Out and About - Visiting Barbara Stanwyck's Former Northridge Estate

Last weekend I spent a wonderful afternoon at the former home of Barbara Stanwyck. Now known as the Oakridge Estate, I went there for a presentation on costume designer Adrian by Richard Adkins of the Hollywood Heritage Museum. I greatly admire Barbara and know many of my friends do, too, so I wanted to share photos from my visit. I'm always in awe of being in places that meant a lot to the stars of Old Hollywood, so I took many quiet moments to really honor Barbara as I walked through her home. She had it built in 1936 (possibly while she was filming Stella Dallas) and lived there until around 1939 when she married Robert Taylor and they moved to Beverly Hills. It is an enormous 130 acre estate where she raised racing horses along with her neighbor and friend Zeppo Marx - they called it the Marwyck Ranch. Jackie Oakie and his wife then bought Barbara's house in 1941, and costume designer Adrian and wife Janet Gaynor moved into the Marx estate in 1942.

There's much more to the history, so I encourage you to visit the Oakridge Estate's site to learn more as well as how to support its restoration: https://www.theoakridgeestate.org.

Barbara Stanwyck c. 1937

The entrance to the Oakridge Estate

Caught in a mirror in the entryway

wearing a 1960s pink knit dress and 1950s black patent leather purse

Barbara's bedroom

and a photo shows what it looked like when she lived there

In the bathroom off Barbara's bedroom -

the young Ruby Stevens always dreamed of a marble tub,

so this was a sign she felt she had really made it in Hollywood

One wall of her dressing room,

which opened to one of her many closets

Of course every girl needs a dumbwaiter in her dressing room,

perhaps for an early morning orange juice or late night cocktails

A photo of the dressing room as it looked when Barbara lived there

With Richard Adkins of the Hollywood Heritage Museum

in front of some of his collection from the Adrian fashion line

Stunning artistry, structure, and craftsmanship are all signatures of Adrian
(not to mention those strong shoulders in the suit)

Time to say goodbye to Barbara and head out to my car

Until next time...