The demolition of the Maslon House in Rancho Mirage, designed by Richard Neutra in 1962 for art collectors Samuel and Luella Maslon, sent shockwaves around the architectural world in March 2002. Among those who felt the weight of the home's loss was filmmaker Scott Goldstein.
As a child, Goldstein used to spend time in the desert visiting his grandparents, who lived across the Tamarisk Country Club fairway from the Maslons. Back then, there wasn't much to do in the valley except golf, go to a movie, hang out by the pool and take in the landscape. For Goldstein, his downtime included admiring Neutra's Rancho Mirage home.
He can still vividly recall its long, simple lines, its overhang, the sculptures that were outside the house, the glass walls that made the house "disappear" and the way "the roof appeared to be floating."
"That house was the first thing you saw when you walked out the back door at my grandparents' house," he recalled. "You saw the mountains and you saw the Maslon House."
In 2002, he and his wife took a trip to Rancho Mirage, excited to show his bride the view from his grandparents' home. Except, when they stepped outside, the Maslon House was gone. Later, in its place, was a different house, but he said "it just wasn't the same."
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