Hugh Hefner Honored for $1 Million Hollywood Sign Contribution

The Playboy founder will have his name immortalized on a boulder between Cahuenga Park and Mt. Lee.

As thanks for his generous donation, which helped save L.A.’s iconic Hollywood sign, Hugh Hefner will be honored by the Trust for Public Land.

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Hefner, philanthropist Aileen Getty and the Tiffany & Co. foundation each donated $1 million to help the trust acquire Cahuenga Peak from its Chicago owners, who had planned to sell the land for $11.7 million, the LA Times reports. Their eleventh hour donations allowed the trust to meet its April 2010 deadline set by the owners.

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While the 138-acre mountain is located next to the famous landmark, local speculation included worries that the land would be turned into a tourist destination, potentially destroying the sign. Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge had enlisted the trust’s help after learning that the former owners, who purchased the land in 2002 for $1.7 million, intended to build five estates on the peak.

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Hefner and Getty will have plaques placed on large boulders along the trail between Cahuenga Peak and Mt. Lee in their honor, while the Tiffany & Co. Foundation will receive a bench in their name on the trail between Griffith Observatory and Mt. Hollywood.

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'Wizard of Oz' Slippers Expected to Fetch at Least $2 Million at Auction

The shoes are one of the four pairs believed to have been worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 film.

A pair of "ruby slippers" believed to have been worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz is expected to fetch at least $2 million at auction in December.

The shoes are one of four sets that were created for the actress for the 1939 film. They are marked "#7 July Garland," have leather soles painted red and are described as in mint condition but with light scuffs on the soles, notes Reuters.

The shoes are part of a Hollywood memorabilia collection being held by California's Profiles in History auction house. Owner Joe Maddalena told Reuters he expects bids on the shoes from around the globe, "This is the most important film prop in the world. There is nothing more famous. They are one of the greatest pieces of pop culture in existence."

Garland had four pairs of red slippers duing the filming of Oz: one is on exhibit at the Smithsonian; another is owned by a private collector; and a third was stolen from the Judy Garland museum in Minnesota.

The "crystal ball" used by the Wicked Witch of the West in Oz is also being auctioned by Profiles in History. It is expected to generate between $40,000 and $60,000.

And in yet another auction -- this one of Debbie Reynolds' memorabilia collection -- Garland’s original blue and white gingham test dress with puff-sleeved white blouse from the first two weeks of Oz filming, plus the matching ruby slippers in the “Arabian test” pattern are up for sale.

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Rosie O'Donnell Purchasing $2.5 Million Chicago Townhouse

The actress launches her new OWN series next month.

Rosie O'Donnell is settling into the Chicago area in anticipation of the launch of her new show on Oprah Winfrey's OWN network next month.

The actress is under contract to purchase a $2.5 million townhome in north Chicago's Lakeview area, reports the Chicago Tribune.

The property was built in 2007 and boasts 6,000 square feet, five bedrooms and seven baths. It also comes with a three car heated garage, a 2000 sq. foot roof deck, walk-in closets, a professional kitchen and a marble floor entrance hall, notes Realtor.com.

The seller of the home is an executive at OWN who added a security system, home theater, and bar, notes the Tribune.

O'Donnell announced she was buying the home during a test taping of The Rosie Show Wednesday, and said she will split her time between Chicago and New York, where she and ex-partner Kelli Carpenter share custody of their four children.

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Urban Outfitters Sued By Teen Model's Parents for $28 Million

The suit charges the company with using lewd photos of the teen on several of its products.

We’re not sure whether a 15-year-old model’s parents are more outraged by Urban Outfitters’ use of sexually suggestive, partially nude images of their daughter or the fact that they didn’t approve the use of them by the retail clothing chain in the first place.

The parents filed a lawsuit in Manhattan Federal Court Thursday against Urban Outfitters and photographer Jason Lee Parry for using images of their daughter from a photo shoot last year on t-shirts, and other products.

"She is posed in a blatantly salacious manner with her legs spread, without a bra, revealing portions of her breasts," the lawsuit says according to the New York Daily News.

