Category: Hollywood Blog

Gigi Whitley was born with a caulk over her face. This symbolized that she was chosen to be a dreamer. Throughout her life she would have dreams of events before they happened. One of her most eventful dreams saved the life of H. J. Whitley, Harry Chandler and H. G. Otis. They had planned to meet at the Times Building but because of Gigi’s dream the meeting was canceled. Instead they went to see a play with the ladies. The bombing happened October 1, 1910. A union member belonging to the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers planted the dynamite. The explosion started a fire which killed 21 newspaper employees and injured 100 more.

Her dreams gave her a close connection to God. Perhaps that is why Gigi Whitley planned the first Easter Sunrise Service in Hollywood. Few people know that the very first Hollywood Easter sunrise service took place in 1919 atop Whitley Heights in an open space at 6675 Whitley Terrace. It was the site of a Mission-style pavilion used for band concerts to attract prospective buyers to the new residential development.

That first Easter Sunrise Service, organized by Gigi Whitley, wife of Whitley Heights founder H.J. Whitley, was more of a block party, the kind of event that draws a community together. It was so successful that more space was needed to accommodate everyone who wanted to attend. The following year, the services were held on Olive Hill, now called Barnsdall Park. Because that venue lacked the acoustics needed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, a new location was sought. The Hollywood Bowl is famous for its Easter sunrise service held every year since 1921 in the outdoor theater nestled in a canyon enveloped by brush-shrouded hills.

And the site of that first Easter sunrise service in Whitley Heights is now occupied by a house built in 1951 and once occupied by actor Donald O’Connor, famous for starring in the movie “Singin’ in the Rain” with Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly. Wishing all of you a blesed Easter.

Many years ago the Whitley Family talked to Disneyland about H. J. Whitley being the “Father of Hollywood.” It was very kind of Disneyland to include the Whitley Building in California Adventure. It is on the corner of Hollywood and Sunset Blvds.

It appears that Disneyland may be opening again April 1, 2021. This might be a good time for you to visit the Whitley Building and share a piece of history with the Father of Hollywood.

Rudolph Valentino was a neighbor of HJ and Gigi Whitley. They all lived in Whitley Heights and would often run into each other on walks. Grace Whitley enjoyed taking dancing lessons from Valentino. One of Valentinp’s most popular romantic movies starred the controversial Italian actor in a new sexy way. A sex symbol at the time, Valentino was typified by his alternative look. He was the complete opposite of the macho masculinity expected of American men at the time and was rejected by American men, who were also jealous of his popularity with women.

A hit with women, Valentino played exotic parts of men in power, like Sheik Ahmed Ben Hassan in The Sheik. The conventional plot follows a headstrong independent woman who falls in love with a traditional man who denies his attraction to her wildness. A typical romantic film, The Sheik (and Valentino), however, revealed a longing by American women to be seen by society.

On December 18, 1902 a banquet was held to celebrate the opening of the Hotel Hollywood. H. J. Whitley was the president of the Hotel Hollywood. Below is the program from the event and some historical postcards of the Hotel Hollywood.

Over the years I have enjoyed working with the Hollywood Chamber to help premote the movie industry. I am the one on the left.

One of my favorite times is working the Academy Awards and speaking with the Foreign Press. I know they will be excited to learn that the book The Father Of Hollywood has been optioned by

Dreamstreet Entertainment

The script is under way for a series about the creation of Hollywood. Look for more news as it develops.

HJ Whitley is the Father of Hollywood. Besides naming the town in 1886 he also got the first movie studio to settle in Hollywood on October 26, 1911. It might surprise some of you to learn that he also was the founding father for these towns: Addington, Agawam, Amorita, Agusta, Aline, Anadarko, Apache, Avondale, Belleview, Bickford, Billings,
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The first Hollywood movie was filmed on Whitley Estate on October 26, 1911. Of all the products of popular culture, none is more sharply etched in our imagination than the movies. Most Americans instantly recognize images produced by the movies: Harrison Ford, as Indiana Jones, as an adventurous archeologist in Radars of the Lost Ark. Sean Connery, the gun-toting James Bond in Gold Finger, and Carrie Fisher, the beautiful princess who is fighting the evil emperor in Star Wars. Even those who have never seen ET, Casablanca or Gone With the Wind respond instantly to the advertisements, parodies, and TV skits that use these films’ dialogue, images, and characters. So when was the first Hollywood movie filmed?