He’ll hang his hoop in Palisades
Rudy Tomjanovich, who replaced Phil Jackson as head coach of the L.A. Lakers, and his wife, Sophie, have purchased a newly built Pacific Palisades home for about $4.3 million.
The 5,000-square-foot home has three bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, a gym, a library and an office. There is a media room with martini bar, wine cellar, fireplace and window looking onto an infinity pool.
The home, which also has views of the city and Santa Monica Bay, is contemporary in style and was built of glass, stone and wood.
It was built for Joe Francis, president of Mantra Films and creator of “Girls Gone Wild.” While the Pacific Palisades house was being built, however, Francis, 31, purchased a Bel-Air estate where he decided to live instead.
The new coach, 55, signed a deal with the Lakers worth about $30 million over five years. He led the Houston Rockets to two NBA titles during the ‘90s and, with the help of coach Larry Brown in 2000, led the U.S. men’s team to a gold medal in the Sydney Olympics.
James Respondek of DBL Realtors had the listing, according to the Multiple Listing Service, and Paul Spiegel of Pritchett-Rapf Realtors represented the buyers.
Singer’s rental
sold to another
Pop star Michael Jackson has moved out of the Beverly Hills mansion he rented about nine months ago at $60,000 a month, and the house has been sold for slightly more than $13 million.
The owner, Chinese painter Ting Shao Kuang, sold the property to a local businessman, real estate agents said.
The French chateau-style house has 12 bedrooms, a library/office and a barbershop/beauty salon in 37,000 square feet. It has a 5,000-square-foot master bedroom suite, a billiard room, a ballroom/theater, a wine cellar and two regulation-size bowling lanes. There is an indoor pool, which can be viewed through the etched-glass floor in the dining room.
The house was completed on 2.25 acres in 1990. It had been under construction for six years. It was owned at one time by a Russian banker and at another time by a Rolls-Royce dealer from Moscow. Ting bought the house in 1995 for $6.5 million but put it on the market in 2002 at $18.8 million because he wasn’t using it. Jackson, who is awaiting trial in a child-molestation case, had rented the mansion with an option to buy it for $20 million.
Raymond Bekeris of John Bruce Nelson & Associates handled both sides of the sale.
Dancing -- but not
in Hancock Park
Sela Ward, who plays the mother in the film “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights” and portrays Dennis Quaid’s wife in Roland Emmerich’s “The Day After Tomorrow,” and her husband, businessman Howard Sherman, have listed a home they own in Hancock Park at $4.4 million.
The couple restored the French-style home, which was built in 1939. It was designed by Stiles O. Clements, who also designed the Hollywood Park Race Track, the Pershing Square Garage and the swimming pool building at Beverly Hills High School.
The Hancock Park house has three bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms in about 5,000 square feet. The home has a slate roof, gravel motor court and an entry with a sweeping staircase. There is a library that opens to gardens with a fountain, yard and pool. The kitchen has been updated and has a breakfast nook and a walk-in pantry. There are also a finished attic and a guest apartment.
The Emmy-winning actress, who was a regular in the ABC series “Once and Again” (1999-2002), and Sherman sold their Beverly Hills compound to Madonna in 2003 for $12 million after completing a major expansion. They had purchased that home in 2000.
The Hancock Park home is listed with Lisa Hutchins of Coldwell Banker, Hancock Park.
A mom-and-pop
act in Encino
Joe and Tina Simpson, parents and managers of singers Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, have purchased an Encino home for close to its asking price of about $4 million, public records show.
The house has six bedrooms and 6 1/2 bathrooms in just under 7,000 square feet. The Country French estate is on slightly more than 1.5 acres in a gated community. The home also has an outdoor fireplace; a pool with a waterfall and a spa; a sports court; and a putting green with valley views.
Joe Simpson recently entered into a joint venture with Geffen Records, launching the new recording label JT, which stands for Joe and Tina. The male quintet Barefoot, described as a cross between Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Third Eye Blind, was the first act signed to the label. Joe Simpson also manages Ryan Cabrera.
Ray Ross and Cathy Cressy at Re/Max on the Boulevard in Sherman Oaks represented the Simpsons in their home purchase. Andrew Manning and Lisa Sorrentino at Prudential John Aaroe, Sherman Oaks, had the listing.
For sale: a home of the well-traveled
The Beverly Hills home of the late travel writer and cookbook author Myra Waldo Schwartz has come on the market at just under $5 million.
Schwartz, who died at 88 in July, wrote “The Complete Round-the-World Cookbook” (1954) as well as travel guides for Europe, South America, the South Pacific and Japan. She also wrote a travel column for the Los Angeles Times in the ‘80s.
Her house, built in 1951, is on slightly more than an acre with city views. The 3,700-square-foot home has two bedrooms plus a guest apartment and maid’s quarters. The traditional, one-story residence, which has a pool and a lanai, is in an area north of Sunset Boulevard.
Dancer-actress Cyd Charisse and her husband, singer Tony Martin, were former owners.
The home was built for Fleet Adm. William F. (Bull) Halsey, who died at 76 in 1959. A commander of the 3rd Fleet during World War II, he chased Japan’s navy throughout the Pacific.
Barbara Tenenbaum and Susan Larison of Coldwell Banker Previews, Beverly Hills East, have the listing.
Don’t worry,
he can afford it
Halsey Minor, one of the richest men in the world and listed by AOL as one of the top 40 wealthiest under 40, has leased a Hollywood Hills home at $13,000 a month for at least a year. Minor, 39, was the founder of CNET.
He leased a house with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The contemporary-style home also has maple floors, a pool and a view of the city. Furnishings were included.
Mitchell Bravo of Re/Max, Brentwood, had the listing.
To see previous columns on celebrity transactions, go to latimes.com/hotproperty.
