In the foothills above Hollywood, Whitley Heights ranks as one of L.A.’s oldest and most architecturally distinctive neighborhoods, its winding streets lined with 1920s Spanish Colonial and Mediterranean Revival homes. Early residents included silver-screen luminaries Gloria Swanson, Bette Davis, Charlie Chaplin, and Rudolph Valentino, who, according to long-circulated local lore, commissioned a turreted hillside bungalow on Iris Circle for his paramour, stage and screen actress Pola Negri.

More than a century after its completion in 1923, the white-stucco bungalow is hidden among mature trees and lush landscaping by the award-winning landscape architecture firm Terremoto, while interiors were updated by multidisciplinary Shapiro Joyal Studio, which balanced the home’s historic character with a more contemporary aesthetic. Original hardwood floors, ironwork, casement windows, and Batchelder tilework were carefully preserved, while carefully selected new materials—including white oak, American walnut, and deep-brown Saltillo floor tiles—reinforce the home’s 20th-century craftsmanship.

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An arched ceiling soars above the living room, where geometric tile surrounds the fireplace and French doors open to the yard. The octagonal dining room features built-ins set within Moorish-inspired niches, while the galley kitchen is anchored by floor-to-ceiling walnut cabinetry with open shelves for everyday dishware. 

The house contains two bedrooms and two bathrooms. In the secondary bedroom, a floating desk sits alongside French doors that open to the garden. The main bedroom, meanwhile, offers a raised fireplace above a live-edge wood bench in the style of George Nakashima, as well as a bathroom with an open shower clad in grey ceramic tile.

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A staircase finished in vibrant Spanish tiles leads up to a penthouse study that opens to a roof deck with views of the Hollywood Sign. At the side of the house, a dining terrace shaded by a modern ramada features patterned tile underfoot, while out front, a hedge-lined deck has a cross-canyon view framed by palms and pine trees.

The garage and one-bedroom, one-bath guest cottage are carved into the steep slope below the main house. Inside, a fireplace anchors one end of the combined living and dining room, while both the compact kitchen and the bedroom open directly onto a private patio.

The storied pad is asking $2.3 million, with Todd Bachenheimer of Modern California House and Matt Schwartz of Plus Real Estate holding the listing.

Click here for more photos of the historic Hollywood home.