The Robin Masters Estate (Pahonu)

[Gorilla Mask]

All is said; thanks.

A little french saying: " Le mensonge a beau être prompt, la vérité l'attrape!" " Whatever swift a lie could be, finally, truth catch it !"

However, the 'lies' in the staging were very pleasant!

[eagle]

Pahonu, thanks for the detailed responses. You didn't erase any of the magic for me -- the boat house will always be the guest house as far as I'm concerned.

I love your Sketchup model, and downloaded it a while ago. I should look for an updated download.

[Pahonu]

Pahonu, thanks for the detailed responses. You didn't erase any of the magic for me -- the boat house will always be the guest house as far as I'm concerned.

I love your Sketchup model, and downloaded it a while ago. I should look for an updated download.

Glad you like the model. PM me if you want me to email you the latest version. I’m not sure how much it has changed. I tend to work on it in fits and starts, largely based on finding out some new detail.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Wait, so there was that much space behind the main house? I thought the main house was almost against the neighboring wall. All those structures/walls and another small building (garage?) behind the house is news to me.

[Pahonu]

Wait, so there was that much space behind the main house? I thought the main house was almost against the neighboring wall. All those structures/walls and another small building (garage?) behind the house is news to me.

Hey Ivan,
You may be confused because I was explaining how close the garage wing is to the perimeter wall and neighbors. It is very close, but the garage wing projects perpendicular from the kitchen wing, which extends back quite a way from the two-story block of the main house. There is actually a courtyard behind the main house that is slightly larger than the front one. All five of the bedroom suites open on to it either directly, for the two on the first floor, or by balcony or terrace, for the three upstairs suites. The courtyard is bounded by the main house, the kitchen wing, the bath house (changing rooms), and a wall on the ocean side. The bath house is just a few feet from the perimeter wall.

Let me know if you want to see them and I can add some pics to show what I mean.

Edit:

Here’s two pictures of my model from directly above. The first shows the entire estate. The second shows a closer view of the main house and its various wings and courtyards, as well as the bath house to the right.

https://ibb.co/19rDNVJ
https://ibb.co/StjcKH8

Black is the tile roofs of the buildings
Orange is terracotta tile on the rooftop terraces
Dark brown is brick terraces on grade
Light brown is soil planters
Tan is the dirt drive
Green is grass
Bright green is the tennis court
Light tan is sand
Blue is the ocean
Red is the Ferrari!

[Amian]

This is for Eagle, Gorilla Mask, and anyone else interested in how the boathouse on the Pahonu estate is arranged and constructed, and sadly for some, how the guesthouse set can’t possibly fit within the actual structure. As I’ve stated many times before on this forum, the dimensions of the model are very accurate, being drawn from both the property tax dimensions recorded and the property plat created of the property at the time of sale a few years ago. ... That’s it! That’s the whole structure. There are no internal stairs. There is no room for a kitchen, dining area, and living room in that small space. There is no fireplace or bedroom and bathroom for TM on the lower level.

I hope this helps and I’m sorry if it takes away a little of the magic for any fans.

Those models are excellent! I had a vague idea based on the written descriptions, but now it really is clear. Thank you!

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Wait, so there was that much space behind the main house? I thought the main house was almost against the neighboring wall. All those structures/walls and another small building (garage?) behind the house is news to me.

Hey Ivan,
You may be confused because I was explaining how close the garage wing is to the perimeter wall and neighbors. It is very close, but the garage wing projects perpendicular from the kitchen wing, which extends back quite a way from the two-story block of the main house. There is actually a courtyard behind the main house that is slightly larger than the front one. All five of the bedroom suites open on to it either directly, for the two on the first floor, or by balcony or terrace, for the three upstairs suites. The courtyard is bounded by the main house, the kitchen wing, the bath house (changing rooms), and a wall on the ocean side. The bath house is just a few feet from the perimeter wall.

Let me know if you want to see them and I can add some pics to show what I mean.

Edit:

Here’s two pictures of my model from directly above. The first shows the entire estate. The second shows a closer view of the main house and its various wings and courtyards, as well as the bath house to the right.

https://ibb.co/19rDNVJ
https://ibb.co/StjcKH8

Black is the tile roofs of the buildings
Orange is terracotta tile on the rooftop terraces
Dark brown is brick terraces on grade
Light brown is soil planters
Tan is the dirt drive
Green is grass
Bright green is the tennis court
Light tan is sand
Blue is the ocean
Red is the Ferrari!

I see. I had no idea what was behind the main house. Didn't think there was much. Certainly not a courtyard. That's in the front. I know there's the roof thing/tunnel that you can get the Ferrari under near the front entrance to the house.

[Gorilla Mask]

Ivan, you can watch again 2.9 "Mad Buck Gibson", there is a scene in the rear garden where you can perceived this backyard patio.

