Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Patrick Dempsey Buys New McDreamy House

BUYER: Patrick Dempsey
LOCATION: N. Bundy Drive, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $6,495,000 (list)
SIZE: 5 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Newly-built 2-sty gated New England estate on almost 1 usable acre. Huge front lawn, incredible charm, formal LR w/ FP, formal DR, crown moldings and rich dark oak floors. Amazing all-white country kitchen w/ banquette, large family rm w/ vaulted ceiling and stacking French doors to garden and patio w/ FP. Wonderful MBR w/FP and gorgeous stone BA; 3 or 4 addit'l BRs, sep guest house, large media rm, gorgeous pool + cabana.

YOUR MAMAS UPDATE: We received some erroneous information on this one bunnies, so while the Dempsey family did occupy this house for at least part of 2009, they leased rather than purchased. Keep that in mind if y'all decide to read any further.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: As any of the children who have been hanging around Your Mama very long know, we do not care for hospital dramas. Living with the Dr. Cooter means every day is a hospital damn drama so we do not care to spend our boob-toob time watching a bunch of neurotic doctors and paper thin nurses make googly eyes at each other over some one's spleen.

It goes without saying then that Your Mama has never actually sat through an entire episode of the wildly popular program Grey's Anatomy which co-stars a man named Patrick Dempsey as a sexy neurosurgeon named Dr. Derek Shepard. As a result of his tee-vee good looks, smirky smile, and extreme popularity with lonely ladees who wish their huzbands had good hair and looked smoking hot in scrubs that show off bulging parts like Mister Dempsey does, he regularly makes People magazine's list of sexiest people alive and, even worse, has been saddled for the rest of his career with the disturbing nick-name McDreamy.

Anyhoo, a few weeks or months ago, Your Mama discussed a property on Chantilly Road in one of the less glitzy sections of Bel Air that was being offered for sale at $3,595,000. That house, y'all may recall, is owned by Patrick Dempsey and his make-up artist wife Jill Fink. Although the house on Chantilly Road is still for sale with a reduced asking price of $3,295,000, Your Mama has learned that the Dempsey duo has already gone out and purchased a new (and much more expensive) home.

Although property records we accessed do not yet register a transfer, several reliable sources including the always spot-on Lucy Spillerguts finger pointed the new McDreamy house (we couldn't resist that stoopidness) as a newly built New England style number on N. Bundy Road in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles. We regret to inform that we do not know the purchase price of the property but thanks to an assist from Donna Martin we've discovered the property was last listed at $6,495,000.

Before we begin speaking on the house, Your Mama would like the children to be aware that the day-core seen here is not that of Mister and Missus Dempsey. Do you hear that? This is not the day-core of Mister and Missus Dempsey. What we're looking at is a house that was staged by the seller/developer so there is really no point in picking apart the davenports, coffee tables, artwork and ottomans.

The house sits behind gates, beyond a large lawn and at the end of a pea gravel driveway that Your Mama is certain would sound absolutely magnificent under the tires of our big BMW. We're prepared for all the pissing and moaning about how this architectural style is out of place in California and/or about how impractical pea gravel driveways are. But we don't care. Both Your Mama and the Dr. Cooter adore the sound of gravel under tires. A curving stone stair case rises from the motor court to the second floor where the main living spaces are located. Listing information we managed to scare up does not reveal the square footage of the house but does indicate the two story stone and clapboard residence includes 5 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms as well as a separate guest house for in-laws or the hired help.

To one side of and three steps down from the entrance hall is a formal living room with espresso colored wood floors, taupe walls with glossy white trim work and a fireplace that will probably only be used on Christmas morning. To the other side of the entrance hall is the formal dining room which opens through two sets of French doors to the covered porch that runs along a portion of the front facade.

The all white country kitchen includes impractical but pretty marble counter tops, more of the espresso colored wood floors, all the high end appliances a rich person desires, a cozy built-in breakfast booth/banquette and a huge island where a few Chinese stools have been pulled up the counter. A large family room offers a second fireplace, a beamed ceiling and a wall of French doors that fold open toto a brick terrace at the back of the house. Somewhere there is a large media room for watching all the re-runs of Grey's Anatomy which will generate heaps and mountains of residual riches that ought to keep Mister Dempsey in gold plated clover for many years to come.

