No A/C? Aaaacccckkkkk. I'd never be able to sleep! It well could have been his "frugality". My MIL lived in a small house that was built in the late 40's and it had central heat, but no central A/C until she had it installed in the 80's. And, yup, without A/C everything does smell like mildew (and probably has it). I hope they have A/C for you when you go visit.