Vincente Minnelli’s Former Abandoned Mansion

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (19 of 22)

Back in February 2012, a fellow stalker named Kayleigh emailed me to ask if I knew anything about the “creepy” mansion located on the southeast corner of West Sunset Boulevard and North Crescent Drive in Beverly Hills.  Her email stated, “There’s very little information on it online other than the fact that Liza Minnelli battled her former step-mother over it.  It stands out because all the houses in that area are gorgeous, but this home is unkempt, looks abandoned and is just plain scary.”  I did not have any intel on the property – in fact, I had never even heard about it before – but hello!  Unkempt, abandoned, scary, AND a celebrity tie-in?  Count me in!  Winking smile  I contacted fellow stalker E.J., of the Movieland Directory website, who I figured would have the lowdown on the manse’s history and I was right – he had a boatload of information to share.  Somehow though, I failed to stalk the place in time for last year’s Haunted Hollywood postings.  So, believe you me, it was at the very top of this year’s list and I finally dragged the Grim Cheaper out there in early June.

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I do not know what it is about abandoned properties that makes this stalker’s heart go pitter-patter, but I could NOT have been more excited as we pulled up to the mansion.

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (6 of 22)

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (8 of 22)

Liza’s father, famed musical director Vincente Minnelli, moved into the six-bedroom, six-bath, 5,877-square-foot Hollywood Regency-style estate – which was originally built in 1925 and was later re-designed by architect John Elgin Woolf – at some point following his 1951 divorce from Liza’s mother, actress Judy Garland.  Liza split her time evenly between both parents, spending six month of each year at Vincente’s house, which boasted a motor court, a pool and a 0.98-acre plot of land.   According to Richard Alleman’s book Hollywood: The Movie Lover’s Guide, the director commissioned artist Tony Duquette – whose whimsical Dawnridge residence I blogged about in August – to build a large playhouse for Liza in the backyard.  Alleman also states that the young girl’s closet was filled with tyke-sized reproductions of costumes from The King and I, Gone with the Wind and An American in Paris.  In her 1984 autobiography Knock Wood, actress Candice Bergen said, “I remember always asking to go to Liza’s to play dress-up because in her closet hung little girls’ dreams.”  The state of the house today, though, is the stuff nightmares are made of!

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (17 of 22)

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (15 of 22)

The estate’s first brush with darkness came in 1986.  On July 25th of that year, Vincente, who was suffering from emphysema, took his usual after-dinner nap.  Sensing something was wrong due to his pallor, Minnelli’s wife, Lee, whom the director had married in 1980, called 911.  Paramedics rushed to the scene and Vincente was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival.  He was 83.  And while the mansion was willed to Liza, it was stipulated that Lee would be permitted to reside there – or at a comparable place – at Liza’s expense for the rest of her life.

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (4 of 22)

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (5 of 22)

In 2000, Liza decided to put the property on the market – unbeknownst to Lee.  It sold for $2.75 million two years later and Liza subsequently purchased a $450,000 condo for her step-mother to live in.  Lee wasn’t going anywhere, though.  A battle ensued in which Liza ended up firing the mansion staff and shutting off the estate’s electricity, at which point Lee sued her.  The lawsuit, referring to Liza’s recent wedding to David Gest, stated, “While defendant is honeymooning all over the world, having fed 850 of her closest friends a 12-foot cake, plaintiff is alone in a cold, dark house, at age 94.”  You can see some photos taken of Lee at the dwelling, which was starting to dilapidate, during that time period here.  Liza eventually had the power restored and the sale finally went through in 2006 –after a four-year escrow.  A mediator ruled that Lee would be allowed to stay on the premises until her death, with Liza paying rent to the new owners, who would not be permitted to move in until Lee passed away.

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (2 of 22)

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (18 of 22)

When Lee did pass away three years later, on November 11th, 2009 at the age of 100, the new owners apparently set about making arrangements to tear the mansion down and build a Mediterranean-style estate in its place.  The project was scrapped, though, in 2010 due to difficulties with the Beverly Hills Planning Division.  Supposedly a restoration of the property was then scheduled to begin, but, as you can see below, that never occurred, either.

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (12 of 22)

Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (16 of 22)

And while it seems that some sort of work was done on the property in recent years, as evidenced by the dumpsters and utility truck visible on Bing aerial views, for whatever reason it was stopped and the residence has been left untouched ever since.  (How eerily awesome is that pool, by the way?  LOVE IT!)

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Liza Minnelli's abandoned house (11 of 22)

Big THANK YOU to fellow stalker Kayleigh for telling me about this location and to fellow stalker E.J., of The Movieland Directory website, for informing me of its history!  Smile

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: Vincente Minnelli’s former abandoned mansion is located at 812 North Crescent Drive in Beverly Hills.

18 Replies to “Vincente Minnelli’s Former Abandoned Mansion”

    1. I don’t have any updated photos, but the last time I drove by, which (if memory serves) was just earlier this year, the mansion was still there.

  1. I want to visit California so bad I live in Florida (have never left) in and am stuck here I’m 27 someone help sponsor make a dream come true 🙂

  2. cool story and bravo to get it on Curbed. I remember your first stalking experience. You hanging on a ladder in my back yard overlooking Portia De Ross’is party. Large cedars went up the next day.

  3. This house is in such bad shape. I was just there last month. I am so disappointed. I wish I could do something.

  4. I drive past this house twice a week and wonder about it every time, I love old abandoned looking places and iv always wanted to go in there but just last week I noticed some movement on the property, a couple of people seemed to be looking over the property, maybe they have some new plans for it. :/

  5. Went late last night – pretty creepy, particularly because we kept flashlight use to a minimum to not alert the neighbors – there was actually more stuff inside then shown in the pics, and evidence of squatters – main doors were roped shut from the inside so we had to cut our way in – would like to return during the day to really get a good look

  6. In the 1980’s I had just ended a production with Peter O’toole at the OLD VIC in London and moved to LA. Had an invitation by Vincent Minelli to visit him at his home. He got the date wrong and I was called a day early. The phone rang when I was in my pool and it was Lee asking where I was and what time I would be arriving saying Minelli was getting agitated. I explained the error. She apologised profusely and asked if I could come over right then. I said I couldn’t and so I kept my prearranged date. The house was stunning! I recall there was a camera crew there filming Lee for some cookery show and Minelli met me on the stairs and we went up to his den. He served me tea from a silver tea service saying , ” Shall I be mother ? ” – ( not the Norman Bates kind, it’s just an English expression) He was so pleasant and gracious,also I would imagine very lonely as he was not in the best of health. Showed me a scarab ring he was wearing from Liz Taylor and his paintings. Had a brilliant few hours.
    I am now stunned as I just accidentally chanced on this site and saw the house in its current condition.
    Although I never met Liberace, but did live a few blocks away from him on Harmon in Las Vegas, his house is also dilapidated. ( http://parade.condenast.com/150628/viannguyen/see-inside-liberaces-luxurious-las-vegas-mansion/#liberace-house-sale-slideshow-05 ) So,so sad.

  7. I interviewed Lee at this house in 1995 or so when I wrote my dissertation. The house was a splendid reminder of Vincente’s work: his office and library, his red-velvet bedroom décor, his final painting (in progress) that was left on an easel overlooking the rose garden that Elizabeth Taylor had given him. It is very sad to see his home left to ruin like this.

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