Dolores and Bob Hope

Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright apprentice John Lautner to be a suitable space for comedian Bob Hope and his wife Dolores to host large charity functions, the domed structure appears above Palm Springs like a flying saucer on a mountaintop. When first shown plans, Bob quipped “Well, at least when they come down from Mars, they’ll know where to go.” Its enormous oculus brings light into a central court, effectively providing an outdoor living room fit for entertaining hundreds of guests in a spectacular natural setting. (Credit: Steve King)

Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz

Although situated in a dramatic Palm Springs setting, the design of I Love Lucy co-stars’ Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz’s 1954 Rancho Mirage holiday home was less about impressing people and more about making them feel comfortable. Spread over 4,400 sq ft (409 sq m), the contemporary ranch house by Paul R Williams provided enough room for pool parties and barbeques – and spot the towering double-height TV antenna. Williams’ construction gave a balance of modern and traditional: open plan living with wood walls and stone fireplaces. (Credit: Julius Shulman/J. Paul Getty Trust)

Gary Cooper

Built in 1955 for Gary Cooper’s wife Veronica, this sophisticated ultramodern home with glass walls surrounded by nature in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. Designed by architect A Quincy Jones, it was intended as a peace offering after Cooper’s affair with actress Patricia Neal. Ironic, given that Gary and Veronica had fallen for each other while making The Fountainhead, which was based on Ayn Rand’s novel of an uncompromising and individualistic Modernist architect, and a glamorous socialite who couldn’t resist such unwavering integrity. (Credit: Dominique Vorillon)

Josef von Sternberg

The San Fernando Valley was still a rustic retreat where many Hollywood stars owned ranches in the 1930s, but Richard Neutra’s house built in 1935 for Austrian-US film-maker Josef von Sternberg, surrounded by a moat and shiny aluminum walls, looked to a bold future based on technology. From the patio, the view was as carefully composed as a frame of celluloid – only the house, the sky and the trees could be seen, and a sprinkler system along the wall could create the special effects of mist or hard rain. (Credit: Julius Shulman/J Paul Getty Trust)

Steve McQueen

Steve McQueen moved into the taut Palm Springs house that Hugh M Kaptur had designed for investor Thomas Griffing in 1964 – a functional Modernist steel-and glass desert house perched above the Coachella Valley. Kaptur’s design offered the best of all worlds for a star: privacy and isolation combined with freedom – steel construction allowed the large living room to cantilever out over the hillside, with glass walls that slide open to surrounding deck. (Credit: Steve King)

Lew Wasserman

The home that talent super-agent Lew Wasserman shared with his wife Edie has the clean lines we expect of Modernism; window walls, sliding doors, white terrazzo floors, and of course the swimming pool. But it’s the confident curved roofline which dominates when facing the backyard. Scenes of parties and meetings, the house designed by architect Harold Levitt became the epicentre for almost anything that happened in Hollywood from the 1950s to the 80s. (Credit: Julius Shulman/J Paul Getty Trust)

Charlton Heston

A place for small gatherings rather than lavish Hollywood parties, architect William Sutherland Beckett built a home in the shape of an arrowhead far above the city in 1959 for Charlton Heston, star of Ben-Hur and Planet of the Apes. Surrounded by the steep Hollywood hills, ‘The Ridge’ – as Heston called it – became a refuge for the actor and his family. The striking pattern on the living room rug was designed by Heston, who had an artistic side, often sketching crew and actors while waiting for his scenes to be shot. (Credit: Steve King)

Frank Sinatra

In April 1949 Frank Sinatra was on holiday in Palm Springs when he walked into the office of architect E Stewart Williams to ask him to build a Georgian Colonial Revival–style house in which to have a Christmas party that year. Williams instead convinced Ol' Blue Eyes to create a Modernist home set on the flats near the town centre, where the panoramic view of snow-capped mountains could be seen from the master bedroom. Williams denies that the swimming pool was shaped to resemble a grand piano, stating he wanted a curve to play off against the line of the building. (Credit: Steve King)