From One Producer to Another

SELLER: Laurie McCarthy
BUYER: Blake and Melissa Masters
LOCATION: Hollyridge Drive, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: 1,595,000 (list)
SIZE: 2,020 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Authentic Spanish w/ original integrity & numerous modern upgrades on a double lot. Character details galore. Dramatic 20story LR w/ beamed ceilings, wood floors, FP, Minstrel's gallery & romantic Juliet balcony. Designer kitchen/baths. FDR. Large mater w/ built-ins, sitting area & FP. Large bonus room w/ arched stained glass windows & French doors. Huge romantic entertainer's patio, w/ built-in spat & wisteria trellis framing sweeping views of canyon & Downtown city lights view. Truly charming!

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: In Ruth Ryan's Hot Properties column today she reported the sale of a Beachwood Canyon property that was sold by boob tube producer Laurie McCarthy to another boob tube producer by the name of Blake Masters and his talent agent wife Melissa. Miz McCarthy, who has produced episodes of CSI Miami, Felicity, and Beverly Hills 90210, purchased this property in July of 2003 for $1,050,000.

Since we have lambasted and skewered the last few properties we've discussed, Your Mama wanted to bring the children a property we have positive feelings about so that y'all don't think we are just a bunch of haters. However, before we begin with the good stuff we do want to go on record as saying we don't have much appreciation for a good amount of Miz McCarthy's granny decor. This would include the chintz furniture and country quilt laying across the bed in the master bedroom.

However, Your Mama loves kooky and arty Beachwood Canyon, and this house way up in the hills is a classic Los Angeles Spanish style house that sits on two lots. The first room we would like to bring your attention to is the living room. Gor-gee-us children. The dark brown floors ground the room with it's sky-high wood beamed ceilings. The grand yet cozy room is anchored by a large wood burning fireplace at one end and a wall of windows with canyon views on the opposite wall. Miz McCarthy chose a rug that is too small for the room, but we are really grooving on that funky turquoise sofa. We only wish we could get a better look at it.

In the kitchen, the white farmhouse style cabinets were an excellent choice for keeping things simple and bright. Whoever decided to throw that red rug on the floor is to be commended for their good taste. Not only does it inject a strong sense of color in an otherwise colorless room, it turns a utilitarian kitchen into a warm and resolved room. Your Mama is not sure about those tiles behind the stove, but we'll let that go as a simple enough change.

Miz McCarthy's office, with the high ceilings and restrained stained glass windows looks like a lovely place to spend the afternoon working. Again, the rug is too small for the room, but the bookshelves are a great addition for stacking scripts and strangely, we are even good with the robin's egg blue sofa. Perhaps it's that the color ties itself visually to the stained glass.

As we mentioned, Your Mama is not fond of the county quilt on the bed, but a bedroom this size with a sitting room and fireplace provides sweet retreat from stay-to-long guests. We are thrilled to see the original 1930 spirit of the bathroom has been preserved rather than removed and replaced with something sleek and modern. Don't get Your Mama wrong, we love sleek and modern, but we're partial to 1930s bathroom tile work.

We do wish the property included a nice heated swimming pool, but the in-ground jacuzzi with a nice view will have to suffice. The large brick patio with its lovely views of Downtown Los Angeles would be an excellent place for our bitches Linda and Beverly to soak up the sun and Your Mama always appreciates a large, multi-armed cactus.

Your Mama understands why the Masters' were drawn to this house and, as was reported by Miz Ryan, they paid very near the asking price. We would have as well.

Source: LA Times, Internet Movie Data Base