Do you ever wonder what happened to some of the celebrities who entertained us in movies and on TV a couple of decades ago? Some eventually retired from Hollywood to pursue other careers, but plenty of others retired — or at least semi-retired — so they could start enjoying the fortunes they built during the heights of their careers.
You know all those lessons your parents tried to teach you about money management? Well, unlike many celebrities today who blow through millions with little to show for it, a lot of the stars of the past paid attention — and it paid off. Join us as we take a look at some older celebrities who could teach some current A-listers a thing or two about swanky homes.
George Hamilton – $1.2 Million Home – West Palm Beach
George Hamilton had his West Palm Beach, 1,797-square-foot apartment for only one year before listing it on the market for $1.2 million. He bought the two-bedroom, two-bathroom residence for $525,000 and then made repairs and renovations that included installing $100,000 worth of white glass tiles.
His West Palm Beach home featured two balconies, a wine cooler, a built-in coffee maker system, a European-designed kitchen, a sound system, several big-screen TVs and a gaming setup. In 2017, he had a recurring role on the American Housewife sitcom playing Spencer Blitz.
Dolly Parton – $1.2 Million Home – Nashville
From Pigeon Forge to Nashville, Dolly Parton will always be a legend wherever she goes. In 2017, she decided to sell her former 4,795-square-foot stucco home in the Glenville/Nashville area for $1.2 million. The house included 2.4 acres of land, four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Dolly and her husband, Carl Dean, lived in the home from 1980 to 1996, although the structure was built in 1941. The house features covered patios, a four-car garage, several walk-in closets and a southern country kitchen. Dolly was inducted into the Happiness Hall of Fame in 2016.
Tina Turner – $1.4 Million Home – Los Angeles
The famed Los Angeles home where Tina and Ike Turner lived at one time recently sold again for $1.4 million. Although the kitchen has been updated and remodeled to reflect modern times, most of the house is an ode to the 1970s.
The Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll currently lives in Switzerland, but she was recently inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame. The West End’s Tina – The Tina Turner Musical is a new smash hit in England. Turner was described by the Guardian as having a “…ferocious vitality that often flirted with danger.”
Ed Asner – $1.5 Million Home – Studio City
Ed Asner appeared on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and the subsequent CBS spin-off called Lou Grant. Much more recently, he co-moderated a United States presidential debate in October of 2015. Asner is well known for supporting various charities, such as Exceptional Minds and Humane Borders.
His beautiful 2,783 square foot home in Studio City was listed in 2013 for $1.5 million. The estate features three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, a sun-filled garden and a pool, and the master bedroom opens onto an impressive patio.
Robert Conrad – $1.8 Million Home – Bear Valley
Robert Conrad is most remembered for playing secret service agent James T. West in the 1960’s TV show The Wild Wild West. Back then, he performed all his own stunts until he was injured, which limited his mobility. Conrad was always very musically inclined as well, and he recorded several rock songs.
Later in life, Conrad was the host of the weekly The PM Show with Robert Conrad on CRN Digital Talk Radio. His former home was listed for $1.5 million in Bear Valley, California. Sadly, he recently passed away in February 2020 at the age of 84.
Loni Anderson – $2.4 Million Home – Sherman Oaks
Loni Anderson had a home custom-built to her specifications in 2007, and they priced it at a respectable $2.4 million. Her spacious mansion has 4,630 square feet of living space, five bedrooms, six bathrooms, a media/family room, a fireplace in the living room and a kitchen with a center island.
Anderson’s exquisite and expansive yard features several beautiful old oak trees, a spa and a saltwater pool. When she was married to Burt Reynolds, she played Jennifer Marlowe on The New WKRP, and she still continues to act today.
Victoria Principal – $2.7 Million Home – Beverly Hills
On Oak Pass Road in Beverly Hills, Victoria Principal — or Vicki Ree, as some may know her — rescues and rehabilitates abused and neglected companion animals in her beautiful home. In her younger years, she was a well-known actress on nighttime soap opera Dallas playing Pamela Barnes Ewing.
Principal has also been a producer, an author and an entrepreneur in her past, and she now has her own skincare line called Principal Secret. Her home has a pool, three bedrooms and three bathrooms as well as dining and living rooms.
