Misty Mountain at 1330 Angelo Drive (also known as the Stein House) is a large detached house in Beverly Glen,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

(not to be confused with the nearby city of Beverly Hills) standing in 6.5 acres of grounds with landscaped gardens and a swimming pool and tennis court. It was designed by

Wallace Neff Edwin Wallace Neff (January 28, 1895 – June 8, 1982) was an architect based in Southern California and was largely responsible for developing the region's distinct architectural style referred to as "California" style. Neff was a student of ...

and built in 1926 for the film director

Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...

and his wife, the actress

Enid Bennett Enid Eulalie Bennett (15 July 1893 – 14 May 1969) was an Australian silent film actress, mostly active in American film. Early life Bennett was born on 15 July 1893 in York, Western Australia, the daughter of Nellie Mary Louise (''née'' Wa ...

. The house has been assessed for taxation purposes at 8,651 square feet with 11 bedrooms and nine bathrooms. It has been described as "crab shaped", with the design of the house curling around a motor court at its center. Neff's original floor plan for the house was described by ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' magazine as featuring an "elliptical entrance hall flanked by formal living and dining rooms, a library and a private guest bedroom with en suite bathroom and private entrance". A service wing contained "a kitchen-sized butler's pantry, a slightly larger kitchen with walk-in pantry, an adjoining breakfast room and a pair of staff bedrooms that share a hall bathroom". Staff or guest quarters had a living room with kitchen, a bathroom and two bedrooms. Neff calculated the turning circle of Niblo's car when designing the driveway. Following a decline in Niblo's fortunes with the advent of sound in motion pictures, Niblo rented the house to

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

. The house was later owned by

Jules Stein Jules C. Stein (April 26, 1896 – April 29, 1981) was an American physician and businessman who co-founded Music Corporation of America (MCA). Early life and education Stein was born in South Bend, Indiana, to Lithuanian Jewish immigrants, one ...

, the founder of the

MCA Inc. MCA Inc. (originally an initialism for Music Corporation of America) was an American media conglomerate founded in 1924. Originally a talent agency with artists in the music business as clients, the company became a major force in the film ind ...

talent agency and media company. Stein bought the house in 1940 after a bidding war against

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...

. Stein died in 1981; the house was listed for sale for $10 million. It was bought by the Australian-born American media proprietor

Rupert Murdoch Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...

in September 1986 for $5.8 million, with Murdoch's purchase papers signed by

Barry Diller Barry Charles Diller (born February 2, 1942) is an American businessman. He is Chairman and Senior Executive of IAC and Expedia Group and founded the Fox Broadcasting Company and USA Broadcasting. Diller was inducted into the Television Hall of ...

. In his 2001 book ''Virtual Murdoch'', Neil Chenoweth attributes the commanding position of the house as having contributed to Murdoch's success in deals and negotiations. The estate was quietly put up for sale in 2014 for a price believed to be $35 million. The house was bought by Murdoch's youngest son,

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

. The Stein house inspired Ken Ungar's design for his own house on Country Valley Road in

Westlake Village Westlake Village is a city in Los Angeles County on its western border with Ventura County. The City of Westlake Village incorporated in 1981 becoming the 82nd municipality of Los Angeles County.Baker, Pam (2002). ''Thousand Oaks Westlake Vil ...

Jean Stein Jean Babette Stein (February 9, 1934 – April 30, 2017) was an American author and editor. Early life Stein was born to a Jewish family in Chicago. Her father was Jules C. Stein (1896–1981), co-founder of the Music Corporation of America (M ...

recounted her childhood in the house and her parents' parties there in her 2016 memoir ''West of Eden''. Stein recalled her mother telling her that

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

had visited the house with Dolores del Río and told her that it reminded him of the German resort of

Berchtesgaden Berchtesgaden () is a municipality in the district Berchtesgadener Land, Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, near the border with Austria, south of Salzburg and southeast of Munich. It lies in the Berchtesgaden Alps, south of Berchtesgaden; the ...

, the mountain retreat of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

. Stein was also told that Katharine Hepburn encountered snakes in the living room of the house when she lived there in the 1930s. In Stein's memoir Fiona Shaw recalled that when at the house "Up there you couldn't believe you were in Los Angeles...But of course as soon as you came out on the patio behind the house and looked down at the city, you thought you were in heaven, looking down on earth". At parties, films were shown by Stein's parents in an underground screening room at the house.

References

{{coord, 34, 05, 42, N, 118, 26, 13, W, display=title Houses completed in 1926 Houses in Los Angeles Wallace Neff buildings