More Celebrity Homes To See In Palm Springs, THE WESTCOTT

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March 7, 2017

More Celebrity Homes To See In Palm Springs

More Celebrity Homes To See In Palm Springs, THE WESTCOTT

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 celebrity 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. Also check out our previous blog with additional celebrity homes to discover.

Raoul Walsh  1062 E Buena Vista Drive

Raoul Walsh was a legendary director in Hollywood with a nearly 52 year career beginning in 1915.  He was also an actor and was known for many classics of the silent movie and sound movie eras including Birth of a NationThief of Baghdad, High Sierra and The Naked and The Dead. His home on Buena Vista was built in 1937 on a 10,000 square foot lot with 3 bedrooms and 5 baths in 3,100 square feet of living space. Later on in 1994, Richard Harrison and his young wife Francesca purchased the home. After Richard lost an election for Palm Springs Mayor, he sold the home in 2003.

Bob $ Delores Hope 1014 E Buena Vista Drive & 1188 E El Alameda

Bob Hope and his wife Delores has a long rich history in Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley. Bob purchased the Buena Vista Drive home in 1941. It was built in 1936 on a 10,000 square foot lot and had 3 bedrooms & 3 bathrooms with 2,100 square feet of living space. The Hope family occupied the home until 1946 when their 4th child was born and they needed a larger home. The second home at El Alameda was built in 1935 on a 16,000 square foot lot and had 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms with nearly 3,000 square feet of living space and a pool.

Henry Travers 720 E Cottonwood Road

Henry Travers is famously known as the guardian angel Clarence in Frank Capra’s classic It’s A Wonderful Life.  He lived in the Seabrooke Apartments on Cottonwood Road.

Bing Crosby 1011 E El Alameda

Bing Crosby is the beloved and well known singer and actor who began his show business career with live radio performances and had his first starring role in The Big Broadcast in 1932. His home on El Alameda was built in 1934 on a 13,000 square foot lot with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms in over 3,200 square feet of living space. Bing lived here with his first wife, Dixie Lee, and their 4 sons well for over 30 years into the 1960’s. These were his prime performance years with Bob Hope at his side on the screen in comedies and off the screen on the golf course.

Kirk Douglas 1969 E Marshall Way & 515 W Via Lola

Kirk Douglas, the original Doc Holliday in Gunfight at the O.K. Corral and the original Spartacus, purchased his celebrity home on Marshall Way known as “Tachevah Vista” when it was new in 1955. The 2,100 square foot home with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms sits on a 11,300 square foot lot. Kirk lived on Marshall Way for two years before moving to Via Lola in the Las Palmas neighborhood with his second wife, Anne Buydens. His second home in Palm Springs was larger with 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms with 3,800 square feet of living space on a nearly 33,000 square foot lot.

Photo Credit: Activerain.com