Broadacre City

Frank Lloyd Wright

and his vision for the urban future

Sports Club and Play Resort

for Huntington Hartford

by Franz Sdoutz

Sports Club and Play Resort [and Cottage Group Center] 1947 by Frank Lloyd Wright in Runyon Canyon Park

"[… Huntington Hartford] planned a members-only resort for two thousand people. Committing $ 500.000 to the idea, Hartford commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright […]

Local residents, especially those along Mulholland, objected to the plan and any zoning change to accommodate it. In August 1947, nearly six hundred residents held a meeting to let Hartford and Wright know that they considered the development a 'monstrosity' and a traffic nuisance. The battle lasted two years until Wright pulled out." II.) 1

Apparently reflecting the opponents perception of the project; which in both schemes includes the Play Resort ["recreation unit" Img. _01] as an independent feature … III.) 2

"If totally occupied, the Cottage Group Center [in scheme 1] would provide accommodations for approximately 130 guests, [for only 78 guests in scheme 2 … which] prompts the suggestion that the opus was intended for a type of private club, rather than the usual resort hotel facility." III.) 3

References:

1. 'The Drawings of Frank Lloyd Wright' by Arthur Drexler, published by Bramhall House, New York in 1962
   
   Img. 01 Drawing 4731.019
2. 'The Story of Hollywood: An Illustrated History' by Gregory Paul Williams published by www.storyofhollywood.com in 2006 http://books.google.at/
   
   1 [page 284]
3. 'Frank Lloyd Wright 1943-1959: The Complete Works' [Volume 3] by Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, edited by Peter Gössel, published by Taschen 2009
   http://www.taschen.com/
   
   2 The swimming pool apparently provides for the waterfall flowing from the edges of the lower left disk. [Img. _01] [Project description on pages 123, 124]
   3 [page 129]
   4 [page 130]
4. IN:
   'Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward' published on the occasion of the exhibition 'Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward' at the Guggenheim Museum NY 2009, by Skira Rizzoli Publications Inc. 2009
   
   Section FLLW FDN # 4837.041 [Huntington Hartford Cottage Group Center # 2, 1946 {!} ] is not included in 'The Complete Works' III.) [page 279]
   Perspective FLLW FDN # 4837.046 and FLLW FDN # 4837.047 [scheme 2] are shown much larger. [Page 278, 280-281]

Links

www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com

Video:
www.youtube.com 2
http://www.guggenheim.org/ 2

more Broadacre

• 'Broadacre City' model; illustrations 002, 003, 004, 005, 006, 007 for 'The Living City'
• related housing schemes:
  Quadruple Block Plan; Willey House; Cloverleaf Quadruple Housing; Galesburg Country Homes; American System-Built Houses; Usonian Houses
• additional architecture:
  Huntington Hartford Play Resort; Gordon Strong Automobile Objective; Rogers Lacy Hotel

File Log

• Outlining Broadacre City became necessary in the course of my urban diploma project 16/3 in 1999. Put online the same year in German, this 'preliminary' English translation became available in 2007.
• All links to http://contentdm.unl.edu/ [University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries] have been updated (25.11.2008).
• Links to http://www.mcah.columbia.edu/ [Columbia University in the City of New York] added (2.8.2009)
• All dates according to source [!]. Wikipedia and 'The Complete Works' by Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer accomplish [even here] a certain 'conventionalisation', superseding conflicting 'chronologies' supported by [prior] publications of the time.
  
  

Feedback

Please send your suggestions and comments to office@medienarchitektur.at