A Modern style that architects created to sequester certain living activities--such as sleeping or socializing--split levels offered a multilevel alternative to the Ranch style in the 1950s. The nether parts of a typical design were devoted to a garage and TV room; the midlevel, which usually jutted out from the two-story section, offered "quieter" quarters, such as the living and dining rooms; and the area above the garage was designed for bedrooms.