Exploring Celebrity Homes in Palm Springs

Palm Springs, CA has a rich and vibrant history with Hollywood celebrities. The desert playground afforded relaxation and an escape from the bustle of show-biz while still within the contractual “Two-Hour Rule” of Hollywood studios. Hollywood celebrities were still available for last minute studio filming and business as Palm Springs was within a 2-hour drive.

Since the early 1920’s, celebrities would stay at resorts and hotels and then started building homes which afforded more privacy than the resorts. The homes would still be in close proximity to the resorts so the Hollywood movie-stars could take advantage of their dining and entertainment options. The first all-inclusive resort in Palm Springs was the El Mirador Hotel, offering lodging, dining, entertainment, swimming, tennis and golf. POSH Palm Springs Inn is located in the El Mirador neighborhood (named after the former resort which is now Desert Regional Medical Center). Below are some of the celebrity homes which are literally steps from POSH Palm Springs Inn. Check them out while on your morning walk before breakfast is served.

Herbert Anderson – 291 E Mel Ave

Herbert Anderson is best known for playing the father in Dennis the Menace in the 1960’s. He lived in the Rancho El Mirador condominiums in 1994.

Eddie Cantor – 720 E Paseo El Mirador

A long term resident, Eddie Cantor lived here from 1944-1964 with his wife Ida. Built in 1941, this 3 bedroom/3 bathroom 1600 square foot home sits on a nearly 16000 square foot lot. Eddie Cantor made his first appearance in Vaudeville in 1907 and was known as a singer, songwriter, comedian, author and actor.

Lawrence Welk – 730 E Paseo El Mirador

Directly next door to Eddie Cantor, Lawrence Welk, the big-band TV personality who created ballroom Champagne music, lived in this 1952 home until 1978. The 3-bedroom/3 bathroom home is nearly 2800 square feet large on a 16.000 square foot lot with a swimming pool.

Lucile Ball & Desi Arnaz – 1194 N Via Miraleste

Known as “The Lucy House” which can be rented for weddings, receptions and special occasions, it is claimed that Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz of I Love Lucy fame rented this home to be a part of the El Mirador crowd. The 2800 square foot home boast 6 beautiful bedrooms and 6 bathrooms on a 1600 square foot lot containing a swimming pool. POSH Palm Springs inn has often hosted guests who were attending a function at “The Lucy House” since we are a short 1 block walk away.

Truman Capote – 853 E Paseo El Mirador

Truman Capote, a writer and actor best known for Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) and In Cold Blood (1967), first rented then purchased this 5-bedroom/4 bathroom home in 1968. With a spacious 3800 square feet of living space, the home is placed on a 14800 square foot lot with a swimming pool. Capote had quite a reputation among Palm Springs celebrities, often parading hunky male models to the parties they hosted.

Jim & Tammy Faye Bakker – 688 E Vereda Sur

Sometimes celebrities just need a place to hide, and the former home of shoemaker king Irving Florsheim (1957) was where Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker saw their religious empire collapse as the media throngs waited to pounce outside in 1987. The home was built in 1950 and had 5 bedrooms with 6 bathrooms with nearly 4100 square feet of living space on a very spacious lot just shy of 39000 square feet and a swimming pool.