BY JAKE OFFENHARTZ
The scheduled demolition of three storied West Hollywood buildings-including one closely associated with Frank Sinatra-has been postponed, at least for another few weeks. But the two sound stages and a bungalow, which sit on the edge of the former Warner Hollywood Studio (now known as "The Lot") could be demolished as soon as May 1st by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
"It's very disheartening to think that these buildings are going to be destroyed," filmmaker Doug Quill told LAist. "These buildings are tremendously historic and really helped define the Golden Age of Hollywood." Quill, who runs a production company on The Lot, is currently working with the Los Angeles Conservancy to postpone the demolitions. A petition circulated by Quill currently has 785 supporters, and states that "one concept is to convert it into Frank's Tavern, a speakeasy cocktail lounge featuring all things Frank."
That's because the most notable of the three threatened spaces is a 1929 Spanish-style bungalow that once served as a sort of hideaway for Frank Sinatra. Sinatra's Essex Productions rented space on the lot beginning in 1961, and he would regularly use the bungalow as a "personal retreat in between productions," according to the Los Angeles Conservancy. He was also known to coop up there while recording The Concert Sinatra in 1963, which features the neighboring Sound Stage 7 on its cover. That soundstage is also set to be demolished in coming weeks.