The “Troop Beverly Hills” House

A couple of weeks ago, fellow stalker Mikey, from the Mike the Fanboy website, mentioned that he had recently stalked the residence belonging to the Nefler family – Phyllis (aka Shelley Long), Freddy (aka Craig T. Nelson), and their daughter, Hannah (aka Jenny Lewis) – in the 1989 comedy Troop Beverly Hills.  Well, let me tell you, after hearing that I literally just about had a heart attack!  TROOP BEVERLY HILLS? TROOP BEVERLY HILLS!  How in the heck had I forgotten about that movie??  I absolutely loved it as a teenager and remember renting it countless times from the video store around the corner from my house.  Due to some sort of brain lapse, though, I had not thought about or seen the flick in years.  So when Mikey mentioned it, I immediately ran to my local Blockbuster to rent it.  Shockingly though, the sales clerk informed me that the store did not carry the title!  And neither did any of the other Blockbusters within a ten mile radius of my apartment!  (Perhaps this is why the chain has been floundering in recent years!  I mean, hello!  How does a video store not carry a major 80s classic like Troop Beverly Hills????)  I was further shocked to discover that my local Borders Books did not have the movie, either.  (Blockbuster filed for bankruptcy in 2010, Borders in 2011 – a coincidence?  I think not!  )  Thankfully, Troop Beverly Hills was available for purchase on iTunes (oddly enough, they do not offer the flick for rent), so I immediately purchased it and, because iTunes does not allow one to burn a purchased movie onto a DVD, was forced to watch the entire hour and forty minutes on my tiny computer screen.  But I have to say that it was completely and totally worth it!  What a fabulous, FABULOUS flick!  And, immediately after watching it, I, of course, dragged the Grim Cheaper right on out to stalk the Nefler mansion.

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The 6 bedroom, 6 bath, 7,694-square-foot, Spanish-style abode, which was originally built in 1916, was featured numerous times throughout Troop Beverly Hills.

And, amazingly enough, the residence still looks almost EXACTLY the same today as it did when the movie was filmed over twenty-two years ago!  SO INCREDIBLY COOL!

The only difference is that there is now a large, three-car garage located on the northern side of the property.

For some reason, while watching the movie, the inside of the Nefler house just did not look real to me.  So, while I could not find any interior photographs of the home online, I am fairly certain that all of the interior scenes were filmed on a set inside of a studio soundstage somewhere in Hollywood and not at the actual residence.

I believe the backyard that was shown in the movie was also a set, as it does not match up to the home’s real-life backyard.

As you can see in the above aerial view,  the mansion’s real-life pool is not the same shape as the one that appeared in the movie and its position in relation to the house also does not match up with what was shown onscreen.  And while it is possible that the backyard was completely remodeled in the two-plus decades since filming took place, I do not find that scenario to be very likely.

According to my buddy E.J. over at The Movieland Directory website, the house has also had several celebrity inhabitants over the years, including movie star Betty Compson, producer Samuel Goldwyn, silent film star Charles Ray, and actor Charles Smith.

Big THANK YOU to Mikey, from the Mike the Fanboy website, for telling me about this location! 

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 

Stalk It: The Troop Beverly Hills house is located at 901 North Camden Drive in Beverly Hills.