'Progress' marches on... Chicago's venerable Miami Bowl is closing down on August 15th, Built in 1959, it is one of the last remaining nuggets of Googie architecture in Chicago. 80 (eighty!) lanes of perfectly preserved fluorescent orange glory, bound for the bulldozer. This follows the May closing of the Marigold Bowl, another vintage Chicago pin palace. On another front: the village idiot board in my town, Deerfield, has decided to kill a preservation plan that would put minor restrictions on 'teardowns,' i.e., older homes that developers bulldoze to make way for fugly brick barn McMansions. In the last 3 years, our town has lost 200+ vintage houses, including Craftsman bungalows, Victorians, midcentury moderns, even a Frank Lloyd Wright. Sorry for the O/T rant, but I want to encourage you all to support you local historic home preservation ***ociations, and to patronize local vintage joints (bowling alleys, bars, drive-ins) before they are lost to the wrecking ball.
I walked past the hole in the ground that used to be the Java Lanes where the Lava Lounge the Shifters usta have their post Viva Las Vegas party was. It's gone. They tore it down last month. I heard they're going to build more ****in' Condos. Which means more kids which means their going to be crying for another school... Loong Beach is FULL! And now there isn't even anyplace for kids to go bowling and have fun that doesn't involve destroying things in alleys. Go live somewhere else! (Condo = Con you out of your dough$)
A FRANK WRIGHT..thats sacraligious! What next the Farnsworth house? I think i would have to chain myself to the farnsworth house before letting them have that one! First Wright next thing you know it'll be Mies van der Rohe...*******!!
I can relate, I'm sure EVERYBODY can. It happens everywhere. Alot of folks think the mid century architecture was silly and to a certain degree it was. That's part of the charm. Our Kon Tiki hotel met the same fate as your Bowling Alley will, ****S. When I drive into the more central area of Phoenix I see older gas stations that did not make it out of the 70's or 80's without having their flagstone fascias painted over with tan or mauve paint. It's repulsive. Ironically, newer business have adopted the stacked flagstone look, gl*** block, yada yada. It's over done and is a sure way to kill that style all together. Speaking of "one style fits all", all the new houses are the same (essentially seperated condos), must be hard to know which driveway to pull into. Better park in the garage if you CAN find your house though, because the Home Owners ***ociation will fine you for parking out in the open! Small **** nazis....
I live in a city where there's not much mid or pre-mid century stuff left. When I'm out and about in smaller towns around Iowa, I LOVE seeing the old motels and the signs, etc.. The problem is that if anyone is going to restore anything around here, it might be a bed and breakfast or something REALLY old. 1950's stuff here is considered worthless. So I'm of the mindset that if you want to experience 1950's motelobowlorama type stuff, you just gotta pull in, spend the night, or bowl a few frames.. Because short of Bill Gates' style checking accounts, you can't stop the wrecking ball snapped this over the weekend out of my pickup window:
What Mike didn't tell you guys is that there is more Wright designed buildings in Chicago than the rest of the world combined - like more than 80 residences in addition to all the commercial buildings. But, he's right. And not alone. Lots of cities have suplemented their normal historic preservation groups with specific Modern Interest groups. Dallas has had one for almost a decade, and Houston has one that is just now two years old. I don't think Austin has one, but at least they protect their trees from being destroyed by new development - and that protects the buildings they grown up around. I'll join Mike in urging everyone to become local historians of the place they live. Join the preservation societies and understand the social, political, and economic forces that shaped the areas that you live in. It makes for better ****tail conversation at a minimum, and often becomes a snowball of interest that can improve and save older and interesting buildings.
They're dropping like flies here in Vegas... the Gl*** Pool Inn is a memory now, and on August 31st they are blowing up the old Algiers... bummer. http://www.montybanks.com/AAAAAAVegasGuide/AlgiersHotelVintage****tailLounge.htm
There is still this amazing little community of Eichler homes by my brothers house in Orange County. Probably 4 square blocks. I keep trying to get him to cough up the bread and buy one...but no luck yet. I'd do it myself if my commute wouldn't **** ***. An hour each way is already enough.
