought Riverside’s contribution to the Spanish Colonial Revival to its ultimate architectural expression. Millers “Spanish Revival Oz … neo-Franciscan fantasy of courts, patios, halls, archways, and domes,” argued Kevin Starr in his book Inventing the Dream made Riverside the center of the SCR, and Wilson designed the most significant part of it. The transformation began in 1913 after Miller’s grand tour of Europe, when he commissioned Myron Hunt to design the Spanish Wing—including the Spanish Patio, Spanish Dining Room, and Spanish Art Gallery. Built of reinforced slip form concrete, the addition marked the dual advance of the SCR, and modern construction materials and methods at the Inn. G. Stanley Wilson supervised construction of Hunt’s Spanish Wing, and designed the third and fourth floors. Finally, between 1929 and 1932, Wilson designed and supervised construction of the last addition— the International Wing, The six-story Rotonda Internationale (International Rotunda) constitutes the first court of the International Wing, rising the full height of the building, and open to the sky. The Atrio of St. Francis completed the wing and
Alhambra Court Writers Row Atrio of St. Francis
became—with its ornate Churrigueresque details— Wilson’s magnum opus in the Spanish Renaissance Revival Style. The Atrio of Saint Francis drew rave reviews from the venerable California Arts and Architecture: “The Atrio of St. Francis… might be the plaza of a small city of Mexico or Spain. The facade of the Chapel of St. Francis is the chief architectural feature. Facing it from the entrance, one feels as if standing in front of a cathedral in a quiet plaza of Old Mexico. The Churrigueresque rich ornamentations, the rose windows, the coats of arms, the figures of saints in their niches … seem as if they must be of some bygone age.” The Atrio brought the Mission Inn to the pinnacle of the mature SCR, and to the forefront of the region’s infatuation with the style. Wilson had made it happen. Three architects, Jekel, Spurgeon, and Wilson made Riverside the center of the Spanish Colonial Revival and left the city with a legacy of superb architecture. Their works are a worthy heritage of fine architecture in our community and deserving of praise and preservation. For a deeper look at the SCR, see H. Vincent Moses and Catherine E. Whitmore, Henry L. A. Jekel: Architect of Eastern Skyscrapers and the California Style (Inlandia Books) and Myth & Mirage, Inland Southern California, Birthplace of the Spanish colonial Revival (Riverside Art Museum).
Backyard mid-mod utopia courtesy of the Hologram House's Courtney Gallagher.
Riverside’s Mid-Century Moment The city known for its Mission-style hotel is a mid-century lover’s dream
WORDS: PHILIP FALCONE PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER
A pair of mid-century chartreuse matador lamps guard the aqua sofa with various other atomic lamps and chandeliers throughout the living rooms and dining rooms.
Thought of as the Southern California posterchild for Spanish Colonial Revival and Mission styles of architecture, Riverside is not often seen as home to high examples of the Mid-Century Modern style. Being the birthplace to the world-class Mission Inn and a short drive from the mid-century mecca that is Palm Springs, Riverside’s mid-century bona fides are regularly overshadowed by its desert neighbor. However, this characterization sells Riverside short and the truth—that Riverside has many impeccable examples of high Mid-Century Modern architecture—is perhaps one of Inland Southern California’s best-kept secrets. Following the opulence of the Victorian architectural style, the dark wood and jewel tones of Spanish Colonial Revival, two World Wars and The Great Depression, America—and particularly California—was ready to turn the page and look forward. Southern California was one of the early hubs of the modern architectural movement in the United States. Immediately following World War II, Riverside County’s largest city by land—Palm Springs—began to take off as a wintertime escape for celebrities fleeing Los Angeles and beach communities. Here the stars allowed architects to explore new designs and forms of home building. Many of the new designs embraced the dry, hot climate and desert environment. The long, linear floor plans, box-style construction with flat roofs and consistent uses of natural elements included wooden beams stretching from exterior eaves, cutting through the expansive floor-to-ceiling walls of glass, across the home, and back outside again. This new type of architectural design was different from what was seen in Southern California before—it embraced simple lines, natural use of materials, and rejected the decorative embellishments of the past. The post-war boom of the 1950s and 60s also ushered in new technology and a new generation of leaders—from the White House all the way down to those who designed houses. The Space Age goals set by President John F. Kennedy paired with the modernist style of First Lady Jaqueline Kennedy led the charge of ushering in a new frontier of American technology and art—influenced by European trends of Art Deco, Streamline Moderne, and the International Style. Architectural historians now classify the midcentury era as 1945-1969 and identify multiple styles within the larger Mid-Century Modern period. These styles included New Formalism, Brutalism, and Googie—all of which can be found in both commercial and residential architecture in Palm Springs and Riverside.
