Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Gale Harold Lists Los Feliz Doo-plex Digs

SELLER: Gale Harold
LOCATION: Arbolada Road, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $1,300,000
SIZE: 2,566 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Updated mid-century duplex. Unit #1 3BR, 2 BA, Unit #2, 2BR, 2BA. High end kitchen and baths in owner's unit, 2nd unit in good condition w/ some upgrades. HUGE lot that is your own private oasis with meandering paths through native trees and plants.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: The other day Your Mama received a covert communique from Lovely Leslie in Los Feliz who whispered in our ear that an actor named Gale Harold III had listed his mid-century doo-plex on Arbolada Road with an asking price of $1,300,000. Your Mama said, "Gale what? Harold who? Arbo- where?"

So, like we usually do when confused and confronted with a celebrity name we do not immediately recognize, we fired up our trusty laptop and started clicking and clacking on the keyboard. It was only a matter of minutes before we were able to put a familiar face to Gale Harold's unfamiliar name. Many of the children will know handsome Mister Harold as that dumb ass Susan Mayer's rebound boyfriend on the last season of Desperate Housewives. Mister Harold's stint on that program was cut short when he was injured in pretty serious motorcycle accident in the fall of 2008. Prior to that, his most notable and recognizable role would surely be as the libidinous and narcissistic ur-homosexual Brian Kinny on Queer as Folk. Some in the Lesbian Gay Bi and Transgender community whined that his role as excessively vain and hyper-horny only perpetuated negative stereotypes of a gay men. Others found the portrayal refreshingly transgressive and liberating and still others, those without sexual hang ups or a political axe to grind, just thought Mister Harold as Brian Kinney was nothing more than nine kinds of hot and sexy.

According to his resume on the IMDB, Mister Harold calls the pretty city of Toronto, Canada home, which is where Queer as Folk filmed back when it was still being filmed. However, according to property records–and Lovely Leslie in Los Feliz–Mister Harold owns a doo-plex property on a curvy cul-de-sac at the eastern edge of Los Feliz that he bought in March of 2005 for $794,500. The tri-level doo-plex is painted in two shades of baby poop, has a three car garage at street level and, according to property records and listing information, the two units combined measure 2,566 square feet.

Listing information barely describes the smaller, 2 bedroom and 2 pooper unit but does state it is in "good" condition with "some upgrades." Listen chickens, whenever Your Mama sees this kind of lackluster listing language we can't help but think that it's just real estate speak meant to downplay that the place is a hot mess with a dirty tenant. It's like all those naughty real estate brokers in Manhattan who use the word "cozy" when describing an apartment that has just one window that opens into an air shaft and is too damn small to stand in let alone live. Of course, we're not saying there's anything wrong with the second unit of Mister Harold's doo-plex because Your Mama don't know nuthin' from a mohair sweater. We're just saying you might want to throw your hazmat suit in the trunk iffin you go looking at this part of the doo-plex, just in case.

The larger of the two units, the "owner's unit," is a compact, single level set up with 3 bedrooms and 2 poopers. The front door opens directly into the living room which has wood floors, a fireplace, a wall mounted flat screen tee-vee and a bunch of furniture that looks like it came from one of the better Salvation Army thrift stores around town. While there are a few nice things in here–like the credenza under the window and the satellite light fixture above the dining room table–it's obvious Mister Harold did not consult a nice gay decorator on the day-core.

The kitchen and bathrooms have been given the once over by someone who appears to have some idea of what they're doing. The small kitchen has flat fronted cherry cabinetry–at least it looks like cherry–and all stainless steel appliances. The hall bathroom is wrapped in a dark colored square glass tile with a white grout and has a tub/shower combination with a large frosted window and a glossy, wood plank counter top with a shallow, white and box-like sink sitting on top. Normally Your Mama does not care for this trend towards dog-bowl like bathroom sinks, but this is about as good as it can be done as far as we're concerned.

Mister Harold made a half-assed attempt to modernize the master bedroom buy removing the original closet doors and replacing them with sliding frosted glass numbers. While the thought is good, there's something decidedly and disturbingly off-kilter in the final product. The other two wee-sized and wood floored bedrooms are even more visually distressing with their cacophony of mis-matched carpets. One includes a very messy desk and bookshelves and some kind of chair with hideously scrolled arms and the other a bunch of work out equipment that Your Mama can't identify because we don't bother with that nonsense. Of course these things are removed once the property sells. We can only hope Mister Harold thinks twice about moving all that college boy crap to his new crib.

All three bedrooms open to the back yard through sliding glass doors, which we like. The rustic back yard climbs up the hillside with a series of terraces, stacked stone walls and meandering pathways. After a booty busting climb through the native plants, one is high enough to look over the doo-plex roof and towards Glendale. Not the most inspiring view maybe, but it's really better than no view at all isn't it? Your Mama would suggest putting a hammock up at the top of the property which would be wonderful for settling into a long afternoon of reading and gin and tonics.

