Arnold Kirkeby
Encyclopedia
Arnold Kirkeby was an American hotel
ier, art collector and real estate
investor.
He is now best known for owning the mansion in the West Los Angeles
suburb of Bel-Air, which was the exterior set for the CBS
TV show The Beverly Hillbillies
.
, Illinois
, and died in March 1962 in the American Airlines plane crash just after leaving New York
known as American Airlines Flight 1
.
TV fans will note that Kirkeby owned the stately mansion used for the hit CBS sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies" exterior shots, located at 750 Bel Air Road, Bel Air, California. Series producer Paul Henning
paid the family (Mr. Kirkeby was killed in a plane crash prior to the series debut) $500 per day for filming on the mansion's grounds. The mansion's interior and rear were duplicated on Stage 4 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
for 1960's "Cinderfella."
The son of Norwegian immigrants, he was married to Carlotta Cuesta, the daughter of Angel LaMadrid Cuesta, founder of the Cuesta-Rey
Cigar Company based in Tampa
, Florida
.
Arnold 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 Beverly Hills, CA.
After selling the hotel, he then invested in the Janss Brothers' Westwood, Los Angeles, California
development in 1959. As part of this project, Kirkeby broke ground on the Kirkeby Center on Wilshire Boulevard in 1960, but died in a plane crash before the building was completed.
The Kirkeby Center is now known as the Occidental Petroleum
headquarters, and is also now the home of the Armand Hammer
museum.
The Kirkeby Hotel organization included:
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
ier, art collector and real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
investor.
He is now best known for owning the mansion in the West Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
suburb of Bel-Air, which was the exterior set for the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
TV show The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
.
Biography
Arnold S. Kirkeby was born on June 12, 1901, in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and died in March 1962 in the American Airlines plane crash just after leaving New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
known as American Airlines Flight 1
American Airlines Flight 1
American Airlines Flight 1 was a domestic, scheduled passenger flight from New York International Airport , New York to Los Angeles International Airport, California that crashed shortly after take-off on 1 March 1962. All 87 passengers and eight crew died in the crash...
.
TV fans will note that Kirkeby owned the stately mansion used for the hit CBS sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies" exterior shots, located at 750 Bel Air Road, Bel Air, California. Series producer Paul Henning
Paul Henning
Paul William Henning was an American producer and writer. Most famous for the successful TV sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies, he was crucial in the development of several "rural" comedies for CBS.-Early life:...
paid the family (Mr. Kirkeby was killed in a plane crash prior to the series debut) $500 per day for filming on the mansion's grounds. The mansion's interior and rear were duplicated on Stage 4 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
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
for 1960's "Cinderfella."
The son of Norwegian immigrants, he was married to Carlotta Cuesta, the daughter of Angel LaMadrid Cuesta, founder of the Cuesta-Rey
Cuesta-Rey
Cuesta-Rey is a brand of hand-made cigar, founded in 1884 by Angel LaMadrid Cuesta and Peregrino Rey....
Cigar Company based in Tampa
Tâmpa
Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
Arnold 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 Beverly Hills, CA.
After selling the hotel, he then invested in the Janss Brothers' Westwood, Los Angeles, California
Westwood, Los Angeles, California
Westwood is a neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the University of California, Los Angeles .-History:...
development in 1959. As part of this project, Kirkeby broke ground on the Kirkeby Center on Wilshire Boulevard in 1960, but died in a plane crash before the building was completed.
The Kirkeby Center is now known as the Occidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum Corporation is a California-based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America...
headquarters, and is also now the home of the Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer was an American business tycoon most closely associated with Occidental Petroleum, a company he ran for decades, though he was known as well as for his art collection, his philanthropy, and for his close ties to the Soviet Union.Thanks to business interests around the world and his...
museum.
Hotels
- The Blackstone, Chicago, Illinois: Now operated by Marriott Hotels
- The DrakeDrake Hotel (Chicago)The Drake Hotel, 140 East Walton Place, Chicago, Illinois, is a luxury full-service hotel, located downtown on the lake side of Michigan Avenue two blocks north of the John Hancock Center and a block south of Oak Street Beach at the top of the Magnificent Mile.Overlooking Lake Michigan, it was...
, Chicago, Illinois - Sherry-Netherland, New York, New York
- The Townhouse, Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
: Now operated by SheratonSheraton Hotels and ResortsSheraton Hotels and Resorts is Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide's largest and second oldest brand . Starwood's headquarters are in White Plains, New York.-Sheraton history:... - The Gotham, New York, New York: Now known as The Peninsula New YorkThe Peninsula HotelsThe Peninsula Hotels is an ultra-luxury hotel operator based in Hong Kong, part of The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited. Their "flagship" hotel, the famous Peninsula Hong Kong, which opened in 1928, used to be known as the 'finest hotel east of the Suez'....
- Hampshire House, New York, New York
- The WarwickWarwick New York HotelThe Warwick New York Hotel is a luxury hotel located at 65 West 54th Street, off the Avenue of Americas in Manhattan, New York City. It is across the street from the Museum of Modern Art, and near Broadway, Carnegie Hall and Central Park.-History:...
, New York, New York - Saranac InnSaranac InnThe Saranac Inn was a large, luxurious hotel located on a peninsula at the northern end of the Upper Saranac Lake in the town of Santa Clara in the Adirondacks in New York State, USA. It was frequented by US Presidents Grover Cleveland and Chester A. Arthur and New York Governor Charles Evans Hughes...
, Saranac Lake, New YorkSaranac Lake, New YorkSaranac Lake is a village located in the state of New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,406. The village is named after Upper, Middle, and Lower Saranac Lakes, which are nearby.... - Hotel Ambassador, Atlantic City, New JerseyAtlantic City, New JerseyAtlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
: Became the Tropicana Casino - The Warwick, Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
: Now operated as the RadissonRadisson HotelsRadisson Hotels is one of the leading, full-service global hotel companies with more than 420 locations in 73 countries. The first Radisson Hotel was built in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1909, and was named after the 17th-century French explorer Pierre-Esprit Radisson...
Plaza. - Sunset TowerSunset TowerSunset Tower, previously known as The St. James's Club, The Argyle, and The Sunset Tower Hotel, is a historic building and hotel located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. Designed in 1929 by architect Leland A. Bryant, opened in 1931, it is considered one of the finest examples of...
, West Hollywood, CaliforniaWest Hollywood, CaliforniaWest Hollywood, a city of Los Angeles County, California, was incorporated on November 29, 1984, with a population of 34,399 at the 2010 census. 41% of the city's population is made up of gay men according to a 2002 demographic analysis by Sara Kocher Consulting for the City of West Hollywood... - The Kenilworth, Miami Beach, FloridaMiami Beach, FloridaMiami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter which separates the Beach from Miami city proper...
- Belleview-Biltmore HotelBelleview-Biltmore HotelThe Belleview Biltmore Resort and Spa is a currently closed historic resort hotel located at 25 Belleview Boulevard in the town of Belleair, Florida, USA. The hotel is situated along the eastern shores of Old Clearwater Bay, with views of the bay and the barrier islands which border the Gulf of...
, Clearwater, FloridaClearwater, FloridaClearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of... - El Panama, Panama City, Panama: Became the Panama Hilton
- Hotel Nacional de CubaHotel Nacional de CubaThe Hotel Nacional de Cuba is an historic luxury hotel located on the Malecón in Havana, Cuba. It was designed by the famous New York firm McKim, Mead and White and features an eclectic mix of architectural styles...
, Havana, Cuba - Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Beverly Hills, CaliforniaBeverly Hills, CaliforniaBeverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...