Whispers of Marilyn Monroe linger here. This is the YWCA Hollywood Studio Club. It is more than just a building. It is a portal to a golden age. An era when dreams were as big as the silver screen.
The YWCA Hollywood Studio Club started in 1916. It was a haven for young women. These women were eager to break into the movies. Librarian Mrs. Eleanor Jones worried about them. She saw them living in cheap hotels. They had no place to study. She rallied the local YWCA to help.
The club began humbly in the Hollywood Public Library basement. Studios and businessmen soon donated to rent a house. This house on Carlos Avenue housed twenty women. Stars like Mrs. Cecil B. DeMille and Mary Pickford supported the club. Pickford recalled Mrs. DeMille’s daily dedication. The motion picture industry rallied around the YWCA Hollywood Studio Club.
In the early 1920s, Hollywood faced scandals. The image of the “extra girl” suffered. Studios sought to improve their reputation. Will Hays led reforms. These reforms included the Central Casting Bureau. They also built a new, larger home for the Studio Club. The goal was to replace the image of the exploited extra with the “studio girl”. This new image was of a graceful woman tutored in etiquette and performing arts.
Between 1923 and 1925, a fundraising campaign took place. It aimed to build a new Hollywood Studio Club. Contributions came from Famous Players-Lasky and Metro Goldwyn. Carl Laemmle and Warner Bros. also donated. Even aviator Andree Peyre held an aerial exhibition to raise funds. Norma Talmadge’s donation allowed construction to begin. Julia Morgan designed the new building. A groundbreaking ceremony occurred in June 1925 with Pickford and Morgan.
The new Hollywood Studio Club opened in May 1926. It cost $250,000. The opening ceremony was attended by 2,500 people. This included many motion picture celebrities.
Julia Morgan designed the Studio Club in a Mediterranean style. The interiors featured pistache green, rose coral, and tan. The building has three sections. There is a central section with connecting wings. The entrance has a loggia. It has three archways with decorative quoins. A painted frieze sits above the main entrance. Rooms were named after donors who gave at least $1,000.
To live at the Studio Club, women had to seek a motion picture career. This could be as an actress, writer, or designer. The club offered classes. It also hosted dances and plays. Residents received two meals a day. They also had access to sewing machines and laundry equipment. Rosemary Breckler remembered the elegant atmosphere.
Many famous women lived here. Ayn Rand lived at the Studio Club when she arrived in Hollywood. Maureen O’Sullivan also lived here. Dorothy Malone lived here in the 1940s. She recalled a long waiting list to get in. Marilyn Monroe posed for nude photos to pay her rent at the Studio Club. Kim Novak lived here in the 1950s. Barbara Eden also resided at the Studio Club before “I Dream of Jeannie”. Sharon Tate lived here. Joanne Worley remembered the good food and 24-hour phone service.
By the mid-1960s, times changed. The idea of a chaperoned dormitory became outdated. The club expanded its membership. By 1971, it operated as a regular hotel. Fire code changes forced its closure in 1975.
The Hollywood Studio Club is a historic landmark. It stands as a reminder of Hollywood’s golden age. The YWCA Hollywood Studio Club was designated a Historic-Cultural Monument in 1977. In 1980, it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the building continues to support women. It provides interim housing for homeless women.