6147 Temple Hill Drive

Originally numbered as 2244 Temple Hill Drive, Marie Russak Hotchener, a foundational figure at the Hollywood Krotona Institute, was a self-taught architect who designed this house beginning in 1919.  Naming this two story, nine room house as "Moorcrest", she used her word travel experiences to India to create the Moorish estate.  The centerpiece of the home consisted of a two-story, light-flooded atrium featuring a soaring glass-domed ceiling and coned towers throughout.  The interior of the house was adorned with elaborate mosaic tiles, leaded stained-glass windows, hand-painted frescoes, and custom cabinetry.  There was also a covered driveway entrance which integrated remarkably with the home's winding hillside driveway.  The Hotcheners stayed in the home for a short period of time as they built another house next door and used this estate primarily as a rental property beginning in 1921.  

The first tenant to move in was actor Charlie Chaplin in January of 1921 and was paying $500 per month (equivalent to $9,000 today).  Chaplin was in the midst of divorcing this first wife, actress Mildred Harris and the first thing he did was built a private garage for his vehicles.  Chaplin's just finished filming one of his most memorable films, "The Kid" which premiered in Ferbuary of 1921.  Following his divorce, Chaplin was romantically linked to actress Pola Negri towards the end of 1922.  Chaplin had purchased land in Beverly Hills near Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford's estate and began to build is own palace in which he moved out of the Temple Hill Drive house by January of 1924.

In mid-February 1924, the Hotcheners attempted to rent out the house again for $500 per month and by the end of the month, they reduced the price to $475.  Silent screen actress May McAvoy could not pass up the deal and moved into the seven bedroom home with her mother, Julia.  May just completed her role opposite Richard Barthelmess in "The Enchanted Cottage".  In 1925, she was awarded a role in MGM's "Ben Hur" with co-stars Ramon Navarro and Francis X. Bushman.  She gave up the house in the later part of 1925 due to filming the movie in Europe and the Hotcheners decided to sell the property.  

In 1925, actress Mary Astor purchased the property, now renamed 6147 Temple Hill Terrace, for $200,000 as a gift to her parents, Otto and Helen Langhanke.  Otto, who was teaching music, gave up his job to manage Mary's promising acting career.  Every payday, Mary would hand over her money to her father, who would take out money for their living expenses and give her one quarter of what was left.  Mr. Langhanke grew accustomed to living like royalty in his new castle and took out a mortgage for a pool, which incidentally, he never used.  In February 1928, Mary Astor married director Kenneth Hawks in the home.  They rented a home down the street at 2266 Alycona Drive after they married before moving to 8803 Appian Way in the west section of Hollywood Hills.  After Hawks was killed in a plane crash while filming in January 1930, Mary moved back into the Temple Hill Drive house with her parents.

A year and a half later, Mary married Dr. Franklin Thorpe and informed her parents she would give them $1,000 a month but could no longer afford to pay all their bills.  In 1934, her parents brought a suit against their daughter demanding she provide them with the financial support they needed as they were about to be evicted from Moorcrest.  Astor claimed her parents lived beyond their means and made some "wildcat" investments that did not pan out.  Before the lawsuit, Astor claimed she even offered to get them a seven room house in San Francisco but they declined the offer.  Mr. Langhanke stated he gave up his "career" to help hers and was now selling some of his belongings to pay for groceries.  The bank ended up taking the house and it was going to be auctioned off on April 24 at 10:30 a.m.  Hundreds of curious people showed up to the auction to take a look at the home and all of its contents with no intention to buy anything.  Mr. and Mrs. Langhanke sat upstairs in an alcove in tears, not wanting their castle to be taken away from them.  When it came time to auction off the home, there were only two offers; one for $21,000 and then $21,500.  Auctioneer C.H. O'Conner announced that Lillie C Colyer, 229 S Kingsley Drive, was awarded the property for $21,500.  Despite the Langhanke's attempts to stop the sale, it was eventually finalized and Colyer's gave the house to her daughter and son-in-law,  Judge and Mrs. Willis Morrison, who remained in the house for over two decades.  

Thankfully the property has maintained it's 1920's Moorish look, inside and out, and is eligible to become part of the historic district.