Making Play for Barbie’s Malibu Dream House

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Josh Altman, a 33-year-old real estate broker to the stars and cast member of the Bravo reality TV series “Million Dollar Listing,” recently landed the ultimate celebrity client: Barbie.

Altman, who works with residential real estate agency Hilton & Hyland in Beverly Hills, said El Segundo toy company Mattel Inc. approached him to put up a joke listing for the doll’s Malibu Dream House.

“I had just finished selling (Hollywood producer) Richard Zanuck’s place, the largest one-bedroom home ever sold, for $20 million,” he said. “Seeing as how Barbie’s house is a one-bedroom, maybe it was a good fit.”

Altman wrote up a description of the three-story “mansion,” including made-up numbers for square footage and price, and posted it online.

To determine a faux price for Barbie’s pink abode, he combined the square footage of a typical three-story Malibu home with a typical price per square foot in the area, plus a premium for beachfront property and distinctive characteristics such as a pink elevator.

His estimated price: $25 million. Mattel will reveal a new toy home for Barbie this fall. Altman said Barbie has been a great client.

“Just like with any megacelebrity, it’s a great opportunity for me,” he said. “She’s just been a doll … literally!”

German Connection

Marie Ebenezer left the small town of Freiberg, Germany, three months ago to start a big-city internship at the L.A. public relations firm Olmstead Williams Communications Inc. But some of her friends and family back home were confused to see that instead of just pumping out press releases, she was writing personal blog posts on the company website.

In the posts, with titles like “5 Things a German Might Miss in America” and “The Cultural Differences Between U.S. and Germany,” the 23-year-old Ebenezer detailed standing next to Ben Affleck while buying persimmons at a farmers market or losing weight because Angelenos are more averse to carbohydrates than the bread-loving Germans.

“People always ask you if you’re from somewhere else, what you miss most or what you like best,” she said. “You can’t help but notice what’s different and your own culture is always there with you.”

The blog posts had more shares on Facebook and Twitter than any of Olmstead Williams’ others in the last year. Chief Executive Tracy Williams was so taken with one post, about what Ebenezer had learned about public relations, that she sent it out in an email blast to clients. But not everyone understood what an explanation of German beer gardens had to do with PR.

“She gives Olmstead Williams a personality,” Williams explained. “Today with social media, part of what is important to do for any company or organization is to establish your personality online so people know who you are what you stand for.”

Ebenezer, who is set to return to Freiburg this month, just saw her first Super Bowl.

“It was strange to me,” she said with a laugh. “I couldn’t relate to anything that was happening and I didn’t even realize when the game was over.”

Staff reporters Bethany Firnhaber and Alfred Lee contributed to this column. Page 3 is compiled by Editor Charles Crumpley. He can be reached at [email protected].

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