Then & Now: The Rolling Stones’ French Villa of Debauchery

In the Spring of 1971, Keith Richards began renting a villa on the Côte d’Azur for $2,500 a month. The British government was threatening to confiscate the bands’ funds if they did not leave the country by April 5th of that year as part of the Labour government’s punitive 93% tax on high earners. The Rolling…

If Cher Horowitz Became an Astronaut…

Welcome to Saint Delphine, where the socialites go to outer space, the brownstones are cotton candy coloured, and the ever-green manicured topiaries are the proven antidote to stress. “I refer to the goings on here as the Socialite’s Science Fiction (SSF),” says Cara Deming Butler, the artist, unofficial mayor, and overall space cadet behind this…

Heartbreak Hides in the Walls of This Paris Mansion

Museums are usually a feast for the eyes, but rarely are they this much of a treat for the heart. Cozied up beside Paris’ Parc Monceau you’ll find just that: the opulent Musée Nissim de Camondo, a perfectly preserved mansion from 1911 that belonged to the affluent Camondo family. As stunning as the interiors and antiques are, it’s the…

A Brief Compendium of Modernist Homes for Movie Villains with Flawless Taste

Why is it that the bad guy always inhabits an incredible spread? It seems every self-respecting movie villain needs a strategic hideaway to devise all their evil plans, so let’s take stock of some memorable cinema locations for movie villains with a weakness for Modernist design… The Chemosphere House, LA The Chemosphere, perched on the…

The Strange Tale of the Identical Twins’ Mirrored Mansion

Just outside a small, rural Wisconsin farm town, lay the ruins of a grand mansion. In stark contrast to the flat, surrounding fields and scattered barns, was the peculiar sight of a once opulent home that wouldn’t have looked out of place on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue during the Gilded Age. For years, mystery surrounded the…

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A Hauntingly Good Guide to Autumn in New York

No one does Fall like the East Coast. The air grows perfectly crisp, and a tide of orange leaves sweeps the Catskills and Central Park alike in such cinematic fashion, you practically expect Meg Ryan to come sauntering around every corner with a jug of piping hot cider. Of course, this year is different in…

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Mike Tyson’s Deserted 80s Mansion

Between 1985, when he made his professional debut at age 18, to his retirement two decades later, Mike Tyson made up to $400 million, demanding $30 million for a single fight at his peak. He led a high-flying lifestyle, buying mansions, cars and Bengal tigers at the drop of a hat. In 2004, Tyson filed for bankruptcy.…

The Last Palace of the Champs Elysées: A Courtesan’s Secret Alcazar

Hiding in plain sight, you’re looking into the eye of the last remaining example of the magnificent private mansions that once lined the Champs Élysées in Paris. Hotel de la Païva was built by a famous 19th century courtesan who came from humble beginnings in the ghetto of Moscow. Esther Lachmann, aka La Païva, became…

Dog Lover Restores Historic Mansion while her Labradors Live the Downton Abbey Dream

Is it normal to be envious of a dog’s life? Meet the youngest Lady of this soon-to-be-restored 17th century Georgian mansion near Bath in the English countryside. Her name is Dizzy and she’s a very lucky lady, because as you’re about to see, she is currently living the real-life “Downton Abbey” dream. Along with her older…

The Miserable Mansions of Montserrat

We’re following up on a previous adventure today. Do you remember visiting the AIR recording studios the other week; one of the most prolific studios in music history which is now rotting away on a Caribbean island? Urban explorer Shane Thoms took us along on his journey with him to Monserrat in the West Indies, where…