Whitley Heights 101

2025 Holly Hill Terrace

2025 Holly Hill Terrace (original address was listed as 2009) was built in 1922 by Fred W. Tenney who started the Hollywood Construction and Investment Company, 6383 Yucca Street. Tenney sold his newspaper company, San Pedro Daily News, to finance his new construction company. He had bought one of the 22 lots that were available from the Holly Hill Tract. The Hollywood Construction & Investment Company was responsible for the building of several homes in the area including 2021 Holly Hill and 2030 Holly Hill Terrace. This 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom Spanish style house has 1,596 square feet and sits on 5,375 square foot lot. In addition, this house has a Mission tile roof, two sets of triple arched windows, and a covered arched entry. Fred lived at this property with his wife, Irene and started another newspaper, Lincoln Heights Review which was still in operation up until his death in 1943. His wife had died the year before.

Screenwriter and actress Isabel Dawn purchased the property following Tenney’s death with her brother, John Seitz, Jr. Isabel was born “Seitz” and later changed her name to “Dawn”. Her brother resided at the property for a short time. Isabel had divorced screenwriter Boyce DeGaw in 1941; they had spent their marriage working on screenplays together.

Isabel Dawn had arrived in Hollywood in the early 1930’s. She had been a journalist, began acting in New York and then started writing screenplays. She is credited for writing 18 screenplays between 1932-1953. She appeared in a number of stage plays, radio plays, and films in New York and Los Angeles prior to her 1934 marriage to screenwriter Boyce DeGaw. She and DeGaw collaborated on a number of scripts together before divorcing around 1941. She later married Ray Herr who were residing in this home at the time of her death in 1966.

John Seitz, Jr. was listed as director of photograph for over a hundred films including; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1939), Double Indemnity (1944), The Great Gatsby (1949), and Sunset Blvd. (1950). Throughout his career, Seitz patented 18 photography processes including; illuminating devices, processes for making dissolves and the matte shot.

Personally selected by William Randolph Hearst, Seitz was also behind the camera for The Patsy (1928), one of the major hits for Hearst’s mistress, Marion Davies. By this time, he was the highest paid cinematographer in Hollywood. Seitz was the cinematographer for two consecutive Oscar Best Picture winners: Going My Way (1944) and The Lost Weekend (1945), and three other Best Picture nominees: East Lynne (1931), Double Indemnity (1944) and Sunset Blvd. (1950).