Friday, July 10, 2009

A Producer Buys Ruth Buzzi's Hollwood Hills House

SELLER: Ruth Buzzi
LOCATION: Malaga Road, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $1,021,000
SIZE: 2,893 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: This is the best buy in the Hollywood Hills today! Magnificent location; Poised on a large lot with unobstructed views on a private cul-de-sac street in highly sought after "Outpost Estates," just minutes away from everything! Hardwood floors, 2 fireplaces, high ceilings, large decks perfect for outdoor entertaining, balconies, and a large master with walk-in closet.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Thanks to an informant we'll call Lenny Letitfly Your Mama has learned that treasured cackle queen Ruth Buzzi has done sold her long time residence in the Outpost Estates area of Los Angeles. Property records show Mizz Buzzi and her man-huzband Kent Perkins took in $1,021,000 when they sold their Malaga Road residence in late June of 2009.

The naughty, bawdy and horse-toothed Miz Buzzi, for all you children too young to remember, was one of the high-lariously funny high priestesses of Rowan & Martin's Laugh In back in the late 1960 and 70s. While Mizz Buzzi appeared regularly as a number of characters on Laugh In, her most famous creation was probably Gladys Ormphby, a dumpy, dowdy, crotchety, park bench sitting, gunny sack dress wearing and hair net donning old woman who used her handbag to pummel dirty old men who made sexually suggestive advances. Mizz Buzzi went on to appear in any number of television programs, films and variety shows including The Lost Saucer, The Sonny and Cher Show, Freaky Friday, Days of Our Lives, The Love Boat (natch), Sheep in the Big City, Sesame Street, and the now defunct but wonderfully wacky daytime draw-muh Passions.

Property records reveal that Mizz Buzzi bought the property in the summer of our Bicentennial (June of 1976) for an unknown amount of money. However, Mister Kent Perkins, who is Mizz Buzzi's lucky huzband, reveals that the house was actually bought in 1968 while Mizz Buzzi was still working her magic on Laugh In. Listing information shows the flesh pink and tiled roofed Mediterranean was built in 1937, measures 2,893 square feet and includes three bedrooms and 3 poopers including a master bedroom with horrific wall to wall carpeting, a small office alcove, a private terlit and a large walk-in closet with built-in cabinetry.

The boxy front façade of the house is, without question, tired and outdated and the garage door makes Your Mama shudder with fear but there is nothing here that can't be made acceptable without a little imagination, money, a smart architect and a skilled landscaper who knows how to properly do up the slimmest of front yards. We already know a good number of you chickens are going to whine and complain that this house sits too damn close to the road but we do not want to hear it because this is how it's done in many (if not most) areas of the Hollywood Hills where due to geography there simply isn't room to set houses way back off the street. Besides, it's not like Malaga Road is some kind of freeway with a constant flow of horn honking traffic.

Interior rooms of the Mizz Buzzi's bullpen include a sunken, nicely sized and unnecessarily carpeted living room with a fireplace that leads to an oddly shaped and a wood floored room that appear to Your Mama like it was haphazardly tacked on to the back of the house and fitted with a built in wet bar that will probably please the alcoholics among us but that Your Mama recommends be ripped out immediately. A discreet nook for mixing cocktails is perfectly fine–fantastic even because lahrd knows we love a drinky poo–but we find these kind of behemoth built in bars where stools can be bellied up to the counter to be vulgar. Who needs to advertise their drinking habits? If we wanted to live in a damn bar, we'd live in a bar.

