Some of Southern Californias most iconic buildings stand as silent monuments to a little-publicized pioneer.
Paul Revere Williams, the first African American member of the American Institute of Architects, not only designed homes for Hollywood legends from the 1930s through the 1960s but also fashioned the futuristic-looking Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport, the Angelus Funeral Home in South Los Angeles and a portion of the Beverly Hills Hotel.
The subject of three books by his granddaughter, Karen Hudson, Williams life and legacy are now the focus of an hourlong documentary with a Thursday premiere on PBS SoCal (KOCE-TV), and will show again Friday at 2 a.m. and Saturday at 4 p.m. Following the California debut, it will air on nearly 200 PBS stations across the country and be available to stream at PBSSoCal.org/hollywoodsarchitect.
In addition to giving Williams his close-up, filmmakers hope that Hollywoods Architect: The Paul R. Williams Story will spark discussion of broader concerns.
Kathy McCampbell Vance, left, and Royal Kennedy Rodgers are co-directors and co-producers of Hollywoods Architect: The Paul R. Williams Story.
(Judy Licht Photography)
We want to do more than just a biopic, said Royal Kennedy Rodgers, co-director and co-producer of the film, more than eight years in the making. We talk about two of the biggest issues of today. One, the lack of diversity in the field of architecture, and also preservation is a big angle, because much of his work has been lost. There is a new focus in the African American community on preserving African American historic sites.
Born in 1894 and orphaned at age 4, Williams overcame numerous obstacles to join a profession that remains largely white.
As a child, Williams described bumping into a blank wall of discouragement, according to the film, narrated by actor Courtney B. Vance.
That included a teacher who very clearly told him, You cannot be an architect, Hudson recounted in the film. Your people will not be able to afford you and white people will not hire you. Be a doctor or a lawyer, because your people always need those.
Architect Paul Revere Williams in 1970.
(Los Angeles Times)
Williams gained his architects license in 1921 and got his big break a year later when he was tapped to design homes in the new community of Flintridge, in the San Gabriel Valley. During a career that spanned five decades, Williams designed more than 3,000 buildings across the globe.
His list of celebrity clients included Frank Sinatra, Cary Grant, Barbara Stanwyck, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. As a gift for actor and philanthropist Danny Thomas, a friend of his, he designed the original star-shaped St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital in Memphis.
Yet during much of his career, Williams was blocked by racist laws and customs from living in many of the neighborhoods that contained his homes. And to forestall conflict with white clients, who might balk at sitting next to him, Williams learned how to sketch his designs upside down a skill that became his trademark.
The Paul Williams story is really one of inspiration and motivation and dedication, said Kathy McCampbell Vance, co-director and co-producer (no relation to Courtney Vance).
The Robert Norman Williams Residence in Ontario is among the modernist-style homes designed by architect Paul R. Williams.
(Cameron Carothers)
This man was facing incredible odds from his birth to the time he died, she said. Yet he rose to a level of elegance and eloquence that few people who have been given a silver spoon rise to. He had to have true grit in order to survive and navigate this world.
Williams died in 1980 at age 85. Since the 1990s, interest in his accomplishments has been slowly growing.
At its 2017 convention, the American Institute of Architects gave a posthumous Gold Medal, its highest honor, to Williams, the first African American architect to win the award.
Between 1993 and 2012, Hudson published three books on her groundbreaking grandfather: Paul R. Williams, Architect: A Legacy of Style (Rizzoli, 1993), Paul R. Williams, Classic Hollywood Style (Rizzoli, 2012) and The Will and the Way (Rizzoli, 1994), a biography for grade-schoolers.
Kennedy Rodgers, a former PBS producer and correspondent, became interested in Williams story after hosting a book party for Hudson. She brought in McCampbell Vance and the two approached PBS.
This Spanish Colonial-style house was designed in 1928 by architect-to-the-stars Paul R. Williams, whose work spanned a wide range of styles.
(Lacey Wood)
Paul Williams designed in so many different styles that I dont think he was appreciated for being a great architect, because he didnt have quote unquote, a particular style, observed Michelle Merker, program development manager with KOCE-TV. He really built whatever the client wanted, and thats what made him so unique.
Hudson and Kennedy Rodgers hope the documentary will introduce Williams to a new audience.
