Music Producer’s Digs Can’t Be Had for a Song

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Veteran music producer Peter Asher has had a hand in most of the songs that I sing in the shower. Alas, there are no royalties to be collected from shower-singers, but he makes up for that in another way: Asher leased out his Malibu Colony home for the summer at what is believed to be the record-high rental for the season. It was listed at $110,000 a month, although final terms weren’t disclosed.

The three-story beachfront Mediterranean was leased fully furnished. It has six bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms in 5,888 square feet. A detached guesthouse has a full kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. The master bedroom suite has a fireplace.

Asher was the Peter in the singing duo Peter and Gordon, best known for their No. 1 hit, “World Without Love,” written by Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Asher’s sister, actress Jane Asher, was engaged for about seven months to McCartney.

Peter Asher was the first head of artists and repertoire for Apple Records. He discovered James Taylor, who slept on his couch for a year, and produced albums for Taylor, Linda Ronstadt and Bonnie Raitt, among others. He also managed Courtney Love.

Chad Rogers of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, handled the listing.

Play Time

Octogenarian Chief Playboy Hugh Hefner, and his very understanding wife, Kimberly, have sold the home that Kim and their two teenagers live in right next door to the Playboy Mansion for $18 million. The 7,318-square-foot home had been listed at $27,995,000 in March. I’d call that getting serious about the market.

The home, which sits on 2.3 acres and backs up to the Los Angeles Country Club, has many customized features including hand-painted walls, leaded glass windows and a hand-carved staircase. The media room has a built-in projection screen that drops from the ceiling. From the master bedroom suite, the view includes lush gardens and the swimming pool.

The seven-bedroom, five-bathroom house was designed by Arthur Kelly for the sister of the Playboy Mansion’s original owner, Arthur Letts Jr. The Hefners bought the property in 1996.

Hugh Hefner, 83, founded Playboy Enterprises. Kimberly was Playmate of the Month in January 1988 and Playmate of the Year in 1989. They later separated but never divorced.

Joyce Rey and Stacy Gotulla of Coldwell Banker, Beverly Hills, had the listing. Jeffrey Hyland and Rachel Maslan of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, represented the buyer and they aren’t saying who it is.

Party’s Over?

Every year, Pacific Palisades impersonates a small town in Iowa and throws a communitywide Fourth of July celebration. It starts with a parade down the main street that features bands and floats, and a contingency of marching golden retrievers wearing red, white and blue bandanas. (Technically speaking, other breeds may be included; who can tell though in the sea of goldens?)

For the past nine years, once the parade ends, the whole town traipses over to the home of Jim and Colleen Buerge for a massive barbecue and party. But now Jim Buerge, whose family has owned Buerge Motor Car Co. for three generations, has just sold that Palisades home for close to its listing price of $2,395,000 and the future of the postparade party is uncertain.

The home is a two-story traditional in the heart of the Huntington Palisades. It has a large master suite plus three other bedrooms and a maid’s room. There are hardwood floors, a formal dining room, a family room off the kitchen and a large grassy yard obviously big enough to invite the whole town and its decorated dogs over for a barbecue.

The Buerge Motor Car Co. is the oldest Ford franchise in Los Angeles, dating to 1915; it is still family owned and operated. The Buerges still have the original Ford franchise at the corner of Granville Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard, along with the Chrysler-Plymouth/Jeep dealership a few blocks away. Jim Buerge is vice president and general manager of the company.

John Closson and Sharon Sitron, both of Prudential California Realty, Pacific Palisades, represented the seller and buyer.

Columnist Ann Brenoff can be reached at [email protected]

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