Carl Mastopietro was born in 1915 in Los Angeles to an Italian father and English mother. He changed his name to Carl Maston early in his career.
Maston attended the University of Southern California from 1932 to 1937, where he had trouble deciding whether to pursue the piano or design. During his senior year, he finally chose architecture.
After graduating, Maston worked with Floyd Rible, A. Quincy Jones, Fred Emmons, Phil Daniel, and Arthur Mann at Allied Architects before setting off on his own.
Maston served in the Air Force in World War II from 1942 to 1945, quite possibly where he picked up his pipe-smoking habit.
In 1946, Maston returned to Los Angeles and opened his first office in Beverly Hills. That year, he was commissioned to build the Pandora Apartments, marking the beginning of his experimentation with garden-apartment design.
In 1954, Maston completed his portion of the quintessential California apartment complex, the National Boulevard Apartments. Maston designed one building, architect Ray Kappe the other.
Maston struggled with diabetes his whole life—and also, apparently, with wives. He was married three times; his third wife, Edith, was part owner of Musso & Frank’s Grill in Hollywood.
In 1960, Maston designed the now-demolished Valley Ice Skating Center in Tarzana, California, showcasing his inventive use of concrete structural solutions.
Maston completed one of his largest projects in 1971—the College of Environ-mental Design building at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
In 1992, at the age of 77, Maston passed away, succumbing to colon cancer.
