Sterling Reed Photography; Bettman via Getty Images (Negri); Hulton Archive via Getty Images
In the foothills above Hollywood, Whitley Heights ranks as one of L.A.’s oldest and most architecturally distinctive neighborhoods, its winding streets lined with 1920s Spanish Colonial and Mediterranean Revival homes. Early residents included silver-screen luminaries Gloria Swanson, Bette Davis, Charlie Chaplin, and Rudolph Valentino, who, according to long-circulated local lore, commissioned a turreted hillside bungalow on Iris Circle for his paramour, stage and screen actress Pola Negri.
More than a century after its completion in 1923, the white-stucco bungalow is hidden among mature trees and lush landscaping by the award-winning landscape architecture firm Terremoto, while interiors were updated by multidisciplinary Shapiro Joyal Studio, which balanced the home’s historic character with a more contemporary aesthetic. Original hardwood floors, ironwork, casement windows, and Batchelder tilework were carefully preserved, while carefully selected new materials—including white oak, American walnut, and deep-brown Saltillo floor tiles—reinforce the home’s 20th-century craftsmanship.
The main residence blends historic charms with modern style.
