Elvis Presley – IAMNOTASTALKER

June 30, 2017June 29, 2017

The Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway Tour

My knowledge of Elvis Presley is basically limited to the fact that he was a singer (duh!), his 1957 drafting into the army served as the inspiration for the play and movie Bye Bye Birdie, he called a spectacular Tennessee mansion named Graceland home (the manse is the setting of one of my favorite plays ever, Ellen Byron’s aptly titled Graceland), and he learned his famous hip-thrusting moves from a young Forrest Gump. (Ha, just kidding about that last one.) So yeah, virtually everything I know about The King was gleaned from some sort of movie or stage production. (Truth be told, most of my knowledge comes from movie, stage, or TV productions.) I’m always interested in learning more about anyone or anything Hollywood-related, though. So when my good friend Steffi (who surprised me with a visit recently for my 40th birthday) mentioned that she wanted to take a tour of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway in Palm Springs, I jumped at the chance.

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I have stalked the exterior of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway a couple of times over the years and covered its history pretty extensively in this July 2012 post. So as not to repeat myself, today’s write-up will focus mainly on the tour and only include a brief recap of the property’s background.

The Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway was originally built in 1960 for real estate developer Robert Alexander. Designed by the mid-century-modern master William Krisel, the layout of the sprawling pad consists of four perfect circles situated on three levels.

Elvis leased the residence, which Look magazine dubbed “The House of Tomorrow,” for a year beginning in September 1966 and used it as a vacation home. He quickly fell in love with Palm Springs during his visits to the dwelling – so much so that he decided to marry his longtime girlfriend, Priscilla Beaulieu, in the property’s backyard next to the swimming pool. As the story goes, gossip columnist Rona Barrett, who lived nearby, caught wind of the impending nuptials and announced it on her nightly TV show. A media firestorm quickly erupted and journalists descended upon the home. The frenzy caused Elvis and Priscilla to rethink their decision and in the early morning hours of May 1st, 1967, the two headed to Las Vegas, courtesy of Frank Sinatra’s private plane, and tied the knot in a suite at the Aladdin hotel. They returned to their Palm Springs pad later that afternoon, where Elvis carried Priscilla up the front steps, across the threshold and upstairs into the bedroom, forever cementing the home’s status as the “Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway.” Two days later, the newly betrothed couple headed back to Graceland, though they visited the Hideaway several times throughout the year it was leased. Elvis eventually purchased a house of his own nearby, which he owned until he passed away in 1977. (You can read about that residence, located at 845 West Chino Canyon Road in Little Tuscany, here.)

The Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway Tour begins at the threshold Elvis carried Priscilla over.

The tour is actually led by a longtime reader/fellow stalker named Michael (that’s him below), who I’ve been friends with on Facebook for years. Michael is a veritable expert on all things Elvis. There was literally no question about the singer that he couldn’t answer. Listening to his stories about Presley and anecdotes about the house was fascinating. I couldn’t have imagined anyone better to walk in the footsteps of The King with.

Setting foot inside the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway is like stepping back in time to 1967. The pad is virtually frozen in time from the days when The King called the place home.

Just beyond the threshold is a large sunken living room . . .

. . . where circle motifs can be found in abundance.

Not only is the room rounded . . .

. . . but the space boasts an amazing circular fireplace and hood . . .

. . . as well as a circular ottoman and a 64-foot curved banquette couch –

– the very same couch that was installed at the house during Elvis and Priscilla’s tenure.

Yep, that’s a photo of them sitting on said couch pictured below.

Amazingly, guests are not only allowed, but encouraged to sit on the couch to pose for photos.

From there, visitors are led into the circular kitchen . . .

. . . which features a rounded stove –

– a close-up of which you can see below;

a massive fridge and two ovens;

and an indoor BBQ (for those hot Palm Springs days when it is much too warm to do any outdoor grilling).

There it is open.

Visitors also get to check out the guest bathroom . . .

. . . which boasts a dressing-room-style mirror;

and a shower.

Obligatory Elvis bathroom selfie!

After passing through the jungle-themed sitting area . . .

. . . visitors are led up the very stairs that Elvis carried Priscilla up the night of their wedding . . .

. . . and into the master bedroom, which is fabulous.

Because of the home’s circular shape, regular photos just don’t do it justice.

It is much better showcased via panorama pics.

None of the furniture or furnishings in the residence are off-limits to guests. As was the case with the couch, visitors are invited to pose on Elvis and Priscilla’s bed, which Steffi and I gladly did!