The master bedroom hosts the home's third wood burning fireplace, a row of French doors opening to the garden and is large enough to host a soiree. The master bath features what appears to be a marble tile floor, a massive bathing tub for two fitted into a bay window and separate his and her vanities where the Missus can work her make-up magic and the Mister can perfect the wave of his forelock for which he has become known.

In addition to the front lawn the grounds includes brick terraces and patio and a large swimming pool with a cabana where the Dempsey clan can play backgammon or chess or whatever other high-minded board games Your Mama likes to imagine they play on Sunday afternoons. The children will note there is one potted tree/plant flanking the cabana that does not go with the other three, a perplexing situation that throws off our visual equilibrium.

Before we head out and start our bizzy day, Your Mama would like to offer a word of advice for all those wild-eyed and over-passionate Grey's Anatomy fans who think they might like to take a drive up and down N. Bundy Drive looking to see if they can spot Mister Dempsey mowing his new lawn: Forget it. There ain't nothing to see except a big ol' hedge and if taking photos of yourself in front of some famous person's hedge is your idea of a good time, we suggest you quickly consult a medical professional about that bizarre behavioral bugaboo.

32 comments:

The Hollywood Mayor said...

The home looks great in the pictures, but I've been inside and it's considerably boring. It has a HUGE front yard that feels like the size of a football field, which sounds good in theory and then you realize you'd rather have it in the back. A couple of the bedrooms felt like nicely done unpermitted rooms, with the bed way in the back feeling like a cellar. Unless you like to play flag football every Saturday in your own front yard this home leaves a lot to be desired. Not my cup of tea.

Anonymous said...

Mama - you're so right about that potted plant near the cabana. Other than that and a couple of light fixtures I don't care for, the place looks absolutely fab.

But Mr. Mayor since an actual visit to the house is better than looking at slick perspective photos, I'll defer to your opinion. Pity.

pch said...

It looks like a vintage '40s Brentwood house that had a heavy (and not entirely successful) remodel. Maybe that's why some of the bedrooms seem un-permitted to the Mayor, because it's an adaptation of an existing floor plan that wasn't perfect to start with? Whatever the case, it's loads better than the typical 10,000 square foot "Tuscan" you'd expect to see.

And I agree that the crunch of gravel under a car's tires is one of the most satisfying sounds there is.

Anonymous said...

I am loving this house! The right finishes, great backyard and lot's of design possibilities in the old Hollywood style genre. It looks a little cold right now, but once the home stagers back up the truck and haul away the anonymous furniture, this house I'm sure will transform into a lovely family home. And papa Patrick in the magnificent master suit shower...ooops did I type that out loud?

Alfred said...

Wow. I guess that pretending to be a doctor pays off way more than actually being a doctor...

I really like that kitchen though.

Anonymous said...

I would not call this New England style...Im not sure it is any style...if I had to guess, I would have bet money this was a midcentury redo. Im a little stunned it's new...the facade is so...odd.

The interior is boring, like any spec house in any town. Hopefully they will make it..ahem...McDreamy before moving in.

Marie said...

Finally, a place I've actually seen before! The thing I remember most about this house is that it has an at home movie theater in a "secret room" (two book cases in stead of doors and when you push them they open). I thought that was annoying and ridiculous and really only belongs in a really old house, but I guess his kids might like it. Or maybe they'll just change it...

Anonymous said...

are there no other colors for walls these days besides grey and beige? An ok house--sort of Monterey Revivalish with half a Southern plantation entrance staircase... awkward-- anyway, I've never seen Greys Anatomy--no interest-- but what I've seen of Dempsey he's ok looking in the way that J Aniston is considered pretty-- conventional looks whipped into a frenzy by stylists-- house matches his personality-- grey and beige

Anonymous said...

That's a lot of $$$$ for an average place like that. Hoity toity hoods in cali are entirely over-priced.

Anonymous said...

well it's vin ordinaire-- high Marriott-- but I'd pay $6m for this rather than $7m for that awful thing in Nashville (hell, I'd pay $7 for this just not to be in Nashville)-- some of those ceilings look low-- hate those ridiculous glue-on plastic ceiling dealies around the chandeliers

Anonymous said...

I really like it. And I think it fits perfectly with his Maine roots.

Anonymous said...

I don't love it. I think the entry situation is unfortunate, the ceiling medallions are unnecessary and I prefer my yard to be in the back.

