Above the Sunset Strip, a palatial estate with a wild Hollywood history just came to market for $29.995 million.
Since its very inception, the 18,000-square-foot stunner has drawn looks and made headlines for its over-the-top style and string of high-profile names attracted to its eccentricity.
L.A. contractor and noted partyer Hal B. Hayes built the home in 1953, erecting a six-level steel-and-glass showplace that would serve as the ultimate bachelor pad. According to The Times, he included a mirrored master suite, orchid greenhouse, rooftop garden and artificial beach for topless tanning, but the main highlight came in the custom swimming pool.
The indoor-outdoor lagoon winded through the entertainment rooms and eventually led to an underwater tunnel that accessed a secret, sealed underground cave aerated with oxygen tanks. Hayes’ home was equipped for an all-night rager or a nuclear war.
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Over the years, other owners included film producer Ted Fields and Monster Energy creator Russ Weiner. The prime property reached its peak of notoriety, however, when NBA star Carlos Boozer bought it in 2005.
As Boozer told the Undefeated, he couldn’t live in the home during basketball season and decided to rent it out to a mystery buyer who allegedly offered $95,000 a month. The big spender eventually revealed himself to be Prince, and the next time Boozer returned home, the iconic musician had stylistically overhauled the entire place.
Gold lions on the 12-foot gates were replaced with the Prince symbol. Italian carpets were stripped in favor of bold shades of purple and black. The master suite boasted a heart-shaped bed. The spare bedroom had been turned into a hair salon. The weight room, a dance floor.
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According to records obtained by the Smoking Gun, Boozer sued Prince for violating the lease, but Boozer later claimed the pop star smoothed things out by wiring him $500,000 and promising to return the home to standard form by the end of the lease. Boozer said he kept his word.
Today, the home carries an extravagant style, but with much less purple. Across 2.15 acres, it centers on a 10-bedroom, 13-bathroom mansion of more than 18,000 square feet. Also included is an English Tudor on an adjacent lot with 20-foot ceilings, a gourmet kitchen, bar, billiards room, den, pool and spa.
The main home boasts expansive common spaces such as a ballroom, wine cellar, two-story gym, solarium, column-lined living room and second-story loft with picture windows overlooking the city.
Outside, amenities include a fountain, tennis court and resort-style pool with a grotto and water slide. The property also comes with two vacant parcels with flat land and potential for new construction.
Jason Oppenheim, who stars in Netflix’s “Selling Sunset,” is listing the property with Mary Fitzgerald and Peter Cornell of the Oppenheim Group and Brian Stace of Pinnacle Estate Properties.