The court papers go on to describe the use of images of the teen in illegal acts like drinking beer and riding a motorcycle without a helmet.

It seems that the parents knew about the photo shoot and its racy poses, but object to the retailer’s use of them without their permission. They’ve asked that their names and that of their daughter be kept anonymous and they’re asking for $28 million in damages.

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Haunted 'American Idol' House Sells for $11.2 Million

Toy mogul buys the Beverly Hills mansion that "Idol" contestants fled from in Season 10.

The allegedly "haunted" 15,000-square-foot Spanish-style Beverly Hills mansion that housed contestants during the most recent season of Idol has changed ownership. Toy mogul Steven B. Dunn has purchased the house for $11.2 million; it was listed for $12 million. Dunn is the CEO of the baby product store Munchkin. Munchkin sells such baby products as their Soft Animal Stackers, which won Creative Child Magazine’s Top Toy of the year award in 2009.

The Idol contestants moved out of the house halfway through the season because of such spooky occurrences such as flickering lights and, according to singer James Durbin, an incident in which he opened the garage door and saw something that looked like a ghostly white hand fall from the top of the door. Contestants also reported that there was a serious spider infestation in the house.

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"Me and Pia [Toscano] were upstairs and the doors flew open. We were watching a scary movie before that and we were [already] freaked out. Me and Pia decided we were going to sleep downstairs, and James Durbin was making fun of us. [Then] he opens the garage door and supposedly sees a hand fall down," said runner-up Lauren Alania to E! Online.  
The mansion has nine beds, nine baths, enough room to park 100 cars, and a large pool. No word on whether the ghosts are still there. 

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'Entourage' House Sells for $4.2 Million

Just as the final season makes its debut, the house that Vinny Chase called home is under new ownership.

The Tuscan style home belonging to Adrien Grenier’s Vincent Chase on the hit HBO series Entourage has been sold.
The easily recognizable gated villa went on the market in 2010 for a hefty $5.75 million, AOL Real Estate reports. The house reportedly dropped to $4.85 million before reaching its final selling price of $4.2 million.
The 9,010-square-foot house boasts seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms and seven fireplaces. The public rooms feature walnut floors, while the bathrooms are accentuated with tumbled and polished marble and limestone. The grounds are complete with a guest Casita, a mosaic-tiled pool, spa and waterfall. If the buyer is so inclined, there is also room to install a tennis court.
Though unconfirmed, the new owner is believed to be an executive producer of the many CSI series.

Entourage is currently airing its eighth and final season Sundays at 10:30 pm on HBO.

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Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne Selling Their Hidden Hills Estate for $12.999 Million

Rocker Ozzy Osbourne and his wife, Sharon, co-host of CBS's The Talk and and a judge NBC's America's Got Talent, have just listed their 6 bedroom, 11,000-square-foot mansion in California's Hidden Hills community for $12.999 million. Their neighbors in the area include Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony.

The couple purchased the house in 2007 for $12.388 million and engaged Million Dollar Decorators interior designer Martyn Lawrence-Bullard for a country-house redo incorporating everything from Victorian-era barn doors and French antiques to Sharon's collection of English tea sets. The house was featured in the June 2011 issue of Architectural Digest. “I get itchy feet. We’ve never stayed in any place longer than seven years," Sharon told the magazine.

The house sits on 2.25 acres and includes mountain views, a guest apartment, formal dining room, foyer with spiral staircase, a kitchen featuring Wolf appliances, a master suite with a stone fireplace, pool, gym and library. More photos are available at Realtor.com.The couple also have their Malibu house on La Costa beach on the market for $9.5 million. 

The Real Estalker website, however, estimates that it is unlikely the Osbournes will turn a profit on their Hidden Hills sale: "Even if the Osbournes manage to secure a full price sale — and what's the likelihood of that? — they might squeak by with a sliverish profit once they fork over the fat real estate fees that by our unscientific estimation could easily run upwards of half a million smackers. And that's not counting the high renovation and day-core costs that surely ran well upwards of a million clams."

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