Two old vintage gas stations here are getting bulldozed. One was an original gas station on the Lincoln Highway, aptly named The Lincoln Highway garage. Tight history(even had a small Highway museum) brushed aside for a convenience store. The other is a garage/gas station made over into a car lot with old architecture. Looks like its getting ****d by those *******s - Walmart. Side note on that one, there is a super Walmart 4.8 miles away, that will remain open as well. At least it'll do good for the Chinese economy.
There's a bowling alley in Sausalito, California that may see the bulldozer- unless somebody purchases it. Might make a *****in rod shop. -Crew
lesabre - clarification: the Frank Lloyd Wright house in my 'hood ("Friedman House") is literally the last building Wright ever designed, in 1959. It was scheduled to be torn down last year until a group of preservationists started a national campaign to publicize it. They basically embarr***ed the local zoning board into declaring the house a landmark. It's still standing today, but still for sale... http://www.savewright.org/newsletter/fourhouses.html The best way to preserve this stuff is to own it. Exhibit A: modernbeat's killer midcentury house in Dallas, which he restored himself. Post some pics, Jason! brjr51 - sout sider, eh? Joliet's my kinda town.
Did you know that there is a Wright house in Alabama? Not many people do... It's still lived in by the original owner who commissioned it from ol Frank... you can call her up for a tour, she is old but loves to give tours. She still has the furniture he made as well. Cool.
Old Bowling alleys rule! Here in Seattle we've got this cool one called Lelani Lanes. As you can imagine w/ a name like that, it's got a Tiki thing going on...an original, untouched since the day it was built Tiki thing. Has that smell that only an old ***'d bowling alley can have. Hehe. Any of you ever been in a Wright house? They're, ugh, interesting. I've been in Falling Water a couple of times. Make no mistake, his houses were designed for visual impact first, and living second. There's two hallways you have to turn sideways to get down. They're also famous for leaking like a siv due to poor roof designs.
Cool, Gracie... didn't know that Wright built anything south of the Ohio River. My home town of Sioux City, Iowa has a lot of very cool prairie style architecture, especially the Woodbury County Courthouse (designed by Wright's mentor Louis Sullivan). Sioux City also has the Richard Neutra-designed Everett House, one of the few homes he built outside of California.
Leaky roofs or not, Wright buildings RULE. Because of my job, I've spent a lot of time at the S.C. Johnson Headquarters in Racine WI, which Wright designed in 1939. Probably the coolest office buiding in the world.
Gracie, Is the Wright home you told about that is still owned by the origonal owner the one that was on the Discovery or Learning channel awhile back? If so that's a very cool house and an even neater story behind it. No time to relate it now, but I just happened to tune in and was facinated by the whole thing. There is a Wright designed home in Midland,MI that was owned by a friend of mine before he retired (I know some people with money even though I don't have any myself ) Frank
Ahhh Mike, too bad about Miami Bowl. I've been there many a night throwing gutters and ****ing down brews. The wife bowled in leagues there in the '70's too. That was part of my neck of the woods before moving Northwest in the 90's. Progress and so it goes. Hey, how about "nook and cranny" Henry Zook designed homes. Joel
OOPS, my bad, looks like it was sold to the city back in 1999... its been a while since I was there... the little old lady herself took me around and I had tea with her... I hope she didn't die or something... anyway, here is the website... http://www.wrightinalabama.com/
i read a story about a Wright house that was in Gary indiana.. when it was "re-discovered" it was a crack house with big holes in it and a campfire in the middle of the living room.. had a "skylight" about 15' by 20' to let out the smoke.. crack-wright house
Mike, got your stories crossed. That modern house you're thing of is my Dallas Pal's, Jeff Keller. That guy with long blonde hair you met at the roundup. I've been looking for both a house and a career in Dallas. No luck yet... But you're right. The best way to preserve it IS to own it. Then you can do what you want with it.
I am fortunate enough to live right down the street from a Wright built home. Its the Dudley Spencer house built in '56. Some say it was called "Earth". Like Falling Water it had a theme, and that theme was that it blended into the landscape. You really have to look to see it. Its only completely visable in the winter months. Its the only Wright designed home in Delaware according to all the books I have. Spike
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