Above On his quest to find ‘Where Cool Came From’ host Dave Leblanc at the Unisphere, a 12-story high stainless steel representation of the Earth located in Flushing Meadows, New York. It was the centerpiece of the 1964 New York World’s Fair.
Let’s start with a clip of Where Cool Came From with the first of the three part episode Searching for 1955.
Like a lot of you at MCMDaily, I was bitten by the Modernist bug a long time ago.
As a little kid growing up in 1970s Toronto, I was fascinated by Mies’ TD Centre complex—after getting my allergy shot I’d often ask my mom to take me to the financial district—and I memorized facts and milestones during the CN Tower’s slow, world-record-shattering march to the clouds in much the same way other kids followed the Maple Leafs. When I got a job at a suburban library at 16, I started checking out architecture books to learn all I could about this strange, yet familiar, era. The first book that really grabbed me by the shirt collar was the 1985 book Fifties Style: Then and Now by Richard Horn because it explained why the MCM era looked the way it did, and why it related to the New Wave graphics I was seeing on my favorite album jackets and music videos (sadly, the author would pass away in 1989). Of course the next one to slap me around was the one that gave our obsession its name: the 1983 book Mid-Century Modern: Furniture of the 1950s by Cara Greenberg.
Left: Toronto Dominion Center designed by Mies van der Rohe, 1967. Photo: Balthazar Korab
I’ll skip the next 20 years of my life to spare you the boredom; suffice it to say I have never lost my love of the Modern design movement; indeed, it’s become such a huge part of my life I consider it a lifestyle rather than just an interest.
Since 2003, I have been writing for the Globe & Mail’s Real Estate section, and many of the topics I’ve covered have helped me dig deeper into the MCM era, whether it’s here at home or when I visit other cities. The weekly column, called “The Architourist,” has also afforded me the kinds of experiences I’ll treasure for the rest of my life; how many people can say they spent a night at Frank Sinatra’s Palm Springs pad? And who gets a private tour of the J. Irwin Miller house in Columbus, Indiana? I’ve found more MCM houses in Toronto than I ever thought I’d find, too!
Click here for Dave Leblanc’s Globe & Mail article about Sinatra’s Twin Palms
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Poolside at Twin Palms, Frank Sinatra’s home in Palm Springs, California. Designed by E. Stewart Williams in 1947 the house was a gift from Sinatra to his first wife Nancy Barbatpo. The style of Twin Palms was much copied and helped coin the term Desert Modern. Photo: Sinatra House
Twin Palms, Frank Sinatra’s Palm Springs, retreat. Designed by E. Stewart Williams in 1947 the story goes that Sinatra originally wanted the house to be a faux Georgian mansion however, upon presenting Sinatra with sketches of a more modernist building, Williams convinced Sinatra to hand over 150,000 and the house was completed in 1949. Photo: Sinatra House
But give a guy an audience and he’ll yearn for a bigger one. In 2010, I started to develop a concept for a television show with independent filmmaker Robert Fantinatto. Called “Atomic Roadtrip,” the show was going to focus squarely on the MCM period (approx. 1945 to 1970). However, we soon found this to be too niche for TV executives. Slowly, we began to change the focus to anything ‘cool’ from any era, be it the 1920s or 2000s, provided we could make a strong case that the cool thing we’d be looking at is timeless rather than just trendy. Our executive producer, Paul Kemp at Stornoway Productions, came up with the new title: “Where COOL Came From.”
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American cruising culture at Bob’s Big Boy Broiler. Opened in 1958 the Googie style building was designed by architect Paul B. Clayton and soon became a hub for the cool.
Designed by architect Paul B. Clayton the ‘Broiler’ was the largest drive-in restaurant in Southern California when it opened in 1958. The combination coffee shop, restaurant, and drive-in sported exuberant Googie features, including a shining 65 foot long sign that was a beacon on Firestone Boulevard.
In a 1959 Cadillac Dave Leblanc cruises past the iconic Norms Restaurant in Where Cool Came From. Just posted on the The WCCF website is a three-part episode called Searching for 1955 which looks at Googie architecture, among other things.
A Googie icon Norms restaurant – the oldest surviving Norms – opened on La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles in 1957. A demolition permit was requested by the owners but it has been put on hold pending review.
The thing is, despite the widened perspective, we’ve managed to visit the MCM era on many of our episodes. For instance, in our Coffee episode, we explore how the dark brew fueled the Beatniks of Greenwich Village; in our Cars episode, we visit the not-open-to-the-public GM Heritage Center in suburban Detroit to see the Firebird concept cars, which looked like rocket ships on wheels; Homes will really resonate with MCMers since we tour Philip Johnson’s Glass House, Albert Frey’s Frey House II in Palm Springs, and the Alcoa “Care-Free” concept home in Rochester, NY; a segment in our Hotels webisode looks at the amazing “Doo Wop” neon signs and motels of Wildwood, NJ; and our look at Retro lifestyles covers tiki, Rockabilly and, well, cartoonist Seth, who is in a category of his own!
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Dave Leblanc sits down to enjoy a TV dinner and a martini with the owner of the Alcoa ‘Care Free’ House built in 1957 and features 7500 pounds of aluminum.
The Alcoa Care Free Home located in Rochester New York was designed by Charles M. Goodman for the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) the ‘Alcoa Carefree Home’ was the company’s entry into the booming post-war residential market. While well designed and spacious, unexpected high initial costs ended up shelving the project with only 24 of the houses being built. Photo: Atomic Ranch Magazine
Over the next few months, we’ll be releasing a bunch of new webisodes, and, again, we promise that we’ve snuck in as many references to MCM design, architecture and lifestyle as possible. In an episode called Gents, we’ll explore new trends in men’s grooming, from the lumberjack beard that’s currently in vogue all the way to the classic 1950s gentleman; in our examination of Video Games, we’ll take you to see one of the first games ever created, and I’m sure you won’t be surprised to learn it had a Cold War, military connection.
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Exploring Where Cool Came From takes us on a journey from the kitschy and fun side of Americana to more contemplative moments. Dave Leblanc at Empire Plaza, Albany, New York.
The ‘Egg’, a performance venue at the Empire Plaza, Albany, New York was designed by Wallace Harrison of Harrison and Abramovitz, in 1966. Photo: wikicommons
I can’t give away too many secrets, so I’ll leave it at that. If you find our little show educational and fun, please share the WCCF website with your friends. I sincerely appreciate the support!
Part Two of Where Cool Came From’s Searching for 1955. For part three, check out the Where Cool Came From’s website.
Dave LeBlanc has been writing about Mid-century modern architecture (and other eras) at the Globe & Mail since 2003. He has also written for the Montreal Gazette, West Island Suburban, Toronto Star, Philadelphia Inquirer and Atomic Ranch, Modernism and Canadian House & Home. In early 2014, he debuted as host of Where Cool Came From.
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