User:C hughes33/Elrod house

The Elrod House located in the Palm Springs desert represents an important piece of built history. This extravagant exemplar of West Coast casual elegance was originally designed in 1968 by mid-20th-century architect John Lautner as the ultimate party home for the equally famous Arthur Elrod, then top interior designer for Hollywood’s biggest stars.

From the day it was built the priceless Elrod House received much international acclaim for its futuristic elements (massive motorized plate glass walls, sliding doors precisely cut to fit the contours of the rock the house is built on, natural boulders in the living room, a huge swooping domed roof, a desert ridge-side swimming pool that has been dubbed one of the ‘world’s greatest’ and more) and its overall architectural significance.

The Elrod House also took its place as celebrated cultural icon after “starring” in the smash hit 1971 James Bond film, Diamonds are Forever, where it was the hideaway for the film’s hero, a visionary futuristic billionaire and featured as the performance floor for Bond’s legendary battle with bikini-clad henchwomen, Bambi and Thumper.

Excavated out of rock on a sloping desert ridge around naturally occurring boulders and anchored on the southern tip of Palm Springs, the 8,901 square foot circular estate is set on 23.25 acres and boasts an enormous domed concrete roof that drapes over the spectacular indoor/outdoor pool framed by boulders, five bedrooms and five and a half baths. This open-plan residence is anchored around its massive circular living area, which features spectacular 220-degree desert and mountain views and a signature motorized glass wall.

Boulders in the living room give areas of the home the sense of being a naturally formed private indoor cave, and the entire north wall is made of motorized glass that opens up to allow for outstanding views westward to Mount San Jacinto and north into Palm Springs.

Now completely refurbished and protected by a preservation-minded owner, it is used as a vacation property for the uber elite members of an invitation only ultra luxury travel group, the Southridge Club.

External Links http://www.everywheremag.com/places/62 http://www.artltdmag.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1230059016&archive=&start_from=&ucat=28&page=features http://www.hgtv.com/decorating/diamonds-are-forever/index.html http://wikimapia.org/159361/The-Arthur-Elrod-House http://www.everywheremag.com/photos/9672 http://pc.blogspot.com/2007/12/elrod-house-john-lautner.html http://www.madamelamb.com/2008/07/john-lautners-elrod-home.html http://www.pvnews.com/articles/2007/12/13/society/society1.txt http://localism.com/blog/ca/palm_springs/posts/608629/Dine-at-the-Famous

References Architectural Digest, Spring 1970. p 50-61 Everywhere Magazine, 2007 Art ltd. Magazine, 2008