Jill Gascoine – $2.9 Million Home – Hollywood
Jill Gascoine, retired actress and author, bought her former home in Hollywood, California, with her husband, Alfred Molina, for $565,000 in 1995. The couple lived there until she was tragically diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and had to be moved to a specialized care home for her needs.
The estate, called La Canada Flintridge, was listed in 2014 for $2.9 million and is a 4,420-square-foot elite home with a Mediterranean villa design. This impressive masterpiece of architecture was built in 1919 and features a guesthouse, three and a half bathrooms, three bedrooms and some amazing design work.
Harry Belafonte – $2.9 Million Home – New York
The King of Calypso, otherwise known as Harry Belafonte, entertained us for decades with his successful music and acting career. He then retired to a resplendent colonial home in New York State for a time. He is now in his 90s, and he remains one of the most successful Jamaican-American pop stars in history.
Belafonte’s former home in New York comes with a pond, a quaint guest house and an enormous fireplace. Even at his advanced age, the singer still speaks out against racism and for the civil rights of the people.
Joan Collins – $4.5 Million Home – West Hollywood
Joan Collins is known for her role in the television series Dynasty, and she has owned and sold several high-end homes. As far as her West Hollywood Home goes, it sold for $4.5 million. This impressive, beautiful piece of real estate features floor-to-ceiling windows that give the home an airy, spacious feel.
Joan styled the home herself, and although she is in her eighth decade, she shows no signs of slowing down. She recently appeared on the popular television show Hawaii Five-O as the character Amanda Savage, a romance author and Danny’s former mother-in-law. Aside from being an actress, Dame Collins is also an accomplished author and columnist.
Ali MacGraw – $4.5 Million Home – Palm Springs
Ali MacGraw is best known for starring in Love Story, but ever the entrepreneur, she launched a second clothing line, ali4ibu, in 2018. Even though she is in her 80s, she has never let anything slow her down.
Her former Palm Springs, California, home, which she shared with late ex-husband Steve McQueen, was listed for $4.5 million and is still decorated in a style reminiscent of the 1970s. Since 1994, MacGraw has been a resident of New Mexico. She continues to be a force to be reckoned with, even in her golden years.
Billy Connolly – $4.8 Million Home – New York
Billy Connolly — formally known as the Scottish Sir William Connolly — has made us laugh for decades. With a healthy dose of Glasgow humor, he always knew the right thing to say to get us rolling in the aisles. In his earlier days, Connolly completed an apprenticeship in welding in a shipyard.
Joking about his harsh upbringing and early life made a millionaire out of this popular comedian, and he recently decided to move from his New York home to one in Florida. He suffers from Parkinson’s disease, but he assures us that he’s still having fun showing his own art.
Anthony Hopkins – $4.9 Million Home – Malibu
Fortunately, Welsh actor Anthony Hopkins’ home didn’t get burned during the California wildfires of 2018, although several other celebrity homes surrounding his did. Kim Basinger and Pierce Brosnan were not so lucky. Hopkins’ home is located in Point Dume, Santa Monica Bay, California.
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins — if you want to get formal — generously gives money to charities that he believes in, like Women in Recovery, Inc., and he is a member of the environmental activism group Greenpeace. He was knighted for his services to the arts in 1993 at Buckingham Palace.
Mitzi Gaynor – $4.9 Million Home – Beverly Hills
Mitzi Gaynor was inducted into the Great American Songbook Hall of Fame in 2017. Her deluxe Beverly Hills home was listed and sold for a respectable $4.9 million. The exquisite Spanish villa was constructed in 1929 and features inlaid wooden flooring, floor-to-ceiling French doors and windows, and glass skylights.
Gaynor’s former home also brought to the table six bedrooms, five bathrooms, 4,167 square feet and a maid’s quarters. The master bedroom has a dignified balcony overlooking the pool. Gaynor is known for her part in There’s No Business Like Show Business and other notable performances.
Meredith Baxter – $5.5 Million Home – Santa Monica
Meredith Baxter is best known for her starring role on the NBC sitcom Family Ties. She sold her contemporary, rustic, tree-top residence for $5.5 million (listed for $6 million). The house sits on one-third of an acre of land that features sitting areas, a guesthouse, rolling green lawns and sophisticated landscaping.
