Main entrance to the Kahala Beach Apartments,

where Jack and Marie lived

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"There is something Jack can do -- on his free days -- in fact, it's a trait

he has which annoys me," Marie confessed. "I'll never figure out how a

man who leads the orderly, disciplined life Jack does six days a week,

can completely revert to a state of timelessness when he's not on call.

For instance, when we do make a date to go out with people, I have to

keep following him around or he'll never be ready. If I don't keep remind-

ing him, it will be 6 p.m., and he'll be sitting at his easel still mixing

paints. After 23 years, I still can't understand him. He completely loses

track of time. There's another thing he does which gets to me, too. He

has a marvelous facility for entering a room just when I'm in the middle of 

telling a joke and, like a kid, he always jumps in and gives the punch line." 
 

Jack smiled. "Guilty as charged -- on both counts.”

 

-- Marie and Jack Lord (1)

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New York

 

Jack married Marie DeNarde on January 17, 1949. From then until 1957, they lived in Marie's long-time apartment at 212 East 48th Street, Manhattan, New York City. 

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​California

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In 1957, they moved to California. They lived at "The Voltaire" at 1424 N. Crescent Heights Boulevard. Built by architect Leland Bryant in 1930, the French Normandy building comprised 40 apartments on 7 floors. Hardwood floors and French moldings were featured in each room, while the bathroom featured claw-foot tubs and black-and-white ceramic tile octagons. In the 1980s, the building was converted into a hotel and renamed The Granville. Today, it is once again an apartment building. It is still upscale and still attractive to celebrities. Current residents are remodeling the units; some retain the classic details, while others replace them with contemporary ones.

 

SIDEBAR: It seems there was a bad fire in 1935, at The Voltaire

apartments.(2) Fortunately, the building was saved and is

still a prominent residence.

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Hawaii

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In 1968, they moved to Honolulu. After initially living in a penthouse apartment at the Ilikai Hotel, they purchased a large and luxurious condominium at 4999 Kahala Avenue, Apartment #372. It was located in the Kahala Beach Apartments. 

 

Kahala Beach is a stretch of coastline that runs from Black Point, at the southeastern foot of Diamond Head, eastward to the Kahala Hotel. It overlooks Maunalua Bay, which stretches from Diamond Head to Koko Head. The name "Maunalua" means "two mountains." 

 

Jack and Marie purchased their 3,500-square-foot home in 1970, when they were sure that Hawaii Five-0 was going to be a success. The apartment featured a massive living room, a dining room, a sizable kitchen, two master suites, two more bedrooms, three bathrooms, and two lanais. Walls in the living areas were painted white; carpeting was avocado green, which was the color in that day and age; and accent pieces were yellow. In most cases, the furnishings were mid-century modern. The living room contained a white sectional sofa that curved to form a ninety-degree angle, a marble-top coffee table, and slender, low-back occasional chairs with Danish modern legs. The walls were adorned with many works of art, some of which had been created by Jack, but some of which had been painted by such artists as Paul Gauguin and Jean Charlot. The kitchen featured pumpkin-colored cabinets, for Jack and Marie loved warm colors, and as Marie said, she did not like a kitchen that appeared cold and sterile. 

 

After Marie's death, the condo was put on the market. It remained on the market for about two years before it sold. One report said it originally listed for $2 million; another source said $2.8 million. When it sold in March 2008, it went for $800,000. 

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SIDEBAR: Several factors contributed to the sharp decline in the value

of the property. First, the real estate market in general was declining

at the time. Second, the owner of the land raised the land lease what

one source called "astronomically."(3) This had the effect of making

ownership difficult, if not impossible, for most people. Third, the land

lease would expire in 2027, only twenty years after the date of sale.

At that time, ownership of the land will revert to the Kamehameha

Schools. Because most lending institutions will not finance property

for longer than the time remaining on a land lease, the number of

qualified buyers was further reduced.

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_______________

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(1)  Borie, Marcia. The Jack Lord Nobody Knows, Good Housekeeping. October 1975.

(2)  Film Stars Flee Big Hollywood Fire; Man Killed, Two Injured, Los Angeles Fire Department Archive, 1999. 

http://www.lafire.com/stations/archive/articles/fs027_1939000c_VoltaireFire.htm.

(3)  Schaefers, Allison. Kahala Condos Hobbled by Leasehold, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, May 16, 2006. http://archives.starbulletin.com/2006/05/16/business/story02.html.

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