Anyhoo, beyond the "bar" is the dining room which gives way to a breakfast room where the windows are enslaved by white wrought iron bars and punished by a distressing scrap of lace drapery that covers only the bottom third of the window and serves absolutely no purpose that we can imagine. Through the breakfast room is the kitchen that appears to retain the well worn hexagonal saltillo tiles (and which we'd keep), some 1970s cabinetry that has been painted white in an unsuccessful effort to minimize their visual impact, a range that is much older than Your Mama and, rather unexpectedly, a new-fangled stainless steel double drawer dishwasher. Neither Your Mama, the Dr. Cooter nor our wild-eyed house gurl Svetlana are fans of the double drawer dishwasher but that is another gripe for another day puppies and we simply do not have the time or energy to delve into the grievous error that is the ill-placed panel of glass brick behind the range. This room will need to be gutted. We do, however, appreciate that there is an actual laundry room tucked back behind the cookery.

While there does appear to be a bit of terraced yard below the house, the main outdoor space is the deck that wraps around the lower level. Sadly, it appears that the deck can be accessed through that awful "bar" room, a situation that requires swift remedy by the new owner whom records reveal is a man named Daniel Dubiecki who has produced many commercials as well as a number of films including Thank You for Smoking and the Oscar winning teen pregnancy comedy Juno.

Miz Buzzi and her biznesman man-mate Kent Perkins currently live in Texas where records show they own a 5 bedroom and 5 bathroom house in a banal development in Southlake as well as a number of properties in teeny-tiny Aledo.

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good size house, but the cielings are low. That's hard to change.

SID DELUCA said...

Thanks Mama. I had almost forgotten about Ruth - she was hysterically funny and I hope the younger chirren will google her ass and see what we old folks used to watch! I did not know she lived here in Texas, thanks for that info as well. It's always amazed me how those Hollywood Hills houses look so small from the road and so HUGE from the back. Anyhoo,
much love to y'all and have a wunnerful weekend. Play safe and drive friendly!

Anonymous said...

I too haven't thought of Ruth Buzzi in years. She was absolutely hysterical to watch on Laugh-In; though I am having trouble imagining her in a daytime soap.

Mama, your critique of this house was excellent. Lots of work to be done, but it looks like somebody got a pretty good deal on this place.

Have a great weekend.

Anonymous said...

I see normal height ceilings, except in the living room which are higher, and the kitchen which has coved ceilings..

Anonymous said...

By "normal" you mean 7.5, 8 or 9 feet? I am thinking, those are 8. 9 ft, though still "normal" will look better. The larger the room, the lower the ceiling looks. They have some large rooms, and 9-10 would have been just what the doctor ordered.

Anonymous said...

Fond memories of watching Ruth Buzzi on Laugh-In as a kid.

This house is TIRED. I'll defer to the west coast children: in the current L.A. housing market is this a gut renovation or a tear-down?

Anonymous said...

Oh come on Preppy - this house is VINTAGE - not tired. I see tons of possibilities.

Plus would you really have the heart to tear it down considering who used to live here?

"My house stands on the lot where Ruth Buzzi's old house used to be" just doesn't ring true.

Anonymous said...

It's a reno.

got some weird stuff but old houses are quirky.

Anonymous said...

Definitely a renovation. Priced that way too. A 3,000 s.f. 3/3 house on a cul-de-sac in Outpost Estates for only a million bucks?

Anonymous said...

That price seems exceedingly reasonable.
Are we sure this is Los Angeles?

Ernesto said...

Why would you want to reno this little gem and have it look like every other reno'ed pad in LA with stainless steel, potlights, modern, blah blah blah. This would suit perfectly someone with eclectic and unusual decorating sense. Sure there are a few changes here and there to be made, the bones are terrific and the view is probably grand! Never mind that the price is almost UNHEARD of in LA for something that size. Loving RUTH B.

Anonymous said...

I bet there is cracks in the land - that's why it is cheap as chips

Anonymous said...

"Cheap as Chips" lol
I am stealing that line.

:{} avg joe said...

who owns this estate ?

I heard the owner of univision does

9161 ORIOLE WAY, LOS ANGELES 90069

they are asking 16MM for it

I think that is wayyyyyyyyy to high

Anonymous said...

I'd suggest a new decor that is total retro... leaning towards that "Mad Men" look of the lats 60s with maybe some Haywood-Wakefield furniture and some big ol' lamps with huge shades! And God Yes with the BAR! It's time to get my drink on!

dolly said...

