The Greystone Mansion, also known as the Doheny Mansion, is a

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

on a landscaped estate with distinctive formal English gardens, located in Trousdale Estates of

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

, United States. Architect

Gordon Kaufmann Gordon Bernie Kaufmann (19 March 1888 – 1 March 1949) was an English-born American architect mostly known for his work on the Hoover Dam. Early life On 19 March 1888, Kaufmann was born in Forest Hill, London, England. Education K ...

designed the residence and ancillary structures, and construction was completed in 1928. It was a gift from oil tycoon Edward L. Doheny to his son, Edward "Ned" Doheny, Jr. and his family. Following the purchase of the estate by the City of Beverly Hills in 1965, it became a city park in 1971, and was subsequently added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1976 as Doheny Estate/Greystone. The house and grounds are often used as locations for film and television shows. The house's descending staircase is one of the most famous sets in Hollywood.

Description

The 55-room,

Tudor-style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architectur ...

former residence is on 16 acres (6.5 ha) of land. When it was built, it cost over $4 million (equivalent to about $ million in ) and was the most expensive home in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

History

On February 16, 1929, four months after Ned Doheny, his wife Lucy and their five children moved into Greystone, Doheny died in a guest bedroom in a murder-suicide with his secretary, Hugh Plunkett. The official story indicated that Plunkett murdered Doheny either because of a "nervous disorder" or because he was angry over not receiving a raise. Others point out that Doheny's gun was the murder weapon and that Doheny was not buried in Los Angeles' Calvary Cemetery, a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

cemetery, with the rest of his family, indicating he had committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

. Both men are buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, within a few hundred yards of each other. Both were involved in the trial of Doheny's father in the

Teapot Dome scandal The Teapot Dome scandal was a bribery scandal involving the administration of United States President Warren G. Harding from 1921 to 1923. Secretary of the Interior Albert Bacon Fall had leased Navy petroleum reserves at Teapot Dome in Wyomi ...

. Doheny's widow, Lucy, remarried and lived in the house until 1955, when she sold the grounds to

Paul Trousdale Paul Whitney Trousdale Jr. (1915 – April 9, 1990) was an American real estate developer. He is best known for developing the Trousdale Estates in Beverly Hills, California. He built over 25,000 homes in Southern California. Early life Paul Whit ...

, who developed it into Trousdale Estates and sold the mansion to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

industrialist

Henry Crown Henry Crown (; June 13, 1896 – August 14, 1990) was an American industrialist and philanthropist. Among other things, he founded the Material Service Corporation, which merged with General Dynamics in 1959. At the time of his death, he was a b ...

, who rented it to

film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company or motion picture company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to make films, which is handled by the productio ...

s. In 1963 Crown planned to subdivide the property and demolish the mansion. Beverly Hills stopped the demolition by purchasing the mansion in 1965. The estate became a city park on September 16, 1971, and on April 23, 1976, was added to the

. The city leased the mansion to the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

from 1965 to 1982 for $1 per year, hoping the institute would pay for repairs and upkeep. Since 2002, the City of Beverly Hills has maintained a webpage for the park.

Current use

Greystone is now a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

and a location for special events, including the Beverly Hills Flower & Garden Festival. It is popular as a filming location due to its beauty, manicured grounds and Beverly Hills location. Some productions contribute to its upkeep and renovation. The 2007 film ''

There Will Be Blood ''There Will Be Blood'' is a 2007 American period drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, loosely based on the 1927 novel '' Oil!'' by Upton Sinclair. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview, a silver miner turned oilm ...

'', loosely based on the life of

Edward Doheny Edward Laurence Doheny (; August 10, 1856 – September 8, 1935) was an American oil tycoon who, in 1892, drilled the first successful oil well in the Los Angeles City Oil Field. His success set off a petroleum boom in Southern California, a ...

via the

Upton Sinclair Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American writer, muckraker, political activist and the 1934 Democratic Party nominee for governor of California who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in sever ...

book ''Oil!'', renovated its two-lane bowling alley to include it in the film. In addition to numerous events that take place there, the mansion plays host each year to Catskills West, a theater arts and drama camp run by Beverly Hills Parks and Recreation, from mid-June to early August. The camp presents a play in the pool area twice during the summer. The mansion is also a venue for the play ''The Manor,'' by Kathrine Bates, directed by Beverly Olevin, and produced by Theatre 40 of Beverly Hills, which takes place in various rooms. The audience is separated during the play to watch scenes in different orders. ''The Manor'''s plot is a fictionalized account of the Doheny family, including Doheny's involvement in the

and his son's murder. It has been performed every year at Greystone Mansion since 2002, making it Los Angeles' longest-running play.

Shot on location

References

External links

Greystone Mansion WebsiteArchived Greystone Mansion WebsiteFriends of Greystone Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greystone Mansion Houses in Beverly Hills, California Gardens in California Historic house museums in California Open-air museums in California Houses completed in 1928 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Los Angeles County, California Culture of Los Angeles History of Los Angeles Tudor Revival architecture in California Dark Shadows