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Famous Former Ellen Degeneres Home Lists for $34M

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You’d have to go a long way before you found a home with a Hollywood pedigree with more power than this fabled Ellen Degeneres home. The Skouras residence in Trousdale Estates was originally built in 1956 by celebrity architect Hal Leavitt and has had a number of notable owners in the past couple of decades.

The fabled Beverly Hills, CA, home was restored and redecorated by noted designer Kelly Wearstler, then was known as the Ellen Degeneres home for a few years, before passing into the hands of Roger Birnbaum, former MGM co-chairman. Birnbaum has now put the 8,055-square-foot home on the market for $33,750,000.

The privacy of this gated home has appealed to celebrities for decades.

The classic five-bedroom residence was built in the ’50s for Diane and Charles Skouras Jr., who was part owner and president of a major movie theater group.

Public records indicate it stayed in the Skouras family until 2002, when it was sold to Wearstler and her husband, property developer and hotelier Brad Korzen, for a mere $4,025,000.

Kelly Wearstler–designed living room

The couple proceeded to redo the house from top to bottom in their signature style, and sold it in 2006 to Hollywood producer Robert Cort.

Cort and his wife, media executive Rosalie Swedlin, then sold the storied home to DeGeneres and her wife, Portia de Rossi, in 2012 for $17,400,000.

The home was featured in the coffee table book “Home,” written by DeGeneres. In the book, she elaborates on her ideas about design and style, and shares intimate photos of a number of the fabled homes she’s owned, including the Skouras residence.

Entryway to the house featured in Ellen DeGeneres' book "Home"

Two years later, according to public records, DeGeneres and de Rossi sold the home to Birnbaum, who owns Spyglass Entertainment and has produced dozens of films.

Under Birnbaum’s ownership, the house has bounced on and off the rental market for around $50,000 per month. It was recently taken off the rental market and put on the block for the aforementioned price of nearly $34 million.

Dining room

The home is attractive to Hollywood types thanks to its privacy—it’s located behind gates on a large lot in the Trousdale Estates neighborhood. The property measures nearly an acre in size and offers grand views of the hills, the city, and the ocean beyond. It features a sunny pool and lounge area with a bar and barbecue, and a number of private swimming and sunning areas.

Pool

The remarkable interiors are oh-so-appealing to deep-pocketed buyers. The home features an open floor plan and is flooded with light. Inside you’ll find a music room, library, game room, and gym among many other flashy features.

Modern library

It also boasts a stainless-steel kitchen and a master suite with a private courtyard and fountain, as well as his-and-her baths.

Stainless-steel kitchen

The stars have come and gone from the gleaming Skourdas residence, but the view remains the same—That’s a prime view of the swanky SoHo House in the distance.

That's a prime view of the swanky SoHo House in the distance.

See more photos and get more info on this famous former Ellen Degeneres home in my feature on Realtor.com.

Once known as the Ellen Degeneres home, it’s also been owned by other Hollywood titans and can now be yours…if you can flash the cash. 

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Lisa Johnson Mandell

Lisa Johnson Mandell is an award winning journalist, author and film/TV critic. She can be heard regularly on Cumulus radio stations throughout the US, and seen on Rotten Tomatoes. She is the author of three bestselling books, and spends as much of her free time as possible with her husband Jim and her jolly therapy Labradoodle Frankie Feldman.

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