Japanese immigration to the United States first began to boom in the 1880s, following the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. The absence of Chinese laborers created tremendous opportunities for other low-wage workers, although Japanese immigration would be curtailed in the early twentieth century due to an agreement between the U.S. and Japan. […]

As an architect, architecture critic, historian, author, educator, and preservationist, Hess has elevated the roadside and commercial architecture of post-World War II to its rightful place in the canon of architectural history. He has done so by taking seriously the hidden, forgotten, neglected, and unsung places that helped define postwar living.  Coffee shops, ranch houses, […]

1920s Craftsman style residence with Japanese influences in Hollywood Heights was once home to actor Philip Ahn and later musicians Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love.