Extended-stay housing company founder Howard Ruby and his wife are listing their Italianate Bel Air compound for $45 million.
Built in the 1920s, the 12,000-square-foot home is at 500 Perugia Way, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the listing.
Ruby, who founded Oakwood Worldwide, has owned the 1920s estate since 1979; he married the actress Yvette Mimieux Ruby seven years later.
The elaborately designed home, in keeping with its European inspiration, is “not the style that’s in vogue right now,” he acknowledged, according to the Journal. “But someone out there is going to understand it and accept it. There’s someone out there who doesn’t want a white box.”
Ruby could have been referring to some of Los Angeles’ massive modern mansions from developers like Nile Niami, Bruce Makowsky and Dr. Raj Kanodia.
Ruby calls the estate “Il Sogno,” Italian for “The Dream.” It has six bedrooms and eight bathrooms, a library, and a “ballroom sized party room,” said listing agent Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency, according to the report. The main living room has hand-painted beamed ceilings, arched windows, and a carved stone fireplace. The grounds include a pool and gardens designed by florist David Jones.
[WSJ] — Dennis Lynch