Arnold Kirkeby
Arnold Kirkeby | |
|---|---|
Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery | |
| Occupation(s) | Hotelier, real estate investor, art collector |
| Spouse |
Carlotta Cuesta (m. 1928) |
Arnold Sigurd Kirkeby (June 12, 1901 – March 1, 1962) was an American
art collector, and real estate investor. He is now best known for owning Chartwell Mansion in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel Air which was the exterior set for the CBS television show The Beverly Hillbillies.[1]
Biography
Kirkeby was born in
Tampa, Florida
.
Kirkeby was the founder of the Kirkeby Hotel chain, beginning in Chicago with the Drake Hotel, and ending his hotel interests when he sold the Beverly Wilshire in
Westwood, Los Angeles, California, in 1959.[2][3] As part of this project, Kirkeby broke ground on the Kirkeby Center on Wilshire Boulevard in 1960, but died before the building was completed. Kirkeby Center is now known as the Occidental Petroleum Building, and is the home of the Armand Hammer Museum.[4]
Television fans will note that Kirkeby owned the stately mansion located at
General Service Studios. Contractual provisions at the time prevented disclosure of the mansion's address in press releases, and required restoration of the grounds after each shoot. The mansion had been previously used by Jerry Lewis in the 1960 film Cinderfella
.
Kirkeby died aboard American Airlines Flight 1 when it crashed shortly after takeoff from New York City.[2]
Hotels
The Kirkeby Hotel organization included:
California
- Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Beverly Hills, California
- Los Angeles, California
- Sunset Tower, West Hollywood, California
Florida
- The Kenilworth, Miami Beach, Florida
- Belleview-Biltmore Hotel, Clearwater, Florida
Illinois
- Chicago, Illinois
- Chicago, Illinois
New York
- New York, New York
- Hampshire House, New York, New York[5]
- The Sherry-Netherland, New York, New York
- The Warwick, New York, New York
- Saranac Inn, Saranac Lake, New York
New Jersey
- Hotel Ambassador, Atlantic City, New Jersey: Rebuilt as the Tropicana Casino
Pennsylvania
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Cuba
- Havana, Cuba
Panama
- El Panama Hotel, Panama City, Panama
References
- ^ "TV Acres: Real Estate > Homes & Mansions > Clampett Mansion (The Beverly Hillbillies)". Archived from the original on 5 February 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ ISSN 0040-781X. Archived from the originalon March 21, 2009.
- ^ "Building on the Past for a Future Westwood". Los Angeles Times. 26 December 1999. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ "Occidental Petroleum Building/UCLA Hammer Museum". Los Angeles Conservancy. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ "Hotels: Better than Bonds". Time. 3 June 1946. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2016.