Robert Redford. A name that doesn’t just belong to Hollywood history… but to Hollywood legend. Actor, director, producer, visionary — Redford wasn’t simply a star, he was the kind of figure who defined what stardom could mean.

From the golden age of cinema in the late 60s, through the daring films of the 70s, and into the new frontiers of the 90s and beyond, Redford carried himself with a rare blend of intelligence, charm, and quiet intensity.

Think of him alongside Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid — mischievous, magnetic, unforgettable. Or in The Sting, where the two lit up the screen with their effortless chemistry. These weren’t just roles; they were moments etched into the very DNA of American cinema.

But Robert Redford was never content to play the same part twice. In All the President’s Men, he turned the story of Watergate into a gripping thriller, showing that journalism, truth, and justice could be as suspenseful as any action film. In Out of Africa, he played the romantic ideal — rugged yet tender, bringing to life a sweeping love story that still lingers in our imaginations.

And then, in the early 90s, came a film that challenged audiences in ways few expected: Indecent Proposal.

In 1993, Redford took on the role of John Gage — the suave billionaire who offers a struggling couple one million dollars for a single night with the wife. It was a role that demanded both restraint and allure, and Redford delivered both in equal measure. He didn’t play Gage as a cold-hearted villain, but as a man of sophistication and temptation — the kind of presence that unsettled as much as it enticed.

And at the heart of that story was Demi Moore. Stunning, radiant, and vulnerable, Moore gave the film its emotional core. Her beauty and sensuality captivated audiences, while her fragility reminded us of the human cost behind the impossible choice. The chemistry between Moore and Redford was undeniable — elegant, charged, unforgettable. Together, they created a cultural moment that still sparks debate three decades later.

But Redford’s story was never limited to the screen. Behind the camera, he proved himself just as gifted. Ordinary People — his directorial debut — won the Academy Award for Best Picture, a triumph that announced Redford as a storyteller of extraordinary sensitivity.

And then there was Sundance. His greatest gift to future generations of filmmakers. What started as a small festival in Utah became a launchpad for independent cinema, a place where voices outside the Hollywood machine could be heard, nurtured, and celebrated. Without Redford, countless careers might never have had the chance to begin.

Even in later years, Redford never lost his power to move us. The Horse Whisperer showed him as a man of quiet wisdom. All Is Lost — with almost no dialogue — reminded us that he could command the screen with nothing but presence, silence, and raw humanity.

As we remember him today, we honor a life that gave us not only unforgettable characters, but also a legacy of courage, beauty, and humanity. Robert Redford showed us that cinema could be intelligent without losing its heart, and romantic without losing its soul.

He will be missed, but his light — like the Sundance Kid riding across the screen — will never fade.

Rest in peace, Robert Redford. And thank you, for everything.

Certainly warmth and gaiety are inviting qualities in a kitchen. When these are combined with top-notch efficiency, you have a room that is as much fun to live in as it is to work in. All these happy traits are present in this year's Idea Kitchen designed by H&G and Curtis Companies Inc. in cooperation with the American Gas Association. The 20-foot square kitchen, planned for a family with children, is really two rooms in one, screened by an angled, see-through dividing wall. This wall is composed of a line-up of equipment (range, dishwasher, work counter and double sink) backed by high wood panels. On the equipment side of the wall is the working section of the kitchen which includes, in addition to the food preparation center, a pantry at one end, a laundry at the other. The opposite side of the divider provides a backdrop for the family room. In front of a wide bow window at one end of this section is a dining area; at the opposite end, an entertainment wall and home office. In addition to these pleasures for the eye and spirit and a full complement of efficient equipment, storage cabinets and generous sweeps of counterspace, you find a number of welcome bonuses: built-in equipment for music and movies, a faucet that provides instant boiling water, a closet designed to organize cleaning equipment, a pantry for pets' paraphernalia.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | February 1961

Individual taste, sentiment and cultural background will always determine the type of house in which a family is really at home. The family for whom this house was built a young family with three small children had always wanted a Georgian or French Provincial house. They valued the scale and symmetry of traditional architecture and liked a style of interior decoration and a manner of entertaining with a definite degree of formality. Yet they also wanted all the attributes of relaxed present-day living, such as rooms with expansive views and provision for large-scale, casual outdoor parties. Their solution was a large rambling Georgian house brought up to date by a one-story plan, a central interior court, an outdoor terrace, pool and pool house. In this way all the traditional design characteristics were preserved in a house that was planned to keep pace with an active modern family and a social life that reflects the varied interests of both parents and children.

There is nothing hidebound about the plan of this traditional house. Behind a Georgian exterior it neatly fulfills the major requirements of contemporary living and entertaining. Core of the house design is the central courtyard, decided upon as the ideal way to give an open, indoor-outdoor aspect to the main living areas (study and master bedroom have a terrace exposure, also). For indoor entertaining, the entrance hall, living room and dining room are closely related and situated well away from the children's rooms. Privacy, an essential factor in a harmonious family life, is the privilege of everyone from parents to the youngest child. The back of the house is devoted to the children's bedrooms and playroom which conveniently adjoins the kitchen and breakfast area. The playroom leads directly to a small terrace and play yard complete with tree house, where the children may picnic, play with friends and generally follow their own pursuits. The third outstanding feature of the plan is the flagstone terrace and pool area, de- signed to extend the amount of living and entertaining the house can provide. The pool house is fully equipped to serve big cocktail parties, accommodate dinner dances or sleep the occasional overnight guest. This large, flexible, well-lighted area is usable five months of the year for large-scale parties, while the main house is reserved for more formal seated dinners.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | February 1961

