Parker H. Jackson was the biographer Richard S. Requa, the master architect of the California Pacific International Exposition in 1935. Jackson became fascinated with Requa and his influence on architectural design after purchasing a home designed by Requa located in the community of Kensington, in San Diego. This house was the home of George Prudden, the aviator who developed the Prudden-San Diego Airplane company in 1926. Requa was subsequently involved as a volunteer with the San Diego Historical Society, and with the Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) Command Museum. Richard S. Requa had an interest in the colonial style designs of Old Mexico and the Pueblos of the Southwest, as well as design elements from Spain and Africa. Many of the buildings he designed in Balboa Park retain these influences. Requa also created his own architectural firm, Requa and Jackson. Two of his designs were for his own homes, located in San Diego’s Mission Hills and Loma Portal neighborhoods, designed in 1913 and 1921, respectively.