Ready for a blast from the past? The Santa Monica home of Kathryn Grayson, leading lady of Hollywood's Golden Era, has hit the market with a listing price of $8,995,000. The large Tudor home, built in 1926, is situated on two lots at 2009 La Mesa Drive overlooking the Riviera Country Club and served as the home of Grayson during her heyday up until her death in February. With it's rolling green lawns, grand architecture, and sweeping golf course views, it is quite the property.
Having starred in such films as The Toast of New Orleans, Thousands Cheer, and Anchors Aweigh, Grayson regularly entertained her co-stars, endowing the house with a history rich in Hollywood lore and glamor. On a given night there, you might have found Grayson performing a duet with Mario Lanza while Judy Garland and Frank Sinatra cozied up by the fireplace. No big deal... Even the famously reclusive Howard Hughes was a frequent guest at the Grayson estate. Apparently it was not terribly unusual for Grayson to find the eccentric asleep in one of the home's seven bedrooms after climbing over the front gates and letting himself in in the middle of the night.
Even if you're unaware of the its brilliant past, you can tell the home's owner must have been living there for at least several decades just by taking a peek inside. Maybe Grayson was clinging to those golden years of the bygone era, as it seems that the house features the same decor as it did then. Literally. We're pretty sure the couches in the photo from 1930 are the same ones in the house today (see photos below!).
Living room, 1930
Living room, 2010
There's even a salon in the home with one of those old, antique blow-dryers that were basically like pieces of furniture. So, yeah, it's need of some serious updating. But we must acknowledge how interesting it is to see the home as it was when the likes of Ol' Blue Eyes used to hang out there, as if frozen in time. I mean, Frank Sinatra actually sat on those 80+ year-old couches!
[Listing agents are Jeff Hyland and David Kramer of Hilton & Hyland; Photos courtesy of Unlimited Style Photography]
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