“Unforgiven” ranch listed for $19.2M
The 480-acre ranch that is home to the fictional town of the 1992 Clint Eastwood western “Unforgiven” has been listed for $19.2 million. The property, called The Ranch at Fisher Creek in Alberta, Canada, also includes a main lodge, guest cabins, an indoor equestrian arena and a lake with a boathouse, Forbes reports. Chris Burns and Greg Carros of Engel & Völkers are the listing agents. The big attraction is the western town known as Big Whiskey — composed of a saloon, blacksmith shop, sheriff’s office with two jail cells, and a bank, among other things — that served as a backdrop for the critically acclaimed film that won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Every building on the set, including a church and mercantile that were added by the owners, is fully functional. The 12,400-square-foot main lodge has five bedrooms, 11 bathrooms, seven fireplaces and a large dining room. Connected to the main lodge are six guest cabins, divided into 17 suites, which can be used for guests or can be rented out. The property, located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and about an hour’s drive from Calgary, also includes a helipad and an 11-acre lake with a waterfall and private boathouse. “Unforgiven,” a deconstruction of Western tropes that Eastwood helped create, was a massive box office hit, earning nearly $160 million on a budget of less than $15 million. Eastwood, who starred in the film along with Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman, received the Academy Award for best director. The ranch isn’t the only property from a classic film to hit the market recently. The famous “Goonies” house in Astoria, Ore., hit the market for $1.65 million, while the Cleveland, Ohio, home from “A Christmas Story,” also was recently listed without an asking price. — Ted Glanzer
New Yorkers increasingly living above where they work
Say one thing: the commute is easier. A new generation of New Yorkers is embracing the once-common practice of living above the business they also own, the New York Times reported. “For centuries, in rural and urban settings it was the common thing around the world for people to live and work in the same place,” Howard Davis, a professor at the University of Oregon and the author of the book “Living Over the Store: Architecture and Local Urban Life,” told the Times. The Industrial Revolution led to a major shift where people separated where they worked from where they lived as a means of showing financial and social status. Those who lived above where they worked typically were immigrants in urban settings, such as Manhattan and Brooklyn, who did not have the means to live elsewhere.But even store owners by the 1950s began living elsewhere and traveling back into the city to run their businesses, the Times reported. The trend, however, has reversed, at least a little, with owners and co-owners of a bar, a restaurant, bakeries, a bookstore, a coffee bar and nightclub, and a theater, among other things, choosing to live above where they work. “People only want to escape when they have work lives they don’t enjoy,” Daniel Nardicio, who lives above his coffee shop in the city, said to the Times. Paul Longo, co-owner of a bar in Queens, chose to live above his establishment because he believed his landlord would have a hard time renting out the apartment due to the business’ long hours and the din. The Fables own the five-story Hell’s Kitchen building, which serves as their home and also houses the Poseidon Greek Bakery, which was founded by the family in 1923. One of the founding members of the Blue Man Group, Chris Wink, owns and lives above the Astor Place Theater, the off-Broadway venue where the company has operated out of since the early 1990s. Wink, who owns a duplex in the building, left the group in 2017 and has created a psychedelic art and funhouse called Wink World. His apartment, the Times reported, serves as a creative lab for the venture. While most people said they preferred to live above their businesses, Wink said he wouldn’t mind a change of pace. “It warms my heart to see a line of people out on the street who are excited to see Blue Man Group, but I’m increasingly able to look at it as an outsider,” Wink told the Times. “I do think that I would like to live somewhere else.” — Ted Glanzer
New Jersey “Motown Mansion” lists for $5M
The mansion in New Jersey where a former Motown Records CEO threw parties hosting the likes of Stevie Wonder and Mariah Carey hit the market for $5 million. Kedar Massenburg’s former 2-acre estate at 11 East Denison Drive in Saddle River, N.J., is back on the market after selling for $4.6 million in the spring, NJ.com reports. Massenburg helmed Motown Records from 1997 to 2004, and built the house shortly after landing the job, the outlet reported. Mike Randy of Coldwell Banker Realty has the listing. The more than 10,000-square-foot mansion spans five bedrooms, six bathrooms, and three half-bathrooms. The home includes a pool, spa, a formal two-story entrance, and a 12-car garage. Wonder played the piano that still sits in the music room, and there’s a chance it stays with the next buyer, the listing says. Its original owner, Massenburg, is best known for coining the term “neo soul” and launching the career of Erykah Badu. A record producer himself, Massenburg now owns a record label named for himself. The music honcho sold the home in 2010, and it has since been featured on the “Homes of the Rich” blog, “Living Large” on CBS New York, and “Best Kitchen in America 2017” on HGTV, according to the outlet. Homes with celebrity history add a PR-boost when it comes time to list them. The Palm Springs home where Elvis and Priscilla Presley honeymooned recently sold for its asking price of $5.7 million, and Willie Nelson’s former “Hideaway” near Nashville ended up in headlines after being listed for $2.5 million. — Kate Hinsche
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