The Frank House, Case Study House #25, emerged in 1962 as Edward Killingsworth's solution for his close friend Edward Frank, a bachelor who owned Frank Brothers furniture importing company in Long Beach. Frank Brothers had become the premier destination for Mid-Century Modern furnishings on the West Coast, with Julius Shulman noting that "everybody that had a modern house went as a mecca to Frank Brothers." Frank requested a residence that could accommodate both his bachelor lifestyle and potential future family needs, requiring clear separation between public and private zones on his narrow waterfront lot in the Naples section of Long Beach.
Killingsworth's sixth and final design created possibly the most unusual built home in the Case Study series. The two-story structure presents a completely windowless, towering facade to the street, creating maximum privacy on the cramped 3,080 square foot canal lot. The magic happens on the water side, where the house opens dramatically through a two-story glass wall facing the canal. The interior revolves around an enclosed two-story courtyard that floods all rooms with filtered natural light while maintaining privacy from neighboring properties.
