The Hudson Apartments ( formerly The Historic Hillview Hollywood ) is a historical building located on Hollywood Boulevard , and is considered Hollywood 's first " artist 's " high-rise . It was founded in 1917 by movie moguls Jesse L. Lasky , co-founder of Paramount Pictures , and his brother-in-law Samuel Goldwyn , co-founder of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , better known as MGM . It was one of Hollywood 's only apartment buildings at the time willing to rent to aspiring actors since they were considered a financial risk by most apartment building owners . In fact , it catered specifically to actors . It quickly became a Hollywood hot spot . The vast basement housed a rehearsal space until Rudolph Valentino reputedly converted it to a speakeasy . Former big-screen residents include Mae Busch , Stan Laurel , and Viola Dana . Charlie Chaplin was once a proprietor of the Hillview . Clara Bow found her first home at the Hillview in 1923 . The Hillview eventually slipped into obscurity and went into ruin , suffering structural damage during the 1994 Northridge earthquake . The Hillview was restored and completely redone by 2005
1994 Northridge earthquake
1994 Northridge earthquake
The Hillview