The Rialto Report has recently been looking for a new global headquarters, and so were interested to learn that the most iconic of all golden age film locations, the Italian mansion that is the centerpiece of Radley Metzger’s The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976) (actually located in New Jersey), has just come to the market.
There is no mention of the property’s illustrious porn past in the real estate listing, instead it is described breathlessly as:
“a rare 20-acre estate in Middletown, NJ, (where) the outside world simply disappears. Comprised of a 15-acre parcel & two 2.5-acre lots with Chapel Hill Rd access & saleable separately – one of the smaller lots already improved with a cottage. Five residences, a clock tower, Gothic arches, ivy-covered stone courtyards, Ludowici tile roofs, hand-carved oak doors and interconnecting pebble drives create the unmistakable feeling of a French chateau at a human scale. Granite hitching posts, original stone fountains & a small barn with paddocks serve the property’s horses, while wisteria & English ivy tumble over every wall. Beyond the courtyards, meadows & tree lines extend the sense of seclusion. Designed by acclaimed architect Alfred Hopkins, with landscapes by Martha Brookes Hutcheson, one of America’s first women landscape architects, the estate was built for the Straus family of Macy’s, whose name carries rare Titanic provenance. Offered for the first time since 1949, Tower Hill Farm is one of NJ’s last authentic links to the Gilded Age.”
The price? A remarkably reasonable $10 million.
Join us in buying a piece of history and let’s re-enact classic scenes formerly played out by Jamie Gillis, Constance Money, Jaqueline Beaudant, Terri Hall, and others. Send your cash donations to “Ripe Mango Enterprises” now.
Sales photos courtesy of Kelly Zaccaro from Heritage House Sotheby’s International Realty and Chad Martin at Motion City Media.
————————————————————————————————
The Opening of Misty Beethoven – Yesterday and Today
The Rialto Report filmed at the mansion a few years ago – and found it unchanged since 1976.
*
The entrance gate – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
The entrance gate – today:
*
Interior driveway – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
Interior driveway – today:
*
Arches for storage – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
Arches for storage – today:
*
Jamie Gillis and friends by arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
Ghosts of Jamie Gillis and friends by arches – today:
*
Jamie Gillis and Jaqueline Beudant by arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
The Rialto Report’s April Hall by arches – today:
*
Jamie Gillis beneath the arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
April Hall beneath the arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
*
Jamie Gillis and Jaqueline Beudant by arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
April Hall by arches – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
*
Property exterior – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
Property exterior – today:
*
Property exterior – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
Property exterior – today:
*
Jamie Gillis, keeping his eye on proceedings – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
April Hall, keeping her eye on proceedings – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
*
Constance Money is busy – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
April Hall at the scene of the crime – today (1976):
*
Previously unseen production still: Constance Money is busy – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
*
Jamie Gillis congratulates the team – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
The courtyard falls quiet – today:
*
Previously unseen production still: Constance Money takes a break – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
*
Jamie Gillis is the boss – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
If these arches could talk – today:
*
Jamie Gillis and Jacqueline Beudant by the pool – from ‘The Opening of Misty Beethoven’ (1976):
The path to the pool – today:
*
Real Estate listing photos of the ‘Misty Beethoven’ property
*
