Hot Property Newsletter: Well-heeled
To borrow a phrase from F. Scott Fitzgerald, the rich are different from you and me. Although most owners think of a house as a place to live, for the wealthy it can be a place to stable the horses, store the skis or park Mom — at least if this week’s collection is any indication.
Our Home of the Week is a Midcentury Modern outlier in an area of San Marino known for its grand Spanish and Traditional estates. Upgraded and remodeled, the house retains such modernist qualities as clean lines and light-filled living spaces. The asking price of the nearly 4,000-square-foot home is $3.995 million.
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– Neal J. Leitereg and Lauren Beale
Riding into the sunset
Grammy-winning singer and actress Olivia Newton-John is hoping to hightail it out of the Santa Ynez Valley, where her 12-acre horse ranch is for sale at $5.4 million.
A contemporary-vibe home built in 2008, a two-bedroom guesthouse, a four-car garage, a swimming pool and equestrian features such as a barn, stables, a riding arena and pastures make up the estate.
The wood-accented main residence has four bedrooms and five bathrooms within its 4,452 square feet.
Newton-John, who has been recording since the ’70s, is among the bestselling artists of all time. As an actress, she’s best known for her breakthrough role in 1978’s “Grease.”
She bought the property four years ago for $4.69 million.
That put-together look
Armand Marciano, who co-founded the denim brand Guess Inc. with brothers Georges, Maurice and Paul, has listed his custom home in Lake Sherwood for sale at $7.995 million.
The Italian villa-style home is outfitted with French doors, lacy ironwork and blond wood-beamed ceilings. A grand fireplace anchors the great room, which has French doors that open to the backyard.
A total of four bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms include a master suite outfitted with an attached gym, two walk-in closets and a fireplace.
The 8,380-square-foot house has a custom swimming pool and spa, an outdoor kitchen and a covered patio with a fireplace.
Slow run for ski retreat
Actress Melanie Griffith has sold a retreat in Aspen, Colo., that she owned with her ex-husband Antonio Banderas for $4 million. They first listed the property four years ago at $9.9 million and divorced that same year.
Built in 1994, the lodge-like main house has vaulted ceilings, walls of glass and a massive stone fireplace. There is a billiard room, a wine cellar, five bedrooms and six bathrooms within the 7,391 square feet of living space.
Griffith, 61, starred in such films as “Crazy in Alabama” (1999), “Lolita” (1997) and “Working Girl” (1988).
Banderas, 58, is known for “Once Upon a Time in Mexico” (2003) and “Desperado” (1995). Last year he played Pablo Picasso in the series “Genius.”
Elvis’ ex in-law lived here
A Brentwood home owned by Priscilla Presley has come on the market for $3.65 million.
Presley purchased the ranch-style house for $170,000 in 1976, three years after she divorced rock ’n’ roll king Elvis Presley. The home was used exclusively by her mother, Ann Lillian Wagner-Beaulieu.
Set on a corner lot, the 1949-built single-story has about 2,500 square feet of interior space, a living room with a fireplace, four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Priscilla Presley was married to Elvis for about six years and previously served as the chairwoman of Elvis Presley Enterprises. The actress is known for her roles in “The Naked Gun” films and the series “Dallas.”
Giving up her landlord role?
Actress Melissa George has listed a rental house in Calabasas for sale at $995,000. The onetime Australian national roller-skating champion had the view home listed for sale three years ago at the same price, but ended up leasing it out long-term at $5,000 a month.
Built in 1990 and since remodeled, the contemporary has living and family rooms with fireplaces, five bedrooms and four bathrooms within its 3,924 square feet of living space.
George, 42, has appeared this year in the series “Bad Mothers” and “Star Trek: Discovery.” Her film work includes such thriller/horror flicks as “The Amityville Horror” 2005 remake.
Gene Autry’s desert digs
A condo in Palm Springs’ Midcentury Modern Ocotillo Lodge that was once singer-actor-cowboy Gene Autry’s part-time residence has come on the market at $699,000.
With 1,544 square feet of living space, two bedrooms, a bedroom and three bathrooms, it is the largest and only two-story home within the gated enclave. The unit includes a private swimming pool.
Among the amenities of the complex are a larger swimming pool, two outdoor spas, a multipurpose clubhouse, a fitness center and an outdoor bar.
Autry, who died in 1998 at 91, had television and radio shows and was in scores of films. His signature song, “Back in the Saddle Again,” was used in the 1939 movie “Rovin’ Tumbleweeds.” His biggest hit song was “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”
He and his wife, Jackie, owned the Angels baseball team for nearly four decades. The team held spring training in the desert city, where the Autrys also owned a hotel.
His favorite room
When you’re a multi-platinum producer, around-the-clock mixing sessions are made easier by the comforts of home. So Nolan Lambroza (a.k.a. Sir Nolan) created his own recording studio in the master bedroom of his 3,583-square-foot house in Encino. Soundproofing curtains, wall diffusers and thick rubber pads underneath the hardwood floors help contain the noise.
After years working in lifeless “cave dungeon” studios with no windows or sunlight, Lambroza decided to renovate the master bedroom of his 3,583-square-foot Encino home into a bright and breezy recording studio, with sliding doors leading to a lush backyard.
From the archives
Ten years ago, singer-songwriter Jewel Kilcher and her then husband, rodeo champion Ty Murray, sold their Hollywood Hills house for $1.4 million. The Spanish-style home had two bedrooms and two bathrooms in 1,781 square. Kilcher had converted a third bedroom into a master closet.
Twenty years ago, Ben Affleck, who gained fame with Matt Damon when they co-starred in and won a best original screenplay Oscar for “Good Will Hunting” (1996), bought a Hollywood Hills home for about $1.7 million. The 8,000-square-foot Spanish-style home had six bedrooms. Affleck had been living in an apartment off Sunset Boulevard.
Thirty years ago, “Miami Vice” star Don Johnson bought a home in the Beverly Hills Post Office area that was built in 1941 for actor Bert Lahr, who played the cowardly lion in “The Wizard of Oz.” The 1.3-acre property didn’t have a yellow brick road but included a nine-room English Colonial house and a tennis court.
What we’re reading
The last home famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed has been price chopped to $2.65 million, down from $3.65 million when it first listed three years ago, reports Realtor.com. The Phoenix house, designed to blend in with the landscape, uses overlapping circle shapes to create an open floor plan.
ICYMI: A massive colorful housing development has taken shape in recent years in an otherwise drab, Soviet-era residential district of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, reports the Los Angeles Times. Called Comfort Town, the 115-acre high-rise development looms over the landscape like a giant Lego set in screaming yellows, bright lime greens, blues, oranges and deep brick reds.
