Charlotte and Robert Disney House | Los Angeles Conservancy
Photo by Linda Dishman/L.A. Conservancy

Charlotte and Robert Disney House

This one-story craftsman bungalow is significant as the first home of Walt Disney in Los Angeles and the location of his first local animation work. The house was owned by Disney’s uncle Robert and Aunt Charlotte, and 21-year-old Walt relocated to Los Angeles in 1923 and began his animation work in the garage while boarding with them at this residence.

Walt achieved his first success with local animation work within months of his arrival to Los Angeles and the creation of his pioneering animation studio, which introduced numerous innovations to the industry. With a career spanning more than four decades, Walt Disney left an indelible impact on the entertainment industry and firmly cemented himself as an icon of twentieth century American culture.

While several properties in the Los Angeles region are associated with Walt Disney, his first permanent studio location on Hyperion Avenue was demolished in 1966 and the Kingswell Building where he rented studio space between 1923 and 1926 has been altered.

The house at 4406 Kingswell Avenue remains highly intact and features original windows, a wrap-around front porch, and a shingle-clad exterior with wide, overhanging eaves.  The interior retains original woodwork and a fireplace mantel featuring rough-hewn stone.

The property remained in the Disney family for 30 years. Its association with the Disneys is well documented, including family home movie footage depicting the family in the front yard.

Morris Studio
Photo courtesy Architectural Resources Group

Morris Studio

The perfect melding of industrial engineering principles and the more organic, subtle concepts of space and flow. Few Modern designs can match it for sheer dynamism and charisma.
Photo from Conservancy archives

Eugene W. Britt House

Reflecting the fine luxury homes of turn-of-the-century L.A., most of the fixtures and materials in the Britt House were imported, including Italian marble.