Ledge Back Seniah by William Haines
View Similar Items
Ledge Back Seniah by William Haines
About the Item
- Creator:William Billy Haines (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 32 in (81.28 cm)Width: 32 in (81.28 cm)Depth: 36 in (91.44 cm)Seat Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1960s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Palm Desert, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU79771198908
William Billy Haines
Plenty of prolific designers started off on slightly different tracks than those on which they ended up, but rarely did they begin their careers in a totally separate industry like William “Billy” Haines did. Before he gained a reputation as a furniture designer and decorator to Hollywood’s biggest and brightest, Haines was himself a star of the silver screen.
After leaving his native Virginia as a young man, Haines earned modeling and acting jobs in New York City and then won a Goldwyn Studios talent contest in the early 1920s. The next frontier was California, where he would go on to appear in more than 50 films. His acting career was halted abruptly in 1933, allegedly because he refused to leave his partner, British footballer Jimmy Shields, at the request of his representation at MGM Studios. Whether it was the fact that Haines was one half of Hollywood’s first openly gay marriage or that there were other factors at play, MGM cofounder Louis B. Mayer canceled his contract.
Luckily for Haines, he had nurtured a side career that kept him on Hollywood’s radar: He was a prominent antiques dealer on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles. Haines dedicated himself full-time to both dealing and designing furniture as soon as his tenure as a leading man came to an end.
Haines collaborated with the era’s biggest names in architecture and created a desert living room for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco that featured walls made of California Joshua wood and a painting by Georgia O’ Keeffe. He paid close attention to lighting design, employed hand-painted wallpaper and favored featuring Chinese ceramics alongside Chippendale chairs and ottomans for entertaining. His most famous clients included Joan Crawford, Carole Lombard, Betsy Bloomingdale and more. Crawford played a significant role in kick-starting his career when she commissioned Haines to decorate her entire home in Brentwood.
Haines was such an esteemed tastemaker that he’s among those credited with having cemented Hollywood Regency as a reputable design style. (Its origins are owed to influential interior decorator Dorothy Draper.) While he gravitated toward the look of chinoiserie and English furniture, his signature was low-level seating and giltwood accents. Haines’s interior design style was so in vogue that Nancy Reagan became one of his biggest fans and eventually enlisted Ted Graber, Haines’s successor following his death in 1973, to decorate several private and public rooms in the White House.
Find a collection of vintage William Haines lounge chairs, lighting fixtures and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- A Pair of Wooden Columns, William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his...Category
Vintage 1950s American Greco Roman Pedestals and Columns
MaterialsWood
$7,000 / set - A Pair of Large Custom Mirrors, designed by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection, purchased directly from the heirs of the estate presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his clients a young family of five...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Floor Mirrors and Full-Length ...
MaterialsMirror, Wood
- Faux Bamboo and Marble Topped Cocktail Table by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection, purchased directly from the heirs of the estate presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Wil...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMarble
- A Two Cushion Sofa on Runner Legs, William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his clients a young family of five...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Walnut
- A Pair of Cobalt Blue Swiveling Tub Chairs designed by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAOffered here a pair of swiveling tub chairs, sitting on a stylized Chinoiserie base. The bases are painted black. The chairs have been newly upholstered in Romo/Zinc Ocelot - Midni...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Swivel Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- "Gemütlich" Leather Clad Table and 4 Bergundy Brentwood Chairs by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsLeather, Fabric, Wood
- Amazing Pair of Billy Haines Barrel Back Chairs, Regency ModernBy Baker Furniture CompanyLocated in Pemberton, NJWonderful pair of Billy Haines fruitwood barrel back chairs. This pair is meant to be seen from all angles-looks as good from the back as they do from the front. They are in fantasti...Category
Vintage 1960s American Hollywood Regency Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery
- William Billy Haines 122" Biscuit Tufted Ledge Back Sofa in Velvet UpholsteryBy William Billy HainesLocated in Los Angeles, CAA wonderful 122" long Biscuit Tufted, ledge back sofa by Iconic Mid Century designer, William "Billy" Haines. The upholstery is in a high grade velvet and is a very comfortable is...Category
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsWrought Iron
- Mid-Century Modern Biscuit Tufted Armchair in the Manner of William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in New York, NYThis handsome and refined Mid-Century Modern armchair- realized in the manner of William Haines- features a tapered high back and a tufted biscuit pattern seat and back in new oyster...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBrass
- Leather Upholstered Buttoned Back ArmchairLocated in Benington, HertsA quality leather upholstered buttoned back armchair. This well-proportioned armchair has been upholstered in a hand-dyed leather Hyde. The unique design is a one-off and very comfortable and will work in a traditional and contemporary setting. Having a feather cushioned seat and deep buttoned back with individual brass nailed finished. Standing on turned wooden front legs and antiqued brass castors...Category
2010s English Victorian Armchairs
MaterialsLeather
- Fabulous 1940s Billy Haines Style Channel Back Occasional Tub Chair - RestoredBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward Wormley, William Billy HainesLocated in St. Louis, MO1940s Billy Haines style channel back occasional tub chair, reupholstered in a mocha beige linen fabric with refinished dark mahogany legs.Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood
- Montis Back Me Up Salon Club Chair Designed by Arian Brekveld IN STOCKBy MontisLocated in New York, NYBack Me Up Salon Upholstery: HERO 466318 #791 Base: Oak Black carbon stained The compact club chair With the BACK ME UP Salon, Arian Brekveld pu...Category
2010s Dutch Club Chairs
MaterialsFabric
$1,695 Sale Price47% Off
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
In Dragonette’s New Palm Desert Digs, Great Design Springs Eternal
Since leaving Los Angeles, Patrick Dragonette is experiencing a new kind of creative freedom.
Why This L.A. Designer Prefers Soulful Sophistication over Snobbism
Mallery Roberts Morgan practices a singular brand of creative fluidity as a writer and a quietly influential interior designer.