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    ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts’ Director Lands an Upgraded L.A. House

    As the story goes, Steven Caple Jr. couldn’t afford to buy a Transformer toy when he was a kid. But that was then. As director of the 2023 blockbuster film Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, as well as The Land and Creed II under his belt, the 35-year-old producer’s finances have obviously improved. Today, he likely has more than enough cash to dole out on an Optimus Prime or Bumblebee toy—heck, as many ’bots in the franchise as his heart desires. And late last year, he also picked up new Los Angeles-area home.

    Records show the Ohio native and USC School of Cinematic Arts graduate doled out $2.7 million for a modern residence in the San Gabriel Valley neighborhood of Altadena late last year, receiving a discount off of the original $3.2 million asking price. Originally built in the 1940s, but completely remodeled by Bowden Development in recent years, the split-level abode features five bedrooms and an equal number of baths in a little more than 4,600 square feet of open-concept living space highlighted by hardwood floors, high ceilings, and large expanses of glass offering picturesque views of the surrounding valley and mountains.

    A circular driveway bolstered by a mature tree fronts the split-level structure, which has steps leading up to covered porch and front door opening into a wide-open space anchored by a formal living room sporting a striking fireplace, picture windows and glass sliders spilling outside. A dining area connects to the gourmet kitchen, which is outfitted with sleek cabinetry, a waterfall-edge island and top-tier Viking appliances; and a family room sits adjacent to a movie theater/game room secluded behind glass doors.

    Five en-suite bedrooms filtered throughout two floors include a primary retreat spotlighted by a sitting area, custom walk-in closet, and spa-like bath equipped with dual vanities, a soaking tub and frameless shower. Elsewhere is an office, a gym and glass-enclosed wine cellar; and outdoors, the grounds span nearly a third of an acre, and host an irregular-shaped pool and spa, plus several spots ideal for al fresco lounging and entertaining. There’s also a sport court and an attached two-car garage.

    The listing was held by Ash Rizk of Coldwell Banker Realty; Caple was repped by Ikem T. Chukumerije of IKEM. More

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    Golf Superstar Michelle Wie West’s Modern L.A. Farmhouse Hits the Market for $6.5 Million

    Last year, Michelle Wie West said goodbye to the LPGA Tour at the U.S. Women’s Open in Pebble Beach and seemingly headed into retirement at the ripe young age of 34. Now the five-time winner has turned her sights toward Los Angeles, where she’s bidding farewell to a sleekly designed modern farmhouse-style mansion in Encino’s upscale Amestoy Estates neighborhood.

    Though it’s been barely two years since the veteran golf pro and her husband Jonnie West—a son of NBA legend Jerry West and director of basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors—doled out $5.7 million for the freshly built spread, they’re already looking to unload the place with a nearly $800,000 jump in price, asking a shot under $6.5 million.  

    Built on speculation by a local developer and completed in 2021, the creamy stucco and brick-accented structure is sited on a walled and double-gated parcel spanning just over a third of an acre, amid a dead-end street, and includes a five-bedroom, six-bath main home, plus a separate guesthouse with its own kitchen, family room, bedroom and bath.

    Especially standing out on the main level is a gourmet kitchen decked out with an eat-in island and top-tier Miele appliances, as well as an adjoining family room displaying a leathered-marble fireplace stretching to the ceiling and large expanses of glass spilling outside. Elsewhere are formal living and dining rooms, a glass-encased wine display, wet bar, movie theater, an office and en-suite guest bedroom.

    An aerial view of the West’s Encino property.

    Google Earth

    A floating staircase heads upstairs, where four more en-suite bedrooms include a posh master retreat outfitted with a fireplace, built-in cabinetry, a refrigerator, private balcony, walk-in closet, and spa-inspired bath holding dual vanities, a soaking tub and an oversized rain shower. An al fresco patio also is accessible via the upper level, while the rest of the grounds are laced with olive and citrus trees, and host a large pool with a spa and Baja shelf, fire-pit area, built-in barbecue and pizza oven. There’s also a spacious motorcourt and an attached three-car garage out front.

