He ‘Talks’ His Way Into Villa

GREG KINNEAR, E!’s original “Talk Soup” host who went on to host NBC’s 1:35 a.m. talk show and is co-starring with Harrison Ford and Julia Ormond in the upcoming remake of Billy Wilder’s comedy “Sabrina,” has purchased the Hollywood Hills home of SUSAN RUTTAN, who was a regular on “L.A. Law,” sources say.

Ruttan, 45, played secretary Roxanne Melman on the series from 1986 until 1993. Last year, she was in the TV movie “Jack Reed: A Search for Justice.” She moved to a rental and is looking to buy out of the area, possibly in the Northwest, where she was born, sources say.

Kinnear, 31, was executive producer and host of “Talk Soup,” a digest on cable’s E! Entertainment channel of the day’s most outlandish talk-show clips. Last fall he landed NBC’s “Later With Greg Kinnear.” He took a break from his new show to do the movie, due to be released this fall.

“Sabrina,” which made Audrey Hepburn a star, is about a chauffeur’s daughter who is swept off her feet by a rich, pompous rake, played in the 1954 movie by William Holden. In the Paramount remake, Ormond plays Sabrina, Ford portrays the rake’s brother--played earlier by Humphrey Bogart, and Kinnear got the Holden role.

Kinnear bought Ruttan’s house, a Mediterranean villa, for almost its $1.4-million asking price, sources say.

The 5,000-square-foot house has four bedrooms, including a master suite with canyon views. Built in 1952, the gated home had been totally renovated by Ruttan, who had lived there for just a few years.

The residence also has a huge courtyard; black-bottom pool; spa, fountain and outdoor fireplace.

Brett Lawyer of Nourmand & Associates, Beverly Hills, had the listing, and Barbara Palmer of John Aaroe & Associates, Beverly Hills, represented Kinnear.

Oscar-winning actress JANE WYMAN, who most recently starred as Angela Channing in the 1980s TV series “Falcon Crest” and was married to Ronald Reagan for eight years during the 1940s, has purchased a home in Rancho Mirage.

The former Goldwyn Girl, now 79, won a best-actress Academy Award for her performance as the deaf-mute heroine in “Johnny Belinda” (1948). She had her own TV series, “The Jane Wyman Theater,” in the 1950s.

Wyman bought a free-standing condominium with its own pool and spa for about $500,000, sources say. She also maintains a home in Beverly Hills.

Nelda Linsk of Coldwell Banker Eadie Adams Realty, Palm Springs, represented Wyman, and Regina Agee of Prudential California Realty, Palm Desert, had the listing.

Actress LINDA EVANS’ Beverly Hills-area home has been leased for a year to a children’s clothing manufacturer.

Evans, a star of the TV series “Dynasty,” lives in Washington state with her Greek-born companion, composer-keyboardist YANNI. The pair reportedly met in her Beverly Hills-area home.

The house was leased furnished, for a bit under $9,000 a month, sources say. The four-bedroom, nearly 4,000-square-foot home has a master suite with a fireplace, sauna, steam bath and spa.

Stephen Shapiro of Stan Herman/Stephen Shapiro & Associates had the listing, and Sue Ann Simon of Douglas Properties, Beverly Hills, represented the lessees.

STANLEY BEYER, once head of a company that owned Pennsylvania Life Insurance Co., and his wife, SHERLIN, have listed their Broad Beach home at $13 million.

The couple has a house in the South of France, and they want to establish a small home in Rome, sources say.

Their Malibu home, which took five years to build and was completed in 1985, was designed by architect John Lautner to resemble a sculpture surrounded by boulders.

The 12,000-square-foot house, with 300 feet of beach frontage, is listed with June Scott of June Scott Estates, a Jon Douglas Co.

Correction: Actress Cybill Shepherd bought her Encino home for slightly more than $2.6 million, not about $2.8 million, as was reported in the “Hot Property” column of July 16.