I agree with Ernesto that a quirky design scheme would fit right in here. I don't know if the glass bricks or the bar would come out first if I was moving in, but mark me - their days would be numbered. Overall though it's cute, and seems like a steal for the money, even with no backyard.

Back in April Mama you filled us in on your double drawer dishwasher difficulties when as I recall a young stallion by the name of Juan was due to pop over and switch out your appliance for one that actually worked.

Anonymous said...

its odd that the most expensive listing in the bird streets ever sold for $18m and there haven't been many in the 8 figure range other than it and a select few... but suddenly this area has TONS of high dollar listings.. honestly compared to other listings in the area 9161 is cheap...but they are all insanely overpriced

its 10k sq ft on a huge lot


1380 mockingbird - $24,995,000 for 11,166 sq ft

1415 oriole - $24,000,000 for 9,691

9050 Oriole - $18,950,000 for like 6,500 sq ft

9362 nightingale - $17,995,000 for 9,000 sq ft

9280 nightingale - $15,900,000 for $8,600 sq ft

1423 oriole dr - $14,000,000 for 6,679 sq ft

Anonymous said...

The back aerial makes is look big but it's only 2900 sq. ft.? I wonder what's on the very bottom level? Ruth Buzzi's got to be in her early 70s by now and this looks like a home that was lived in for 30+ years - a true home and not a flipper. GOOD bones. Ruth Buzzi used to be screamingly funny and I haven't thought of her in years...had no idea she lived in the Dallas area now.

Anonymous said...

The Lost Saucer was my favorite show when I was a kid! I'd forgotten all about it till now- thanks mama!

Loved this post & this house. I bet the views are fantastic.

Anonymous said...

While I agree with all Mama says on this dated house, it appears to just need some heavy cosmetics to make all right as rain. And at this price, that should be easy enough to do.

:{} avg joe said...

THAT WASNT ME

MY BLOG HAS TWICE AS MANY PEOPLE AS THIS ONE

Anonymous said...

Hi Joe, What's the address of your blog..bet you won't put the address here. that's if you have a blog at all.

Troy N. said...

Miss Ruth killed it. I see a few dozen illegals on the demo-blast weekend.*sniff*

Anonymous said...

Anon 4:02--The house probably looks bigger than it is in the aerial photo because it is built into a hillside. Those aren't full stories you're seeing in the photo. The top one (which is about 1/3 garage) only covers about 1/3 to 1/2 of the lower level.

AS for the rest of the house. It might not be a complete top to bottom reno, but it is close. I wish we got more of a sense of how the rooms flow (or don't flow) into one another. Anyone have a link to a listing?

And I'm glad Ms. Buzzi is still with us. She was hysterical but hadn't thought about her in years.

Anonymous said...

Ernesto - Renovation doesn't necessarily mean stainless steel & granite. There is such a thing as a sensitive renovation. The house is 72 years old (what a coincidence, so is Buzzi). The house could need new plumbing & electric. It may not even have air conditioning. People (even the rich & famous) lived without it but a new owner is going to want a modern HVAC system.

Kent Perkins said...

