Williams finds a place to sing about
LOS ANGELES — Pharrell Williams has found a new spot to hang a large hat or two. The singersongwriter and producer has paid $15.6 million US for Tyler Perry’s 17,245-square-foot mansion in gated Mulholland Estates, Los Angeles.
Built in 1992, the custom residence is visually imposing, with angled ceilings, pyramid skylights and thick steel beams that support towering walls of tempered glass. Overlapping living and dining areas, a game room, 10 bedrooms and 11 bathrooms are among living spaces.
At the heart of the home, a dramatic marble staircase rises up over an indoor reflecting pool and connects the three floors.
The gated property sits on about four acres with several living and dining terraces, rock sculptures, a koi pond and a sports court. A waterslide and swim-in grotto highlight the resort-style swimming pool and spa. The front motor court can accommodate as many as 30 vehicles.
The sale is a quick turnaround for Perry, who parts with the estate after about nine months of ownership. Records show he paid $14.5 million for the estate in August.
Perry, 48, is known for the role as Madea, an older woman he has portrayed in such films as Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2002), Madea’s Witness Protection (2012) and Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Neighbours From Hell (2014).
His writing and producing credits also include the television shows House of Payne (2007-12) and If Loving You Is Wrong.
Williams, 45, has won several Grammy Awards. Among his hits are the single Happy from the animated movie Despicable Me 2. He was a coach on the singing competition show The Voice from 2014 to 2016.
Mogul’s castle goes for a King’s ransom
In the Los Angeles coastal neighbourhood of Pacific Palisades, the Georgian-style estate of late entertainment mogul Michael King has sold for more than $33.85 million.
The sale is the largest singlefamily transaction historically in the Westside neighbourhood, property records show, besting the previous high-water mark of $32.5 million set two years ago.
Set on more than one acre of grounds, the 2005 house comes with a serious design pedigree. New York-based firm Ferguson & Shamamian designed the 15,000square-foot house, and the interior features the work of former White House interior designer Michael S. Smith. The formal gardens and grounds were done by landscape designer Deborah Nivens.
Attention to detail is evident throughout the two-storey house, which features handpainted walls, inlaid mother-of-pearl and elaborate millwork. There are seven bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, a woodpaneled office, a game room and a movie theatre. A large island anchors the chef’s kitchen.
Outside, the grounds contain several terraces, a swimming pool and infinity-edge spa, and a pool house. Views take in the city and ocean. The exact sale price was $33,850,670.
King, who died three years ago at 67, bought the house in 2002 for about $11 million.
The late executive and his brother, Roger, inherited King World Productions from their father, Charles King, in the 1970s and transformed the company into a syndication juggernaut. Among shows distributed by the company were Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy and The Oprah Winfrey Show. The Kings sold the company to CBS in 1999 for $2.5 billion in CBS stock.
Dr. Watson hopes for an elementary move
Lucy Liu, who plays Dr. Joan Watson on the television series Elementary, has put her home in the scenic Fryman Canyon area of Los Angeles’ Studio City on the market for $4.199 million.
The shake-sided Craftsman home, built in 1959, has four bedrooms, five bathrooms and close to 4,100 square feet of living space. It sits behind gates on more than half an acre with a swimming pool and spa, lush landscaping and mature trees.
A rustic cabana with walls of wood-framed windows overlooks the pool area.
Inside, living spaces combine period details with eclectic updates. Among details of note are wood-framed doors and windows, nickel-tiled ceilings and vintage copper fixtures. The master suite and media room feature Italian leather panelling.
A living room with a fireplace, a formal dining room, an eat-in kitchen, an office and a sauna are among other common rooms. The two-storey home, designed for indooroutdoor living, has a history of residents who act.
The home was previously owned by actress Patricia Arquette, who won an Oscar for her role in the 2014 film Boyhood. Liu, who appeared in Kill Bill and Charlie’s Angels, bought the property in 2001 for $2.3 million, records show.
Liu, 49, has scores of television and film credits, including the show Ally McBeal and the films Payback (1999) and Shanghai Noon (2000).
Shaq’s enormous shack includes host of amenities
The massive estate of NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal has come on the market just outside Orlando, Florida, for $28 million. For those desiring amenities galore, the waterfront home pretty much as it all.
In addition to a customized mansion that spans 31,000 square feet, the Shaq-sized compound holds a 6,000-square-foot basketball court, a 17-car showroom and a resort-style swimming complex fittingly dubbed “Shaq-apulco.” The three-acre property sits on the coast of Lake Butler.
Opulent living spaces inside the main residence are fit for a man with a seven-foot-one build. Through the front door, a pair of winding staircases frames the entrance to the great room, which features high ceilings and a twostorey marble fireplace.
The superhero Superman, one of the 15-time All-Star’s many nicknames, makes a few appearances throughout the estate. The Man of Steel’s logo appears on the mammoth master suite bed and above the basketball court. It also accents a fish tank set into a mural designed to resemble a Shaq-driven truck.
On the private dock, a full-size Superman statue is oriented toward the lake.
Other details include dark wood panelling in the formal dining room, office, walk-in humidor and movie theatre. In one room, a wall of hieroglyphics flanks a pyramid-themed fish tank. There are 12 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms, including a master suite with a four-room closet.
O’Neal, 46, played for six teams during his career, winning three NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and one with the Miami Heat. In 2011, he joined TNT’s Inside the NBA program as an analyst.
He bought the home in 1993 for $3.95 million, public records show.
Road to Prince’s paradise is paved with purple
The Caribbean kingdom of Prince will soon go to the highest bidder at auction, the late pop star’s estate says. The island compound in Turks and Caicos was assembled by Prince as a getaway from his main home in Minnesota. The estate combines parcels that total more than five acres.
A 10,000-square-foot mansion with six bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms is the centrepiece of the property, but it’s the road to get there that makes the retreat so quintessentially Prince — it’s purple, a colour that became synonymous with the singer.
The home wraps around a palm-dotted pool and spa. Also on the premises are a tennis court, a 200-foot dock and two beaches.
Paper bids for the auction are due by July 12. Each requires a $100,000 deposit.