E.C. Segar's Residence Receives Santa Monica Conservancy 2012 Preservation Awards

The Santa Monica Conservancy 2012 Preservation Awards, given to individuals, business and trusts that exhibit "exemplary contributions to the preservation of Santa Monica’s architectural and cultural heritage," went to a number of buildings, including the Spanish Colonial Revival Builders Exchange Building.

The Restoration Award was given to the Spanish Colonial Revival Builders Exchange Building at the southeast corner of 4th and Broadway, which is known for its beautiful “Churrigueresque” ornamentation. The building was restored by architect William Dale Brantley after the 1994 earthquake, and maintained and enhanced by the C. Belle Grischow Trust.

The building has a colorful past with tenants in the 1920s and 30s that included artists, architects, detectives and even cartoonist Elzie Crisler Segar, creator of Popeye, the popular cartoon character born in a typhoon off Santa Monica.

I don't know about Popeye being born in a Pacific Ocean typhoon, but, E.C. Segar (1894-1938) was born on the shores of the Mississippi. He is buried in the Santa Monica Woodlawn Cemetery, his life cut short by leukemia.

Photo of Segar's Woodlawn Cemetery (Santa Monica, CA) grave by Scott Michaels.