A historic Spanish Colonial Revival home with a Hollywood lineage, situated on nearly an acre of old growth gardens next to Griffith Park in Los Angeles, is for sale for the first time in over ten years.
Public records state that actors Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman, among many other prominent Angelenos, previously called the historic Los Feliz property—built in 1924—home. It went up for $19.8 million last month through Chris Cortazzo of Compass and Elliott Law of Coldwell Banker Realty, making it the second most expensive listing in Los Feliz, a verdant neighborhood with parkland, historically conserved homes, tree-lined avenues, and the Griffith Park Observatory close by.
The mansion was commissioned in the 1920s by Alanson Inslee Root, the founder of the Beacon Press of Omaha publishing company. The land, which according to the original land deed belonged to King Charles the Third of Spain, was purchased by Root for $170,000. According to Law, Root was one of the first landowners in Los Feliz and employed renowned architect Carlton Winslow Sr. to create the six-bedroom home in the fashionable Spanish Colonial Revival style.
“The way the home has been preserved is like stepping back in time,” Law said. “It’s one of the most special properties in California. When you close the gates, you’re in another world. It’s an escapist property.”
Having assisted in the co-design of several buildings for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition in San Diego, Winslow went on to further advance the vernacular architectural movement by creating the Los Angeles Public Library, the Bel-Air Country Club, the Santa Barbara Public Library, the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum, and numerous churches and private homes.
In addition, Root engaged renowned landscape architect Paul J. Howard to create the property’s numerous private garden areas, Spanish-style courtyards, and assortment of specimen trees. Genealogical records show that upon Root’s death in 1944, the estate was sold.
Several well-known Californians lived on the multi-parcel property during the succeeding decades. The Los Feliz Improvement Association claims that in the 1970s, one of the first female judges of the state, Los Angeles Supreme Court Justice Nancy Baker Watson, resided in the house. Records obtained through PropertyShark and the L.A. assessor’s office show that DeVito owned the house from the middle of the 1980s until he sold it in 1998.
Today’s owners, Naveen Jeereddi, a hedge fund manager, and Amy Hathaway, a television and movie actress known for “My Two Dads” and “Last Exit to Earth ” bought the home in 2012 for approximately $9.6 million, according to records. They couldn’t be reached for comment.
The meticulously preserved three-story home still retains many of Winslow’s original design details, including classic stucco walls, clay tile work, archways, leaded glass windows and wrought-iron detailing.
At the home’s entrance, an original Spanish fountain inlaid with 100-year-old tile greets residents. Its original entrance foyer features Spanish clay tile floors and a vaulted ceiling with Spanish Baroque painted fresco detailing. A large step-down living room has a vaulted ceiling with exposed wooden beams, a Spanish tiled fireplace, wood plank floors as well as arched windows and French doors leading to a balcony. The adjacent first-floor library includes the original wood built-in shelving and another tiled fireplace. Also on the first floor, the home’s formal dining room has a turreted tower with vaulted ceilings and the original leaded glass windows.
Two elaborate spiral staircases with beautiful iron railings were constructed by Winslow for the house. A spiral staircase connects the home’s contemporary kitchen and family area to the Spanish-tile-trimmed tasting room and wine cellar located below. The five bedrooms on the second story are accessed by another spiral staircase, which also has a wrought iron chandelier. The main suite has a completely renovated bathroom with a Malibu vintage tile-finished corner fireplace.
French doors create an indoor-outdoor connection between the interior areas and the surrounding covered arcade porches, big tiled courtyard with a pool, and intimate gardens with frescoes and lush planting throughout the main house. Pathways lead to several distinct outdoor spaces with garden statues, a “hidden” tearoom, an outdoor fireplace, and a footbridge that crosses the nearby creek on the property.
The sale also includes a detached guest house on its own parcel with three bedrooms, an office and a full kitchen and dining area. Separate staff quarters include a full bedroom and kitchenette.
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