Architect Henry Harwood Hewitt designed the Mediterranean style Villa Sophia for Clement E. Smoot in 1926. Smoot was an accomplished golfer who was part of the team that won the team gold medal at the 1904 Olympics held in St. Louis, Missouri. A 1906 graduate of Stanford University, Smoot was the owner and founder of the Smoot-Holman Company, specializing in the manufacture of industrial lighting. British film director James Whale occupied the house in the 1930s. Whale is most remembered for his horror films, including Frankenstein (1931), The Old Dark House (1932), The Invisible Man (1933) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935). He also directed Hell’s Angels (1930), Show Boat (1936) and The Man in the Iron Mask (1939). Polish-born conductor Artur Rodzinski, lived at the villa between 1929 and 1932, along with his wife, concert pianist wife Ilse (Reimesch) and their son Witold Rodzinski, who would later serve as Polish Ambassador to Great Britain and China. Rodzinski was the conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra during his residency at the Villa.
The current owner of the property, Constantine Timothy Vlahos has undertaken an extensive redevelopment of the property including the addition of a pool house, pool, loggia, dining pavilion, outdoor terraces and gardens that have greatly enhanced Hewitt’s original design. Inspiration, according to Vlahos came from his familiarity with the homes and gardens of well-known Italianate properties including the 16th-century Villa d’Este in Tivoli, the Villas Carlotta and del Balbianello on Lake Como as well as the 17th century Baroque style Villa Cetinale near Siena.
The Villa Sophia is located at 4565 Dundee Drive in the historic Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. For more information please visit
www.theVillaSophia.com. Photo courtesy of Constantine Timothy Vlahos. Please do not use this image in any media without permission. © All rights reserved.
