Securing a better tomorrow for humankind

Iolantheana

The estate properly known as Iolantheana is known better as “Breedlove Manor” or by the derisive “Iolanthyville”. In the years following the establishment of Genomex, the original name was largely forgotten while it served as the residence of Paul Breedlove and Eleanor Singer.

The Iolantheana mansion was completed circa 1927 [work continued for years before and after] and was constructed by tool & die, munitions, mining, and toy magnate Samuel Edgar Singer for his bride, Iolanthe Perrin [left], an extraordinarily successful and popular star of the silent movie screen.

Iolanthe Perrin’s movies were filmed years before Hollywood’s self-imposed censorship in 1934. She was known for her portrayal of independent women in movies that appear racy merely by examining stills from them.  Her best-remembered films include “The Free Woman”, “Carmine Street”, and “The Barefoot Dancer”, available to this day on DVD in restored versions.

Gossip columns of the era only hint of the public fascination of the pursuit of the flamboyant Iolanthe Perrin by the staid [& 40-something] Samuel Edgar Singer.    The only subject more shocking appears to have been their marriage, which also marked the end of Perrin’s movie career.

There is a story that Iolantheana was originally designed for Singer’s first wife, the ill-fated Regina Singer. [While hunting tigers in India, the girth secured about the elephant she was riding broke, bringing her crashing to the ground.  The frightened elephant panicked, trampling the unlucky huntress.] There may be some truth to this story.  Iolantheana presents an eclectic appearance, depending upon how one approaches the main house.

The plans for the mansion were altered during planning and construction several times, possibly reflecting Iolanthe’s tastes and preferences.  She may have left Hollywood behind, but all accounts of her dress and demeanor indicate that her Hollywood persona remained.  Samuel Edgar Singer seems not to have minded.

The birth of their daughter Eleanor was met with great joy, but while Iolanthe was a doting and loving mother, little else changed.  Iolantheana continued to be known for extravagant parties frequented by the wealthy and wildly eccentric.  Eleanor Singer spent her early childhood in such an environment. Only in 1936 did Samuel Edgar Singer insist that the social budget be trimmed, not because his fortunes were in decline, but because the excesses of the parties began to be looked upon as wasteful bad taste in the depths of the Depression.

Iolanthe turned her attentions to developing acres of gardens, each with distinctive themes and motifs.  Given the inexpensive labor of the day, the only limitations in the creation of these gardens were the imagination and creativity of Iolanthe Perrin Singer.

When Eleanor was given her first bicycle, her mother developed part of the woodlands surrounding the main house by having a bicycle path paved through them. Eleanor happily pedaled down these trails, and mother Iolanthe did not have to concern herself with her daughter coming into contact with the rest of the world, since the entire estate was encircled by a 10-foot wall topped with broken glass.

The photo at right shows what became known as “Eleanor’s Secret Garden”. This was Eleanor’s retreat, the place where she came to read and study. In the notes she left behind, Eleanor says that this is the place where she first became fascinated with biology, a fascination that led her to her career in medicine and pediatrics, and eventually to Paul Breedlove.  Eleanor Singer appears to have had a happy childhood. She pursued her education in medicine with the full support of both parents.

Eventually Eleanor’s father helped her set up the Singer Laboratory, and hired Paul Breedlove as part of the staff. Breedlove at the time was struggling through a series of research positions, none of which allowed full exercise of his genius.  Without the significant backing of the Singer fortunes, it is questionable whether Genomex would have existed.

At left: a section of the Iolantheana bicycle trail.

While most employees of Genomex were familiar with photos of the exterior of the mansion, views of the interior were nearly unknown.  Until Paul Breedlove’s death in 2007, I had never seen more than the foyer of the mansion. Since his death, the resulting legal tangle of who should inherit the estate has kept Iolantheana unlived in save for a small staff of servants who maintain the house and grounds. Eleanor Singer was an only child, as was her tycoon father, leaving only distant relations.  Genomex has taken over management until ownership is sorted out, or the estate can be legally sold.  The expenses involved are considerable, and to defray some of those costs, Genomex offers tours of the house and gardens.

                                                       Main Entrance Foyer

Initially, Eleanor Singer and Paul Breedlove lived at the main guesthouse on the Iolantheana grounds. The guesthouse was hardly modest.  Frequently taken by first time visitors to be the estate mansion, the guesthouse had its own staff of servants. During these early years, the pair performed the research that would later form the basis for all later work performed at Genomex.

They may also have done something more:  they may have been foster parents to Adam.

Adam’s origins remain unclear, but upon a thorough review of Iolantheana and the contents of all of the structures, a locked bedroom in the guesthouse appeared frozen in time around the year 1970, and to have been inhabited by an adolescent boy.  The room gives every indication that nothing has been moved or altered since its last resident departed.

Among the predictable possessions was found a child’s microscope, a toy intended to stimulate the curiosity of an intelligent, curious child.  This may in fact be Adam’s first microscope.

A careful search of the contents of the room has revealed nothing to identify the boy who lived there, but long-time servants of the main house recall a boy living in the guest house in the 1960s.  They found it curious that he never left the grounds to attend a school;  Eleanor Singer had been enrolled in the most rigorous local private schools according to the wishes of her father. No one could recall if the boy had a medical condition, physical or mental preventing such attendance. It appears unlikely that the boy will be identified nearly 40 years after leaving this room for good.

Inevitably, one speculates how Adam could have been influenced growing up at Iolantheana if indeed the mystery boy was Adam.  The clues are tantalizing:  Adam’s inclination towards excess drama was much like Eleanor’s [not the least of her many annoying traits] who learned such behavior from her Hollywood mother.

M. Eckhart
February 2008

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