Information regarding the “Japanese gardens” mentioned by Keye Luke.
From: Discover Los Angeles, October 17, 2025
Yamashiro: The Story of An LA Icon
Discover Hollywood’s landmark “mountain palace”
A Mountain Palace in Hollywood
Meaning “Mountain Palace” in Japanese, Yamashiro was originally the vision of Adolph and Eugene Bernheimer, who were described by the National Park Service as “German-born cotton barons and avid Asian Art collectors.” After acquiring a dozen acres of Hollywood hilltop property to build their estate and gardens, the Bernheimer brothers hired New York architect Franklin M. Small, with local architect Walter Webber as supervising architect, to design the Main House that would house their collection of Asian art treasures.
Completed in 1914, the mansion was supposedly a replica of a palace located in the mountains of Yamashiro province near Kyoto. In fact, the Main House was a mix of design elements from Japan, China and other Asian cultures.
Yamashiro was accessed by 300 steps that led up the hillside through landscaped Japanese gardens. Inside the 10-room teak and cedar mansion, carved rafters were lacquered in gold and tipped with bronze dragons. The walls were covered with lustrous silks and antique tapestries. With landscaping that reportedly cost $2 million, terraces were filled with 30,000 varieties of plants and trees, waterfalls, goldfish, and a private zoo of exotic birds and monkeys. Toy-sized bronze houseboats floated along a maze of tiny canals and through a miniature Japanese village.
Another well-known Yamashiro spot, the ceremonial Summer House was placed just below the top of the hill as a resting place for guests who were climbing the stairs. The antique Buddha that was seated there became so popular with guests that a sign was posted to warn visitors, “Do Not Climb On Buddha.” The Yamashiro Buddha now faces west as a sign of good luck and prosperity.
