Despite the unclear future of the Playboy Mansion, its new owner hosted a raucous July 4th party, sort of like old times.
The 29-room mansion’s owner, Hostess heir Daren Metropoulos, and his brother Evan played host to bevy of celebrities including Sean John Combs and his family, Matt Bellamy of Muse, UFC champ Chuck Liddell and model Juliana Herz, according to the New York Post. The party was the only licensed firework show in Los Angeles and the property’s zoo, among other amenities, was open. It’s unclear whether any bunnies were present.
Daren Metropoulos bought the infamous mansion from the late Hugh Hefner in 2016 for $100 million with the intention of shaking things up at the historic property from the get-go, as The Real Deal reported. But first he had to wait until Hefner died and vacated the property–a condition of the sale.
Following Hefner’s death in September 2017, Metropoulos seemed poised to enact his plan of combining the Playboy Mansion with his adjacent property, a $19 million home he bought in 2009, but Playboy fans, preservationists and eventually L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz rallied against him. The coalition wanted to prevent Metropoulos from demolishing the legendary mansion and designate the building a landmark.
Metropoulos agreed to “meticulously refurbish” the house in March. The Post story now claims the property is “fully restored,” though previous designers who worked on the property, and at least one broker who worked on the deal between Metropoulos and Hefner, estimated such a project would take years to fully complete.
“It’s in horrible disrepair and the whole place smells like a urinal,” interior designer Kenneth Bordewick told TRD in 2016 after the transaction closed. [NYP]—Erin Hudson