Film idol out, TV ‘Idol’ in
The Hollywood Hills is losing a leading man. Kevin Costner has sold his home there to “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest for $11.5 million.
The actor and Oscar-winning producer-director (“Dances With Wolves,” 1990), had owned the property since 1995 but has been so busy making movies lately that he lacked the time to enjoy its resort-like amenities.
The 10,000-square-foot Spanish hacienda, on an acre behind gates, has five bedrooms plus staff quarters, a media room, a billiards room, a tennis court, a gym, a pool, a spa and grassy yards.
Costner also owns a home in Santa Barbara, where he keeps a boat, and a ranch in Aspen, Colo., where he rides horses and fishes in a nearby lake.
The 51-year-old Costner is quite an outdoorsman -- just like the characters he likes to play. He portrays a Coast Guard rescue swimmer contending with a rebellious enlistee (Ashton Kutcher) in “The Guardian,” due for release in September.
In March, Seacrest, 31, was named managing editor and nightly anchor for Cable TV’s “E! News.”
He will continue to host “American Idol” and the L.A. weekday morning radio show in which he replaced Rick Dees in 2004. Seacrest also subs for Larry King on CNN.
Anita Rich of Coldwell Banker, Studio City, represented Costner; Joe Babajian and Jamie Sher of Prudential California, John Aaroe in Beverly Hills, represented Seacrest.
Fast tempo on conductor’s sale
Zubin Mehta, the Bombay-born conductor who has won over audiences from Los Angeles to Israel, and his wife, Nancy, have sold their Malibu retreat for $14 million. If this is a retreat, we’d like to see their main residence.
The house, a 1930s Mediterranean, comes with about 110 feet of beach. It also has wrap-around decks and a side yard. There are three bedrooms and three bathrooms in 2,300 square feet.
The two-story hacienda has a bonus room, breakfast room and breakfast bar, den, dining area, living room, open and enclosed patios, a service entrance and central air conditioning, which is an unusual feature for homes this close to the beach.
There is a gas fireplace in
the living room and a wood-burning fireplace in the master bedroom. The gated home also has detached parking, a built-in barbecue and parquet and stone floors. The roof is made of slate and tile.
Although built in 1930, the house was described as being in “immaculate condition.” And you can’t beat those whitewater views.
It sold the first day it went on the market.
The speedy buyer may have taken a cue from the house next door, which also sold for close to $14 million last year. The buyer of the Mehtas’ house didn’t buy the home next door.
The Mehtas still have a home in Bel-Air.
Mehta, 69, conducted the L.A. Philharmonic from 1962 to 1978 and the New York Philharmonic from 1978 to 1991. In 1981, he was appointed music director for life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
Former home of power couple sold
Film producer Charles Roven, who was married to the film industry’s first female studio chief, Dawn Steel, has sold their Beverly Hills-area home for about its $9.5-million asking price.
The home was on and off the market for years after Steel, named Columbia Pictures president in 1987, died of brain cancer 10 years later at age 51.
Built in 1939 and restored by Roven, the traditional-style house, on 10 acres, has a 5,000-square-foot main residence plus a pool, guest house, a gym and caretaker’s apartment.
Roven was named last week in a Page 1 story of The Times as another alleged wiretapping victim of Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano.
Some of the veteran producer’s films are “The Brothers Grimm” (2005), “Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004), “Rollerball” (2002) and “Three Kings” (1999).
The numbers are right for a sale
Lou Diamond Phillips has sold his Monteria Estates home for $2.1 million.
The gated community of about 50 homes on 2-acre lots in Chatsworth was developed in the ‘30s and ‘40s as a weekend haven for celebrities.
Phillips’ former home, zoned for horses, has five bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms in 5,200 square feet. It was built in 1948.
Among its features are hardwood floors, soaring ceilings, French doors, a study and a two-sided fireplace. A tennis court, pool, spa and patios are on the park-like grounds.
The actor-writer-producer, 44, played rock ‘n’ roll star Ritchie Valens in “La Bamba” (1987). More recently, he had recurring roles on the Fox-TV series “24” and the CBS series “Numb3rs.”
Stephanie Vitacco of Coldwell Banker, Woodland Hills, had the listing.
