Desert Modernism by William Cody

William F. Cody, F.A.I.A

1916 – 1978

Born in Dayton, Ohio, William’s father moved the family to Los Angeles in the late 1920s. Cody attended Beverly Hills High School, followed by the University of Southern California School of Architecture, where he graduated in 1942. He opened his own shop, then worked for the firm of March, Smith and Powell. He moved to Palm Springs in 1946, working both as staff architect for the Desert Inn as well as doing projects on his own. From there, he blossomed out from his Los Angeles roots in California vernacular architecture with modernist overtones into the International Style (a few organic forms, and some brutalism) in a variety of buildings, from personal residences to country clubs, hotels, libraries and churches.