Baxter wrote a scathing memoir in 2011 that chronicled physical and emotional abuse by her ex-husband, David Birney, who is the father of her three children. She has been on more than 50 television shows and has an extensive and far-reaching knowledge of acting and authorship.
Brigitte Bardot – $5.6 Million Home – South of France
Brigitte Bardot (B.B.) put herself on the map in the 1960s with her stunning beauty, her acting and singing talent, and her passion for animal rights activism. She enjoyed a successful acting career until around 1973, and she remains a pop culture icon today.
Her last home was located in the south of France, and when she sold it, it was listed at $5.6 million. The luxurious home includes an infinity swimming pool and a guest house, and Bardot invested a lot of time and energy into renovating it. Even in her 80s, she continues to be a voice for animal rights today.
Maggie Smith – $6 Million Home – West Byfleet
If you are a Downton Abbey fan, you might know that Maggie Smith has been honorably dubbed “The Queen of the Double Take.” She is an English actress who has appeared in more than 60 films — the Harry Potter franchise included — in her 68-year career.
Queen Elizabeth II made Smith a Dame in 1990 for her contributions to the performing arts. Her Byfleet Manor was built in 1686 in Surrey, and it sold for approximately $6 million along with four other lots on the grounds. The mansion is 6,000-square feet and sits on 18 acres of land.
Warren Beatty – $7 Million Home – Beverly Hills
Warren Beatty and his wife, actress Annette Bening, put their Beverly Hills home up for sale in 2012. The Mediterranean-designed property was listed for $7 million and features six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, an expansive library and maid’s quarters as well as a spa and swimming pool on the outside.
Beatty’s house is a massive 10,594-square-feet and also has a separate guesthouse. He and his wife attempted to rent the home in 1992 for $1,995 monthly, but they were unsuccessful. He wrote, produced and directed the 2016 film Rules Don’t Apply, and played the character Howard Hughes in the movie.
Olivia Newton-John – $7.5 Million Home – Malibu
Malibu is where English/Australian actress/singer/activist Olivia Newton-John decided to make her home. The former Grease actress chose a ranch-style home near Santa Monica to plant some roots. Animal rights and the environment have always been important to Newton-John, and she owns several companies, including the Gaia Retreat & Spa in Australia.
She also owned a farm in Australia for nearly four decades, but she sold it in 2019 for $4.6 million. Despite ugly rumors that she had died, she continues to be a force for good in her community and an advocate for medical cannabis.
Meg Ryan – $10.9 Million Home – Soho
Meg Ryan started her career in the 1980s appearing in hits like Top Gun and Promised Land, but what got her a Golden Globe nomination was the movie When Harry Met Sally… in 1989. As far as her Soho loft goes, the 4,100-square-foot property is expansive and absolutely beautiful.
It features 13 windows and eight closets in the master bedroom, ebony wooden floors, exposed brick walls, floor-to-ceiling French doors and a 40-foot gallery. Ryan takes personal credit for installing the eight closets. She is the mother of two children, Jack and Daisy True.
Shirley MacLaine – $18 Million Home – New Mexico
Shirley MacLaine listed her New Mexico adobe-style hideaway for $18 million. She made various additions to the estate, and it became two different houses that totaled 7,451 acres. MacLaine’s plan after the house was sold was to be less of a recluse, in her words.
Her former estate has a house for a caretaker, a swimming pool, a coop for chickens, a yurt, greenhouses and a barn for horses. She used the abode to relax and write when she lived there. Career-wise, MacLaine recently played the character Polly in the 2019 film Noelle.
Richard Chamberlain – $19 Million Home – Maui
While Richard Chamberlain might be best known for his acting in Dr. Kildare and Shogun, he did invest a pretty penny and a lot of time into building his heavenly hideaway in Maui. When Chamberlain and his partner, Martin Rabett, put the incredible house on the market, they listed it for $19 million.
The house is on the beautiful Maui beach and is an expansive 6,000 square feet. It has six gloriously beautiful bedrooms and boasts a spa as well. When the couple hosted guests, there was also a convenient and equally gorgeous guest house.
Gene Hackman – $27 Million Home – Monterey
Created as part of a larger compound by Carl Panattoni, Gene Hackman’s former home sold for a cool $27 million after he retired in 2008. He has acted in many films, but playing the part of Lex Luther in Superman: The Movie in 1978 really put him on the map.
