Mr. Williams

Only in America, it seems, could the orphan son of a black fruit merchant get the notion that mere talent and perseverance might vault him over the barriers to entry in the architectural profession, a bastion of white men with all the right connections. Yet that is the tale of Paul Revere Williams (1894–1980), who not only had the notion but the drive to achieve his dream—becoming one of the most celebrated residential architects during the Golden Age of Hollywood and a pillar of Los Angeles’ burgeoning African-American community.