FAVORITE SPACE
Left : Ken Jillson ( center ) with Dave Canzoneri ( left ) and Eric Cortina , creative director of Roger ’ s Gardens ; right : Safari Cinema Movie Theater with Sally Strand ’ s Saturday Matinee , commissioned by the Pageant of the Masters , and Sandra Jones Campbell ’ s commissioned Serengeti Sunset .
FIT FOR THE SCREEN
ENTREPRENEUR KEN JILLSON SHARES WHAT HE LOVES ABOUT HIS HEARTFELT LAGUNA HOME , WHAT WENT INTO CREATING “ THE BIG SPLASH ” AND WHAT MAKES HIS FAVORITE SPACE FIT FOR AN AUDIENCE .
BY ASHLEY WARD / PHOTOS BY DAVE CANZONERI
Behind every eentrepreneur is a vision . The same rings true for the home of Laguna Beach local Ken Jillson , which doesn ’ t shy away from its aesthetic personality .
Only a home with such colorful features would wear its heart on its sleeve ; a refurbished burnt orange fireplace beyond the entryway , landscape “ oil on canvas ” as memorabilia , and a neon pink and blue lighting sculpture hung unapologetically on the living room wall . And , while decadent visuals are certainly present in Jillson ’ s home , it ’ s his heart that breathes life into every room .
MAKING A SPLASH Jillson co-founded his company Jillson & Roberts in 1974 , alongside his beloved late partner , Al Roberts , and famed actor Rock Hudson ( the company ’ s art director and first stockholder ). Despite his success in business , Jillson ’ s passion for the arts had bigger plans for him . In the summer of 1985 , the becoming Broadway producer co-created his biggest show yet : A fundraiser for the AIDS Services Foundation ( ASF ) that he and Al Roberts called “ The Big Splash ”.
Today , Jillson recalls the experience that would soon go down in the history books .
18 SPRING / SUMMER 2023 | LATITUDE33MAGAZINE . COM