Hi, this is from Ruth Buzzi's husband. Ruthie saw this blog and wanted me to respond so you'd know a little more about the house. It was so close to everything, being just above Hollywood Blvd but still in the forest with lots of trees. It was the best of two worlds, the city and the country. We had foxes, deer, raccoons, and even rattlesnakes pay us visits there, and a red tailed hawk nested in a huge tree just a stone's toss from our bedroom window; the house hosted some great little parties for some of the world's most interesting people, but we don't name-drop. During the height of Laugh-In Ruthie enjoyed the house so much that, during holidays when everyone else took vacations out of the country, she spent all her spare time at the Malaga house, sunning on the back deck, playing the piano in the living room, reading on the balcony off the bedroom. She bought the house while still on Laugh-In in 1968, contrary to property record reports in your blog. In addition to the Malaga house, she lived in a 9,000 square foot Hancock Park mansion bought by me in 2000 and which we sold in 2005. Malaga was unoccupied for the past few years but we never cared to rent or lease it because it was such a great part of Ruthie's history. It was full of Emmy nomination plaques, her Golden Globe award, scripts and CD's and videotapes of hundreds of her shows, and all the Bob Mackie and Rhet Turner wardrobes she collected from her years in comedy sketches and on the road with her club act. Ruthie is very happily retired with me in Texas. I have sold most of my California holdings including 50% of the stock in my company. We live in a gorgeous brick and Austin stone house in Southlake, Texas (listed as the highest per capita income neighborhood in America in a recent survey) and there's nothing banal about it. Our farm in Aledo, Texas is complete with a swan pond, and scores of chickens, roosters, Guinea hens, and 18 quacking ducks. About 50 miles west of there is Sunset Ranch, in Erath County, Texas, where we have a herd of black Angus cattle, 4 horses, and 220 acres of pecan trees, 5 ponds and a 12-acre lake, and 1/2 mile of Barton's Creek flows across the West end of the ranch bringing with it wild turkey, hogs, deer, and countless other wildlife.

Ruthie wants you to know the Malaga house was centrally air conditioned, and very comfortable...but remember, we had other houses so she didn't really live there the past few years. It is with fond memories and a wistful
"adios" that she signed the paperwork over to the young dynamic writer/producer and his wife...and she wishes them the happiness and success Malaga brought to her for 40 years.

Ruthie thanks her fans for the nice comments, and wants them all to know she's now a full-blown cowgirl with the hat collection to prove it.

Be well,

Kent Perkins

Your Mama said...

Mister Perkins,

Thanks so much for your lovely missive. We've amended our little post to reflect some of what you've written.

Please tell Mizz Buzzi Your Mama says hello and thanks again darlin'

Y.M.

Anonymous said...

By the way, the house was built by then huge movie star Deanna Durbin, who sang in most of her movies. Interestingly, across the street lived immortal film stars Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney, Sr...so Halloween in the Outpost area might have been a lot of fun back then with the Werewolf and Dracula being next door neighbors. The Lugosi mansion has a plaque on the wall outside the front gates, and is a tourist stop. Because our house was also on the star maps, we had some interesting meetings with total strangers at the door. People have amazing audacity, especially TV fans. Once, a man just out of prison slipped a note under our front door asking Ruthie for a $100,000 loan so he could start a business; yes, he was serious. I forgot to mention that the house was sold by Aaron Montelongo of who was terrific, and very patient, and honest. We recommend him if you need a realtor so check out this link: http://www.sothebysrealty.com/en/AssociateProfile.aspx?R=300003649


Again, thanks for the kind words and Ruthie says it's time to feed the cows so I have to get off the computer and hop in the 4-wheeler... ya'll take care...

Kent Perkins

StPaulSnowman said...

A real treat to hear from the people who lived in the house under discussion. These comments bring home the adage that a house is a lot more than bricks and mortar.

Kent and Ruth Buzzi Perkins said...

This is Kent Perkins again, wishing Mama well from our ranch in Texas. We're putting the finishing touches on our Texas ranch house. It's plantation style, has 14' porches and a 6 car garage with a 2 bedroom guest house above. The house is 4 stories; an elevator serves the first three, and a spiral staircase goes up into the 12 by 12 cupola, observation room 54 feet above the ground, on our hill above a 3 acre private lake, set back in some trees. You'd like it here after being in LA traffic for a few decades like we were. Just want you to know Ruthie and I are loving Texas, and you can see her on Twitter @Ruth_A_Buzzi where she's posted some pics of the new house. Adios! Bueno dias, friends!

Anonymous said...

Your Mama's sass is borderline cruel for no good reason. The pictures expose her lack of good perception. What's worse, she will take my disapproval as a compliment.