I don't know if you ever noticed this unusual picture where you can more measure the rear extend of the main house (mainly the roofs considering the foliage growth).

https://ibb.co/hm3cGB3

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Ivan, you can watch again 2.9 "Mad Buck Gibson", there is a scene in the rear garden where you can perceived this backyard patio.

I don't know if you ever noticed this unusual picture where you can more measure the rear extend of the main house (mainly the roofs considering the foliage growth).

https://ibb.co/hm3cGB3

Thanks, gorilla. See, looking at that picture there is so much foliage in the rear that it's basically touching the rear of the house. Hard to imagine anything else being back there. There doesn't even appear to be room for a Ferrari back there.

[eagle]

Funny, I am literally right this minute watching Mad Buck Gibson.

[Pahonu]

Wait, so there was that much space behind the main house? I thought the main house was almost against the neighboring wall. All those structures/walls and another small building (garage?) behind the house is news to me.

Hey Ivan,
You may be confused because I was explaining how close the garage wing is to the perimeter wall and neighbors. It is very close, but the garage wing projects perpendicular from the kitchen wing, which extends back quite a way from the two-story block of the main house. There is actually a courtyard behind the main house that is slightly larger than the front one. All five of the bedroom suites open on to it either directly, for the two on the first floor, or by balcony or terrace, for the three upstairs suites. The courtyard is bounded by the main house, the kitchen wing, the bath house (changing rooms), and a wall on the ocean side. The bath house is just a few feet from the perimeter wall.

Let me know if you want to see them and I can add some pics to show what I mean.

Edit:

Here’s two pictures of my model from directly above. The first shows the entire estate. The second shows a closer view of the main house and its various wings and courtyards, as well as the bath house to the right.

https://ibb.co/19rDNVJ
https://ibb.co/StjcKH8

Black is the tile roofs of the buildings
Orange is terracotta tile on the rooftop terraces
Dark brown is brick terraces on grade
Light brown is soil planters
Tan is the dirt drive
Green is grass
Bright green is the tennis court
Light tan is sand
Blue is the ocean
Red is the Ferrari!

I see. I had no idea what was behind the main house. Didn't think there was much. Certainly not a courtyard. That's in the front. I know there's the roof thing/tunnel that you can get the Ferrari under near the front entrance to the house.

The foliage on the estate got out of control in the last decade or so before it was sold. Most of this back area became totally obscured. It was already somewhat overgrown when Magnum was filmed. In its heyday, guests at the estate would have enjoyed that rear courtyard with its beautiful plantings very differently than in its final years.

There was about 50 feet from the garage wing to the perimeter wall so a car could turn around and park in one of the bays. That whole back area up to the rear courtyard wall was really designed as service space for staff, not guests. Remember, this is a home with a gatehouse for five live-in staff. The kitchen service porch opened to this space as did the laundry room. The part of this space nearest the highway was a drying yard for laundry. The end of the garage wing had a tool room/ workshop for maintaining the vehicles.

The architect’s design for the property is really quite logical and clever. He separated clearly all the different functions of a large country estate like this. That’s how it was conceived, as a second home, outside of the city, for Mrs. Wall and her guests to enjoy the location.The front courtyard of the main house was really a public space, open to the public rooms only, the living room, dining room, library, stair hall and den/bar. Initial drawings show a formal fountain and cruciform paths. It also is connected to the beach access and drive.

The rear courtyard was meant to be more private. It actually had higher walls creating a more enclosed effect, and to separate it from the service area on one side. The two downstairs suites in the main house had French doors opening directly to it, whereas the main doors accessing them from the opposite side were not glazed. Two of the upstairs suites had terraces with parapet walls for more privacy, but looked down into the rear courtyard as well as views of the water. The third and final upstairs suite had a small balcony opening to the rear courtyard. All of these suites again, had French doors on this side to take advantage of the space and views, while their entry doors to the long balcony above the familiar arcade facing the front courtyard were not glazed.

Overall, the largest number of windows and glazed door openings in the main house faced the ocean on the sea wall side... duh! The rear courtyard had the next largest number. None of the bedroom suites opened visually to the front courtyard side of the home. The driveway side of the home had only service spaces facing it, with one exception, the balcony Higgins gives his soliloquy on and Clutterbuck fell from and died. This was all by design as the architect carefully considered these spaces and how they would be used and by whom.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Wow, Pahonu! That's a wealth of information right there. Thanks! If I didn't know any better I'd say you lived there. You seem to know what was in each and every room. I bet you know the combination to Higgins' wall safe! Wait, no, don't tell me that was on a sound stage!! Tell me it ain't so!!! Noooooooo!!!!

[Pahonu]

Wow, Pahonu! That's a wealth of information right there. Thanks! If I didn't know any better I'd say you lived there. You seem to know what was in each and every room. I bet you know the combination to Higgins' wall safe! Wait, no, don't tell me that was on a sound stage!! Tell me it ain't so!!! Noooooooo!!!!

