When it comes to selling homes, there is no toying around. Jill E. Barad, the former chief executive of Mattel Inc. and her husband, Thomas K. Barad, have their Bel-Air home for sale at $12.9 million, down from $15 million.
Jill Barad joined Mattel in 1981 and then moved up the ranks at the El Segundo-based toy giant. She held the top post for three years, leaving in 2000, and is credited with re-establishing the Barbie doll as an American icon.
By changing Barbie’s image from sex symbol to professional woman, Barad increased sales of the doll from $200 million to $1.9 billion – 35 percent of Mattel’s revenue – according to Business Week.
Barad was one of only four women at the helm of a Fortune 500 company in the late 1990s. In 1997, she brokered a merger with Tyco Toys, bringing Matchbox cars and the toy license for “Sesame Street” under the Mattel umbrella. In 1998, she led Mattel into a merger with the maker of the American Girl brand of dolls and clothes. Barad was forced out amid a flood of red ink at the company. She walked away with a severance package of more than $40 million, which must have made a whole lot of Ken dolls turn green with envy.
Barad has served on the corporate boards of Microsoft, Reebok International and Bank of America. Since leaving Mattel, she has focused her attentions on non-profit organizations including the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, Children’s Medical Network and Town Hall of California.
The 9,383-square-foot, two-story Mediterranean she is selling was built in 1991. It has six bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and sits behind a double-gated driveway on more than an acre. There is a large motor court. The home has limestone, marble and distressed stained oak floors and 10- to 25-foot-high ceilings. There is a formal wood paneled library, formal living and dining rooms, and a gourmet eat-in kitchen. The master suite includes a large sitting room and lavish bathrooms. The home has a large theater/game room.
Drew Mandile and Brooke Knapp of Sotheby’s International Realty, Beverly Hills, are the listing agents.
Xtreme Sale
Rick Mahr, founder and chief executive of the Xtreme Entertainment Group, is the country’s leading producer and seller of independent reality home videos of extreme sports and what some call over-the-top comedy. Zany, crazy, raunchy stuff that appeals to the Howard Stern crowd and the reason parental controls on TVs exist.
But the central Bel-Air house he listed for $3 million is, well, perhaps not what you’d expect from a man who thought it was funny to market a video of O.J. Simpson trying to sell a used white Ford Bronco. It’s a smashingly gorgeous and sleek contemporary above Mulholland Drive. We suspect that the Backyard Fight Club, topless or otherwise, has never been taped anywhere near this place.
The 4,200-square-foot, four-bedroom home has an open floor plan and was completely remodeled by designer Thomas Schoos. It has hardwood bamboo floors, Swarovski crystal chandeliers, custom closets, a heated saltwater pool and Jacuzzi, three crushed-glass fireplaces, a three-story custom elevator, and a Gaggeneau kitchen with induction cooking and a built-in espresso maker. The pool area has an outdoor shower and a customized breakfast bar, plus a fountain feature with LED display controls. The home has neoporte stainless entry doors. Plenty of views, too. The master suite has a heated toilet and rain shower.
Josh and Matthew Altman, of Hilton & Hyland Real Estate in Beverly Hills, share the listing.
Studio City Site
For more than two decades, Ronald and Maria Domont have been beautifying Los Angeles, one piece of vintage jewelry at a time. Their Domont Jewelry store on Sunset Plaza is a landmark for those in the know. They have listed their Studio City home that sits on 7.6 acres for $6.7 million.
Maria Domont, the shop’s founder and creator, has been involved in the fashion industry for nearly 40 years, getting her start as vice president of marketing for Mary Quant. She also worked in the 1970s as an entrepreneur with three stores along the King’s Road, and later as an art dealer in New York.
Domont Jewelry sells globally, and its customers include museums, actors and collectors.
The 8,000-square-foot Mediterranean-style home was built in 1999 and has a 3,400-square-foot master suite with 14-foot-high ceilings. There is a screening room, eat-in kitchen, and a private guesthouse set among redwood and oak trees. There is a pool, pool house and paddle court as well as a horse barn. The lot was once owned by Hollywood actress Yvonne de Carlo. The compound is gated and has room to park 34 cars.
Christophe Choo of Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills North office is the listing agent.
Ann Brenoff can be reached at [email protected].