However, I don't think this house is nearly as awful as some of you armchair critics (which is what I am too) are making it out to be. It has nicely sized if not huge rooms, a lot of room for kids (which they have 3 of) and overall this is not hard to see as a comfortable family home...that is if you can afford six million for a family home.

It's just amazing to me that TV people make that much money. Six million dollars and he didn't even have to sell his other house to do it. Wow.

StPaulSnowman said...

I think there is a real harmony about the architecture and decoration of this place which will make it a nice place for family living.........Anychile got hedgeclippers?

StPaulSnowman said...

I particularly like the "even shrub out" landscaping element. I have never understood the allure of tortured trees, (spiral topiary) but it does scream that the owner can afford a full time gardner. I don't think an even number of potted spirals wouldn't work visually. I think the Japanese kanji for "four" is she same as the kanji for "death" so it is not a popular choice in Japanese landscaping.

Anonymous said...

Mama Dearest, and 12:34-- well, I'm lookin' and lookin' but I really do not see New England or Maine in this house.

Anonymous said...

I've always loved this house for some reason. Here is video of the house guys.. Enjoy.

http://lxtv.com/openhousela/video/8229

Anonymous said...

ew!
hideous!

Anonymous said...

maybe you should check again !
Things are not what they seem... welcome to Hollywood !

Anonymous said...

I just have to say that the following line cracked me up and made my day: "Living with the Dr. Cooter means every day is a hospital damn drama so we do not care to spend our boob-toob time watching a bunch of neurotic doctors and paper thin nurses make googly eyes at each other over some one's spleen." Thanks Mama!

Viva! said...

I hate this house just as I hated his old house on Chantilly road. But then, I also hate Patrick Dempsey, he comes off as such a smug prick in interviews...I'm so glad his moment in the sun is setting.

I know, I sound terribly bitter and my opinion is likely an unpopular one...but there's something about Dempsey that irks me.

Anonymous said...

Funny, the crunch of gravel under my tires reminds me of my husband excitedly navigating our vehicle into another primitive campground in the Sierras.

Princess Shotsavodka said...

that gravel is terribly dangerous....that night I came home from Rancho Mirage I was so parched I stopped at The Spotlight for just a couple of cocktails and to let the old gang know what a success Betty Ford was for me but by the time I made it up the hill and then up my gravel drive that old Thunderbird was doing figure 8's and well, when that gravel hits your living room windows....you would think I was living with Bugsy Siegel again.

Anonymous said...

useless trivia time...
this might be the same house or next door; (the addresses have changed but this house shows built in 62)
that burned to the ground in the 61 brentwood fire...
owned by comedian joe e. brown.
he lost all his wwII hero son's medals and memorabilia.
also down the street from where nixon was photo'd on the roof battling flames and later wrote "six crises"...
sorry for the o.t.
e

aquaman said...

the sound of a gravel driveway is right up there with the unassisted slamming of a wood screen door

Anonymous said...

The listing says "Newly-built", but it sure doesn't give the appearance of newly built. There are definitely aspects I like--like the fact it;s NOT a huge faux Tuscan inspired mcmansion. But I absolutely HATE the fact you have to go up a flight of stairs to the front door--I mean I really HATE that. I love how the french doors in the family room fold back and totally open the wall to the outside. Seems a bit pricey to me, but what do I know about CA real estate prices? Nothing!!

Dr. George O'Malley said...

hell, me neither.

Isaiah Washington said...

shit, i ain't saying a damn word

Anonymous said...

it's ugly. looks like a typical house you'd find in a relatively middle/upscale neighborhood in Pennsylvania...

Anonymous said...

Glad to see that McD beat out prospective home buyer Monique from the video. Blech! And re: anon 9:11am, I'm from PA and have to disagree with your comment. Maybe the front facade, but certainly not the interior, back yard landscaping, and crushed gravel drive.

Mars said...

It's certainly beautiful...And yet I'm bored.

Reshee said...

I would do the Dr. in every bed that's situated too far back, in the boring living area, by the cabana and even on that football field of a lawn. Decorations and style? Who gives a rat's ass. Besides, he's come a LONG way from that goofy kid in "In the Mood." Look it up and you'll laugh for days! Laters

Babe Parish said...

Mama, please watch Nurse Jackie. It's awesome. promise.