The first Marr family home designed by patriarch and architect Clinton Marr.
Yes, there are numerous examples of midcentury construction in Riverside that could even fool a Palm Springs native on just where the building is located—likely leaving them thinking “This is in Riverside?” Riverside’s variety of high examples of midcentury styles are prominent in residential architecture in neighborhoods such as Victoria Woods and Hawarden Hills—the locations of choice by affluent doctors and attorneys in 1960 for their proximity to the Victoria Country Club and the resurgence of golfing as a favored pastime. Other neighborhoods where Riversiders embraced modern design are the Grand neighborhood—formerly known as “Grand View” and the downtown neighborhood adjacent to the Evergreen Quarter Historic District at the base of Mt. Rubidoux, both of which capture the lush and rugged terrain of the Santa Ana River and the Mt. Rubidoux foothills. “This is in Riverside?” comes to mind not because Riverside—the largest city in Riverside County by population—had a shortage of home building or wealth in the mid-century, but rather, the fact that examples of these homes are hardly spoken of and rarely shown. These mid-century masterpieces did not even make their way into the Old Riverside Foundation’s signature Vintage Home Tour for the first 28 years of its existence. Riverside historian and director of the annual tour, Nancy Parrish, is changing this for year twenty-nine. A tour that has historically showcased a variety of private homes ranging in style from Victorian, to Arts & Crafts, to Tudor Revival, will be exclusively Mid-Century Modern for its May 14, 2022 tour.
The Riversider was given exclusive access to experience these homes prior to the tour, capture their unique features, and share them with readers. In addition to going behind the scenes of four of the tour’s five private residences, readers also get to see the backyard retreat of business owner and expert on mid-century interior design, Courtney Gallagher, of The Hologram House. The aqua blue of the swimming pool against the canary yellow shade structure, a reproduction from a 1969 Sunset Magazine, transports readers to the Space Age of six decades ago. Courtney has intricately selected all the materials and furnishings used in this time capsule retreat from the pool deck with embedded circular atomic planters, to the yellow “Riverside” sign in a signature mid-century font, and the vibrant lounge chairs of yellow, orange, and teal—the only thing missing is a Mai Tai in hand! Architect Clinton Marr and contractor Harry Marsh were two leading mid-century residential builders in Riverside with architect Herman Ruhnau specializing in commercial and government buildings
The warm ORCO block home on Fairview Avenue masterfully combines a lush lawn with desert landscaping.
The home's floating fireplace is surrounded by cube-shaped ORCO block and glass.
designed in the style of New Formalism and Brutalism. Of all the architectural offices in Riverside, Ruhnau’s was the largest. By the 1970s, Ruhnau was seen as the single most dominant figure in Riverside architecture after World War II. His influence on local, modern architecture was considerable because he trained a new generation of upcoming architects. Many young architects began in Ruhnau’s office before advancing to another firm, or starting their own. For example, Clinton Marr worked for Ruhnau before opening his own office in Riverside in 1956. Marr was most influenced by the post-and-beam structural framing method, which he used in the design of his own home on Jarvis Street in the Grand neighborhood, and his second home in Hawarden Hills. As one of the foremost architects of modern homes in Riverside, Marr also designed an impressive number of commercial, industrial, institutional, and educational buildings. Of the homes on the tour, Marr built one as a family home. Behind the seafoam green front door, a home full of natural light and warm teak wood welcomes guests as it first welcomed the Marr family in 1954. The aqua sofa, chartreuse occasional chair, and collection of atomic ashtrays create the feeling as if one is on the set of Mad Men. Framed and proudly displayed in the home’s main corridor are the original floor plans, drawn by Marr himself with each room identified—specifically his children’s rooms with “Cindy’s Room” and “Bruce’s Room” marked in block letters on the plan. The tour will also showcase a popular structural material used in residential design in the mid-century era, and one used in multiple homes around Riverside— the ORCO block. The cube-shaped home on Fairview Avenue is built entirely of ORCO concrete block with its façade displaying the home’s centrally located floating fireplace. Stairs to a small catwalk under a suspended flat-roofed canopy approach the emerald green double doors. The interior’s warm tan block with its sandy texture enclose the living room around the fireplace and amber velvet sectional sofa.
