Whitley Heights 101

6718 Milner road

6718 Milner Road was built in 1926 for owner John Lenfestey by architect, Kenneth Albright, who was well known in the film industry. The two-story Mediterranean home sits on Milner Road with zero lot in front of the home. 1,962 square foot home has a total of five rooms, including two bedrooms and one bathroom. In the rear of the home has a patio with a pool.

Between 1929 and 1931, actress Marie Dressler rented the home with her maid, Mamie E. Cox and chauffeur, Jerry Cox. Dressler had been staying at the Ambassador Hotel while she was house hunting and first decided to rent a home at 801 N. Alpine Drive in Beverly Hills and then decided to move to Whitley Heights. In, “Marie Dressler: A Biography”, written by Matthew Kennedy (2006), Dressler described the Milner Road house as having an arched entryway, iron detailing on the doors and windows, hardwood floors, a master bedroom that opened onto a sunny terrace and at the end of the terrace lay a deep narrow pool. “In her autobiography, “My Own Story” published in 1934, Dresser states:

Dresser was born in Ontario, Canada in 1868 and started in theater on the east coast. Her first film was in 1914 (she was 46 years old) and was Mack Sennett’s, “Tillie’s Punctured Romance” starring Charles Chaplin and Mabel Normand, although Dresser was second billed. This film was the first full-length comedy ever made. Dressler would reprise the role of Tillie in three other films between 1915 and 1917.

After War War 1 and her travels to Europe, Dressler moved to Hollywood in 1927 and worked non-stop on film after film, sometimes doing as many as seven films in a year, many of those she was the main character. In 1927, she worked with Olive Borden in “The Joy Girl” and Constance Talmadge in “Breakfast at Sunrise”. In 1928, she worked with Marion Davies in “The Patsy”. Dressler often worked opposite Polly Moran in several of her films. In 1930, she was cast a role in “Anna Christie” starring Greta Garbo and found her interesting to work work, describing her as a “lonely woman”. Interestingly, Greta Garbo came over to her Whitley Height’s house with a flower arrangement of chrysanthemums after seeing her performance during opening night of Anna Christie.

However, her busy work load and age, took a toll on her health and she needed a home that was less steep. She was able to purchase her first home at 801 N. Alpine Drive in Beverly Hills in 1932. In 1932, she won Best Actress of a Leading Role (the day after her 63rd birthday) in “Min and Bill” in which she starred with Wallace Beery. In 1933, she filmed “Emma” in which she was nominated for Best Actress of a Leading Role, but lost to Helen Hayes.

Dressler’s last three films were in 1933. The first was “Tugboat Annie” which she co-starred with Wallace Beery. Next came “Dinner at Eight” which was directed by George Cukor. Not only did Dressler get top billing, she co-starred with Wallace Beery, Lionel Barrymore, Jean Harlow, John Barrymore, and Billie Burke, all legends of their time. Her final film was “Christopher Bean” in which she starred opposite Lionel Barrymore. Unfortunately, Dressler was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died in Santa Barbara in 1934.

Between 1949 and 1954, Ellen Clevenger rented the property with her son, 26 year old Robert Clevenger. Robert was a former ballet dancer and aspiring actor who was known professionally as Cliff Norden. His friend, Frank K. Lindemann, also an actor, moved in with them. On September 24, 1949, the men decided to have some friends over for dinner. Newspapers dubbed the night “a gay spaghetti party with friends”. However, Robert indicated that he did not feel well and went into his bedroom to lie down approximately 6 p.m. About midnight after all, but one of the guests left, Frank checked on him and found him unconscious, called 9-1-1 and attempted CPR. However, all efforts by the roommate and paramedics to revive him were unsuccessful.

However, the cause of death appeared to be questionable. Four empty bottles of sleeping pills were next to the bed. However, the autopsy revealed that he had been poisoned, either by arsenic or ant paste. Ellen Clevenger told authorities that she did not observe any signs of suicide prior to his death. However, authorities found an empty container of ant paste which was found in the kitchen. The question is did the young actor ingest the poison by accident or deliberately?