R.I.P. Alice Mason, 100
I’m quoted in today’s New York Times obituary of Alice Mason, the real estate broker and hostess. For lesser beings like me, an invitation to one of her dinner parties was a signal of, if not acceptance, then a certain achievement. I still recall my thrill when I saw fury in the eyes of the […]
RIP Patty Raynes
The late Patty Raynes, who died this week, plays a small part in my book Unreal Estate: Money, Ambition and the Lust for Land in Los Angeles. But her father, Marvin Davis, is and was as oversized a character—physically and in American social and business life—as the L.A. estate he owned. Click the link to […]
Suddenly, Last Sumner
The listing of the late Viacom mogul Sumner Redstone’s estate in Beverly Park, near Beverly Hills, for $27.9 million, caused the Hollywood Reporter to revisit Unreal Estate’s opening chapter, in which Sylvester Stallone bought the same property after racist neighbors rose up in fear when Death Row founder Suge Knight almost bought it. Read all […]
It’s the Unreal Thing
Owlwood, one of the most famous properties in Holmby Hills, has recently been price chopped to $115 million from an original asking price of of $170 million. First occupied by the estranged wife of the founder of the ritzy real estate development, it was later owned in turn by a partner of Conrad Hilton, movie […]
“Quality will win out”
Walt Disney said that, and yesterday’s real estate news shows it’s still true. On both the east and west coasts, trophy properties with remarkable histories have gone on the market and attracted attention for their inherent quality–as well as their sky-high asking prices. In Bel Air, California, Variety’s brilliant Realestalker Mark David reports, soap opera mogul Bill […]
Orphaned Estate and Book Seek New Patrons
Unreal Estate, my 2011 romp through the luxury property market in the West Los Angeles neighborhoods of Bel Air, Holmby Hills and Beverly Hills, has been out of print for several years but still attracts attention. The same is true of the great estates it covers, like 141 South Carolwood Drive, former home of Tony […]
Plutocrat Podcast
Last week, William D. Cohan interviewed me on covering the world of wealth in New York at a 92Y Talk. Here’s the podcast.
Another one bites the dust: RIP Bookhampton
Truly sad news in the inbox last night: Bookhampton, the multi-door east end independent bookseller, will close shop after this holiday season–unless a white knight comes along to save it. There are no words. And after December, there will literally be none left out there. Anyone want to step up and save the day?
Battling Billionaires: LA Strikes Back
The Billionaire’s Belt in midtown Manhattan isn’t the only place where the .01 percent are spending mounds of money on real estate. The Hilton-Hyland realty blog, run by Bilal Khan, formerly of Curbed, today spotlights a Billionaire’s Hill in Bel Air, one of the neighborhoods featured in Unreal Estate. Want to rub garden hoses with […]
Help Save Bookhampton
This heartbreaking letter just arrived from the wonderful Bookhampton book stores: Dear Friends and Neighbors and BookLovers: The most wonderful part of owning BookHampton has been the discovery of new books and the camaraderie of fellow readers. The saddest part is the awareness that all things, even those we cherish most, have days that are […]