    A child prodigy and graduate of Stanford University, Wie West rose to international prominence at age 10, when she became the youngest player at the time to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship. She went on to turn pro before her 16th birthday, qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open at 13 and capture the tourney in 2014.

    During a lengthy career, the Hawaii-born golfer has faced more than her fair share of ups and downs, including lengthy spells of being sidelined by lingering wrist injuries compounded by arthritis. But despite all that, she’s managed to earn $6.8 million in prize money alone, plus millions more through lucrative contracts with Sony and Nike.

    The listing is held by Nicole Plaxen and Shauna Walters of The Beverly Hills Estates. More

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    A Wellness Guru Goes the Extra Mile to Sell Her Zen L.A. House

    When Rainbeau Mars’s Venice home first popped up for sale back in September, she decided to up her sales game. Beyond the typical staging and landscaping, the Los Angeles-based actress, author and wellness expert furnished the place with crystals designed to enhance prosperity, gave it a blessing and cleansing at the hands of an Incan priestess, hosted parties for countless social influencers and even showcased the abode in a hip-hop-inspired marketing video.

    Most recently, with no takers after more than 100 days on the market, she’s enlisted local skateboarder-turned-real estate agent Solo Scott of Compass to relist the modern architectural-style property at a newly reduced price of $3.8 million; and though that’s $400,000 less than the original ask, it’s still around $1 million over what Mars, who was formerly married to prominent Hollywood business manager Michael Karlin, paid for the house back in late 2018.

    An open-concept great room with sliding glass doors flowing outside contains a fireside living room, dining area and kitchen.

    Ryan Lahiff

    Built in 2017, the boxy white and gray structure rests on a gated parcel spanning less than a quarter-acre of land, just steps from Abbot Kinney Boulevard, and has five bedrooms and an equal number of baths in a little more than 3,200 square feet of two-level living space boasting wide-plank hardwood floors and high ceilings throughout, plus a Sonos sound system.

    On the main level, a spacious great room is highlighted by floor-to-ceiling glass doors spilling out to a newly refinished wood deck sporting a barbecue setup and fire-pit. Back inside, the living room has a linear fireplace, and an adjoining dining area connects to a galley-style kitchen outfitted with custom cabinetry, quartz countertops, an eat-in island, a dehydrator and Sub-Zero refrigerator. Elsewhere is a bedroom with its own walk-in closet and full bath.

    One of the bedrooms has been transformed into a professional recording studio.

    Ryan Lahiff

    Four more en-suite bedrooms upstairs include a fireside master retreat that comes complete with a private balcony, walk-in closet, and spa-like bath displaying dual vanities, a freestanding soaking tub and glass-encased shower; and per the listing, another one has been converted into a professional soundproof recording studio that’s been used by top musicians, producers and podcasters.

    Especially standing out are the leafy grounds, which host a peaceful sitting area, custom-built compost station, an edible garden, and honeybee and butterfly sanctuaries. There’s also an attached two-car garage on the premises that could easily serve as a gym or an office space.

    In addition to the aforementioned endeavors Mars already has undertaken to try and make her oasis known as “Lighthouse Studios” more attractive to prospective buyers, she’s also considering adding a lap pool and is entertaining rental offers at $25,555 per month.

    “In Eastern medicine, your home is your health,” she says. “Every point coordinates to a point in your body and every room affects you. Painstaking efforts were taken to enhance the vibration.” 

    Click here for more photos of Rainbeau Mars’s Venice house.

    Ryan Lahiff More

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    You Can Own This Architecture Icon’s Personal L.A. Home for $5 Million

    It’s rare to own a home from one of the greats of modernist architecture, especially one that remains true to the architect’s original design. It’s even more extraordinary to own one designed by the architect as his own home.

    Archived by the L.A. Conservancy as “Koenig House 2,” a 3,000-square-foot residence in L.A.’s Brentwood neighborhood that midcentury master Pierre Koenig built in 1985 as his personal residence is now available for $4.995 million. Aaron Kirman and Dalton Gomez of AKG | Christie’s International Real Estate hold the listing.

    Koenig died in 2004 at the age of 78, and his wife Gloria owned the carefully maintained home until 2017, when it was sold for almost $3.5 million. The kitchen and bathrooms have since been updated in a manner that respects and complements Koenig’s original designs.

