Peek inside homes ‘reality’ built
As the real estate market heats up, so does our passion for fabulous houses. Some of the coolest, and oddest, pop up on reality shows. USA TODAY’s Sarah Bailey unveils the history of summer’s fantasy houses.
“Rock Star: INXS”
VH1, Sundays, 8 p.m.
CBS, Tuesdays, 10 p.m, and Wednesdays, 9 p.m.
Dubbed “The Paramour,” this Hollywood Hills mansion exudes celebrity. Gwen Stefani, Lucinda Williams, Fiona Apple and Sarah McLachlan retreat and record here. Sting, Elton John, John Mayer, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Beck have played benefits on the grounds.
But the home’s story began in 1923 with oil heiress Daisy Canfield, who lived there with her silent-movie star husband, Antonio Moreno. A decade later, driving home from a party, Daisy veered off Mulholland Drive and plunged 300 feet to her death.
“The Real World: Austin”
MTV, Tuesdays, 10 p.m.
Strangers living together in spectacular settings to spark drama has been the archetype for every reality show from “Survivor” to “The Bachelor.” But that idea originated when producer Jon Murray launched “The Real World” from a New York City loft in 1992.
Detractors argue that reality shows should take place in normal homes, but “this is television - people don’t want to look at (crummy) houses!” Murray says. What happens is still real, but “it happens in a beautiful, fantasy environment.”
For the show’s 16th season, local designer Joel Mozersky brought Texas flavor to a 23,000-square-foot warehouse – abandoned by a failing dot-com – and transformed it into a Tex-Mex fantasy home.
“The 70s House”
MTV, Tuesdays, 10:30 p.m.
When producers sought a house for this groovy reality show, in which a dozen twentysomethings live like it’s the decade of Nixon and smiley faces, they stumbled upon a perfect neighborhood in Pasadena, Calif. “The entire place was frozen in that era,” says designer Paolo Deleon. “The facades had kind of a “Brady Bunch” feel.”
“The Surreal Life 5”
VH1, Sundays, 9 p.m.
Drive up to the “Surreal Life” mansion and you pass through large gates sculpted with the iron initials “GC,” for Glen Campbell, who built the house.
But those gates are the last trace of the rhinestone cowboy. Now the house bears the mark of designer Scott Storey’s bizarre “themes.” (This season’s look: “carny trash,” including a 25-foot clown mouth as the entrance.)