Sorry Ivan, the safe was indeed on the set only.

Several of us on the forum have spent quite a few years piecing together the estates layout. Rembrandt’s Girl, Kenji, and Sam, played major roles and several others contributed in smaller ways. Basically, every room in the main house is known, if not seen. This is because of two newspaper stories from the time of construction providing descriptions of the planned rooms along with architect’s renderings. The property tax documents confirm some of this information, and the land plat created for the sale provides precise dimensions for the property and all structures on it. When you put all that together with actual images from your favorite (2nd favorite?) Hawaii-based series , the layout becomes pretty clear. Hawaii Five-O. HFO showed a surprising amount of the interior in several episodes.

Did you know, for example, that there was a second staircase for servants in the house? It’s not really unusual for a home of that size or era, but it was never seen. It was known to be part of the design from the old newspaper articles. The home also had a dumb waiter, sewing room, servant dining room, butler’s pantry, and originally a cold storage room in addition to a storage pantry. These were all part of the service area on the side of the house by the driveway. There wasn’t originally a tennis court, as that was added later, but there was a lath house for propagating seedlings. Both were removed and the tennis court we were familiar with from the show was the second one. There’s also the whole story of how Mrs. Wall assembled the property from several different parcels, including a court case, and how two separate sections of the sea wall pre-existed the estate and were connected when it was constructed into what we see today. I could go on...

I began this process alone with hand drawings while MPI was still airing in prime time! I had also found several of the HFO episodes that showed it. In the 90’s I created AutoCAD drawings of the estate using the resources of the academy I am a part of at my high school. Then, about a dozen years ago SketchUp debuted and I started the 3D model. It has gone through many changes as more information became available, most of it provided to me by forum members. My first post on this forum many years ago was explaining my model and asking for help. Members immediately jumped in with anything they thought might help. Now, all these years later, the model is quite accurate. Just about the only thing still not found are the architect’s actual blueprints. The project would be over when/if that ever happens because the last few details would become known.

If you go to pages 150-152 on this thread, you will see floor plans of the main house that I/we have arrived at. There is an incredible amount of information in this thread but I can see why it is daunting to many at nearly 190 pages. I joined the forum on lucky page 13 in 2009.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Wow, Pahonu! That's a wealth of information right there. Thanks! If I didn't know any better I'd say you lived there. You seem to know what was in each and every room. I bet you know the combination to Higgins' wall safe! Wait, no, don't tell me that was on a sound stage!! Tell me it ain't so!!! Noooooooo!!!!

Sorry Ivan, the safe was indeed on the set only.

Several of us on the forum have spent quite a few years piecing together the estates layout. Rembrandt’s Girl, Kenji, and Sam, played major roles and several others contributed in smaller ways. Basically, every room in the main house is known, if not seen. This is because of two newspaper stories from the time of construction providing descriptions of the planned rooms along with architect’s renderings. The property tax documents confirm some of this information, and the land plat created for the sale provides precise dimensions for the property and all structures on it. When you put all that together with actual images from your favorite (2nd favorite?) Hawaii-based series , the layout becomes pretty clear. Hawaii Five-O. HFO showed a surprising amount of the interior in several episodes.

Did you know, for example, that there was a second staircase for servants in the house? It’s not really unusual for a home of that size or era, but it was never seen. It was known to be part of the design from the old newspaper articles. The home also had a dumb waiter, sewing room, servant dining room, butler’s pantry, and originally a cold storage room in addition to a storage pantry. These were all part of the service area on the side of the house by the driveway. There wasn’t originally a tennis court, as that was added later, but there was a lath house for propagating seedlings. Both were removed and the tennis court we were familiar with from the show was the second one. There’s also the whole story of how Mrs. Wall assembled the property from several different parcels, including a court case, and how two separate sections of the sea wall pre-existed the estate and were connected when it was constructed into what we see today. I could go on...

I began this process alone with hand drawings while MPI was still airing in prime time! I had also found several of the HFO episodes that showed it. In the 90’s I created AutoCAD drawings of the estate using the resources of the academy I am a part of at my high school. Then, about a dozen years ago SketchUp debuted and I started the 3D model. It has gone through many changes as more information became available, most of it provided to me by forum members. My first post on this forum many years ago was explaining my model and asking for help. Members immediately jumped in with anything they thought might help. Now, all these years later, the model is quite accurate. Just about the only thing still not found are the architect’s actual blueprints. The project would be over when/if that ever happens because the last few details would become known.

If you go to pages 150-152 on this thread, you will see floor plans of the main house that I/we have arrived at. There is an incredible amount of information in this thread but I can see why it is daunting to many at nearly 190 pages. I joined the forum on lucky page 13 in 2009.

