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The architecturally significant houses destroyed in L.A.'s fires
Los Angeles has Frank Gehry’s glorious Walt Disney Concert Hall, the space-age wonder of the LAX Theme Building and the stack-of-vinyl needle drop that is the Capitol Records building. For some design geeks, however, the heart and soul of L.A.’s architecture resides not just in its museums and office towers but also in its exalted, often otherworldly houses.
Those homes — especially those designed by Midcentury greats such as John Lautner, Richard Neutra, Ray Kappe, and Charles and Ray Eames — have been the obsession of those tracking the threats posed by firestorms laying waste to the wooded canyons and grassy hillsides that are the scenic backdrops for these residences.
Beloved landmarks by Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolph Schindler and others stand outside of the immediate fire threat, but other notable houses have not been so lucky. Here’s a partial accounting of the confirmed losses:
Zane Grey Estate, Altadena: This home, with elements of Spanish, Mission and Mediterranean Revival design on 1.2 acres west of Lake Avenue, was built by architects Myron Hunt and Elmer Grey in 1907 for Chicago business machine manufacturer Arthur Herbert Woodward. At the time of its construction, it was called the first fire-proof structure in Altadena because it was built of reinforced concrete. (Woodward’s wife had lived through the devastating 1903 Iroquois Theater fire in Chicago, which erupted during a performance, killing more than 600.) The author Zane Grey bought the home in 1920, and he and his wife built a 3,500-square floor addition, including a library and office where Grey used to write. The 7,240-square-foot home was put on the market for about $4 million in 2020 and was listed as having eight bedrooms, four bathrooms, a commercial kitchen with a 15-foot ceiling, as well as a main kitchen, wine cellar and massive basement. Original cast-iron sconces, iron handrails and chandeliers remained in the house, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Andrew McNally House: Architect Frederick L. Roehrig built this Queen Anne-style mansion for Rand McNally Publishing Co-founder and President Andrew McNally in 1887. McNally paid Roehrig $15,000 to design the mansion at East Mariposa Street and Santa Rosa Avenue, in an area that would soon be called Millionaire’s Row. The home had a three-story rotunda with views of the San Gabriel Mountains, and McNally kept a private railway car there. He had a gardener who nurtured the deodar cedars along a part of Santa Rosa that became known as Christmas Tree Lane.
The Keeler House: In 1990 modernist architect Ray Kappe remodeled a home for jazz singer Anne Keeler and her then-husband, Gordon Melcher. The 4,142-square-foot cantilevered post-and-beam structure, nestled in a woodsy hillside with canyon and coastline views, went on the market for $12 million in April. With four bedrooms and three bathrooms, the house had walls and floors of concrete complemented by a palette of redwood, teak, fir and glass block. Kappe founded the Southern California Institute of Architecture in 1972 and died in 2019 at age 92.
Janes Village: This cluster of historic English cottages was built between 1924 and 1926 by architect Elisha P. Janes (known professionally as E.P. Janes). Janes built at least 270 English- and Spanish-style cottages in the area. These were mostly single-story stucco-finished homes with six rooms, arranged in one of four floor plans and priced to be accessible to the middle class.
Gregory Ain’s Park Planned homes: Designed in 1948 by Ain with the help of the era’s premier modernist landscape architect, Garrett Eckbo, this strip of 28 Midcentury Modern homes was built as part of a social experiment conceived by a modernist architect focused on cost-effective, prefabricated design for working people. The area was created to look like a park with no front fences and continuous landscaping. The homes had side-facing garages and interior courtyards and glass walls, making them feel a bit like mini estates.
Bridges House: Anyone who has driven down Sunset Boulevard toward the coast will remember the Brutalist Bridges House, by architect Robert Bridges. After working on homes including his own, Bridges became a professor of real estate finance at the USC Marshall School of Business, where he is professor emeritus. His striking home was perched above the boulevard, its wood and glass cantilevered over a concrete base.
Will Rogers’ home: The actor’s ranch house, part of Will Rogers State Historic Park, was destroyed in the Palisades fire. In the 1920s Rogers built a 31-room residence with 11 bathrooms, a guesthouse, a golf course, stables and a corral on about 360 acres. In 1944 the compound and grounds became a park and museum after his widow, Betty, donated them to the state. “The Rogers family is devastated by the loss of the California ranch and the overwhelming loss of the community,” Jennifer Rogers-Etcheverry, the actor’s great-granddaughter, said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to all those neighbors who have lost their homes.”
An explosion and fire drew a large emergency response on Friday to a lumber mill in the Midcoast region of Maine, officials said.
The State Police and fire marshal’s investigators responded to Robbins Lumber in Searsmont, about 72 miles northeast of Portland, said Shannon Moss, a spokeswoman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.