    The multipurpose, open-plan living area includes a fireside lounge and a cozy library nook.

    Matthew Momberger

    A series of interconnected cubic volumes that step back from the street, the home represents the late-career apotheosis of the innovative architect’s design ethos and his vision for residential architecture in the 21st century. Koenig was an early adopter and champion of industrial, prefabricated, and economical materials, and his designs often made use of natural ventilation.

    The three-bedroom and two-and-a-half-bath home’s I-beam steel-frame armature supports vast expanses of glass and a 30-foot ceiling in the central atrium that is crisscrossed by a geometric assemblage of bridges and staircases. Beyond the secured gates and serene courtyard entry, the main-floor living spaces include a fireside lounge, a cozy, shelf-lined library nook, and a sleekly updated, open-plan kitchen and dining area that spills out to the swimming pool.

    Interior glass walls allow light from the 30-foot-tall atrium to filter into the upper-level bedrooms.

    Matthew Momberger

    The 30-foot interior atrium creates a vertical space where, on hot days, warm air rises and escapes through the atrium to cool the home. Clerestory windows shower the atrium with natural light, and interior walls of glass allow the sunlight to filter into the upper-level bedrooms. And because the Koenigs were music lovers, ceiling heights were carefully planned for an optimal environment for listening to and playing music.

    At the back, between the house and a detached garage, a courtyard patio has a small swimming pool with an automated cover. The back of the garage cleverly peels open to create a huge, covered patio for alfresco entertaining.

    Koenig is best known for Case Study House #22 (the Stahl House) in the Hollywood Hills, often cited as one of the most photographed houses in the world. The previous year, he designed the less dramatically sited yet no less innovative Case Study House #21 (Bailey House), also in the Hollywood Hills, for which he and Gloria posed for promotional photographs.

    Click here for more photos of Pierre Koenig’s former home at 12221 Dorothy Street.

    Matthew Momberger More

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    Rapper Lil Dicky Splashes Out Millions for Kenny G’s Longtime L.A. Compound

    Thought you’d never see a Grammy-winning smooth jazz saxophonist collaborate on a hit record with a rapper known for frequently waxing eloquent about the dimensions of his genitalia? Well, now you have.

    But then again, you can’t exactly rush out to buy this record in stores. We’re talking about this lavish estate in L.A.’s Studio City, which tax records show has just sold for a discounted but still lofty $6.3 million. The buyer? David Burd, the 35-year-old Philadelphia native better known as rapper-comedian Lil Dicky.

    Built in the late 1980s and designed by Ojai-based architect Kevin A. Clark, the 5,600-square-foot house was famously owned by Kenny G from 2007 until 2021, when the jazz musician unloaded the structure and its half-acre of grounds for just under $3 million to a couple who gave the place an extensive remodel and modernization before placing it back on the market last spring, asking $7.5 million.

    Secluded atop a high knoll on a dead-end street in the Studio City hills, the very private home is additionally cloaked from public view behind high gates, towering walls and overgrown hedges. Behind a long driveway, the contemporary-meets-East Coast traditional-style structure features a whimsical Dutch-style front door painted a demure blue, plus an open-concept layout encompassing sizable public rooms, five bedrooms, five full bathrooms and a single powder room.

    Highlights include rustic hardwood floors throughout, numerous sets of French doors opening to the gardens, sweeping views and whitewashed wood-beam ceilings. Notable spaces are a fireplace-equipped living room, a gym, a wood-paneled library equipped with its own fireplace, and an updated kitchen with dual islands, marble countertops and premium Miele, Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances. Upstairs, the master retreat offers a fireplace, sitting area, a spa-style bath and a private balcony with spectacular views from the home’s hillside perch.

