Comments on: CWE Mid-Century Modern: Lindell Boulevard

By: Jim Harman

Jim Harman — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 13:44:55 +0000

STLSTEVO is absolutely correct. I was the Security Supervisor at Ramada Inn-South in 1985, when the Playboy Club was still in full swing. We had some great times there. The site where Ramada-South stood is now occupied by a Circuit City!

By: STLSTEVO

STLSTEVO — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 21:45:00 +0000

Great overview of some terrific architecture…

one clarification: after vacating its Lindell Boulevard location, the Playboy Club opened in the Ramada Inn, located at the southeast corner of South Lindbergh at I-55, and remained there until the club finally shuttered its doors for good.

By: Donna

Donna — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 18:56:34 +0000

The Optimist International building located at 4494 Lindell Blvd. is the international administraive building for this international service club organization with 3,200 clubs and almost 100,000 members in more than 35 nations throughout the world. Meeting the needs of young people in communities worldwide, Optimist Clubs have been “Bringing Out the Best in Kids” since 1911. Optimist Clubs conduct positive service projects aimed at providing a helping hand to youth. Club Members are best known in their communities for their upbeat attitudes. By believing in young people and empowering them to be the best they can, Optimist volunteers continually make this world a better place to live. By providing hope and positive vision, Optimists bring out the best in kids. Optimists conduct 65,000 service projects each year, serving six million young people. Optimists also spend $78 million on their communities annually.

By: BLOG . JAY FRAM › Curtains behind blue windows.

BLOG . JAY FRAM › Curtains behind blue windows. — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:27:51 +0000

[...] mid-century modern gem of a building. But why are the windows blue? This was written by Jay Fram. Posted on Sunday, August 2, 2009, at [...]

By: the san luis, part 1: reality « taylor hawyood: pronouncements

the san luis, part 1: reality « taylor hawyood: pronouncements — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 04:57:44 +0000

[...] B.E.L.T. – CWE Mid-Century Modern – an excellent summary of the modernist buildings on Lindell Blvd., including the San Luis and Lindell Terrace. [...]

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 06:41:00 +0000

Very interesting! Have you ever heard what happened to Boston's West End? Urban renewal tore the whole neighborhood down, one of the saddest chapters in America's history. There's info on it about on Boston Apartments. How are the rents over there these days?.

By: Davidkevin

Davidkevin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 17:00:00 +0000

What about the Pierre Chouteau Condominiums at 4440 Lindell on the west side of the Towne House? You skipped right over that building.

By: archutah

archutah — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 03:27:00 +0000

This looks to be a fabulous street! I can’t wait to visit it this month for some research I am doing on the Chancery building. I think I’ll probably get distracted by what I’ve now seen that is in the neighborhood. What a context! Somebody should really get a hold of this while it’s still there and start some designations. Truly fabulous and you should consider yourselves fortunate! Great post, thank you. Kirk SLC, UT

By: J. Green

J. Green — Wed, 28 May 2008 08:28:00 +0000

The Playboy Club moved to a Holiday Inn on S. Lindbergh down by I55, not the Viking.

By: Darren

Darren — Mon, 26 May 2008 16:19:00 +0000

I spent a lot of time playing Nelly records for trashed SLU kids at Kearbey’s (the former Playboy Club) and learned a lot about the place.

The basement–which the Kearbeys initially meant to use as private party rooms but never got around to it–was remodeled into a “jewelry mall” in the ’70s, with a “banking” theme inspired by a similar business the proprietor saw in Vienna. The walls were lined with safe-deposit boxes, and the windows into the individual rooms were old drive-up bank windows. From what I understand, the jewelry mall never quite got finished and the public never got to see this amazing space.

After Kearbey’s closed, the brewpub folks moved a lot of the “bank” decor upstairs into the ground-floor bar area.

Incidentally, SLU was slated to feature in a Playboy “College Girls” pictorial until Fr. Biondi put the kibosh on it. Photographer Kim Mizuno and assistant/former model Cynthia Kaye came around anyway to scope the place out; there was still talk about shooting a feature there because it was the only Playboy Club built from the ground up as a Playboy Club–all the others were adapted from existing buildings.

A lot of the building’s original fabulosity was remodeled-out or trashed by college kids, but it’s still a pretty neat time capsule. Its retro decor–what’s left of it–would be a hard sell at this point, what with the whole loungecore/Austin Powers thing now a decade in the past.