Lauren Beale
Los Angeles Times
Talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres and her wife, actor Portia de Rossi, have bought a 13-acre estate in Montecito that had been listed at $26.5 million. The purchase price has not yet been made public.
The restored Tuscan-style villa and gardens had undergone years and millions of dollars in reconstruction work under the care of an earlier owner, designer John Saladino.
The two-storey villa was built in the late 1920s from locally quarried stone. The property, entered through wrought-iron gates, has a 400-metre driveway that winds through olive and eucalyptus trees.
Downstairs, the living room alone, at 800 square feet, is bigger than a lot of downtown Victoria condos. There is also a dining room and a library/media room. The state-of-the-art kitchen adjoins a breakfast room that opens to gardens.
The master bedroom and bathroom — with under-floor heating — and a second en suite bedroom are also downstairs; three more en suite bedrooms and a sitting room are upstairs. Bathroom fixtures include a Roman hand basin and an Italian neoclassical marble tub, dating from about 1720.
There are nine fireplaces, five bedrooms and seven bathrooms in 10,500 square feet of living space. The guest quarters have a bedroom and bathroom.
The grounds include a swimming pool.
DeGeneres, 55, and de Rossi, 40, own several properties in Southern California.
Doritos girl hoping for a bite
Model Ali Landry and her husband, film director Alejandro Gomez Monteverde, have put their home in Los Feliz up for sale at $1.925 million.
The Spanish-style house, built in 1927, features colourful tile work, stained-glass windows and an arched entry alcove. There are four bedrooms, four bathrooms and 3,700 square feet of living space. One en suite bedroom has a kitchen and separate entrance. Sliding French doors in the family room open to a patio with a 20-person spa/fountain.
Landry, 39, gained widespread recognition as the “Doritos girl” for an ad shown during the 1998 Super Bowl.
Trainer wantsto see a gain
The Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels has listed a house for sale in Hollywood Hills West at $2.45 million.
The contemporary home, built in 2000, features an open floor plan, three bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. There is a swimming pool and a security camera system. There’s no gym, but Michaels probably works out at the office.
Michaels, 39, has starred in Loser since 2005 and her own show, Losing It With Jillian (2010).
She bought the property in 2008 for $1.565 million, public records show.
Actor crosses home off for-sale list
Actor Kelsey Grammer, whose numerous homes keep popping up on the market, has parted with his Ralph Flewelling-designed Spanish classic in Beverly Hills for $6.7 million.
He bought the property about a year ago for $6.5 million. The gated 1926 Spanish Colonial Revival-style house features a two-storey entry, a step-down living room, six bedrooms (including the guesthouse) and six bathrooms. The home has close to 6,100 square feet of living space.
Outdoor amenities include a swimming pool and a motor court.
The Emmy-winning Grammer, 58, began his role as Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers in the late 1980s and then continued it for a decade on Frasier. More recently, he starred in and was the executive producer of the series Boss.
Out of the middle of Hancock Park
Actor Patricia Heaton, who stars in the television sitcom The Middle, and her husband, actor David Hunt, have sold their home in Hancock Park for $8 million.
The Italianate Mediterranean-style estate was built in 1923. The architect was Pasadena-based Elmer Grey, who designed the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Pasadena Playhouse and the Huntington Art Gallery, among other landmarks.
Nearly 8,400 square feet of interior space feature Malibu tile, murals, wrought-iron work, a library, a billiards room, seven fireplaces, six bedrooms, five bathrooms, two offices and a guesthouse/screening room. The home has a four-car garage and a motor court.
The grounds of more than an acre include a wisteria-covered arbour, patios, a swimming pool with a changing room and bathroom, a paddle tennis court and expansive lawns.
Heaton has played Midwestern mom Frankie Heck in the sitcom since 2009. She also starred on Everybody Loves Raymond from 1996 to 2005.
Hunt has appeared on Everybody Loves Raymond and 24. He was in the 2012 TV movie Liz & Dick, with Lindsay Lohan as Liz Taylor.