This house was built in Glenview, Ill., for a family with three small children. It demonstrates several other points that make today's house better than one built ten years ago: The plan is divided into separate areas for children's activities and parents' relaxation and entertaining. Though the house has no separate dining room, there is more than one place to dine. The kitchen is designed not only for efficiency, but also as a pretty, pleasant room to live in. And from the front door to the children's bedrooms there is a wealth of specialized storage, precisely organized to keep the most things in the least space and yet make them easily available.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | November 1960

OLD-FASHIONED VERANDA large enough for buffet suppers and summer parties is an imaginative asset of this decidedly contemporary house near the California coast. Porch roof is partly open to allow sun and light to reach the interiors. In summer, a gay sunshade of bright green, gold and blue canvas is stretched across the uncovered rafters.

You can see the fruits of imagination in almost every detail of the design and plan of this house which is built on a secluded knoll among tall oak, pine and eucalyptus trees. One of the most satisfying results is the way the house nestles into its site and takes ad- vantage of the spectacular views on three sides. And the affinity of the house for its surroundings is emphasized by the exterior colors-greens, ochre and silvery buff borrowed from foliage, earth and tree trunks. Other imaginative highlights include a garage built partly be low ground so as not to obstruct the view; a dramatic glass-walled hall leading from entrance foyer to living room; a kitchen which is really two kitchens in one; a family room carefully planned for the specific activities of the family who live there-a family of four with a teen-age daughter and a six- year-old son.

The family has developed a deep affection for the house and with good reason, for the imaginative plan provides individual privacy and tranquillity for everybody. The children's bedrooms and their parents are in the same wing, near enough to each other for parents to answer nighttime hurry calls, yet comfortably separated by a study. Outdoors, too, the decks and terraces are marked off for the undistracted enjoy- ment of various age groups. And to top off these delights is one few families can claim all the storage they need.

The versatility of this imaginative house is eloquently expressed in the contrast between the living room, above, and the family room, opposite page, each of which includes a dining area. The quiet elegance of the living room is emphasized by rich fabrics curtains and wallcovering of yellow-green silk, sofa upholstery of silk and linen. And the high ceilings and large windows looking out on distant views give the room greater scale than the more intimate family room which looks out on the front terrace. Nut-brown mahogany paneling and a variety of built-ins and other conveniences give the family room an atmosphere of contained comfort.

THE FAMILY ROOM is imaginatively planned to take care of everything the family likes to do there. Set into one wall are a hi-fi speaker, a TV set, a pass-through for wood for the prefabricated fireplace. Since the small boy of the house uses the room as a playroom, there is storage for toys, a school desk for drawing. Dining area, right, normally opens to the hall but may be closed off by folding doors. There is also a door to kitchen-pantry.

It takes imagination to plan a kitchen that is compact enough to serve a single worker efficiently yet roomy enough for two. In this house, the trick was turned by the joint inventiveness of architects and owners who had studied and profited by time-and-motion saving principles. The result is a two-part, 21 foot long kitchen that includes one self-contained food preparation area and a pantry with auxiliary kitchen facilities-sink, refrigerator-freezer, oven-broiler as well as storage and laundry appliances. Thus, extra hands can help with large parties and not be in the way of the major-domo. In addition, the kitchen is full of small conveniences such as a drawer for trading stamps.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | August 1960

Hardy materials are essential in a house built for a young family with energetic growing children. But hardiness need not mean drabness, as architect George Goddard has demonstrated by the house he built for his own family in Belvedere, Calif. Concrete was his choice for both indoors and outdoors, and it has proved a good one. Concrete block walls and concrete paving have stood up well to the daily wear and tear of a small army of young Goddards-five boys, ranging downwards from 9 years to 2, and a baby girl. The material also turned out to be economical, an important asset for a house of 2.980 square feet. And the concrete blocks adapted easily to the curving walls which were a vital part of the architect's design.

The Goddard house stands on a pie-shaped corner lot bounded by two busy streets. From the street corner all you can see are two windowless curves of concrete wall. The nearest curve appears to be the wall of a drive-through carport, which, in fact, it is. But you might not guess that two-thirds of the curve is also the entry wall of the house and the rest is merely a projection to screen one wing from the street. The other wing is screened by the second curve of wall, only one end of which is anchored to the house itself. In the space between the curves where they overlap, is the main entrance. Within the house are two more curved walls that mark off the main living area from the parents' private wing on the one side and from the five- bedroom children's wing on the other. All these curves would have been complex and costly to build in wood framing. But concrete block can be laid in a curve without framework, bound firmly together with wedge-shaped mortar joints and metal reinforcing rods.

The back of the house faces south toward a lagoon, and the glass walls of the living, dining and family rooms in the center of the plan all open wide to a concrete paved terrace overlooking the water. The kitchen, an oval room which is literally a control tower in the very center of the plan, also shares the view. From both sides of this well engineered work center, ceiling-high tambour walls of ash slide out on floor and ceiling tracks to close off the kitchen-dining area from the living room on one side and the family room on the other. The family room doubles conveniently as the children's playroom since it is adjacent to their bedrooms and play yard and also to the laundry which has an outside door and serves as a mud room.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | July 1960