Who bought Bob Hope’s ‘Mushroom House’? L.A. investor and billionaire Ron Burkle. $13 million isn’t too much to pay for a 23,000 square foot house in Palm Springs that would look at home on a ‘Forbidden Planet.’ Not when you’re handling a couple of billion.
As a singular acquisition, the Hope house has it in spades. An architectural anomaly built by John Lautner in 1979, the design reflects a comprehensive modernist vision that pays homage to both Sputnik-era fantasy and ‘seventies futurism; it could be considered an early example of blobism, the architectural movement which favors forms of undulation, organic shape, and asymmetry.
The home is constructed mainly from concrete, glass and steel, and features a copper roof. It also features 10 bedrooms and 13 baths, fireplaces, tennis court, putting green (of course; Hope was an avid golfer), and indoor and outdoor pools, including one in the shape of Ol’ Ski-Nose’s profile. Its plentiful windows offer panoramic views of the Coachella Valley, toward Mount San Jacinto, and it boasts a massive pavilion that can accommodate hundreds. The radical architecture is balanced with naturalistic forest murals by Garth Benton and sculpted landscaping, including pond and waterfall.
The house had been initially listed at $50 million in 2013; the asking had come down to around $25 million at the time of the sale. Apparently, the property’s presence in the high-end real-estate market was a little ahead of the fashion curve, caught as it presently is in the awkward middle ground between historically significant and wildly overblown. But Ron Burkle is an expert at identifying such opportunities.
Ron Burkle is a co-founder and managing partner of The Yucaipa Companies, which specializes in reviving underperforming businesses. He is also a philanthropist, having formed the ‘Ronald W. Burkle Foundation,’ which seeks to elevate communities and human rights with a vision of broad-spectrum education.
Bob Hope was a highly influential comedian and comic actor of the last century; his ‘Road’ pictures, in which he shared the spotlight with crooner Bing Crosby, are now considered classics. Hope’s dry delivery influenced many satirists including Lewis Black, Robin Williams, and Stephen Colbert. Along with progressive Lenny Bruce, he established the foundation of modern stand-up humor.
