On sooo many levels — an Angeleno, an architecture fan, a Seventiesophile, a Holmby Hills looky-loo, hell, just as a dude — I really want to believe this. But the details from the article just don't pan out.
First, it would be *prohibitively* expensive, even with heydey Playboy-level money to build and maintain even one of these supposed tunnels, let alone four. And potentially undermining the Los Angeles Country Club? I don't think even Hef had the clout to get the city to allow that.
Second, while they may have had more than one house in L.A. proper "during the late 1970s and early 1980s", I don't think Warren and Jack had mansions both *on* Sunset in prime Holmby, *and* a few miles north on Mulholland. And I know for a fact that they had the hilltop houses, because on my pre-move-out trip to L.A. in 1981, I was fortunate enough to spend the day at Warren Beatty's house on Muholland (my godmother was his longtime executive assistant). It was a large modern spread complete with retractable solarium roof, but was badly damaged in the '94 earthquake. And Jack lived next door.
So, man, I want this to be true, but I think it's just an elaborate — and entertaining — put-on.
On sooo many levels — an Angeleno, an architecture fan, a Seventiesophile, a Holmby Hills looky-loo, hell, just as a dude — I really want to believe this. But the details from the article just don't pan out.
First, it would be *prohibitively* expensive, even with heydey Playboy-level money to build and maintain even one of these supposed tunnels, let alone four. And potentially undermining the Los Angeles Country Club? I don't think even Hef had the clout to get the city to allow that.
Second, while they may have had more than one house in L.A. proper "during the late 1970s and early 1980s", I don't think Warren and Jack had mansions both *on* Sunset in prime Holmby, *and* a few miles north on Mulholland. And I know for a fact that they had the hilltop houses, because on my pre-move-out trip to L.A. in 1981, I was fortunate enough to spend the day at Warren Beatty's house on Muholland (my godmother was his longtime executive assistant). It was a large modern spread complete with retractable solarium roof, but was badly damaged in the '94 earthquake. And Jack lived next door.
So, man, I want this to be true, but I think it's just an elaborate — and entertaining — put-on.
-Lord_John_Buzzkill