In 1955, the Garden was put up for sale. One prospective buyer was Dr. Frank Nolan, best known for treating Garden residents’ hangovers in his offices above Schwab’s Drug Store across the street. Nolan planned to convert the hotel into a hospital.
He was outbid by Cornelius Vanderbilt “Sonny” Whitney, an East Coast heir with Hollywood ambitions. He and his cousin, John Jay “Jock” Whitney, had financed David O. Selznick’s productions, including A Star Is Born (1954) and Gone with the Wind. Sonny had served as assistant secretary of the Air Force under Truman and co-founded Pan American Airlines. He was also a top breeder in thoroughbred racing.
Sonny, Jock, and Sonny’s nephew, sportswriter Whitney Tower, often stayed at the Garden during racing season at the Hollywood Park and Santa Anita tracks. Sonny also owned a majority stake in Holiday House, a mid-century modern hotel in Malibu designed by Richard Neutra. The idea to buy the Garden came from Dudley Murphy, Holiday House’s proprietor and a producer of art films. Murphy envisioned rebranding the Garden as Hollywood’s Holiday House.
Whitney completed the $500,000 purchase in June 1955. He gave Murphy partial ownership in exchange for managing the property. Murphy then made a side deal with Lee Hotels, redecorating the Garden in a style one columnist called “Moroccan-modern.” The villas were updated, private patios improved, and the restaurant expanded with giant floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the pool. There were plans to double the number of villas.
Selznick International was producing The Prisoner of Zenda at the time, and Whitney opted to live at the Garden during production. But he never stayed there again. “The place somehow looked even more run-down after it had been renovated by Murphy and Lee,” Sheilah Graham recalled. The new villas were never built. The name was not changed. Murphy’s deal with Lee collapsed. With Whitney’s assent, the partners sold their shares.