ARCHITECTS FOR OBAMA

Frank Gehry, Thom Mayne, and Sharon Johnston were among those scheduled to join Hillary Clinton at “Angelenos Go Green for Obama,” a $500-ticket carbon-neutral fundraiser at steampunk wonderland The Edison on October 4. But Gehry actually gave an even bigger chunk of change to Barack Obama over a year ago, bolstered by additional contributions from his wife Berta. In fact, when it comes to (mostly blue) support from California architects, Gwynne Pugh, Kevin Daly, Barbara Bestor, Frank Escher, Steven Kanner, Rob Quigley, Olivier Touraine, and Anne Fougeron to name a few, are all in the tank with Obama. However, across the board it’s not a resounding “O”: Craig Hartman gave his big bucks to Hillary Clinton, as did Michael Lehrer and Brenda Levin, while Leo Marmol and Ron Radziner both donated to John Edwards’ campaign last year.

TROUBLE ON THE HOME FRONT?

We recently got our grubby hands on a mockup of the new magazine Homefront LA, planning a January debut. It promises to go “beyond architecture, home design and real estate to feature people who have a passion for the everyday luxury of home” in the midst of a mortgage crisis. Homefront LA is the baby of the young JD McRae, who touts himself as a “third generation publisher whose family owns about 45 other publications,” thanks to his grandfather George Sample, a journalist and newspaper owner who died in June of this year. But staff shuffles and logistical issues have already plagued the start-up. Once named on the website as editor-in-chief, former House Beautiful EIC Mark Mayfield balked at the move to LA and opted to stay in New York instead with an editor-at-large title, so the mag tapped Michael Cannell for the top gig. Although Cannell recently left his online editorial director role at Dwell, we hear he, too is going to stay in NY, commuting every few weeks to the Beverly Hilton. We guess writing about “the unique, exciting lifestyle of Angelenos at home” doesn’t require you to be one. At least one of the mostly NY-transplants, executive editor Deborah Schoeneman, lives here, and is best known around town for her salacious gossip industry novel, 4% Famous—sigh, a woman after our own heart! 
 

ECONOMIC BAILOUTS

Things are rough everywhere, so we hear. Not the best time to be putting Craig Ellwood’s famous Daphne House in Hillsborough, California on the market for the first time since it was completed in 1961. The San Mateo county steel-beam and glass construction features a 3,700-square-foot open plan around a central courtyard pool for a cool $3.7 million. Yet, according to realtor Jim Arbeed, a sale is pending … Speaking of San Francisco sales, we have it on good faith that local firm SMWM is about to be acquired. The rumored suitor? Drumroll, please: Perkins+Will.

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