Perhaps the best thing Your Mama can say about this doo-plex is that if you're gonna live in a doo-plex this is the sort of doo-plex you want to live because the two units do not appear to share any common walls, floors or ceilings. This separation promotes privacy, peace and quiet. No one needs to listen to to their neighbors fight and fornicate through paper thin walls.

Of course, Your Mama hasn't any idea why Mister Harold would want to sell his doo-plex in a down market. But he his. Maybe he's moving his rust colored velour sofa and gym equipment to a single family home? That would be our guess, but again, Your Mama don't know a bowl of cereal from table lamp so the truth is we don't know nuthin' about Mister Harold's next real estate move. Whatever it may be we wish him luck and we wish he'd do it shirtless. Oh! Did we say that out loud?

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

This place is not exactly what I'm hoping to see when I go to my Real Estalker bookmark each and every day hoping to get a fix. What a disappointment. This place sucks, and I doubt there is a single reader of this blog that has the least bit of interest in it. I've said my peace. Amen.

Anonymous said...

for the record, i was very interested. huge QAF fan.

T.T. said...

Wow. I can't believe the audacity of some people to complain about this blog. It's just rude and inconsiderate and I'm quite sure the Mama wouldn't care one bit if you up there anon 10:58 just stopped reading the blog altogether if you're going to complain like a spoiled child.

As for this house, it is blah, but Gale Harold is HOT.

Jimmy said...

Duh, by definition a duplex has common walls. They can be thin or they can be thick, but there it is.

Anonymous said...

Why are the pictures so small?

Anonymous said...

I LOVE Gale Harold! Couldn't care less about his house either way but I loathed your description of QAF and Brian Kinney. That's my all time favorite show and my personal hero, the character was MUCH more than mere eye candy.

Anonymous said...

I agree with the first Anon above...this place looks like a trailer.

Anonymous said...

I don't know any gay (out) men, but this is not the type of place I would expect a gay to live in. If you're going to be gay, be fabulous.

Brooke said...

Dude, I can't search your site. That sucks. I know I could browse the archive, but I just want to search.

Long time reader. Guess I never noticed before today.

Anonymous said...

Maybe he "calls" Toronto home but he appears to hail from Decatur, Georgie.
Peachy, eh?

Anonymous said...

Anon 1:35: "That's what she said..."

Ed said...

I think it's sort of refreshing to see a "celebrity" home that is not so polished and over-blown. He's got some ugly stuff, but at least it looks like someone actually lives here.

Anon 2:40 / don't know any out gay men? how can that be in this day and age? where do you live that there aren't out gay men. And fyi, gale harold is not gay (or at least does not publicly identify as gay) but I agree, if you're gonna be gay, be fabulous.

Anon 2:00 / what was there to loathe about Mama's description of QAF. In fact, was there even a description of QAF. And in what world do you live in where Brian Kinney would be considered anything but vain and self involved? His character was written to be that way. I'm not saying he wasn't likable or whatever, but you'd have to be deaf dumb and blind not to see his narcissim.

Brooke / I am able to search the site using the search window at the top left corner of the page.

lil' gay boy said...

To quote our beloved Bette:

"What a dump."

...as the aerial shows.

It appears that not only is the second unit an afterthought tack on at a 45 degree angle, but that you're damned if you do, damned if you don't: pea green or poop colored, it's still a hot mess. When I first saw the photos, I thought it was a distress sale, & that the tree had actually fallen on the house...

You'd think a supposedly hetero actor with enough skill to fake it as a gay man on QAF could fake it in his own home, now wouldn't you?

Oh, and this is just to much –––– my verification word is "swish".

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous 2:40: Gale Harold is not gay in real life.

To Mamma: I doubt Mr. Harold still lives in Toronto. That was during the days of filming QAF. That seems like an old trivia fact on IMDB.

InALittleMinute said...

I just love the first ANON comment.. whinge a bit more.. and please & thank you for not leaving your name.. much more reputable that way????

Whatever the place looks like, GH is hot.. damn hot! He can come to my place so we dont have to look at his lack luster interiors...ha!

Ed... you are spot on.. it is a bit refreshing to not see the over-zealous celebrity pad every now and then!

Anonymous said...

"If you're going to be a gay, be fabulous" --- I love it!

Anonymous said...

Ed - I'm sure there are gay men in Alabama - I just don't know any.

Kissyface said...

OOOOOOOO! That's just a few blocks from our house! I always wondered what kind of people live up the odd alley. Now we know.

That the beauteous Gale Harold lives in a hole like this is just evidence that the most gorgeous flowers often root in the richest compost and most aromatic fertilizer!

But where does Charlie Hunnam live? Enquiring chickens want to know!

Hugs and kisses! XXXXX OOOOO

Anonymous said...

Gale Harold is Awesome.

Good Choice Mama.


