A stunning Mid-Century Modern home in Palm Springs, California, which served as the Hollywood stars Eva Gabor, Magda, and Zsa Zsa’s desert retreat, has recently found a buyer.
The storied three-bedroom house remained pending sale as of Wednesday. It has been on and off the market since last year, with a $2.6 million asking price most recently. Until the transaction concludes, the buyer and the sale price will not be disclosed to the public.
Tracy Turco, the seller, is an interior designer and vintage-style enthusiast. The property was built in 1964 and has a ton of retro appeal, from the mirrored walls and stone floors to the metallic ceilings and heart-shaped wrought iron features.
“I love the old,” Turco told Mansion Global. “I’ll take a mid-century kitchen and not want to modernize it.”
Turco and her husband, Jerry, purchased the home in 2020 for $1.74 million, records with PropertyShark show.
“We kept looking for a prized [piece of] real estate,” she said. “We wanted to have the pedigree of the old Hollywood history.”
Built for Magda Gabor by her husband, builder Arthur “Tony” Gallucci, this place fit the bill perfectly. Magda lived there until her death in 1997 at the age of 81, and Zsa Zsa moved in after her sister’s death, Turco said.
When the Turcos moved in, the 3,441-square-foot home was full of furniture and antiques, “pieces that were just left there,” from Gabor’s tenure, Turco said. Even an oil painting of Magda remained, as did a handwritten note from the socialite and actress with the safe combination on it.
For Turco, it was important to keep the Hollywood grandeur of the home; she retained the kitchen, saved the bathroom vanities and preserved the original chandeliers
With sweeping views over Palm Springs and the San Jacinto Mountains, the home is entered through grand double-doors, which lead into the expansive formal living area with a marble fireplace and those eccentric mirrored walls. There’s a formal dining area, a gourmet kitchen with marble counters and the original Hungarian rotisserie, and a breakfast room, according to the listing with Brady Sandahl and Jan Ray with the Brady Sandahl Real Estate Group at Keller Williams Realty.
The primary bedroom has a sitting room, a dressing room and a bathroom with a gold tub, a favorite feature of Turcos.
It “overlooks the entire city of Palm Springs,” Turco said. Enjoying “cotton candy skies as you take a bath, it felt like something out of a movie set.”
Outside, there’s a two-car garage, a pool with blue mosaic tile-work, lush landscaping, a fireplace and plenty of room for outdoor entertaining.
“You know, I watched someone on TV and they said, ‘we’re only the keepers of the original people’s property’ and I agree,” Turco said. “I loved it, I enjoyed it, we had our baby there, everything about it was sensational, it inspired me,” but now, the Portuguese countryside beckons, she said.
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