Interesting. I take it you are fascinated with construction/architecture or perhaps certain home styles. Or maybe just this estate in particular because it was from your favorite (?) show from the 80s?

Edit: I take it that seaside domiciles on wheels don't fall into your area of interest. Otherwise I would have expected you to do some interior sketches and models of Jimbo's trailer from your favorite show. How many rooms did he have in that thing anyway??

[Pahonu]

Wow, Pahonu! That's a wealth of information right there. Thanks! If I didn't know any better I'd say you lived there. You seem to know what was in each and every room. I bet you know the combination to Higgins' wall safe! Wait, no, don't tell me that was on a sound stage!! Tell me it ain't so!!! Noooooooo!!!!

Sorry Ivan, the safe was indeed on the set only.

Several of us on the forum have spent quite a few years piecing together the estates layout. Rembrandt’s Girl, Kenji, and Sam, played major roles and several others contributed in smaller ways. Basically, every room in the main house is known, if not seen. This is because of two newspaper stories from the time of construction providing descriptions of the planned rooms along with architect’s renderings. The property tax documents confirm some of this information, and the land plat created for the sale provides precise dimensions for the property and all structures on it. When you put all that together with actual images from your favorite (2nd favorite?) Hawaii-based series , the layout becomes pretty clear. Hawaii Five-O. HFO showed a surprising amount of the interior in several episodes.

Did you know, for example, that there was a second staircase for servants in the house? It’s not really unusual for a home of that size or era, but it was never seen. It was known to be part of the design from the old newspaper articles. The home also had a dumb waiter, sewing room, servant dining room, butler’s pantry, and originally a cold storage room in addition to a storage pantry. These were all part of the service area on the side of the house by the driveway. There wasn’t originally a tennis court, as that was added later, but there was a lath house for propagating seedlings. Both were removed and the tennis court we were familiar with from the show was the second one. There’s also the whole story of how Mrs. Wall assembled the property from several different parcels, including a court case, and how two separate sections of the sea wall pre-existed the estate and were connected when it was constructed into what we see today. I could go on...

I began this process alone with hand drawings while MPI was still airing in prime time! I had also found several of the HFO episodes that showed it. In the 90’s I created AutoCAD drawings of the estate using the resources of the academy I am a part of at my high school. Then, about a dozen years ago SketchUp debuted and I started the 3D model. It has gone through many changes as more information became available, most of it provided to me by forum members. My first post on this forum many years ago was explaining my model and asking for help. Members immediately jumped in with anything they thought might help. Now, all these years later, the model is quite accurate. Just about the only thing still not found are the architect’s actual blueprints. The project would be over when/if that ever happens because the last few details would become known.

If you go to pages 150-152 on this thread, you will see floor plans of the main house that I/we have arrived at. There is an incredible amount of information in this thread but I can see why it is daunting to many at nearly 190 pages. I joined the forum on lucky page 13 in 2009.

Interesting. I take it you are fascinated with construction/architecture or perhaps certain home styles. Or maybe just this estate in particular because it was from your favorite (?) show from the 80s?

Edit: I take it that seaside domiciles on wheels don't fall into your area of interest. Otherwise I would have expected you to do some interior sketches and models of Jimbo's trailer from your favorite show. How many rooms did he have in that thing anyway??

I have been interested in architecture since childhood, but was very fortunate to gain incredible access to professional architects and architectural historians after joining an academy focused on that career at the high school I teach at. I have architectural styles that I prefer more than others but have learned about a broad range of styles in the last two decades. My particular neighborhood here in Long Beach was developed in the early 20th century from the teens through WWII, and features a large number of Craftsman and Spanish Colonial Revival structures which were popular in that era. Pahonu is in the latter of those two styles and from that era as well.

Pahonu isn’t the only historic structure I have become interested in over the years. I have created numerous SketchUp models in many architectural styles as part of my work in the academy. Some are original designs, others are models of historic structures, including many that I have visited over the years and are registered as historic landmarks. I have mentioned a few in my posts here over the years. I have also mentored many students over the years in designs of their own, some of which have led to internships at architecture firms in the Los Angeles area.

As far as Rockford’s trailer, while it can’t be considered an architectural landmark, I have been to Paradise Cove in Malibu many times. This is where much of the filming in the series involving his trailer was filmed. They have it marked as such. The restaurant nearby is still there, though remodeled and renamed. I have eaten there a few times. The pier that he and Rocky fished off is still there, partly. The end of it was washed away in a winter storm about twenty years ago. If you really want to know, and you asked... the trailer had a bedroom at the back, then a bathroom, then a combined kitchen and living/dining space.

https://jimsuva.typepad.com/blog/2011/1 ... r-the.html

You did ask!!!

Oh, and Harry O’s beach house from that series was just up the beach a few hundred yards east, but is now gone.