This Craftsman Featured in ‘Back to the Future’ Gets a Fresh Update

The ‘80s film Back to the Future (and its subsequent sequels) are total classics, and while fans will most definitely remember the comedic one-liners, storylines, and iconic characters, there are also some noteworthy architecture and design moments. Doc Brown’s home in the film is the Gamble House in Pasadena, California, a stunning, historic example of the Arts and Crafts movement designed by influential 20th century architects Charles and Henry Greene. Movie fans still flock to the location to take photos and go on tours.

Jenna Peffley

The Gamble House isn’t the only Arts and Crafts home that makes an appearance in the first film—the four-bedroom, three-bathroom Pasadena Craftsman that we’re featuring today also had its movie moment. “This house has a great story. It was the house in the movie Back to the Future,” explains designer Jamie Haller, who oversaw its renovation. “The tree in the front yard is the one that Marty McFly hung from when spying on his mom in the 1950s scene of the movie.”

Jenna Peffley

Jamie, who is also known as the “Craftsman Healer” because of her experience in restoring these historic homes, was already familiar with the house before her clients, a couple with small children, even contacted her. When it was on the market, she had studied it on multiple occasions through 3D tours since her family was looking for a similar home. “I already loved the house before they reached out so when they did I found it kismet that I would get to be a part of its new future,” she says.

Jenna Peffley

The home had last been updated in the ‘90s and it was well cared for, so it didn’t need a full restoration. The main goal was to update the space and make it a home the family could grow in. “The clients wanted to feel