SELLER: Joely Fisher and Christopher DuddyLOCATION: Garvin Drive, Encino, CA
PRICE: $4,750,000
SIZE: 3,477, 4 bedrooms, 7 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Discover this Mid-Century single story Zen-Craftsman, moments from Mulhollan w/ sweeping views on almost three-quarters of an acre. Off cul-de-sac, up a private rd, to gated motor court with abundant prking complete w/fire pit. Liv rm is detailed by stone flrs & wd beamed ceil. Grmt kit w/stainless steel applncs & pantry. Mst w/walk-in closet, bath w/steam shwr, spa tub & views 2 meditation grdn. 2 gst quarters, one house the hm theater complete w/THX sound. Saline pool, authentic cabana frm India, & lrg lush yard.
YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Wowee! Seldom do we see a house so completely and thoroughly theme decorated. This place has so many Tibetan antiques, Indian artifacts, and pillows made out of fabric that resembles prayer flags tha the Dalai Lama could move right in to this house and not for a minute know he was in the San Fernando Valley. But this house does not belong to the Dalai Lama. No. It's owned by character ack-tress Joely Fisher and her cinematographer husband Chris Duddy. In case y'all don't know, Joely Fisher is the daughter of deadbeat dad Eddie Fisher (now happily reconciled) and the one time sex siren Connie Stevens. Parents like that make Miz Fisher Hollywood royalty.
Let's discuss the mama for a moment. Did y'all know that largely due to her Forever Spring line of cosmetics, that Miz Connie Stevens is widely considered to be one of the wealthiest women in Hollywood? According to the company website, earnings from sales on the the Home Shopping Network alone have grossed over 1 billion dollars. Yes, that's correct, we said billion. Bill-ee-ohn. So not only did Miz Connie know how to sing and preen her way to the top of the Hollywood ladder, she developed into a very smart and savvy bizness lady to boot.
Little Miss Joely Fisher grew up as a typical, even cliche, child of Hollywood celebrities...without much supervision and way too fast. She dabbled in drugs, wasn't always sure who her mama was bringing home to the big mansion on Delfern Drive, and wound up with an eating disorder. So typical. For the record, we aren't trying to paint Miz Connie in any sort of negative light. The single lady had to bring home the bacon to support her two children and she is to be commended for doing so all the while paying the mortgage on her huge house in Beverly Hills.
What is perhaps not so typical about little Miss Joely however, is that the born and bred Beverly Hills babe pulled herself up by her bootstraps and fought her way to a respectable television career. Most recently she's been starring opposite the very tall Brad Garrett in a sit-com called Til Death... But you may also remember her from her stint on Ellen (the sit-com, not the talk show) back in the mid-1990s. In 2006, while preggers and in possession of an insanely huge pair of boobs, she did a flawless turn on Desperate Housewives as Felicity Huffman's uptight and bitchy boss. Remember that kids? Good stuff.
Married to grey haired cinematographer Christopher Duddy in 1996, the couple have two small children, one of whom was born in this very house in early 2006. Given the heavy duty spiritual decor of this place, we assume this was some sort of hippy dippy home birth situation where the baby was born in the bath tub while monks chanted in the other room and a mid-wife in a head scarf whispered words of encouragement. Your Mama does not know if that's how it actually came down, but it's how we imagine it, you know?
Anyhoo, this house was purchased only in November of 2005 for $3,350,000 according to property records. Inneresting thing about the property records though. They don't show Mister Duddy's name. Rather, only those of Miz Joely and her super rich mama Miz Connie Stevens. Now, surely Miz Fisher and Mister Duddy can afford to purchase a home with their own hard earned income. But perhaps when your mama is as rich as Miz Stevens you don't have to.
This is not the first time Miz Joely has occupied a house that her mama owns. Prior to moving to Encino, Miz Joely lived in Beverly Hills on Tupelo Lane in a house that property records reveal was also owned by Miz Connie. Those same records show was sold about the same time this house in Encino was purchased. Again, we're sure Miz Joely and Mister Duddy have plenty of money of her own for a nice house, but more than likely, and we speculate here, all the properties are owned in some sort of family trust which protects ownership and benefits the taxes.
Located up a long private drive, this house provides amazing seclusion and privacy for a couple of celebs and their children. However, given that the Fisher-Duddy brood is growing, perhaps this house just isn't large enough to accommodate all the children, nannies, assistants, and various employees required to run a busy celebrity household. Hard to believe given the guest house and 7 bathrooms, but none the less they are selling.
Although it is quite convenient for industry types, Your Mama is not big on the Encino location. We do however, love the tucked away property which is perfect for celebrity types and seclusion seekers. Not only is the house located on an out of the way cul de sac, it's accessed up a long drive with a gated motor court. It is out of the way enough that no one is going to be accidentally ringing the bell on the security gates or driving up in the motor court to tun around. Seriously, another celebrity NEEDS to buy this house.
We would get rid of a lot of the Tibetan decor, but overall, we like this house. Which is sorta surprising because there are lots of elements in the photos that worry us. The stone floors are exquisite, and we can only hope they have radiant heating to warm the tootsies on cool mornings. The newly redone kitchen, while not blazing any paths of new-fangled design, works a pretty standard but totally acceptable contemporary vibe with the simple, but we are sure, very expensive cabinets and stainless steel appliances. We love that back wall, but we do wish those double ovens could have been put elsewhere so that we could appreciate the wood wall for being a wood wall.
The dining room is a completely upsetting mish-mash of styles. We love the Noguchi paper light fixture and we can almost get behind the kooky chairs. But the big brown cabinet at the back and the haphazard wall hangings aren't working. Your Mama would replace the cabinet with something less brown, re-hang the family photos, get rid of the fish bowl/vase thing on the table, and put a big red rug on the floor to stimulate the appetite and set the furniture off from the floor. And what's with the birdcage/wine storage device Joely? Uhm, no.
We do worry that getting in and out of that complicated bed structure while half asleep and needing to pee could be a problem. But it is a rather huge bed, and Your Mama adores a big bed. The mirror in the master bathroom is appalling. We don't meant to be cruel, because we LOVE little miss Joely, but that mirror is just so upsetting. Hunny, why do you want to get ready each morning in a room that resembles a dressing room of a Broadway theater? Your Mama can't even begin to calculate the excessive wattage of all those bulbs and we're breaking a sweat just thinking about how much make-up melting heat that mirror must throw off.
The screening room appears to be a respite from all the Indo-Asian decor, which we appreciate. And we're loving the back yard with the pool sunk right into the grass and, surprisingly, we even dig the Indian cabana structure which looks like an excellent place to lay around and read scripts.
Given the rather high asking price, it appears the couple is looking to cash in big time on this property. If all goes well, they'll net more than a million bucks in less than two years of ownership. We're not sure if this is impressive or greedy. Or both. Your Mama wishes them luck in selling and a happy new home.
Sources: Internet Movie Data Base, Glitterati Gossip, Forever Spring
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