That Vintage Girl

October is the perfect month to curl up on a cozy couch with a warm cup of coffee and a mystery book. This month, I am traveling back in time to the Silent Age of Hollywood with A Cast of Killers.  The book is a true crime mystery about the unsolved 1922 murder of William Desmond Taylor, a famous Hollywood film director.   The murder became a national scandal and it ended the careers of two prominent silent-film actresses whose association with the director made them prime suspects. In 1967, King Vidor, who began his career in Hollywood as a silent-film actor and then became a successful film director, set out to solve the murder mystery. He began a years-long pursuit of research and interviews, but when he thought he had finally identified the killer, he chose to keep his research a secret for fear that the revelation may destroy the lives of people connected to the case who were still alive.   William Desmond Taylor  Photograph from the Los Angeles Public...

One of my favorite travel memories is riding the Durango & Silverton steam-powered railroad through the San Juan National Forest in Colorado. The 45-mile railroad connects the historic towns of Durango and Silverton. Along the way, the train travels along the Animas River and providers breathtakingly panoramic views of the Colorado Rockies' wilderness, deep canyons, towering cliffs, and mountain passes.  The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad was built by the Denver and Rio Grande in 1882 to transport silver and gold from the mining town of Silverton to Durango. It was constructed through one of the country's most rugged mountains and was built mostly by hand. It is considered an engineering marvel and the American Society of Civil Engineers designated it a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1968. It has also been in continuous operation since 1882 making it one of the few remaining continuously used railroads in the United States.  Today, the Duran...

The Castle Green is a magnificent residential building in Pasadena, California that draws the attention of any passerby.  Built in 1898, the grand building, which is surrounded by lavish gardens, has a unique blend of many architectural styles that include Mediterranean Revival, Moorish Revival, Spanish Colonial, and Victorian.  It was built with all the turn-of-the-century charms: a grand lobby and ornate wrought-iron staircase, a ballroom, sun room, and multiple salons with tiled and hand carved fireplace mantels, a man-operated wrought-iron elevator, plaster and wood moldings, and decorative wood detailing.  However, it was originally bult to be a luxury hotel, a product of the Victoria-era luxury  resorts movement that catered to the growing trend of vacationers and health-seekers who searched for warmer climates, cleaner air, and leisure lifestyles.  The mastermind behind the planning of the hotel was Edward C. Webster who built Hotel Green in 1887, which ...