Château Élysée
General information
Architectural styleChâteauesque
Location5930 Franklin Ave, Los Angeles, California
Coordinates34°6′16″N 118°19′08″W / 34.10444°N 118.31889°W / 34.10444; -118.31889
Completed1927
OwnerChurch of Scientology Celebrity Centre International
Technical details
Floor count7
Floor area86,204 sq. ft.[1]
Design and construction
Architect(s)Arthur E. Harvey
Main contractorLuther T. Mayo, Inc.

Château Élysée is a 1920s replica of a 17th-century French-Normandy chateau in Hollywood, California. Owned by the Church of Scientology, it is the home of Celebrity Centre International and the Manor Hotel. It is located at 5930 Franklin Avenue in the Franklin Village section of Los Angeles, California.

History

In 1927, Elinor "Nell" Ince, commissioned architect Arthur E. Harvey and contractor Luther T. Mayo, Inc. to build a luxury long-term residential apartment house for movie stars and the film industry.[1][2]

"The chateau was to be an apartment house and long-term grand hotel for both the Hollywood and international elite, supplying daily housekeeping and fine dining. For recreation, the grounds included a moat, formal gardens, tennis courts, and rooftop and patio entertainment spaces. Nell enlisted it-girl interior designer Marjorie Requa, the willowy blue blood who decorated Pickfair, to create sophisticated interiors inspired by Louis XIV, Piccadilly, and French-Norman styles."
—Hadley Meares, journalist, KCET[3]

Ince sold the property in 1943, and in 1951 the home was converted into a luxury retirement home called Fifield Manor. By the 1970s, the building was slated for demolition, and was purchased by the Church of Scientology.[3][4]

On September 23, 1987, the City of Los Angeles declared the building as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, number 329, encompassing the addresses 5925-5939 Yucca Street, 5930-5936 Franklin Avenue, and 1806-1830 Tamarind Avenue.[5]

Church of Scientology

In 1969, the building began being used by the Church of Scientology for its Celebrity Centre International, and they purchased the building in 1973 for one million dollars.[3][6] In the 1990s, the buildings and grounds were renovated,[7] and by 2013 the value of the property was estimated at $75 million.[3][4]

The Manor Hotel operates on several of the floors[8] and the rest of the building is the Celebrity Centre. Guided tours are available to the general public.[9]

The Renaissance Restaurant, located in the conservatory, has described itself as an "Award-winning five-star restaurant serving fresh organic and preservative-free French-Californian cuisine."[10] The restaurant was previously open to the public, but it is now only open to Scientologists, their guests, and occasional visitors.[11][12][9][13]

References

  1. 1 2 Chateau Elysee Apartment Hotel, Los Angeles, CA (1928), Pacific Coast Architecture Database
  2. ↑ Early Hollywood by Marc Wanamaker; Robert W Nudelman. Charleston, S.C. : Arcadia Pub., 2007
  3. 1 2 3 4 The Chateau Elysee: Scientology's Celebrity Centre Before it Went Clear, April 19, 2013, KCET
  4. 1 2 Scientology’s Hollywood Real Estate Empire, July 21, 2011, The Hollywood Reporter
  5. ↑ Chateau Elysee, Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument. Accessed December 15, 2022.
  6. ↑ Wright, Lawrence (February 14, 2011). "The Apostate : Paul Haggis vs. the Church of Scientology". The New Yorker. Condé Nast Digital. Retrieved February 13, 2011.
  7. ↑ Château Scientology, January 07, 2008, The New Yorker
  8. ↑ Amenities, The Manor Hotel. Archived August 31, 2018.
  9. 1 2 I Ate Brunch At The Scientology Restaurant And Lived To Tell The Tale, September 5, 2018, LAist
  10. ↑ Renaissance Restaurant, The Manor Hotel. Archived March 30, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Suppressive Supper: I Ate Dinner At The Scientology Celebrity Centre". Food & Wine. June 22, 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  12. ↑ Eat at L. Ron's, November 7, 2001, LA Weekly
  13. ↑ "Is Scientology dangerous?". The Times. January 23, 2008. Archived from the original on May 11, 2008.
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