As Private as It Gets, in the Hills

Actress Helen Hunt has listed her newly built, Hollywood Hills home on 10 acres at $8.9 million.

About three acres of the site had been swashbuckling actor Errol Flynn’s estate until he died in 1959. The Flynn estate was later owned by singer-actor Rick Nelson.

Before Hunt bought the site in 1997, Flynn’s house, the scene of many Hollywood parties, had been razed. Hunt, who married actor Hank Azaria in 1999, started to build a family home.

However, after she filed for divorce in December 2000, the home being built on the site seemed too large for her, particularly since Hunt spends a lot of time in New York. She put the home on the market after it was completed earlier this month.

The Mediterranean-style home has five bedrooms in 12,000 square feet. The estate also has two office suites, a theater with a projection room, reception-lobby and wet bar, a large gym and a guest house.

There is a 1,000-square-foot porch with sweeping view of the San Fernando Valley. The porch was Hunt’s idea, said her mother, co-listing agent Jane Hunt. Rick Pollack of Santa Monica designed and built the home, keeping the actress’ wishes in mind.

Inside and out, the home reflects her desire for privacy. The bathtub in the master suite has a valley view that can be covered in seconds by a motorized shade, although “the house was built so there is no need for window coverings,” said Mary DeLoach, the co-listing agent.

The Oscar-winning actress (“As Good as It Gets,” 1997) also expanded the site with her purchase of seven adjoining acres.

Among the few remnants from Flynn’s days on the property are a tennis court, an area for viewing the game and some meandering pathways.

Flynn’s pool has been filled in but there is room for a pool on three sides of the house. Next to the guest house, there is an orchard filled with lemon, apple and kumquat trees. The grounds also include a meadow with oaks, sycamores and weeping willows.

Hunt, who has a number of film and TV projects in development, probably will not elect to build and sell another home any time soon. Asked if Hunt would do it again, her mother said, “Probably not for a while. It’s quite an undertaking.”

The actress, 38, was a presenter at last Sunday’s 74th Academy Awards. The multiple Emmy Award-winning co-star of the ‘90s sitcom “Mad About You” had a leading role in Woody Allen’s “The Curse of the Jade Scorpion” (2001), and she co-starred opposite Tom Hanks in “Cast Away,” had a leading role with Mel Gibson in “What Women Want” and starred with Kevin Spacey in “Pay It Forward,” all in 2000.

DeLoach and Jane Hunt share the listing at Coldwell Banker Previews, Studio City.

Former Clippers forward Loy Vaught, who retired from the Washington Wizards in November after a 12-year NBA career, has purchased a Brentwood home for about its $2.8-million asking price.

Vaught bought a Mediterranean-style home in a gated community of about 20 homes.

His new home has five bedrooms in 7,200 square feet. The house also has four fireplaces, an infinity pool, a spa and a three-car garage with guest quarters. The community has shared tennis and basketball courts.

Vaught, 35, played with the Clippers for eight seasons before signing with the Detroit Pistons in 1998. He was traded to the Dallas Mavericks before he joined the Wizards, where he was sidelined with back problems. He had two years remaining on his contract, which the Wizards bought out for about $11 million.

Now he is active in the acquisition and development of shopping centers, offices and multi-residential properties in Southern California. His real estate portfolio is said to be worth more than $40 million.

Armen and Artak Dovlatian of Specialized Realty represented Vaught in buying his new home.

Randy Spendlove, president of motion picture music for Miramax Films, has purchased a home for about $1.5 million and sold his former home for $900,000.

Spendlove, who supervised soundtracks for “The Shipping News” (2001) and “Scary Movie 2” (2001) as well as for “Scream 3” (2000) and “Reindeer Games” (2000), bought a 6,000-square-foot house in the Hollywood Hills with seven bedrooms and unobstructed city views.

He sold his Hollywood Hills home with three bedrooms in about 2,500 square feet to Century City attorney Malcolm McNeil and his wife, Shahrezad. Spendlove, 37, had remodeled the home, built in 1992.

Spendlove, who also was the executive producer of Sting’s Oscar-nominated song performed at the Academy Awards, plans to completely rehab his new home, built in the early ‘90s.

Jordan Cohen of Re/Max Olson, Westlake Village, represented Spendlove in his purchase and sale; Doris Fannin and Daphne Dumas of Prudential-John Aaroe, Hancock Park, represented the McNeils.

Actress Shirley Mitchell, widow of composer Jay Livingston, has purchased a furnished condominium in Westwood for just under the asking price of $2.6 million.

The three-bedroom, 3,300-square-foot condo is in a 21-story tower with views of Century City, the L.A. Country Club and Beverly Hills. The unit has two balconies, a steam shower and a spa tub. The building has a pool and a gym.

Mitchell, who does voice-overs, appeared in such TV series as “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Petticoat Junction” and “I Love Lucy,” in which she played Marion Strong. She played Mrs. Dewitt in the movie “The War of the Roses” (1989).

Livingston, who co-wrote such popular Oscar-winning songs as “Buttons and Bows” and “Mona Lisa,” died in October at 86.

The couple had been married since 1992.

Elaine Dannenberg-Weinstock of Prudential-John Aaroe, Beverly Hills, represented Mitchell in buying; Steve and Karen Heiferman of Coldwell Banker, Beverly Hills, had the listing.

Actor-comedian Robert Cait, who has done voice work in such animated movies as “Captain Sturdy” (2001) and “In Search of Peace” (2000), and his wife, Michelle, have sold their Hollywood Hills home to L.A.-based fashion trendsetter Lisa Kline and her husband, Robert Bryson, a financial planner. The asking price was about $800,000.

The home, which has three bedrooms and a hot tub, sold with multiple offers.The Caits bought a five-bedroom home in Encino.

Kline owns two Robertson Boulevard boutiques: Lisa Kline and Lisa Kline Men. Her celebrity clients have included Britney Spears, Reese Witherspoon, Cameron Diaz and Kate Hudson.

Debby Cannon of Prudential-John Aaroe, Beverly Hills, had the listing; Nancy Sanborn and Lucy Matsumoto of the same office represented the buyers.

The West L.A. home of the late Maude Chasen, who helped to run the popular Beverly Hills restaurant Chasen’s for half a century, has been sold for close to its $1.65-million asking price. There were multiple offers on the three-bedroom, 2,700-square-foot condo, which sold to local residents seeking to downsize.

Chasen died in December at 97. Her husband, who started the entertainment-industry gathering spot, died in 1973.

Sally Brant of Coldwell Banker, Brentwood East, had the listing; Frank Jakwerth of Coldwell Banker, Beverly Hills North, represented the buyers.

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