Bob Hope's ultra-traditional real home looks nothing like UFO estate, costs nearly as much
When we last checked in on the real estate holdings of the late comedian Bob Hope — one of the few people who really do deserve the designation "iconic" — we were examining his controversial home in the Southern California desert. Its head-turning look has been likened to a mushroom and a volcano, and even to a Martian UFO by Hope himself.
But that Palm Springs estate, with its sweeping copper roof shading an enormous pavilion, was meant more for entertaining. It was the place where he and his wife, Dolores, threw swanky star-studded parties with hundreds of guests, many of them expected to sing for their supper.
Their real home — their main residence, where their children grew up — couldn't be more different.
In 1939, in the Toluca Lake section of Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley, the Hopes built a staid English traditional that their daughter Linda later called their "dream house." The 5.2-acre spread had a back lawn where the couple — avid golfers — installed a one-hole, 3-par course with a sand trap. There are two pools, indoors and outdoors, and the yard was big enough that President Nixon's helicopter once landed there on a recreational side trip.
The 15,000-square-foot main house has four bedroom suites and a "master wing" upstairs with his-and-hers spa-style baths, his-and-hers closets, and a shared study. At the front of the property, a separate 4,000-square-foot office once accommodated the staff that managed Hope's endeavors in radio, television and film as well as in real estate. It's now a guest house. And there's a pool house with two bedrooms and two baths as well.
They loved it so much, they saw no reason ever to move away. He died there in 2003 at age 100, and she died there in 2011 at age 102. The house has never been sold in its 75 years.
"This is an unparalleled opportunity to own one of the most iconic and devotedly cared-for estates in Los Angeles," said listing agent Craig Strong of John Aaroe Group.
The home first hit the market in 2013 at $27.5 million, but was later delisted. It's now offered at a lower price, $23 million — nowhere near the 50 percent cut that the UFO estate in Palm Springs has suffered.
Click here or on a photo for a slideshow of Bob Hope's real home, along with pictures of the controversial desert estate. Then tell us in the comments: Which do you prefer? Which do you think is more worth the $25 million-or-so asking price?
Also on Yahoo Homes:
• Bob Hope's controversial volcano/mushroom/UFO estate now half-price
• Dick Clark's bizarre Flintstones-style house finally sells
• Robin Williams' extraordinary Villa of Smiles back on market with big markdown
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