A Python exits zoo
It’s not Monty Python’s Flying Circus, but British actor John Cleese has put Stalloreggi (the King’s Stables) on the market in Montecito at $28 million.
Stalloreggi is a 16-acre equestrian ranch, but in some ways, it’s more like a zoo. Besides the trail horses, thoroughbreds and ponies, Cleese has kept what he once termed “a good supply of friendly animals” there since 1999, when he and his psychotherapist wife, Alyce Faye Cleese, bought the property.
No fish called Wanda, but there are llamas, alpacas, an emu and pheasants as well as dogs, cats and chickens.
An arena for dressage and hunter-jumpers and a 16,000-square-foot, 24-stall horse barn were built in the ‘60s by Cynthia Wood, one of the area’s most famous horsewomen. Cleese has described his wife and daughter -- who has competed as a hunter-jumper on a national level -- as “very good horse people.”
There is a Mediterranean-style main house on the grounds, which the Cleeses redesigned to feature cactus, vegetable and flower gardens.
He turned one of several apartments into a writing space, where he completed at least two scripts.
There also is a large swimming pool.
Cleese, 67, and his wife have another home in Montecito where they live.
He is a comedian, producer and composer as well as an actor, who made his mark in 1969 as a member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. He gained fame in the ‘70s through the BBC comedy series “Fawlty Towers.” “A Fish Called Wanda” and other feature films came later.
The Cleeses listed their ranch with Lisa Loiacono and Bob Lamborn at Sotheby’s International Realty’s Santa Barbara’s brokerage.
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Now Los Feliz’s ‘most wanted’
Jamie Kennedy -- stand-up comic, actor and head of Wanna-be Producers -- has sold his Sunset Strip house for close to its $1.01-million asking price. There were multiple offers.
Kennedy, 37, is moving to a larger home that he is buying in Los Feliz.
The home he sold is behind gates and has three bedrooms and two bathrooms in a total of 2,500 square feet. Built in 1921, it has a detached guesthouse, hardwood floors and a sliding glass door to a Zen-inspired backyard.
Kennedy has starred in a number of TV specials but is probably best known for his role as Randy Meeks, the video store clerk in the late-’90s movies “Scream” and “Scream 2.” In 2003, he starred in the film “Malibu’s Most Wanted,” playing a white “wanna-be rapper,” and in 2005, he starred in the comedy “Son of the Mask.”
Burt Bakman of Re/Max On the Boulevard, Sherman Oaks, represented Kennedy in his purchase and sale.
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$13.5 million from a deep pocket
A Beverly Hills home built in 2004 with five bedrooms and 8 1/2 bathrooms in 13,000 square feet has been sold by one philanthropist and purchased by another for $13.5 million.
The home has a media room; upstairs lounge; mahogany-paneled library; gym with a sauna and steam shower; a master-bedroom suite with a fireplace, sitting area, dual bathrooms and large walk-in closets; a rooftop deck; an elevator; a caterer’s kitchen; a five-hole putting green and a pool-spa.
The seller was Gil N. Schwartzberg, president and chairman of the City of Hope for many years. He was also an executive of L.A. Gear, the shoe company.
The buyer was Leon Farahnik, chairman of the Los Angeles holding company HPC Industries.
Joseph Bababjian and Kyle Grasso of Prudential California Realty, Beverly Hills, had the listing. Josh Flagg of John Bruce Nelson Associates, Bel-Air, represented the buyer.
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Kroc estate sale benefits charity
The 12.5-acre home of the late heiress Joan Kroc, widow of McDonald’s Corp. founder Ray Kroc, has been sold in the Fairbanks Ranch area of Rancho Santa Fe for $16 million.
The estate had been donated to the Salvation Army after Joan Kroc died in 2003 at age 75. Her estate was part of a $1.5-billion bequest from her for the Salvation Army to build more than two dozen community centers.
The home was listed at $28 million in early 2006. Pari Ziatabari and Bonnie Steinberg represented the buyers and are affiliated with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Rancho Santa Fe.
The compound includes a 16,000-square-foot main house, three guesthouses, two pools, a tennis pavilion and garage space for 14 vehicles. There are lake views and a wine cellar.
The buyers -- a prominent San Diego businessman and his wife -- plan to raise their family in the home after it is renovated.
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