The W.A. Budd Home known as the "Tiki Googie" houses a 1954 Chevrolet Bel Air and mid-century travel trailer in its semi-circle driveway.
While mid-century homes are fairly common in the previously mentioned neighborhoods around Riverside, it’s rare to find a remaining Googie-style building and even more rare to find a home designed in the Googie style. This rarity is caused by the near-exclusive use of Googie architecture in commercial buildings. The Googie style is an ultra-futurist approach to Mid-Century Modern architecture, which was influenced by car culture, jets, and the Space Age of the 1950s and 60s. It originated in Southern California following the Streamline Moderne architecture of the 1930s, and was used as architectural design for motels, coffee houses, and gas stations. Riverside has several homes designed in the Googie style. Of these homes, the most identifiable is the “Tiki Googie” on Rodeo Road built in 1959. Only having three owners since its construction, this private home is a time capsule to the car culture days of the late 1950s. Built and first owned by W.A.
Budd, the home has a boomerang-shaped floorplan with a floating, semi-enclosed kitchen in the center covered in delicate flamingo wallpaper. The original 1959 ad for the custom-built home is framed and displayed near the entry hall, showing how the exterior is nearly unchanged after 63 years. Walls of lava rock or concrete block construct the exterior and compliment the rock landscaping with three, large wooden tiki statues. The low-pitched gabled roof utilizes gravel and rock material rather than composition shingle— an extremely rare feature to remain preserved today. The entrance is marked by a flat-roofed canopy with the words "Forty Nine Forty Two" in cursive with suspended globe lighting. A mature lemon tree thrives in the sunlight of an opening in the porte-cochere roof. The focal point of the backyard is an original kidney-shaped swimming pool—a shape that exists in the Googie style for its sleek lines and geometric design. The Old Riverside Foundation’s Vintage Home Tour will have two Googie-style homes with the addition of the 1961 Glenhaven Googie, perched atop a steep driveway with panoramic views of Riverside. The angular rooflines and varied exterior walls bring forward elements of a more simplistic Googie design. Beyond the steep approach and through its canary yellow double doors, classic mid-century materials of terrazzo tile and crosshouse wooden beams establish the clean lines of this special home. Interior walls of rough white granite add to the Googie style and are believed to be original to the hill on which the home is built. Dating back to the early 20th century, rock materials excavated or removed during construction were often used inside as both structural and decorative elements. Flanking the left side of the white granite stone fireplace is a built-in wet bar with counter-to-ceiling decorative room dividers, underscoring how the bar was a space of necessity and a focal point in homes of the time. These homes are just a few of the high examples of the Mid-Century Modern style that exists across Riverside. And now, as mid-century surpasses the fifty-year mark, the buildings created during this time are eligible—and worthy—to be seen as historic structures needing preservation.
The sideyard of the Glenhaven Googie with its angular roofline that's synonymous with the Googie style.
Walls of natural white granite flank the living room, wet bar, and surround the fireplace. The granite is believed to be from the hill on which the home is built.
The city known for its Mission-style hotel and master architects of the Spanish Colonial Revival style now has greater reason to compare and compete with the mid-century giants across Southern California—making its mid-century moment a midcentury movement. Learn more about how to purchase tickets and attend the Old Riverside Foundation’s Vintage Home Tour on May 14, 2022 at oldriverside.org
