Rock ‘n’ Roll All Nite and Build All Day

Gene Simmons, bassist with the heavy-metal group KISS, is about to start building a hillside chateau in the Beverly Hills area, and his bandmate, rhythm guitarist Paul Stanley, is just completing his nearby Tuscan villa.

The original four-member band, who wear Kabuki-style makeup, recorded their first album in 20 years this fall. Now KISS plans to perform at the Super Bowl on Jan. 31 and to appear in the movie “Detroit Rock City,” to be released in April. The band also expects to go on a world tour this year, taping segments to use in a New Year’s Eve 2000 concert.

Stanley and his wife, actress Pam Bowman, have been transforming their home, once owned by the late comedian Redd Foxx, into their vision of an Italian villa with frescoes in the dining room, mosaic tiles around the pool, and gardens with Italian cypresses and fountains. The 8,000-square-foot, ocean-view home, on about an acre, has a separate office and guest house.

Architect Gus Duffy helped on the project in its final stages.

Duffy also designed the plans for Simmons and his companion, actress Shannon Tweed, a former Playboy centerfold. Their new home will involve a complete tear-down of a house where they have lived for more than 12 years and construction of a 12,000-square-foot residence with subterranean garage.

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William Fay, an executive producer of “Godzilla” and “Independence Day,” and his wife, Jody, have purchased a Beverly Hills home for nearly its $2-million asking price.

The U-shaped, Spanish-style house won an architectural award when it was built in 1929. It has four bedrooms plus maid’s quarters in about 4,500 square feet. It also has a pool and an alcove with a fireplace in the entry.

David Kramer and Constance Chestnut, both with Coldwell Banker-Jon Douglas Co. in Beverly Hills, had the listing.

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A Malibu house that was the home of the late animal trainer Frank Weatherwax has been sold for about $800,000.

Weatherwax trained the dog that starred in the 1957 film “Old Yeller” and was partners with his brother, Rudd, in the Studio Dog Training School, known for training the collies used in the ‘40s “Lassie” movies and subsequent TV series.

Frank Weatherwax died in 1987, but his house was kept in the family until now. Built in the early 1960s, the ocean-view house has two bedrooms and an office in about 2,000 square feet.

Dave Osman of Coldwell Banker-Jon Douglas Co., Marina del Rey, and Jay Rubenstein of the firm’s Malibu West office shared the listing.

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Hot Property is published Thursdays in SoCal Living and Sundays in Real Estate.