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    Halsey Buys a Spanish Colonial Revival Classic in Los Angeles

    You could say Halsey is on a real estate roll. Three months ago, the “Without Me” singer sold her lavish estate near Calabasas for nearly $12 million; almost immediately following that, she paid $700,000 over the asking price for a gem of a house in Laurel Canyon. Now she’s done it again — dropping an impressive $5 million on an impeccably restored Spanish Colonial Revival house in Los Feliz.

    Located almost directly across the street from one of the most popular Griffith Park entrance points, the house was built in the late 1920s for restaurateur and civic reformer Clifford Clinton and designed by architect Arthur W. Larson. In 2011, the longtime Clinton family was awarded Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument status.

    Although it’s located on a very busy roadway, the nearly 6,000-square-foot house sits behind tall fences and stucco-clad walls. Inside, a coffered wood front door opens to a magnesite-tiled foyer, to the right of which is a formal living room featuring a grand fireplace, a stained glass picture window, coffered ceilings, and French doors that lead to a tiled veranda. To the left of the foyer is a formal dining room with coved ceilings, another stained glass picture window, and peg and groove hardwood floors.

    Across the hallway is an stylish office that showcases a curved fireplace, hand-stenciled ceilings, gorgeous woodwork, leaded-glass windows, and coat-of-arms sconces. Further down the hall is the butler’s pantry with wood countertops, an original zinc sink, and original Deco tile in robin’s egg blue, the kitchen, outfitted with a snazzy La Cornue range and a refurbished original Frigidaire refrigerator, and a sunny magnesite-tiled breakfast room.

    Upstairs are four bedroom suites with glorious original-tile baths in a variety of hues, built-in vanities, and “wedding cake” ornamental plaster. Also on this floor are multiple cedar closet, including one containing a very early version of a fire extinguisher, a sunroom, and multiple Juliet balconies offering city views. The sprawling home also has a plush home theater with a starry-night-sky ceiling and seating for six.

    Exterior amenities include an colorfully-tiled swimming pool, a sun deck, a bath house, a dining pavilion, and a three-car garage. Halsey also scored a deal on the property, securing the 0.34-acre estate for $800,000 under the $5.8 million asking price. More

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    Ashley Benson Sells Her Historic Los Angeles Villa for $8.5 Million

    Barely one month after she put it up for grabs, Ashley Benson’s Los Angeles home has officially sold. The 1930s Los Feliz residence, tucked away within the famously star-studded Laughlin Park gated community, went for $8.5 million — lower than the “Pretty Little Liars” star’s $9.5 million asking price, but far more than the $4.5 million she paid for the place back in 2020.

    Records show the buyers are Scott Parra-Matthews, the longtime CFO of major food wholesaler Vesta Foodservice, and his husband Jairo Parra-Matthews.

    During her ownership, Benson gave the property a big and very thorough remodel. In addition to bathing each room in vibrantly decadent colors, she also ripped out and replaced the entire kitchen, renovated the bathrooms and generally gave the whole place a new and very contemporary lease on life. And even the outdoors didn’t escape the magic Benson touch — the Orange County native added a high wall that surrounds the entire property, installed privacy hedges and even replaced the old swimming pool with a newer and sexier pool, complete with a big raised hot tub. “No money was spared during the recent remodel,” the listing proclaimed.

    Designed nearly a century ago by prolific L.A. architect Arthur Rowland Kelly, best known for also penning the Playboy Mansion, the nearly 5,000-square-foot house was modeled after the Mediterranean-style villas that lace the French and Italian Rivieras. Despite its age, Benson is reportedly only the Laughlin Park home’s fourth-ever owner.

    While plenty of original charm remains, those Benson upgrades are very bespoke. Some of the more unusual amenities include a hair salon, a speakeasy “VIP lounge bar” and a wood-paneled master bedroom with its own kitchenette and boutique-style closet. The master bath features separate greenhouse-like stations for the shower/tub area and the toilet, respectively, and other in-house upgrades include a dropdown projector screen and a state-of-the-art Control4 smart home system.

    The cul-de-sac property is atypical in that is surrounded on three sides by a roadway, meaning that outdoor space is somewhat limited, but there is a big and new stone patio with ample space for al fresco entertaining, plus a grassy patch of lawn. One extra-special feature: per this listing, this house is perched on a knoll at the very highest point of Laughlin Park, meaning it lords over all the neighbors and sports 360-degree views that encompass the Griffith Observatory, the Hollywood Hills and Downtown L.A. skyline.

    Laughlin Park has long been a favorite haunt of Hollywood’s biggest stars. Current residents include Brie Larson, Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie, Kristen Stewart, Ellen Pompeo and Will.i.am, though the enclave is perhaps most famous for having been home to Cecil B. DeMille, the American cinema pioneer, for nearly 40 years. More

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    The Producer of ‘Kung Fu Panda’ Just Listed Her 1920s Spanish Colonial in Los Feliz for $11.5 Million

    After barely four years of ownership, Melissa Cobb has decided to hoist her elegant residence in a prime Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles onto the market. And, according to the listing held by Marci Kays and Jonathan Mogharrabi of Carolwood Estates, the glam Spanish-style mansion “truly embodies Hollywood’s golden era.”

    The veteran entertainment industry executive—probably best known for producing the Kung Fu Panda franchise—is asking a speck under $11.5 million for the multi-level digs she picked up for nearly $6.4 million back in fall 2019.

    Originally commissioned by wealthy entrepreneur William C. Hay and completed by architect Charles C. Kyson in the early 1920s, the premises were prominently featured in a 1925 Architectural Digest article. The place recently underwent an extensive renovation courtesy of its previous owner, with Cobb also sprucing up the grounds during her tenure.

    The Spanish Colonial home is fronted by an inviting entryway lined with lush foliage.

    Andrew Bramasco

    Nestled on a gated hillside parcel spanning over a half-acre, the stucco and terra-cotta-roof structure features five bedrooms and five baths in almost 5,500 square feet of living space, all of it flaunting stylish interiors accented with a mix of hardwood and marble floors, hand-painted oak doors and stained-glass windows throughout.

    A walkway passes through a lushly landscaped yard before emptying out at an ornate wood front door, which leads into an entry foyer displaying a “scene-stealing” staircase topped by a barrel-vaulted ceiling. From there, highlights include a soaring fireside living room resting beneath a hand-painted coffered ceiling, and a step-down den and seated wet bar.

    The fireside living room is adorned with an ornamental fireplace, a hand-painted coffered ceiling, and French doors spilling outside.

    Andrew Bramasco

    A formal dining room sporting wood paneling imported from England and an ornamental tracery ceiling opens to a second-level veranda, and the gourmet kitchen is outfitted with high-end appliances, an eat-in island and a cozy breakfast nook. Elsewhere are a family room, library, wine cellar, home offices and staff accommodations, along with an oversized primary bedroom that houses a fireplace, an elevated closet, and a spa-inspired bath equipped with dual vanities, a soaking tub and glass-encased shower.

    Outdoors, the grounds are laced with fruit trees, terraces and gravel pathways leading to secluded gathering spaces, and host a sunken fire-pit lounge and private pool flanked by a grassy lawn centered around a period fountain. There’s also a street-level garage for three vehicles—all just minutes away from the Griffith Observatory and Greek Theatre.

    Cobb joined Netflix as head of kids and family in 2017 and went on to gain recognition for helping to build the company’s animation studio. In 2022, after acquiring The Lego Movie animation studio Animal Logic, the former DreamWorks executive stepped down as vice president of animation film and currently serves as a producer for Netflix.

    Click here for more photos of Melissa Cobb’s home. More