Mike Larrivee, the director of the Waldo County Regional Communications Center, said the number of victims was unknown, cautioning that “the information we’re getting from the scene is very vague.”
“We’ve sent every resource in the county to that area, plus surrounding counties,” he said.
Footage from the scene shared by WABI-TV showed flames burning through the roof of a large structure as heavy, dark smoke billowed skyward.
The Associated Press reported that at least five people were injured, and that county officials were considering the incident a “mass casualty event.”
Catherine Robbins-Halsted, an owner and vice president at Robbins Lumber, told reporters at the scene that all of the company’s employees had been accounted for.
Gov. Janet T. Mills of Maine said on social media that she had been briefed on the situation and urged people to avoid the area.
“I ask Maine people to join me in keeping all those affected in their thoughts,” she said.
Representative Jared Golden, Democrat of Maine, said on social media that he was aware of the fire and explosion.
“As my team and I seek out more information, I am praying for the safety and well-being of first responders and everyone else on-site,” he said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Crime scene tape surrounds a bicycle in front of St. Lukes Episcopal Church in Atlanta on May 14, 2026. (SKYFOX 5)
ATLANTA – The woman stabbed to death on the Beltline has been identified as 23-year-old Alyssa Paige, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner.
The backstory:
Paige was killed by a 21-year-old man Thursday afternoon while she was on the Beltline. Officials confirmed to FOX 5 that the stabbing happened near the 1700 block of Flagler Avenue NE.
Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said the department was alerted around 12:10 p.m. that a woman had been stabbed just north of the Montgomery Ferry Drive overpass. She was rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital where she later died. Another person was also stabbed during the incident, but their condition remains unknown.
According to officers, the man responsible attacked a U.S. Postal worker prior to the stabbing before getting away on a bike. He then used that bike to flee the scene of the stabbing as well.
The suspect was arrested near St. Luke’s Episcopal Church on Peachtree Street in Midtown around 5:25 p.m.
What we don’t know:
While officials haven’t released an official motive, they noted the man may have been suffering a mental health crisis.
The Source: Information in this article came from the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office and previous FOX 5 reporting.
Federal prosecutors have filed charges against a former Army serviceman they accused of distributing instructions on how to build explosives that were used by a man who conducted a deadly attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day last year.
The former serviceman, Jordan A. Derrick, a 40-year-old from Missouri, was charged with one count of engaging in the business of manufacturing explosive materials without a license; one count of unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device; and one count of distributing information relating to manufacturing explosives, according to a criminal complaint unsealed on Wednesday. The three charges together carry a maximum sentence of 40 years in federal prison.
Starting in September 2023, the authorities said, Mr. Derrick was using various social media sites to share videos of himself making explosive materials, including detonators. His videos provided step-by-step instructions, and he often engaged with viewers in comments, sometimes answering their questions about the chemistry behind the explosives.
The authorities said that Mr. Derrick’s videos were downloaded by Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, 42, who was accused of ramming a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2025, in a terrorist attack that killed 14 people and injured dozens. Mr. Jabbar was killed in a shootout with the police. Before the attack, Mr. Jabbar had placed two explosives on Bourbon Street, the authorities said, but they did not detonate.
The authorities later recovered two laptops and a USB drive in a house that Mr. Jabbar had rented. The USB drive contained several videos created by Mr. Derrick that provided instructions on making explosives. The authorities said the explosives they recovered were consistent with the ones Mr. Derrick had posted about.
Mr. Derrick’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr. Derrick was a combat engineer in the Army, where he provided personnel and vehicle support, the authorities said. He also helped supervise safety personnel during demolitions and various operations. He was honorably discharged in February 2013.
The authorities did not say whether Mr. Derrick had any communication with Mr. Jabbar, or whether the men had known each other. In some of Mr. Derrick’s videos and comments, he indicated that he was aware that his videos could be misused.
“There are a plethora of uh, moral, you know, entanglements with topics, any topic of teaching explosives, right?” he asked in one video, according to the affidavit. “Of course, the wrong people could get it.”
The authorities also said that an explosion occurred at a private residence in Odessa, Mo., on May 4, and the occupant of the residence told investigators that he had manufactured explosives after watching online tutorials from Mr. Derrick.
Mr. Derrick’s YouTube account had more than 15,000 subscribers and 20 published videos, the affidavit said. He had also posted content on other platforms, including Odysee and Patreon. Some videos were accessible to the public for free, while others required a paid subscription to view.
“My responsibility to my countrymen is to make sure that I serve the function of the Second Amendment to strengthen it,” Mr. Derrick said in one of his videos, according to the affidavit. “This is how I serve my country for real.”
Outside of the income he received through content creation, Mr. Derrick did not have any known employment. He did receive a monthly disability check from Veterans Affairs, the affidavit stated.
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