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Though the Log Cabin's life was 66 years, its legacy will live forever. |
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The Log Cabin's legacy began even before the Laurel Tavern opened its doors in 1916, quickly becoming the social epicenter of Laurel Canyon's new wealthy male society. |
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 The Log Cabin
was originally constructed to be a way station for passengers of the
Bungalow Land Trackless Trolley.
{right}Advertisements encouraged visitors to bring their family, and bring a lunch, to enjoy while utilizing the log Cabin way station and its adjacent picnic tables for a relaxing day in the hills. Word got out that there was no salesmen present on Sundays, and interested buyers were joined by Laurel Canyon families, as well as an assortment of other Los Angeles residents. Hence, the Log Cabin became the first social center of Laurel Canyon. |
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| THE LAUREL TAVERN - opened - 1916 | |||
 The
developer of Bungalow Land & Wonderland Park, Charles Spencer Mann was
closely associated with the consortium of investors (primarily L.A.
utility companies) who were developing the much larger, estate size
canyon lots along Laurel Canyon [Blvd]. Mann had become obsessed with
the construction of 'His Dream',an opulent hotel-villa atop Lookout Mountain,
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When the wealthiest actor in Hollywood, cowboy film legend, Tom Mix, purchased the Tavern in the early "roaring" 20's, the parties continued, but were now 'private affairs' for the "Hollywood Elite" party crowd. Tom Mix sold the property after a few years, and moved his parties to LA's newest celebrity enclave, Beverly Hills, when construction of the mansion on his seven acre gated compound was completed. After Mix exited The Canyon, the "sex & drugs" remained standards at the log cabin parties, even as the social level of its tenants (and guests) noticeably dropped.
Eventually, the cabin's revolving door, short-term, tenants became
long-term squatters, and a variety of local & nomadic transients. The
Log Cabin had
become a small portion of the rambling Laurel Canyon compound at 2401, now
including the Rock&Roll Treehouse, plus a slew of man-made caves.
The property was now owned by the
family of Fonya Pearson, a somewhat eccentric landlord who paid little
attention to such matters.
By the mid-sixties, the seeds of
"Flower Power" were
sprouting throughout America, and they were
"blossoming" along the streets
in San Francisco's
Haight-Ashbury District,
Residing in the tri-level 80 foot long
Log Cabin at the time was an assortment of specimens who personified the
new era. Scattered throughout various niches in the expansive structure,
lived six to ten free spirited young females who were attracting
attention by their odd style of dress, their general appearance & demeanor,
plus their new
free-form dancing at the various new Rock Clubs along the Sunset Strip. The
Log Cabin 'tenants of
record' were the Franzoni brothers and perhaps artist/sculptor Vito
Paulekas & his wife Szou. This 'gang of freaks'
decided they
would pay their rent by staging live music
BYOB dance parties in the upstairs living room, charging $2.00 for
admission. Unfortunately, the proceeds from the parties seldom went towards the rent, plus, the police were now pressuring the landlady, Fonya Pearson, who was then living in the huge Mediterranean mansion next door, to put a stop to the growing nightly mayhem at the corner Log Cabin.
Though it might be difficult for the uninitiated Zappa fan to recognize the genius of this idolized, oft- heralded "Freak Out", composer of such Rock Classics as:
Carl Franzoni's brother John, was working with a number of ex Zappa musicians in the formation of the band, Fraternity of Man, and using the cabin as their rehearsal space. Frank Zappa and his Mothers of Invention were earning recognition, and some money as well, in New York, and was anxious to get back to Los Angeles with his new wife, Gail, and their baby, Moon Unit. Franzoni convinced Zappa to assume the cabin's $700 a month lease, and the Zappa family, along with most of the Mother's musicians and crew moved to 2401 Laurel Canyon. The problems arose when the ragtag commune remained in residence as well. Much like the 1920s when Tom Mix bought the Laurel Tavern, the non-stop parties continued, but now the list of cabin drop-in guests included some of the biggest names in Rock. After four months, the Zappa family bailed from the mania of the cabin, electing to move to a more discreet Laurel Canyon location. Even without Zappa, the unabated madness continued .