Although Hackman’s former home isn’t part of a compound anymore, the property is still 2.37 acres and boasts a stunning view of the ocean. When asked in 2011 if he would consider acting again, Hackman replied, “If I could do it in my own house, maybe…”
Richard Gere – $47.5 Million Home – Hamptons
Richard Gere’s North Haven Strongheart Manor reportedly cost him $47.5 million when he bought it. He renovated it to preserve the historical integrity of the compound, which features entertainment areas, a gourmet kitchen and a wraparound porch. Outside the mansion overlooking Sag Harbor is a stunning view of the water, a garden, great oak trees and rolling lawns.
Strongheart Manor boasts a gym, basketball court, garages, pool and fireplaces to suit the needs of the family. Gere actively supports the protection of the rights and lands of tribal peoples throughout the world and is involved with Survival International.
Vanna White – $47.5 Million Home – Beverly Hills
Vanna White, Wheel of Fortune‘s leading lady since 1982, sold her enormous Beverly Hills mansion in 2017 for $47.5 million. The estate is an impressive and expansive 5.08 acres, and it was built to resemble the Italian Tuscan style.
White started her modeling career in the late 1970s while attending The Atlanta School of Fashion and Design. She is known for her infectious smile and the graceful way she performs her duties as the hostess on Wheel. In 2013, White was presented with a certificate from Guinness World Records for being the most frequent clapper.
Dick Cavett – $48.5 Million Home – New York
Dick Cavett is most known for his wit and a conversational style that got people to open up and talk. The former talk show host interviewed such icons as Judy Garland, John Lennon and Katharine Hepburn, among others. He refers to his luxury oceanfront home as “Cavett’s Cove.”
Cavett’s Cove is located in Montauk, New York, and is an impressive 7,000-square-foot historic estate. When he first listed the Montauk estate at $62 million, it raised some eyebrows, and he ultimately reduced the asking price to $48.5 million after some contemplation.
Pierre Cardin – $355 Million Home – France
Pierre Cardin is a renowned fashion designer who loves geometric shapes, which inspired some of his fashion designs. In 1975, in collaboration with architect Antti Lovag, he designed a mansion dubbed Palais Bulles, or Bubble House. The structure is an enormous 13,000-square-feet and was completed in 1989.
Besides the 10 bedrooms in the colossal mansion, there are also 12 additional rooms. It also includes a massive 500-seat amphitheater on the property as well as a spacious living room and three swimming pools. A number of beautiful gardens are scattered around the property.
Max Baer Jr. – Undisclosed – Nevada
Max Baer Jr., better known as the dim-witted Jethro Bodine on The Beverly Hillbillies, has a beautiful Nevada home. After the show was over, Baer went on to write and produce the movie Macon County Line in 1974. In the movie, which was the highest-grossing movie at the time, he played Deputy Reed Morgan.
Baer attempted to create a Beverly Hillbillies-themed casino, called Beverly Hillbillies Gambler Casino, which the Las Vegas Sun’s Mike Trask described as, “Dilapidated would be a compliment.” The casino never got off the ground, and Baer eventually gave up the idea.
Rita Moreno – Undisclosed – Bay Area
The beautiful San Francisco Bay Area is where singer/actress Rita Moreno’s dream house sits. She and her husband (she is now widowed) built a 5,500-square-foot gorgeous multi-level mansion snuggled into the Berkeley Hills of California. Moreno originally told the builders to “put in as few walls as possible.”
Later, she regretted having quite so much open space, because she didn’t have enough walls to display her artwork! Moreno has Puerto Rican heritage, and her home has hints of the island nation all through it, so much so that it even made the list for the Bay Area’s “cool mansions.”
Judi Dench – Undisclosed – England
Judi Dench has made an indelible mark during her 50-year acting career. From the Old Vic Company to the James Bond films, she has set herself apart. Coming from an English background, she performed in several Shakespeare plays in the 1950s and went on to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in Shakespeare in Love (1998).
Dench now lives in her 6,910-square-foot Outwood, Surrey, farmhouse, which has two bedrooms, a heated wet edge pool and one bathroom. The estate also features multiple stabling barns, and she focuses on wood and nature in her home as a theme.
