‘Frasier’ has new spot for his couch

Kelsey Grammer, who is starring in his final season of the NBC sitcom “Frasier,” has purchased a Beverly Hills-area home for $17.5 million.

Grammer bought a newly built Italian-style villa with seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms in slightly more than 19,000 square feet. The two-story home, on more than 2 level acres with a pool, also has an elevator, a gym, a lanai, a library, a media room, an office, a wine cellar and five fireplaces.

The house, which is behind gates, has views of the city, canyons and mountains. The home was developed by Dugally Oberfeld, which has built homes for such other stars as Sylvester Stallone.

Grammer, who also won fame in the earlier TV sitcom “Cheers,” has been in negotiations to take over the role of Max Bialystock in the Broadway musical “The Producers” after Nathan Lane ends his current run in April. The Emmy-winning Grammer has played the pompous but likable psychiatrist Frasier Crane for 20 years in “Cheers” (1984-1993) and in “Frasier.” NBC announced in January that “Frasier” would end its 11-year run in May.

The actor, 48, also has a home in Malibu, where he lives with his wife, former model Camille Donatacci, and their family. He is executive producer of a talk show in development that will feature his wife.

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A departure from Venice art scene

Contemporary artist Billy Al Bengston and his wife, Wendy, have listed their Venice home at $2.6 million. The artist, who has lived and worked out of his home for nearly 20 years, and his wife plan to move to a ranch because of their teenage daughter’s fascination with horses.

Their Venice home was designed as an artist-in-residence compound. Venice is an artists’ colony, but it is not apparent from the streets. The exterior of this home is described by listing broker Jack V. Hoffmann as “standard Venice grit, designed to hide the interior with high, corrugated steel walls.”

There are four buildings in the 4,000-square-foot compound, which has five bedrooms and nearly six bathrooms, including a guest apartment; a painting studio, a yoga studio, a workroom and two offices. The 10,000-square-foot lot, two blocks from the beach, also has a 75-foot-long lap pool.

The home was originally six beach cottages built in 1911.

Billy Al Bengston, 69, had a curated show at the Danese Gallery in New York City in 2001. His first one-man painting exhibition was at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles in 1958. He subsequently had many shows that originated in L.A. In addition, he has had a number of public commissions. One was at the Ronald Reagan State Building in downtown L.A. He also has had works in numerous public collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles.

Hoffmann and Laura Meckling of Venice Properties have the listing.

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‘Canada’s Neil Simon’ sells home

Bernard Slade, who wrote the Broadway play-turned-movie “Same Time, Next Year” (1979) as well as for such ABC-TV series as “The Flying Nun” and “The Partridge Family,” has sold his Studio City house for $2.3 million and purchased a West Hollywood condominium for $1.25 million.

His house, in Fryman Estates, was built in 1990 and has five bedrooms in slightly more than 6,000 square feet. The home also has several fireplaces, a butler’s pantry, a pool and a spa.

The condo is in a full-service building and has two bedrooms plus a den in about 2,300 square feet. The unit also has mountain and city views, tennis courts, a pool and a fitness center.

Slade, 73, has been called “Canada’s Neil Simon.” He is a native of Ontario.

Jeanne Valvo of Coldwell Banker, Beverly Hills East, represented Slade in his sale and purchase.

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A move to historic Bette Davis condo

Tedi Sarafian, who wrote the screenplay for “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” (2003), has sold his Manhattan Beach townhome and purchased a West Hollywood condo owned at one time by the late actress Bette Davis. It was the last home of the two-time Academy Award-winner, who died at 81 in 1989.

Sarafian bought the former Davis home for about $1.3 million. It has three bedrooms and three bathrooms in slightly more than 2,200 square feet.

The complex, built in 1930, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The unit has city-to-ocean views, original moldings, hardwood floors and grand-scale rooms. The 19-by-28-foot master bedroom opens onto a large bricked terrace. The kitchen has been updated.

Sarafian sold his Manhattan Beach townhouse for its $1.8-million asking price.

The 3,000-square-foot unit has four bedrooms and 4 1/2 bathrooms. Sarafian had lived in the townhouse since it was built in 2001.

The screenwriter, 37, is working on a remake of “The Creature From the Black Lagoon” for producer Gary Ross, whose father, Arthur, wrote the original script.

Adrian Grant of Prudential John Aaroe, Beverly Hills, represented Sarafian in selling and buying.

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Home of Jolson widow on market

The penthouse of the late actress Erle Jolson Krasna, widow of singer Al Jolson and Oscar-winning screenwriter and producer Norman Krasna, has come on the market at $2.5 million. Erle Krasna died Jan. 11 at age 81.

Her condo, in the three-story, 176-unit Le Parc community in Century City, has three bedrooms plus a den in about 3,200 square feet. Krasna’s Country French-style home was built in the late ‘70s and has high ceilings, balconies and a refurbished kitchen with lots of light. The unit overlooks two ponds and lush foliage.

Widowed when Jolson died in 1950, Krasna retained control over his recordings even after remarrying a year later. Jolson had become a superstar in the film “The Jazz Singer” (1927). Krasna’s second husband won his Oscar in 1943 for his script “Princess O’Rourke,” starring Olivia de Havilland. He died in 1984.

Leah Steuer of Prudential John Aaroe, Beverly Hills, and Mikki Wood of Dyson & Dyson in Palm Desert have the listing.

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To see previous columns on celebrity transactions visit latimes.com/hotproperty.