Brubeck's Modern Marvel - Page 2

Following the Brubecks' stint, a change was made to the floor plan that was original to the bedroom wing, and accommodated the parents' bedroom and four children's bedrooms. These small rooms were converted into a large primary suite and two additional bedrooms in a different configuration, "without really disturbing the bones," Morris says.

Innovative then and now, the forward-thinking residential design was heralded for architect Thorne's use of steel framing. He solved the problem of constructing a home on the nearly unbuildable hillside lot by utilizing five steel beams projecting in two directions, like a hand balancing the structure over them.

Blending outstanding design with panoramic views across the San Francisco Bay, the Brubeck home was featured in publications from coast to coast. Bethlehem Steel, which provided the steel used in the project, featured the home in its catalog, touting structural steel residential construction.

New York-based television host Ed Sullivan, a big jazz fan himself, was so enamored by the story that he filmed the Dave Brubeck Quartet performing live at the Oakland house. The episode was televised on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1960, and included this amusing bit of repartee:

There, Ed and Dave talked about Brubeck's family, his musical background, and joked about how Ed was a square. "Is there something you could play that is not so complicated that I can understand?" asked Ed. "That you could understand? Why Ed, you're a square. You are really square," replied Dave. After the conversation, Dave plays 'In a Dancing Mood.'

Beverly David Thorne, who went by the name 'David' throughout his life, was thrust into the limelight after completing the design of the Brubeck house. The national attention led to his participation in John Entenza's Case Study House program, for which Thorne designed CSH #26, in San Rafael. Last of the Case Study architects, Thorne passed away in 2017 at age 93.

"We have definitely touched a nerve," Morris says of the tremendous reception to the listing of the Brubeck house. "I'll be curious to see who purchases this home," she says—"someone who can preserve its character and respect its history. The cantilevering has held up well, I think it was designed to outlive us all."

Click here for more info, photos, and 3D tour of the home.