Our hopes of a reality TV show involving Hugh Hefner and Larry Flynt rattling acrimoniously around the crumbling Playboy Mansion have been dashed. Turns out Hef’s next-door neighbor is just gonna buy the place. Boring!
That’s according to the Wall Street Journal:
The buyer, Daren Metropoulos, a principal at private-equity firm Metropoulos & Co., lives in the house next door, which he purchased from Playboy founder Hugh Hefner in 2009 for $18 million. He is passionate about the neighborhood’s architecture, a representative said.
“The heritage of this property transcends its celebrity and to have the opportunity to serve as its steward would be a true privilege,” Mr. Metropoulos said.
Nobody would say how much Metropoulos coughed up for the property, which was listed at $200 million. Presumably he got them to knock off at least the cost of several tons of bleach to clean the place out once he takes possession. Eventually, the new owner “intends to connect the two estates into a combined 7.3-acre compound,” the WSJ explained. The Journal also notes that it’s “one of the few private residences in Los Angeles with a zoo license.” Promising.
As per the deal, Hugh Hefner gets to remain in the mansion until the day he dies. Metropoulos must really want that house, probably for the articles.
Photo via AP Images.
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