1930s streamline moderne by William Kesling seeks $1.75M

While nowadays only hardcore vintage-movie geeks could tell you who he is, for a time during the 1930s, Wallace Beery was the highest-paid actor in the world. And one thing the Oscar-winning star liked to spend money on was real estate.

In 1936, though he already owned a lavish Mediterranean-style mansion on Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills, Beery decided he wanted something closer to the movie studios, and commissioned William Kesling, the city’s foremost practitioner of Streamline Moderne, to design a pair of properties, one for himself, the other (a duplex) for guests. Located on N. Martel Avenue in Fairfax, the former Beery residence is now on the market for the first time since 2011.

One of just 15 single-family residences by Kesling extant in Los Angeles, the eye-catching home is distinguished by its green horizontal bands and nautical curves. Past a front yard landscaped with succulents and cacti is an interior courtyard with deco-era tiled fountain.

Measuring 1,404 square feet, the three-bedroom, two-bath home’s features include casement and clerestory windows, hardwood floors, ten-foot ceilings, a Roman-brick fireplace, period tile, and built-in seating and cabinetry, while its secluded backyard contains a koi pond and verdant garden.

On a 6,986-square-foot lot that, per the listing, is zoned LAR3, “allowing for future development,” the property is for sale with an asking price of $1.75 million.

• 947 N. Martel Ave [Coldwell Banker]
• 947 N. Martel Ave [Hilton & Hyland]