Is it possible though that he doesn't actually live there and all that horrible dormroom-esque furniture is not his... I sure hope so. I'm a Realtor and I often refer to the nicer unit in a duplex/triplex (if one unit is substantially nicer) as the "owners unit"... it just signifies that one unit is a dump but good enough for renters, and the other is nice enough even for someone who just slapped down 1.3 million on a fricken duplex.

Anonymous said...

wow, Such ignorance... Gale has some nice mid-century modern pieces and Danish modern, certainly doesn't fall under the "nicer Salvation Army" or "dormroom crap" categories. Very cool and hip, expensive stuff if some of you bothered to investigate on the internet before writing your yap. I also think his place looks clean and neat; all in all it's understated, unpretentious, a reflection of his personality and values.

Anonymous said...

"However, according to property records–and Lovely Leslie in Los Feliz–Mister Harold owns a doo-plex property on a curvy cul-de-sac at the eastern edge of Los Feliz that he bought in March of 2005 for $794,500."

Bought during the bubble for $794K, now listed for $1.3 million. Hmmm.

"If you're going to be gay, be fabulous."

Isn't that stereotyping, like saying, if you're black, be a great dancer? "If you're going to be gay..." ??? I've never known anyone who chose their sexual preference. I have gay friends who are low key personalities that don't need to be "fabulous" for anybody. Don't those type of statements reinforce negative stereotypes?

Sorry, just my two cents.

Anonymous said...

Personally, I really enjoy seeing a mix of celebrity homes -from the palatial to the horrid. Makes things interesting.

From my understanding (though I could be way-off, only 3rd party info here), Mr. Harold understands that big checks from episodic television series can be fleeting and bought a modest residence with a small mortgage that a tenant could pay for him, whilst he kept the rest as back-up liquidity should he find himself out of a job for an extended period.

A wise decision (Are you listening Nic Cage?)...

He's banked a few bones since then and may be looking to repeat -but with something a bit nicer...Maybe a $2mm abode with a slightly-bigger though-still-relatively-small mortgage.

By the way, Mr. Harold is open with his sexuality but has no concerns if people prefer him to be gay or bi...We're just a few sleeps away from 2010 folks and I'm sure most readers of this blog would agree it makes absolutely no difference anymore! Kelsey Grammer's not a psychiatrist -but he played one on TV!

PoshLady said...

Thanks for another great peek into the lives of the rich and famous. It gives us all something to dream about :)

lil' gay boy said...

"...wow, such ignorance..."

Oooo, someone got up on the wrong side of the cross this morning...quick, someone pass Mama the wooden spoon!

Anon 7:14 (anyone else remember Quaaludes?): Hon, snarking about someone's taste does not mean ignorance –––– just preference.

Anyone here for a while knows our Mama has an impeccable eye & appreciates good modern design, too; but I don't believe, for example, that characterizing something like that scroll-armed chair as hideous even approaches a venial, let alone mortal, sin.

Just because a piece is pricey or has a provenance doesn't make it sacrosanct, nor appropriate.

BTW, I don't care how fa-boo your wardrobe is –––– I can't be the only lil' gay boy who thinks having your clothes looming over your sleeping form through those frosted glass doors isn't just a little disturbing...

And Snowman, hon –––– you can buttle for me anytime!

Anonymous said...

In the South many men go by the middle names their Mama gave them. So, I'm wondering if perhaps his first name could be Dorothy. Dorothy Gale? If that is the case, maybe he should consider changing it to something more exotic---like Tristen Adonis. My word verification is "Toto."

Anonymous said...

Adonis would be beyond appropriate, but Gale's middle name is Morgan. (Obsessed, much? Moi?)

I like the place - it looks like Mr Harold did what most guys (gay or otherwise) seem to do: go for practical. If it works, it's all good. When looking at the places of most "famous" folks, I always wonder whether they can actually find the bottle-opener in their own place. Their interior decorator might like the place, but can a person actually LIVE there? Looks to me like Mr Harold could hand you said bottle-opener with his eyes closed :-)

Well, I wish him luck in all his endeavors. I'll always be grateful for his Brian Kinney, who opened my eyes to a great many things.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for writing about this mama, and I concur, it is nice to see celebs on all sides of the fence.. whether it's in a 50,000 sq ft home in Beverly Park.. or a hot mess of a duplex in Los Feliz.. or a trailer in Palmdale. It still interests me.

So shuffle along if you are "too cool for school"... mama runs this show, not your ungrateful, spoiled ass.

Anonymous said...

Gale Harold is HOT!!! Just wanted to let all of you know that:-) Perhaps I'll buy his old place!

Anonymous said...

all that matters is that it felt like home to him. proofs he's got his own taste, looks like somebody actually lives there, i certainly like that about it! harry (amsterdam)

Unknown said...

Gale's house is no longer for sale. He's since taken it off the market. He never lowered his asking price, so he probably wasn't getting the offers he was expecting and so he probably just decided not to sell it.

Anonymous said...

Pues sea su casa o no, si el vive alli yo me voy a vivir con el.
Besos Gale desde Spain

Anonymous said...

A place that costs $1.3million is not a hole.