--- title: Chemosphere date: "2005-04-08T12:00:00Z" categories: - links wp_id: 673 description: Explore the Chemosphere, John Lautner's octagonal "most modern residence" perched on a steep Los Angeles slope. Built for an aerospace engineer and featured in Charlie's Angels 2, this architectural icon uses a unique central pedestal design. keywords: [chemosphere, john lautner, modernist architecture, los angeles, leonard malin, benedikt taschen] --- [Chemosphere](http://images.google.com/images?q=chemosphere) is the world's most modern residence. Incidentally, [Charlie's Angels 2 was filmed here](http://www.seeing-stars.com/Locations/CA1/CharliesAngels2.shtml). [via MeFi](http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/41048) > Leonard Malin was a young aerospace engineer in late-1950s L.A. whose father-in-law had just given him a plot north of Mulholland Drive, near Laurel Canyon. The only catch: at roughly 45 degrees, the slope was all but unbuildable. Lautner sketched a bold vertical line, a cross, and a curve above it. "Draw it up," he told his assistant. Now publisher Benedikt Taschen owns Chemosphere. [![Chemosphere](/blog/assets/flickr-chemosphere_200401561_o-jpg.webp)](/blog/assets/flickr-chemosphere_200401561_o-jpg.webp) --- ## Comments - **Dennis** _27 Apr 2010 6:08 am_: I love this - also dome homes. I would love to see more photo's than the few I have seen, as well as how the funicular (underground railroad thing) works to enter the house. Also it would be neat to see more about how the house was built, what is involved with keeping it maintained, and how it fared during the various earthquakes - any damage?