Robert Wise’s Former Century City Condo

Often a project is special for sentimental reasons. One such project for Dean Larkin was this Century City Condo project. Dean relates a story about his initial interview with the condo owner, Alex Conrad, where they were discussing built-ins.

“She said ‘I need to have a place for these’ indicating some awards on a shelf. I said, ‘you aren’t in the film business.’ She said ‘no, but my grandfather was.’ So, of course I asked who her grandfather was.

When she said her grandfather was Robert Wise, I asked, ‘West Side Story and Star Trek Robert Wise?’ When she said yes, it delighted me to no end!”

The unit had belonged to Wise and when he passed away in 2005, he had left it to her. This picture shows his academy awards on the top shelf of the bookcase.

Wise’s granddaughter also asked about Dean’s children in the interview. They were really young at the time, and she asked where they would go to school. When Dean admitted he didn’t know yet, she said “It will be Walthers.”

She advised Dean to show up to the cookie exchange every December and she was right. Dean remembers, “I showed up to the school and there was a man doing face painting, and it turned out to be David Lynch from Twin Peaks. In this part of LA you get used to seeing people and things that might show up in movies.” Additionally, by showing up to the cookie exchange, Dean met the woman who runs the school and eventually ended up redoing their playground.

Of course, there was more to the Century City condo remodel than built-ins to hold Robert Wise’s awards. The condo’s bright open spaces have wide views of the city below from almost every room, which are spectacular day or night. The herringbone-patterned wood floor at the foot of the curving staircase adds interest and also separates the space from the dining area and the hallway on the other side. Coffered ceilings in the living room add a bit of luxury and character, and make the room seem even larger.

The kitchen’s white marble look paired with white cabinets and accents maintains the bright and airy feeling of the condo and the long workspaces, including a long island, create elegant space for cooking while entertaining.

Dean Larkin Design was established in Los Angeles in 1999. This modern architecture firm maximizes the intrinsic potential of a location while meeting each client’s specific lifestyle, business, or institutional needs. Dean Larkin is very familiar with both historical and contemporary homes in So Cal and the entire Los Angeles area, and the firm endeavors to achieve a complexity that is multi-layered with an effortless elegance. For a design that is modern and innovative, unlocks your location’s innate potential by making specific use of light, views and more, and is uniquely designed for the way you live, like the Century City Condo, contact Dean Larkin for a consultation.