The Sowden House is an architectural landmark. Located in the Los Feliz neighborhood, the house was designed by Lloyd Wright, son of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Named for the man who commissioned the house- John Sowden, a famed painter. Sowden wanted to use the house to entertain his Hollywood guests, but sold it when the house's Mayan revival design was criticized.
In 1945 the house would be sold to its most notorious resident- Doctor George Hodel. Dr. Hodel is best known for possibly running an illegal abortion clinic and for being a suspect in the Black Dahlia murder. The Black Dahlia was Elizabeth Short, a beautiful aspiring starlet who was found horrifically murdered in a vacant lot, her body bisected and discarded. The murder set off a cat and mouse game between the killer and the police.
Dr. George Hodel soon attracted the attention of law enforcement, who secured a warrant to place a in bug the Sowden House. Hodel was recorded talking to others about how even if he had killed the Black Dahlia, the police couldn't prove it because his secretary had mysteriously passed away. The investigation was mysteriously discontinued, possibly due to Hodel's Hollywood ties. His son would take up the case decades later, theorizing that his father might have committed the murder in the basement of the Sowden House. Interested in owning a house that could quite possibly be a gruesome, historic crime scene? If you have $5 Million it could be yours.
