Silent Film Star's Home Makes Big Statement

Falcon Lair

Falcon Lair, the legendary former estate of Rudolph Valentino, has come on the market in Beverly Hills for $7.95 million.

The current owner says he has spent millions transforming the house since purchasing it in 1998. Renovations are still under way. From the outside, the house will look roughly the same as when Valentino had it built in the 1920s, highlighted by its Mediterranean stucco and red tile roof. But the interior is undergoing significant updating.

Whoever buys the home will have to complete the renovation. The plans for the house comprise 13,000 square feet of living space, including a main residence and three outdoor buildings, according to Christie's Great Estates, whose affiliate Hilton & Hyland of Beverly Hills has the listing.

There will be a 1,400 square-foot master suite, four guest bedrooms and a media room, along with gardens, staff quarters and an infinity pool. The property, located in the hills above Benedict Canyon, offers sweeping views of the Los Angeles skyline.

Valentino, the silent-screen film idol famous for his roles in The Sheik and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, bought the five-acre Mediterranean-style estate in 1923 and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars remodeling it to his liking, installing wrought iron doors and antiques.

"It was (Valentino's) pride and joy at the time," says Donna Hill, a film buff who runs Rudolph-Valentino.com. "He was going through a bad time personally when he bought the house."

Valentino divorced his wife shortly after buying the home and she never occupied it. He lived in it until his death in 1926 at age 31.

Valentino bought the house for $175,000. After his death, the house was sold numerous times -- even for as little as $18,000 during the Great Depression -- says Emily Leider, author of Dark Lover: The Life and Death of Rudolph Valentino.