An Ex-Nerd Plays It Cool in his LA Digs

The Revenge of the Nerds star discovered that living well is the best revenge

Curtis Armstrong found success playing geeky roles in ’80s hits like Risky Business and Moonlighting, but the story behind his Spanish-style house couldn’t be any cooler. “It was built in 1929 by a retired sea captain, who used reclaimed wood from old ship timber for the frame,” Curtis, 63, tells Closer. “My wife and I bought it just before the ’94 Northridge earthquake, and while there was a lot of damage because of its three stories and tiled roof, the frame was untouched! The repair guys said they’d never seen studs of that type before.”

It’s ironic that studs would save the home of a Revenge of the Nerds star, but almost anyone would feel welcome in this

“What would a nerdy house be like? I guess it would be filled with pinball machines… and actually, there is one downstairs!”

— Curtis

five-bedroom, three-bath house he shares with his TV writer wife Elaine Aronson, 57. (And when she’s not off at college in England, their daughter, Lily, 21, often stops by).

The home’s enviable features include its breathtaking hillside view of LA, which was the first thing to grab Curtis’ attention before they moved here in 1993. “I saw the beautiful wooden doors and the courtyard to the side,” he recalls. “I looked at the wooden beams in the living room, took in the view and I was sold. I turned to my wife and said, ‘This is it!’ ”

And they’ve made it even more special with their collection of acoustic guitars. “We host musical nights where people come over and all the instruments come out,” Curtis shares. “Let’s say I do play the guitar — badly — and I can play with vigor, but I don’t really have any actual style.” When he’s not hosting jam sessions, Curtis enjoys quieter pursuits. “Downstairs, I have my library where all the books

are,” he says. “Books tend to be my particular obsession.” And the home’s decor, filled with wood furnishings, folk art and splashes of red? “I guess it’s kind of catch-as-catch-can,” he admits. “The coffee table we bought in New Mexico when Elaine and I first married. There is also a large floor candelabra we bought on a trip together.”

Curtis and Elaine converted two of the bedrooms into offices, one of which he used to pen his new memoir, Revenge of the Nerd. But for Curtis, what’s most special about his home is the people in it and the memories they share.

“Lily was born and took her first steps in this house,” he says, getting emotional. “When I see the sunset over the mountains, there are different colors and everything changes. That’s one reason this place is important to me.” — Reporting by Steve Gidlow

“When I did the reality show King of the Nerds, Elaine and I ‘adopted’ lots of the nerds. They come and visit!” — Curtis (with wife Elaine)

“I started out being the cook, Elaine sort of picked it up, and now Lily has become better than either one of us!” “Our families are now in California, so we celebrate Passover here, and we’ll have 35 people over for dinner.” “The hat stand and that...

Curtis in his 1984 hit Revenge of the Nerds. His new memoir (right) is out July 11. “Seeing the view takes my breath away, even now,” Curtis says. “Elaine’s grandmother bought that piano in New York from a Lincoln Center music school.”

“The couches in the living room are new, and replaced ones that just fell apart!” “I started thinking, ‘Where do I want to spend the rest of my life?’ And to me, it was this place,” Curtis tells Closer.

“My library downstairs is another place I like getting away to,” Curtis says.