Letter Clears Streisand of Bad Taste in Home Decorating

Barbra Streisand took umbrage at reports she personally decorated the Malibu estate she gave the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

Streisand had, in fact, decorated two of the four main residences. She wanted it known, however, that certain features of the other two homes were not her handiwork.

A Streisand representative set the record straight in a detailed letter in December to conservancy head Joe Edmiston. The memo, obtained by The Times under the state Public Records Act, expressed Streisand’s “fervent hope” that the state agency would redo the decor she found offensive--but that, in more than a decade, she had not seen fit to change herself.

“There have been several errors in media reports dealing with Barbra’s gift to the conservancy,” including the “statement that Barbra personally supervised the decoration of each of the houses at the ranch,” began the letter from Streisand business manager Susan Keenberg.

“The Barwood House was decorated by ‘professionals’ when Barbra was in Europe, making the movie “Yentl” (released in 1983), Keenberg wrote. “She (Streisand) had virtually nothing to do with the selection of materials and colors for the Barwood House and was terribly distressed upon her return to California to find the house decorated in a manner that certainly was not consistent with her own good taste. In fact, the Barwood House had been built with the intention of using it as a place to do the film editing for ‘Yentl.’ When Barbra returned from Europe and saw the Barwood House, she was so shocked by the colors that she did not use the house for film editing or any other purpose,” Keenberg wrote.

“I am bringing all of this to your attention today as a preface to the following requests: 1. It is Barbra’s fervent hope that the Conservancy will cover the yellow and burgundy tiles in the living room with a rug. (A pale pink to match the walls would be a good color.) Barbra has always found these tiles to be very offensive and she cannot bear the thought of them being exposed to view by those who will be visiting the property. 2. Barbra is equally hopeful that you will paint the fireplace in the living room of the Barwood House one color. She thinks it looks just awful the way it is right now.”