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.
| Average Sold Price |
| $9,550 |
| Styles |
| Materials |
| Related Creators |
$6,800
H 78 in Dm 20 in
William Haines, Fluted Column Floor Lamp, from the Estate of Jack Warner, 1939
By William Billy Haines
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A monumental Neoclassical column floor lamp in oak, its shaft turned and fluted in the manner of a Doric or Tuscan column, rising from a stepped square plinth base to a molded capit...
Brass
Billy Haines Mid-Century American Purple Upholstered Ottoman
By William Billy Haines
Located in Queens, NY
Mid-Century American black lacquered ottoman featuring a button tufted, upholstered seat in dark purple, standing on 4 curved splayed legs. (BILLY HAINES) Matching slipper chair: REG...
Lacquer
$8,000 / set
H 28 in W 33 in D 27.5 in
1940s Modern Lounge Chairs by William Billy Haines, Upholstered Oak
By William Billy Haines
Located in San Francisco, CA
Two large scale lounge chairs designed by William "Billy" Haines. Each chair has an upholstered seat and curved tufted backrest which are joined by a gently curved tapering exposed o...
Upholstery, Oak
$18,000
H 33 in Dm 16 in
Billy Haines Architectural Table Lamp with Grand Tour Bronze Figure of Narcissus
By William Billy Haines
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A striking architectural table lamp by William "Billy" Haines, the former MGM leading man turned preeminent Hollywood decorator whose interiors defined mid-century American glamour f...
Metal, Bronze
$75,000 / set
H 28.5 in W 25 in D 27 in
"Gemütlich" Leather Clad Table and 4 Burgundy Brentwood Chairs by William Haines
By William Billy Haines
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This 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 purchased and moved in in 1963. Haines made appropriate changes to the structure and being at the top of his game, both the architectural changes and the custom furnishings clearly illustrate this. He discreetly added a projection room to the front of the house so that the cleverly concealed projectors made for a movie going experience in the living room. Other Haines touches abound in this, a wonderful and thoughtful interior perfectly capturing a moment in time when life was glamorous. This set still in tact consists of the "good times" table surrounded by a set of 4 chairs, a variation on the "Brentwood" chair with an all upholstered back with channel quilting and biscuit tufted seating. Because Haines had a keen eye for detail the chairs also have a wonderful "cut" in the front legs accented with black enamel. The biscuit tufting on the seats is classic while the channeling on the backs make these unique. The table top is wrapped in tooled Ocher leather and rests on a hand carved base featuring 3 dolphin...
Leather, Fabric, Wood
William Billy Haines Biscuit Tufted Ledge Back Sofa
By William Billy Haines
Located in Los Angeles, CA
An exceptional 122" long biscuit-tufted, ledge-back sofa by iconic mid-century designer William “Billy” Haines. Upholstered in high-grade velvet, the sofa is both luxurious and remar...
Wrought Iron
A Pair of Wooden Columns, William Haines
By William Billy Haines
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This 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...
Wood
$12,500 / set
H 30 in Dm 17 in
Pair of William Haines Chinese Urn Table Lamps, Estate of Kirk Douglas, 1960s
By William Billy Haines
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This elegant pair of Chinese inspired table lamps was designed by legendary Hollywood decorator William Haines, dating to the 1960s, and sourced from the estate of iconic actor Kirk ...
Porcelain, Wood
| Sold Date | Sold Price | Category | Material | Creation Year | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| $9,550 |
Average sold price of items in the past 12 months |
| $1,000-$42,500 |
| Sold price range of items in the past 12 months |