MOVIE STAR HOMES
ELVIS HONEYMOON HIDEAWAY
1350 LADERA CIRCLE
PALM SPRINGS
This futuristic pad was designed by William Krisel in 1960 for prolific developer Robert Alexander. Featuring a circular motif, the pad was a star from the jump, landing on the pages of “Look” magazine shortly after its completion. It came to even greater infamy when Elvis Presley leased it for a year beginning in September 1966. It was there that the King returned on the evening of May 1, 1967, following his nuptials to Priscilla Beaulieu, thereby forever cementing its status as the “Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway.” A Class 1 Historic Site, the property has also been illuminated in countless photo shoots and onscreen in both the series “Selling Sunset” and the 1998 movie “Poodle Springs.”
JACKIE COOGAN HOUSE
1050 EAST RACQUET CLUB ROAD
PALM SPRINGS
Moviedom’s first child star, Jackie Coogan, who later became known for his portrayal of Uncle Fester in the original “The Addams Family” TV show, relocated to the desert in his later years, purchasing this Racquet Club Estates dwelling with his fourth wife, Dorothea, in 1966. The butterfly-roofed, William Krisel-designed pad was the actor’s last home. Dorothea sold it shortly following his passing at the age of 69 in 1984. Remodeled in the years since, it still maintains many of its original MCM elements.
KIRK DOUGLAS HOUSE
515 WEST VIA LOLA
PALM SPRINGS
Designed by Donald Wexler and Richard Harrison, this Desert Modern residence was commissioned by actress Andrea Leeds and her husband, Robert Howard, owner of the nearby Colony Palms Hotel, in 1954. Kirk Douglas snapped it up just three years later and continued to hold onto it for the next four decades, welcoming such guests as Natalie Wood, Gregory Peck and Billy Wilder during his long tenure. Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn even leased the house from Douglas for two summer getaways, and Vincente Minnelli and his fourth wife, Lee Anderson, held their wedding reception there. The pad boasts yet another claim to fame, as well – it cameoed as Jill St. John’s home in the 1971 James Bond movie “Diamonds Are Forever.”
DINAH SHORE ESTATE
432 HERMOSA PLACE
PALM SPRINGS
Another Donald Wexler creation, this dwelling was crafted in 1964 for legendary singer and actress Dinah Shore. It is now perhaps even more famously pedigreed, thanks to current owner Leonardo DiCaprio, who purchased it in 2014. Don’t go looking for the “Titanic” heartthrob anywhere on the premises, though, as the property is utilized full-time as a vacation rental/event venue, meaning you, too, can book it for an extended stay and find yourself walking in the footsteps of Hollywood royalty!
CAMERON CROWE CHILDHOOD HOME
1240 PASATIEMPO ROAD
PALM SPRINGS
Cameron Crowe called this Movie Colony East residence home during his early years before relocating with his family, first to nearby Indio and then ultimately to San Diego, where the Hollywood multihyphenate spent his teens (as was famously depicted in his hit semi-autobiographical film “Almost Famous.”) Gorgeously renovated, the property now serves as a fashionable vacation rental known as “Fleetwood of the Desert.” Available via Airbnb, where it has become a “guest favorite,” rates start at around $700 a night.
GEORGE HAMILTON HOUSE
591 NORTH PATENCIO WAY
PALM SPRINGS
This rambling 1937 abode belonged to George Hamilton and then-wife, Alana, for a few years in the early 1970s until desert life proved too quiet for the latter, at which point the couple relocated to Beverly Hills. Divorced in 1975, the duo has remained close and even popped bythe Spanish-style property to reminisce about the good old days for an episode of their short-lived reality series “Stewarts & Hamiltons” in 2015. Be sure not to miss George’s autograph and handprint, which the actor engraved on the north portion of the driveway on December 6, 1971, and remains intact today, over five decades later.
CARY GRANT ESTATE
928 NORTH AVENIDA PALMAS
PALM SPRINGS
The longtime weekend home of Cary Grant, this property was originally built in 1927 for Dr. Jacob John Kocher, Palm Springs’ first pharmacist. The movie icon purchased it in 1954 and owned it for nearly two decades, nicknaming the sprawling Andalusian-style farmhouse “Las Palomas,” Spanish for “the doves.” During his tenure, Grant hosted everyone from Alfred Hitchcock to Grace Kelly to Sophia Loren on the premises. Don’t miss Cary’s initials embedded in the front gate, nor the mailbox, a small-scale replica of the residence said to have been constructed for the actor by legendary architect Wallace Neff. Copley’s on Palm Canyon, Grant’s former offsite guest quarters and one of my favorite spots for cocktails, is located just a few blocks west.
PIAZZA DI LIBERACE
1441 NORTH KAWEAH ROAD
PALM SPRINGS
This opulent estate, built in 1952, was Liberace’s third desert abode. Mr. Showmanship purchased the one-story structure in 1968 and sold it just four years later. Surprisingly, the statuaries that line the front walk today are not holdovers from the performer’s day but were the addition of a later owner. While the property’s interior has been remodeled several times since the 1972 sale, most recently in 2010 by renowned designer Christopher Kennedy, the exterior remains intact (unlike Liberace’s Cloisters house, which has been modified beyond recognition), and boasts countless nods to its former famous inhabitant, including music notes dotting the front gates and a whimsical piano-shaped mailbox.
FRANK SINATRA ESTATE
1145 EAST VIA COLUSA
PALM SPRINGS
Legendary singer Frank Sinatra called this pad, known as “Twin Palms,” home for nearly a decade, beginning upon its completion in 1947. Designed by iconic architect E. Stewart Williams (his first residential commission!) and featured in the 1950 Joan Crawford movie “The Damned Don’t Cry,” the property is most famous for being the site of what Sinatra’s second wife, Ava Gardner, called “the most spectacular fight of our young married life.” The primary bathroom sink still bears the scars from that row in the form of a large crack, the result of a champagne bottle the singer threw at Gardner during the melee. Today, the site is utilized as a special events venue/vacation rental and is available for private tours, making it one celebrity home that is fully – and fabulously – accessible to the public!
LORETTA YOUNG HOUSE
1075 MANZANITA AVENUE
PALM SPRINGS
Two-time Academy Award winner Loretta Young purchased this Deepwell Estates property in 1993 with her third husband, Jean Louis (the prolific fashion designer responsible for Marilyn Monroe’s infamous “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” dress). During the actress’ seven-year tenure on the premises, she is said to have regularly tended to the hedges herself (using a pair of scissors, no less!) and decorated both the interior and exterior with a plethora of angels each Christmas.
BOB HOPE HOUSE
2466 SOUTHRIDGE DRIVE
RANCHO MIRAGE
Crafted by John Lautner in 1979, Bob Hope’s infamous former house, one of the area’s most recognizable landmarks, sits perched like a beacon above the 111 Freeway in Rancho Mirage. While tucked behind gates in the ultra-exclusive Southridge Community, hikers can catch an up-close-and-personal view of the place while venturing along Araby Trail (chronicled in my attractions section above). And it is certainly worth a looksie! Canopied under a draping cement plaster roofline marked by a 60-foot circular opening, the gargantuan 25,000-square-foot residence is Lautner’s largest and most ambitious commission ever. It is also one of his most contentious, requiring more than six years to complete, mainly due to design disagreements with the Hopes, with the comedian famously lamenting of its otherworldly shape, “At least when they come down from Mars, they’ll know where to go.”