Eldon Davis

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Eldon Davis
Armet & Davis
Buildings

Eldon Carlyle Davis (February 2, 1917 – April 22, 2011) was an

Armet & Davis architectural firm which championed Googie architecture, including the original Norms Restaurant, a Googie coffee shop designed by Davis.[1] For his work, the Los Angeles Times called Davis, "the father of the California coffee shop."[1]

Biography

Eldon Davis was born in Anacortes, Washington in 1917.[2] He originally worked at a fish cannery while attending the University of Southern California.[1] He created a new design for the fish cannery as an architectural student, a design that was later built.[1] Davis earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Southern California in 1942.[1]

Davis and his business partner, architect Louis Armet, expected to work in industrial architecture following their graduation from USC.[1] However, their plans changed thanks to the post-war construction boom in Southern California following World War II.[1] They began designing structures geared towards a growing population, including nurseries, churches, country clubs, banks and even bowling alleys.[1]

In 1947, Davis and Armet opened their architectural firm,

Armet & Davis.[1] Together, the architects used their firm and its designs to champion Googie architecture, especially in California.[1]
The firm exists today as Armet Davis Newlove Architecture and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California.

One of the best preserved examples of Davis's work is the

Big Boy and Denny's restaurants in Los Angeles.[1] The older buildings on the Fullerton campus of Hope International University also display Davis's classic Googie style.[3]

Eldon Davis died of complications from

spinal meningitis, at a hospital in West Hills, Los Angeles, on April 22, 2011, at the age of 94.[1] He was survived by his second wife, Luana; a daughter, Karen; three sons, Dan, Mark and Wyatt; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, Audrey and Connor.[1] His first wife of more than thirty years died in the 1970s.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Nelson, Valerie J. (26 April 2011). "Eldon Davis dies at 94; architect designed 'Googie' coffee shops". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ^ "Davis, Eldon". Pacific Coast Architecture Database. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
  3. ^ "HIUs 'Googie' Architect of the Past, Eldon Davis, Passed Away". Hope International University. Archived from the original on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2013.

External links

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