    Out back, the manicured grounds offer lush respites for reading or sunbathing, grassy lawns and a lap pool with a spa. There’s also a detached two-car garage topped by a guest apartment that formerly served as Kenny G’s at-home recording studio. More

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    One of the Country’s Top Trial Attorneys Paid $27 Million for Judd Apatow’s L.A. Estate

    Ever since prolific director/producer Judd Apatow and actress Leslie Mann sold their Los Angeles estate for a whopping $27 million last fall, curious minds have wondered who bought the powerhouse Hollywood couple’s longtime home. Shrouded in secrecy, the blockbuster sale was the second-biggest deal recorded in L.A.’s ultra-posh Brentwood neighborhood in 2023, though the house was never officially listed on the market.

    As it turns out, the buyers are longtime Brentwood Park residents Brian and Rosie Panish, married attorneys and he the L.A. native who co-founded Panish Shea Boyle & Ravipudi LLP, one of California’s most successful personal injury firms.

    While it may seem odd that a lawyer can afford to pay $27 million—in cash, no less—for a house, Panish isn’t exactly your everyday lawyer. Long considered one of the U.S.’s top trial attorneys, the 66-year-old has obtained more than 30 eight-figure jury verdicts for his clients, more than any other attorney in California. In the 1990s, he represented the plaintiffs in the landmark case of Anderson v. General Motors, which resulted in a record-setting $4.9 billion jury verdict.

    Over the years, Panish has also represented clients in high-profile Hollywood cases, including cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’ family in the legal fallout surrounding her accidental shooting death by actor Alec Baldwin. He’s perhaps best known to the general public, however, for having represented the family of Michael Jackson in their $1.5 billion wrongful-death lawsuit against AEG.

    Because the Apatow-to-Panish deal was inked off-market, photos and details of the property are mostly nonexistent. Built by Prison Break producer Marty Adelstein in the mid-2000s, the casually luxe estate was home to Apatow and Mann for more than a decade—since 2009, when they paid Adelstein $18 million for the place.

    Long and rambling, the East Coast traditional-style main house sits behind tall hedges and magnolia trees. There are five bedrooms and seven bathrooms in just over 10,000 square feet of living space, per tax records. Also on tap are an in-ground trampoline in the grassy backyard, plus mature sycamore trees, a dark-bottom swimming pool, a detached pool house and a three-car garage that’s linked to the main house by a covered and enclosed walkway.

    For the last 20 years, the Panishes have owned a smaller but no less lavish home elsewhere in the Brentwood Park neighborhood, this one featuring an East Coast traditional-style house with about 9,000 square feet of living space. In 2022, the couple paid $6 million for a mansion with an infinity-edge pool just outside Las Vegas, in the Nevada community of Henderson.

    As for Apatow and Mann, they still maintain a $9 million condo in New York City’s desirable West Village neighborhood. More

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    Rufus Wainwright’s L.A. Home Hits the Market for $2.2 Million

    Canadian singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright has put his Los Angeles home of almost a decade on the market, and yes, there are yellow walls, and they are in fact lined with portraits.

    The Grammy-nominated musician is officially parting ways with his Laurel Canyon abode that he bought together with his husband, Jörn Weisbrodt, back in 2016. At the time, the couple paid $1.45 million for the for the storybook-style cottage and are now asking for a cool $2.2 million. Wainwright, who released his newest album, Folkocracy, in June 2023, announced the news in a post on his Instagram page.

    “The time has come…Jörn and I are listing our gorgeous Laurel Canyon home,” the crooner wrote in the caption. “We have lived in this house since 2016. I wrote ‘Unfollow The Rules’ here, including one of my favorite pieces ‘Peaceful Afternoon.’ We have had many of those here and I hope that the next tenants enjoy it as much as we did.”

    In the living room, dark wood beams are in contrast to the fire engine-red cathedral ceiling.

    Dag Eliason and Alexandre Anu of The Agency Beverly Hills

    Originally built in 1926, the whimsical spread contains three bedrooms and four bathrooms. The quirky residence is decked out with tons of enchanting original elements, including dramatic wood-beamed cathedral ceilings, charming stained-glass windows, and a cozy fireplace clad in vintage tiles. One of the standout spaces is the super cool octagon-shaped library, which is complete with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Elsewhere, you’ll find a bright yellow formal dining room with diamond-paned picture windows, several balconies, and a sky-blue family kitchen with a built-in breakfast nook. The outdoor spaces feel even more fairytale-like. The grounds are dotted with trees and include an alfresco dining area, a patio, a pond, and what the listing refers to as a “lovers bridge.”

