Marion and Art Falk
Source: Art Falk archives
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Building and running a growing foundry apparently wasn’t enough to keep Art Falk busy so, in 1948, he also built a custom house.
At nearly fifty years old, Art had settled into himself and knew what he wanted. He knew, for instance, that he wanted to live east of Long Beach so the sun wouldn’t shine in his eyes on the drive to and from work. He wanted a short commute so, using a compass to draw circles on a AAA road map, he limited his search to twenty miles from the foundry. And, since he and Marion both liked gardening, they looked for a large, fertile parcel with good sun exposure.
After spending several weekends scouting plots in Garden Grove, Whittier, and La Habra, Art heard about an orange grove in the Sunny Hills area of Fullerton that was being subdivided. Far from rapidly-urbanizing Long Beach, the parcel was accessible only by country roads and, when he and Marion checked it out, all they saw in every direction were orange and walnut orchards.
With its sun-warmed soils and fruit-laden trees, the property looked like paradise.