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AUTHOR'S NOTE:
The Log Cabin was the site & source for the majority of the Hollywood myths and legends that surround the property at 2401 Laurel Canyon. Adding to the mythology were the two closest neighboring properties, the "Theda Bara Mansion" next door, and the "Houdini Estate" directly across the street. And then there is ... |
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Internationally renowned LA architect, Robert Byrd, was going through an LA divorce at the time, so, unable to leave the area for assignments, he accepted the challenge of designing a "guesthouse" that could legally be built on the 3.5 acres of the estate's hillside property. Together with his son Gary, the pair began construction of what was initially known as "The Byrd House". Byrd's number one priority was to build the house
as far away as possible from the noisy Tavern built on the property's
only flat buildable housing pad below, right at the main intersection of
Laurel Canyon & Lookout Mountain |
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DEBUNKING SOME CANYON STORIES |
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The
Houdini Estate +
The Houdini Estate
Many of the popular myths & ghost stories concerning the intersection of
Laurel Canyon & Lookout Mountain derive from Harry Houdini's ownership
of the estate across the street from the Log Cabin/Treehouse estate. First off, let me say that I had the good fortune to befriend Patrick Williams, the owner of "The Houdini Estate" back in 1999, prior to his sale of the property. At that time, he had renovated the main house, cleaned up the entrance/driveway and the expansive grounds, and built a new guest/caretaker's house. He was totally enthralled with the Houdini mythology and accompanying aura, and I'm sure he realized that it added to the property's value. Whatever the motivation, we shared hours of conversation on his ideas, my experiences across the street, a possible screenplay, etc. I was given free run of the entire estate for research. Obviously, I had enjoyed the same luxury across the street for almost 20 years.
The Houdini Tunnel: I can emphatically state that there is no sign of any tunnel near the Treehouse and adjoining area, The only possibility is down in the lower lot corner next to the two streets. Crosby excitedly proclaimed that we had located Houdini's subterranean passage to his Treehouse Trysts. I felt it was perhaps a very old municipal water meter casing, crushed by the roots of what was now at least a 6 ft. in diameter palm tree stump, next to the discovery. Regardless, I found no sign of anything even closely related anywhere on the "Houdini" lot.
About six months ago, (Thursday, October 16, 2008 11:28 PM)
I purchased a copy of Michael Walker's excellent book:
I would recommend this book to
anyone who is a music fan, or interested in the social history of
California, Los Angeles, Hollywood, the film business, the '60s,
hippies, you name it. Required reading for Baby Boomers and their
children! The subject matter, expressed in the author's most readable
style, is reminiscent of the lyrical, flowing musical styles of the
finest artists from Laurel Canyon. As a result, the well documented book
flows through the chapters with ease. Because the author, Michael Walker, didn't arrive in Laurel Canyon until 1991, he was forced to rely on interviews instead of personal experience. He was able to round up an impressive list of big name Laurel Canyon celebrities, and 'local legends', to recount their stories of 'the good old Canyon days'. Personally, I take issue with a few of his sources, but I wouldn't dare question the opinions of such Canyon stalwarts as Kim Fowley and Michael Des Barres.
I had planned on enclosing a
few quotes from Walker's informative and quite accurate record of
Laurel Canyon's history and its rightful place in Rock & Roll
History.
Harry Houdini has been credited with the
famous line about his biography:
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Stay Tuned... |
The second (and remaining) structure
on the 3.5 acre hillside estate, at the corner of Laurel Canyon & Lookout Mountain, was
built five or six years after the Laurel Tavern opened its
doors to the Canyon elite. 
so Byrd chose a miniscule flat
region a few hundred feet up Lookout Mountain near the lot's highest
point in its southwest corner. He was forced to build the house directly
in the path of a natural fed mountain stream. The foundation for the
house would dam the stream resulting in a pond abutting the home's
western wall. The overflow from the pond was rerouted behind the
structure to feed pools below. A bigger hurtle for the architect was the
the two huge trees which stood firmly in the middle of the proposed
"site". These beautiful natural specimens provided shade and ambiance
for the western hillside parcel of the estate's property, which ran
along Lookout Mountain Ave. (Trail at that time). Removal of the trees,
if not impossible at the time, was never considered. Uprooting the
monsters would destroy the entire natural hillside sub structure, as
well as the water problems. The only solution was to construct the tri
level house around the two trees.
As I understand it, even though designed by a respected architect, much
of the construction was improvised, as different natural obstructions,
and related problems surfaced. Nonetheless, the totally unique tri-level
house, built around a pair of huge trees (redwood or eucalyptus), which
protrude through the shingled roof, proudly stands well over 80 years
after the architect first confronted the natural challenges. It should
also be pointed out that the majority of those 80 were years of neglect.
Thanks to the hard work and imagination of Mike Slarve's renovation
team, the Treehouse and adjoining property shine like never seen, even
way back when the Hollywood of the '20s" Roared. 
I
believe that the "Houdini Estate" and "Houdini's Tunnel"
are, by far, the most popular of
the hundreds of myths associated with any of the famed Laurel Canyon properties.
Hollywood folklore - the mysterious tunnel!
Whether Houdini's or not - I had to know!
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