    The walls of the formal dining room are painted canary yellow.

    Dag Eliason and Alexandre Anu of The Agency Beverly Hills

    According to Dag Eliason of the Agency, who’s representing the property with colleague Alexandre Anu, Wainwright’s absence in the local community will not go unnoticed. The broker told Mansion Global that on warm summer nights, his neighbors could recall hearing piano playing coming from the terrace. “It’s a very inspirational house,” Anu said. “For Rufus, as a songwriter, he wanted a place he could pull inspiration from.”

    However, the “Poses” singer reassured his followers that he wouldn’t be going far. “Of course, Viva, Siegfried, Jörn, and I will stay in LA,” Wainwright explained on social media, noting that his 12-year-old daughter and his dog would be coming with him. “We love living in this city and exploring a new area.”

    Click here to see all the photos of Rufus Wainwright’s L.A. home. 

    Dag Eliason and Alexandre Anu of The Agency Beverly Hills

    Authors

    Abby Montanez

    Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, dining, travel and topics…

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    A Late Golf Titan’s Hallowed Los Angeles Estate Seeks $38.5 Million

    Always wanted a sacred space to indulge your faith without ever having to leave the sanctity of your own property? Look no further! Your proverbial prayers have finally been answered.

    Almost three months after he passed away at age 91, the Los Angeles residence of golf resort and airport entrepreneur David G. Price has popped up for sale, asking $38.5 million. Consisting of three contiguous parcels spanning 1.4 acres—and nestled on the same street as an equally pricey mansion owned by Formula One heiress Petra Ecclestone and her husband, real estate agent Sam Palmer—the multi-building compound sits in the exclusive Brentwood Park neighborhood and comes complete with its very own private chapel.

    The Prices built their chapel after finding faith as older adults, and used it as a space “to go and have time and quiet and to study,” according to The Wall Street Journal.

    Christopher Amitrano

    Records show Price—best known for his stewardship of the American Golf and American Airport corporations for more than 40 years—and his longtime wife Helen paid around $5.5 million in 1999 for a Spanish Colonial Revival-style house built in the late 1920s. They subsequently doled out roughly $5 million for two additional lots, then razed some existing structures and added a Mission Revival-style chapel with an attached potting shed and two-car garage, plus a two-bedroom guesthouse that connects via a covered breezeway to a pool house with a living room and kitchen—for a total of six bedrooms and seven baths in almost 8,200 square feet of living space.

    Fully walled and gated, and known as “Camino con Cristo,” the main residence is believed to have been originally designed by famed California architect John Byers. Later expanded and upgraded by Thomas Callaway, the interiors are rife with vaulted ceilings, wrought-iron details and numerous French doors providing seamless indoor-outdoor environs. There’s also an attached three-car garage.

    A country-style kitchen features an adjacent breakfast room boasting a fireplace and French doors spilling outside.

    Christopher Amitrano

    Other highlights include a living room warmed by a fireplace, formal dining room, and country-style kitchen outfitted with wood beams, hand-painted and stenciled details, and a fireside breakfast room. There’s also a formal dining room, as well as a library lined with built-in bookshelves, family rooms and an office.

    Upstairs, the primary bedroom hosts a fireplace, private balcony, walk-in closet and dual baths; and outdoors, the park-like grounds are showcased by multiple fountains, courtyards, gardens and meandering pathways, along with a swimming pool, and an eye-catching timber and masonry loggia sporting a stone-clad fireplace.

    Avid gardeners will especially love the potting shed found on the premises.

    Christopher Amitrano

    Per The Wall Street Journal, which first reported that the residence was hitting the market, Price’s 78-year-old widow has decided to sell because she wants to move to the Dallas area to be closer to her son and daughter…and “it is a lot of property for one person.”

    The listing is shared by mother-son team David Solomon and Anna Solomon of Douglas Elliman, and Evan Pozarny and Laura Pozarny of Muselli Commercial Realtors.

    Click here for more photos of David Price’s Brentwood Park house.

    Christopher Amitrano More