We also got to catch a glimpse of the master bath . . .

. . . which boasts a massive sunken tub . . .

. . . as well as a built-in magazine rack and a bidet.

I honestly cannot recommend the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway Tour more! It’s the perfect experience for fans of The King, those who want to catch a glimpse of the interior of a celebrity home, and architecture buffs alike.

Sadly, the property is currently for sale, so I am not sure how long tours will be offered.

For those in the market for a new pad, the 4-bedroom, 5-bath, 4,695-square-foot property, which features a pool, a tennis court, gardens, a fruit orchard, and three parcels of land, can be yours for a cool $7 million.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway is located at 1350 Ladera Circle in the Vista Las Palmas neighborhood of Palm Springs. Tours are offered daily at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. and cost $35 for adults and $15 for children under 12. You can find out more information about the tour, as well as purchase tickets, here.

March 9, 2012March 8, 2012

The Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple

Another location that I stalked while my good friend Nat was in town a few weeks ago was the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple – a ten-acre public oasis located on Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades that was established by spiritual leader/Kriya Yoga guru Paramahansa Yogananda in 1950. Because Nat is a dedicated yogi, I thought she would love visiting the site. Little did I know how much the Grim Cheaper and I would enjoy it, too. And while the Lake Shrine is not actually a filming location, because it is located on the site of a former movie studio, I thought my fellow stalkers might be interested in it, as well.

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I first learned about the Lake Shrine Temple from Laura Randall’s fabulous book Peaceful Places Los Angeles: 100 Tranquil Sites in the City of Angels, which I gifted to the GC for Christmas a few years back. In the tome, Randall states, “Among my collection of peaceful places, this may be the most famous one in all of Los Angeles.” How was it possible, then, that this stalker had never before heard of it? As it turns out, the Lake Shrine is one of Southern California’s best kept secrets.

The site where the Lake Shrine Temple now sits was originally part of an 18,460-acre plot of land that made up Inceville – Hollywood’s first modern movie studio, which was established by producer Thomas Ince in Santa Ynez Canyon in 1912. For the next four years, hundreds upon hundreds of silent western-style films were shot on the lot. Sadly, in January 1916, a few days after Thomas had opened a second studio in Culver City, a fire ravaged Inceville, destroying numerous sets. That fire was the first of many and, by 1922, the lot was rendered virtually useless. In 1927, after the land had changed hands several times, a real estate developer named Alphonzo Bell, Sr. began hydraulically grading a portion of the site in the hopes of building a new residential community there. As fate would have it, Bell ran out of money mid-excavation and walked away from the project, leaving a large vacant basin that, thanks to the many underground springs in the area, ended up filling with water. The basin was neglected until 1940 when H. Everett “Big Mac” McElroy, an assistant superintendent of construction at 20th Century Fox studios, and his wife stepped in and purchased the ten-acre parcel. Because construction materials were in short supply due to World War II, the couple then had their Mississippi-style houseboat, Adeline, moved to the property and they resided on it for the next few years. That houseboat still sits on the lake to this day (pictured above).

Mac and his wife eventually built themselves a new residence – one that was modeled after a mill house and which featured a two-and-a-half ton, fifteen-foot working waterwheel that irrigated the land. The mill house now serves as the Lake Shrine’s museum and gift shop.

With their new home completed, the couple then began construction on a three-story replica of 16th-Century Dutch windmill (which has since been transformed into the Shrine’s chapel) . . .

. . . as well as a neighboring boat dock and landing. As you can see above, the grounds are so idyllic they look like they were created by Walt Disney!

In the late 1940s, the McElroy’s sold their enchanting lakeside oasis to an oil magnate, who promptly moved into the windmill and set about making plans to build a hotel on the premises. According to the Lake Shrine’s official website, fate stepped in when the magnate had several dreams about his property becoming a “Church of All Religions”. Those dreams prompted him to sell his acreage to Paramahansa Yogananda, founder of the Self-Realization Fellowship, who further landscaped the area and turned it into an open-air shrine dedicated to all religions. Today, thousands of people each year stop by the Lake Shrine in order to meditate, pray, or simply just sit and appreciate its vast beauty. According to Seeing Stars, not only was Elvis Presley a frequent visitor to the site, but the memorial service for former Beatle George Harrison was also held on the premises.

The Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine currently consists of the Golden Lotus Archway, which was designed by Paramahansa Yogananda;

the Mahatma Gandhi World Peace Memorial – a “wall-less temple” which houses a portion of the Indian spiritual leader’s ashes (the only portion of his ashes to be interred outside of India, in fact);

picturesque waterfalls;

sprawling lawns;

verses from various religious texts displayed on plaques;

statues of Jesus Christ, Saint Francis of Assisi, Bhagavan Krishna, Buddha, and the Madonna and Child;

a sunken garden and grotto;

and various animals, including swans;

and, my personal favorite, turtles! Hard to believe that all of that tranquility is situated on a busy stretch of Sunset Boulevard! The Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine is an absolutely AMAZING sanctuary that is a must-see for both visitors to the city and longtime Angelinos alike. I honestly cannot more highly recommend stalking the place!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine Temple is located at 17190 Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades. You can visit the official Lake Shrine website here. The site is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and both parking and admission are free.

March 18, 2008December 6, 2013

Vacation Homes of the Stars

Since the early 1930’s, Palm Springs has been a favorite desert oasis for the Hollywood elite. With its perfect winter and springtime weather, fabulous shopping, and beautiful desert ambiance, it’s not very hard to see why. While visiting the desert this weekend, I dragged my boyfriend on my very own little stalking tour of Downtown Palm Springs. Much to my boyfriend’s delight, the Palm Springs Visitors’ Center was kind enough to provide a free Map of the Stars’ Homes to act as our guide. 🙂

Our first stop was the home of Oscar winner, best-selling author, and Hollywood producer Sidney Sheldon. Sheldon was a top television and movie producer back in the 1960’s, creating such hits as I Dream of Jeannie, The Patty Duke Show and The Bachelor and The Bobby-Soxer. His home looks like it is straight out of the 60’s and is very reminiscent of the Brady Bunch home in Studio City. Unfortunately, the house appears to be in serious disrepair and needs a little TLC.

The next home we hit up was Kirk Douglas’ 1960’s style beauty just down the road from Sidney Sheldon’s house. Before selling this house in 1999, Kirk spent many a weekend here with his wife. My boyfriend absolutely fell in love with this house and all of its mid-century splendor. The house definitely has a Palm Springs/Old Hollywood feel to it and has been perfectly maintained. I am actually surprised the house hasn’t been used as a filming location, as it has a definite “Rat Pack” vibe to it.

Down the road from Kirk and Sidney, is the home Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn used to vacation at. I was shocked at the normalcy of this house – especially the lack of a gate or foliage to hide the property from stalkers and prying eyes. I am guessing they owned this home long before Kate Hudson became a household name and paparazzi favorite.

Just a few blocks away is Marilyn Monroe’s former desert home. I absolutely love this house! It looks as if it hasn’t been touched since Marilyn lived there in the 1950’s. The home, like most on the Palm Springs movie star tour, is very stalker-friendly, with no gate or wall hiding it from view.

Last, but not least, we stalked two former Elvis Presley homes. The first is the honeymoon home of Elvis and Priscilla – they lived here from May of 1967 to early 1968. It was while living in this house that the two fell in love with Palm Springs and decided to purchase another home located in the Little Tuscany section of Palm Springs. While I am not a huge fan of 1960’s architecture, I must admit that this house is definitely not short on charm. It is just so “Elvis”! 🙂 I think it is extremely cool that the owners have chosen not to remodel or change the exterior of the home and have left it looking almost exactly as it did in Elvis’ day.

The last home we stalked was the Little Tuscany abode Elvis and Priscilla purchased in the late 1960’s. At the time of his death, this home, along with Graceland, were the only two properties owned by The King. While Elvis’ honeymoon home is charmingly reminiscent of Old Palm Springs, this Little Tuscany house is absolutely hiddy and a total eyesore! The perimeter of the home is actually surrounded by large rocks painted white, resembling snow. It’s pretty atrocious!!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The city of Palm Springs is located 110 miles east of Los Angeles. You can stop by the Palm Springs Visitors’ Center, located at 2901 N. Palm Canyon Drive, for your very own free Map of the Stars’ Vacation Homes. Via Lola Street is chock full of stars’ homes, including the former homes of Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell at 550 Via Lola, Kirk Douglas at 515, and Sidney Sheldon at 425. Marilyn Monroe’s former house is located just a few blocks away at 1326 Rose Avenue. Nat King Cole lived for a time at number 1258. 1350 Ladera Circle is the home Elvis and Priscilla Presley lived in when they first got married. 845 Chino Canyon is the Little Tuscany home Elvis owned at the time of his death.