BEVERLY HILLS COURIER | FEBRUARY 27, 2015 BEVERLY HILLS Page 10 REAL ESTATE Legendary Home Of Connie Wald, The Barnett House, Listed By Bret Parsons By Victoria Talbot the house. Rarely does a home so eloquently Jerry Wald died of a heart attack in speak to the legacy of a legendary host- 1962 at the age of 50. But Connie con- ess as the Barnett House speaks of Con- tinued her tradition of opening her nie Wald, widow of producer-writer Jer- home and her heart to Hollywood’s ry Wald. stars. Dinners prevailed with Connie Built in 1939 by renowned archi- bringing her sons Robbie and Andrew tect Gerard Colcord, the couple pur- into the kitchen with her. chased the majestic estate at 615 No. Eventually, Colcord was called Beverly Dr. in 1943 from W.B. Barnett, back to the house to convert the garage a retired Pennsylvania businessman. into a guest room for Audrey Hepburn. It was then that she started enter- Hepburn always stayed at the house taining, bringing simple food and com- when she was in town. pany together with warmth and hospi- But it was the art of making people tality. comfortable, bringing them out, offer- They hired Loretta Young’s mother, THE BARNETT HOUSE BY ARCHITECT GERARD COLCORD ing her special brand of entertaining Gladys Belzer, the day’s most stylish the results remained nearly unchanged perfect backdrop to a skilled hostess that made her so special. “She had a decorator, for the interior spaces, and until her death in 2012. who really knew how to throw a party. sunny disposition,” said John Goldwyn, She began her famed dinners to en- “When I think about going to din- producer grandson of Sam Goldwyn. tertain the ner at Connie’s . . . I feel a great sense “She drew people to her.” stars that that the world is about to be corrected,” When she passed away George worked said Joan Didion in Vogue magazine. Christy wrote: “Everyone went to Con- hard, six “It was just cozy,” said Betsy nie’s. None better than an invitation days a week, Bloomingdale, philanthropist and long- offering a time friend. “And casual, they don’t do cozy warm venue anymore.” Bloom- to relax and ingdale, Nancy dine in com- Reagan and Audrey fort. Hepburn became The Connie Wald’s Pennsylva- close companions. nia Dutch- Jerry Wald’s style farm- credits include house was From Here To Eter- HOMEY HEARTH--With her characteristic mix of warmth and casual, Connie Wald spent many hours entertaining before the Colcord signa- large but not nity, Peyton Place, ture fireplaces, with heads of state and heads of studios. pretentious, a Sons And Lovers, Key Largo and many other films. Wald produced Mildred Pierce, the film noir about a NOTED LIBRARY--conversations on which books were written mother and her un- grateful daughter, for which Joan Craw- from Connie Wald to dine at her resi- ford won her Oscar for Best Actress. dence, where she lived for 70 years. . . Crawford was a frequent guest. her white picket fence welcomed the Their late son Robbie recalled re- world’s illuminati, culturati and literati. turning home from school one day to Guests came happily. And came again . find his parents watching a screening . . At Connie’s we all dined royally.” with Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman, Says Realtor Bret Parsons, author of Marilyn Monroe and Cary Grant. Such the book Colcord Home, “The Barnett were their social circle. House is one of Colcord’s finest Colo- In 1952, Columbia Studios offered nial Revival homes, the style for which he is best known. It em- braces many of Col- cord’s favorite motifs, preeminently the field- stone masonry façade,” said Parsons. Now, the famed home is on the market for only its second time. Like all of Col- cord houses, they rarely come on the market. The home is ap- proximately 5,500- square feet on an 18,000-square foot lot. It has five bedrooms and six baths plus a ca- POOL AND CABANA bana, pool and guest house. The magnificent and historic theatre has a separate pro- to build Jerry Wald an at-home screen- jection room. Designed by Master Ar- ing room. They brought Colcard back, chitect Colcord, the home is being of- where he met the couple for the first fered by realtor Bret Parsons, director of time. the Architectural Division of Coldwell The room had been a Morning Banker Residential Brokerage. Room, but Colcord expanded it to ap- pear to have always been a theatre in