1987 Whitley Avenue

1987 Whitley Avenue was built in 1939 by Syrian born Louis George Taweal. It is not clear when he immigrated to the United States but married Syrian born Eva Masroa in Chicago in 1916. They had a son, George, born in 1920 and daughter, Victoria, born in 1922. The Taweals moved to Detroit by 1930 where Louis managed a grocery store and became a US Citizen in 1931. They relocated to Dix Street in Los Angeles by 1938 where Louis opened up a parking lot on Cahuenga Blvd.

The building permit for 1987 Whitley Avenue lists Louis as the owner and contractor of this house as he built a 6 room 2 story residence with a detached garage. Several months later, another permit was issued adding two bedrooms and another bathroom to the second floor.

The 2,785 square foot residence is located on the northwest corner of Whitley and Grace Avenues. The property was last purchased in 2009 for $943,000 and the current owner has added a swimming pool and spa and a patio on the roof of the garage. When Taweal added the two bedrooms, he added a separate entrance in order to rent out the rooms as extra income. One of his first tenants was a 26 year old actress identified as Moselle Scofield. It turns out Scofield was her married named and she divorced her husband, actor Granville Owen Scofield. The young actress was born Moselle Kimbler who was born in Cordell, OK in 1914. Her mother died of blood poisoning one month after she was born and her father quickly remarried.

The family relocated to Pomona during the early 1930s and Moselle was actively involved in the theater and trying to get film roles. In 1935, Moselle was cast by Columbia Pictures in the film, “I’ll Love You Always” which starred Nancy Carroll and George Murphy. She had an uncredited role along with Lucille Ball, Eadie Adams, Ethan Laidlaw and several other aspiring actors. When Moselle married Scofield in 1936, she was 21 and he was 24.

In 1937, Granville got his big break when he was hired by Warner Brothers and cast in minor roles in several films including; “Kid Galahad” starring Edward G. Robinson and Bette Davis, “That Certain Woman” and starring Bette Davis and Henry Fonda. In 1938, Moselle was cast as the nurse in “Illegal Traffic” for Paramount Pictures but never got another film role. As her film aspirations were fading, so was her marriage. Moselle found a room for rent in Whitley Heights and left Scofield.

Meanwhile, Scofield’s film career was thriving. He was cast opposite William Tracy in “Terry and the Pirates” and got the lead in “Li’l Abner” in 1940. By the mid 1940s Scofield changed his stage name to Jeff York and was cast as Blair in “The Postman Always Rings Twice” starring Lana Turner and as Otto in “The Yearling” starring Gregory Peck and Jane Wyman. York appeared in several hits including, “The Three Musketeers”, “Father of the Bride” and “Old Yeller”. However, he is best known for his role in the mid 1950s with his television portrayal of Mike Fink, the flamboyant keelboat operator in two episodes of Disney’s hugely popular Davy Crockett miniseries.

As for Moselle, she left the entertainment industry and first became a secretary store operator for the war department, eventually moving to Germany and worked in the diplomacy office. She then returned to the states and became a program assistant for the Ford Foundation in Washington D.C. where she remained until her death in 2011.

The Taweals remained at 1987 Whitley Terrace until Louis’ death in 1948. In the early 2000s, Cheech Marin’s ex-wife, artist Patti Heid, rented the house after they split up. Marin and Heid married in 1986. Marin was previously married to Darlene Morley, who co-produced Cheech & Chong’s “The Corsican Brothers” and also played minor roles in earlier Cheech & Chong films under the name Rikki Marin. The couple had adopted one child and divorced in 1984. Marin and Heid had two children and divorced in 2009. According to a TMZ interview, Heid indicated she had a restraining order on Marin due to his violent behavior towards herself and her son.

Below are photos of the inside of 1987 Whitley Avenue when it was last listed on the market in 2009. According to the Whitley Heights Historic District nomination form, 1987 Whitley Avenue is a Mediterranean two story house which sits on an upslope, stucco, shake roof, arched enclosed upper balconies, terrace with balustrade.
Although late, it does exemplify the character of the district
and is listed as a contributor.