While coffee-table books are significant records of an individuals work, they are not always available to everyday people, Hudson told The Times. Any vehicle that brings his life and legacy alive through visual means, like a documentary, simply enhances the journey.
In 2015, more than 90 years after Williams became the AIAs first African American member, a study by the organization showed its black membership still was less than 2%.
Weve experienced architecture mostly [from] the perspectives of white males, said Michael Ford, a designer with international architectural firm SmithGroup, whos helping create a hip-hop museum in the Bronx. We can see in the body of work of Paul Williams that there are other great design minds.
Ford said he hopes Williams story, and others that will surface, become reference points that move things forward on a quest to diversify the profession.
Read more:
This architect of classic Hollywood gets his own star turn - Los Angeles Times
- Gensler architects will lead design of Baltimore Harborplace redevelopment - Baltimore Sun - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Watch How Zaha Hadid Revolutionized The Way Architects Design | The Blueprint Show - Architectural Digest - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Trash or Treasure: Rare painting may be work of noted architect - The Detroit News - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- In London, Leopold Banchini Architects uplifts arts and crafts for wine bar Goodbye Horses - The Architects Newspaper - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Architects Schedule a Show at the Wiltern - The Scenestar - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- A lab supply glut has pushed architects to get creative to find work - The Architects Newspaper - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Jon Batiste to Receive Inaugural Ray Charles "Architect of Sound" Award at Grammy Hall of Fame Gala - Jambands - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Stargaze (STARS) - AMA with The Architects - 03 Apr 2025 - TradingView - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Sequel Architects the Next Era of Entertainment with Transformative Streaming Experiences - Bluefield Daily Telegraph - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Open Call for UIA World Congress of Architects UIA2026BCN - - World-Architects - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Solutions Architects and AI Tools: What You Need to Know - dice.com - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Sequel Architects the Next Era of Entertainment with Transformative Streaming Experiences - ACCESS Newswire - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Horton Harper Architects thoughtfully designed this multigenerational home overlooking the Cuyahoga River and the city's industrial areas - Global... - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- AN launches AN BETS, the worlds first architecture gambling app - The Architects Newspaper - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- ARCHITECTS announce North American tour with ERRA - Revolver Magazine - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- ARCHITECTS to headline summer North American tour with ERRA and HOLYWATR - Lambgoat - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- 2 Syracuse alumni elevated to The American Institute of Architects - The Daily Orange - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Architects to embark on North American headline tour this summer - Kerrang! - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Vibe coding isnt here to take developer jobs. Its here to transform them into AI architects - TechRadar - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- AD100 architects Talati and Partners craft a Mumbai home with stunning views of the sea - Architectural Digest India - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Richard Brown helped Rice blaze new trail as one of original architects of Shepherd School of Music - Rice University - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- 10 loathed architectures, that architects love - Domus Web - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- barcelona's 'three chimneys' reborn as media hub in winning proposal by GdSB and marvel - Designboom - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Women as architects of intergenerational change - ET Edge Insights - ET Edge Insights - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- "This certainly won't be the tech bro biennale" says Venice Architecture Biennale curator Carlo Ratti - Dezeen - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Northern New York Community Foundation partners with BCA Architects - nny360.com - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- Lawyer investigating $1.9 million additional architects fee in Crown Event Center review - CityView NC - April 4th, 2025 [April 4th, 2025]
- 3D scanned tree trunks become translucent table legs for aki hamada architects' collection - Designboom - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- terraced cityzen tower by zaha hadid architects set to rise in tbilisi, georgia - Designboom - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Zaha Hadid Architect designs skyscraper with cascading terraces in Tbilisi - Dezeen - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Elevating the Voice of Landscape Architects, Creating Vibrant and Resilient Communities - American Society of Landscape Architects - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Only 6% of architects are using AI regularly - Fast Company - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Insights from tomorrows architects: Appreciating women in architecture and driving change - Building Design - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art shares designs by shortlisted firms for expansion - The Architect's Newspaper - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- AN talks to the curators of Cooper Unions Thank you, Herman Jessor - The Architect's Newspaper - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Tbilisi's rolling hills inform new Cityzen Tower designed by Zaha Hadid Architects - World Architecture Community - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- How two architects turned a higgledy-piggledy hillside cottage into a quirky family home - Country Living UK - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Overconsumption a global challenge that can be addressed by architects - Architecture AU - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Marlon Blackwell Architects completes Heartland Whole Health Institute at Crystal Bridges - The Architect's Newspaper - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Subnautica 2: The Case For The Architect Race to Appear In The Sequel - GameRant - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Restore Oregon tour will open doors to these storied architects' bucket list modern homes - OregonLive - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Architects of the month | 'Sustainability isn't a fad' - India Today - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Throwing Architecture a Curve: Rediscovering Flix Candelas Years in Chicago - Newcity Design - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Whither the genius architect? The Brutalist reminds us of lost legacy - The Times of India - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- Top Tickets This Week: Volbeat, Architects - Stereoboard - March 17th, 2025 [March 17th, 2025]
- This week Patrik Schumacher claimed architecture "has ceased to exist" - Dezeen - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- First global study of the extraordinary role of animals as architects of Earth - Anthropocene Magazine - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Album review: Architects The Sky, The Earth & All Between - Kerrang! - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- The American Hardwood Information Center Offers Free Tool for Architects and Designers - PR Newswire - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- mork-ulnes architects rounds up its greatest works with monograph 'the craft of place' - Designboom - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- The Unsung Architects of Innovation: Women in the Tech Industry - RiverBender.com - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Architects The Sky, the Earth & All Between Review - Myglobalmind - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Architects Unleash 'The Sky, The Earth & All Between' - antiMusic.com - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- ALBUM REVIEW: Architects The Sky, The Earth & All Between - Boolin Tunes - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Architects The Sky, The Earth & All Between - Clash Magazine - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Architects are bringing nature home by making trees part of the plan - The Salem News - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Zaha Hadid Architects Begins Construction of the Center of Mediterranean Culture in Italy - ArchDaily - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Reviews - The Sky, The Earth & All Between - BLABBERMOUTH.NET - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- The design of Pittsburghs future will be about trust, say two local architects - NEXTpittsburgh - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Zaha Hadid Architects' Capital International Exhibition & Convention Center in Beijing provides a world-class venue designed to meet the growing... - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Beijing Unveils the Capital International Exhibition & Convention Center by Zaha Hadid Architects - stupidDOPE.com - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Construction begins on Zaha Hadid Architects' Centre of Mediterranean Culture in Italy - World Architecture Community - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- ARCHITECTS Team Up With HOUSE OF PROTECTION On New Single 'Brain Dead' - BLABBERMOUTH.NET - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- What is Brutalism and What do Architects Think About The Brutalist - Prestige Online Hong Kong - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Architects and designers respond to Trumps first month in office - The Architect's Newspaper - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- AIs Dark Architects: Palantir, USAID and the Alt-Right Pipeline - Mintpress News - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Album Review: Architects The Sky, The Earth & All Between - RockSins - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- How a forgotten Minnesota monastery inspired The Brutalist - The Straits Times - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- 7 albums you need to hear this week - Rolling Stone UK - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- What is Brutalism? And why do architects hate 'The Brutalist'? - The Star Online - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Gallery of Zaha Hadid Architects Begins Construction of the Center of Mediterranean Culture in Italy - 1 - ArchDaily - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Why architects slammed The Brutalist, and more about the Oscar nominee - South China Morning Post - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Study reveals impact of animals as architects of Earth - Kalinga TV - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- JKMM Architects combines football stadium with housing in Finland - Dezeen - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Gavin Newsom Announces He's Starting a Podcast And Will Interview MAGA's 'Biggest Leaders and Architects' - LatinTimes - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Life on Earth gallery opens at UK, highlights architects and designers - Kykernel.com - January 31st, 2025 [January 31st, 2025]
- Backlash builds: why the architecture world hates The Brutalist - The Guardian - January 31st, 2025 [January 31st, 2025]
- Trump Call for Traditional Buildings Could Stifle Innovation, Architects Say - Hyperallergic - January 31st, 2025 [January 31st, 2025]
- Architects Announce Intimate "The Sky, The Earth & All Between" UK Release Shows - Theprp.com - January 31st, 2025 [January 31st, 2025]
- fan-shaped bus stop by ginga architects welcomes schoolchildren in rural japan - Designboom - January 31st, 2025 [January 31st, 2025]