Grand Pasadena estate was home to one of Hollywood’s first female talent agents
The longtime Pasadena home of Coralie Fitzharris-Milburn, one of Hollywood’s first female talent agents, is for sale at $7.6 million.
The longtime Pasadena home of Coralie Fitzharris-Milburn, one of Hollywood’s first female talent agents and goddaughter of Cecil B. DeMille, is for sale at $7.6 million.
The French chateau-style house was a gathering spot for Hollywood types during her decades of ownership. Film directors, producers and celebrities such as Dean Martin, Lawrence Welk and Burt Lancaster were among guests of Coralie’s garden soirees and annual Christmas gatherings.
Situated on about three acres of grounds, the 1930 estate was designed by architects Marston & Maybury and built by Will Taylor, the original contractor for the Rose Bowl. The residence was built concurrently with St. Andrew’s Catholic Church in Old Town Pasadena; noted Italian artist Carlo Wostry was comissioned to hand-paint murals at both properties.
A stone facade, a gabled-and-hipped slate roof and graceful arches retain the two-story structure’s grandeur. Manicured gardens, statuaries and courtyards paved with handcrafted Belgian cobblestones surround the eight-bedroom, 7.5-bathroom home, which sits behind gates with views of the Arroyo Seco, Annandale Golf Course and downtown L.A.
Beyond the double front doors, the 9,861 square feet of living space opens to a marble-lined hall with a curving black staircase. The staircase was chiseled from solid black marble; handmade mahogany handrails top the iron balustrades.
Other common rooms include the living room, which has parquet-edged oak floors and French doors that lead to the south garden. The library features walnut paneling, and a formal dining room reflects a crystal chandelier through walls of nine-foot-tall mirrors. The kitchen retains its ’50s-era steel hood and a three-story dumbwaiter. An original Otis elevator services each floor.
Coralie, who kept her last name a mystery to most, was signed by MGM as an actress when she was 8 years old and later attended Hollywood Professional School. Elizabeth Taylor, Ava Gardner, Debbie Reynolds and Angela Lansbury were among her classmates.
She retired from acting in her 20s and started Coralie Jr. Theatrical Agency, which she would run for the next six decades. Among her clients was magician David Copperfield, according to People magazine. She died two years ago at 86.
Carol Majors of Coldwell Banker Previews International and Sabrina Wu of Compass hold the listing.
Twitter: @NJLeitereg
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