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There are people that are rich and there are people that are wealthy. Jerry Seinfeld, for example, is rich. Newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst was wealthy. And with his great big bank account, he built one of the most lavish residences to ever exist in the United States: Hearst Castle.
Located along the pristine pacific coast of California, about 250 miles north of Los Angeles in the sleepy little town of San Simeon, lay this barely noticeable abode with its 56 bedrooms, 61 bathrooms, 127 acres of gardens, a movie theater and a private zoo. Exquisite architecture, countless works of fine art, as well as entire ceilings imported from Europe, adorn the palatial estate, which cannot be toured in its entirety in one mere day.
Construction began in 1919, when Hearst inherited the land, all whopping 250,000 acres of it, from his recently deceased mother. Construction continued until 1947 when failing health caused Hearst to live elsewhere. Architect, Julie Morgan, designed the Castle alongside Hearst and worked tirelessly in her efforts to please the old tycoon over the course of 28 years.
Hollywood’s elite of the day, Charles Chaplin, Joan Crawford, The Marx Brothers, and especially Hearst’s girlfriend, Marion Davies, were all frequent guests at “the ranch”, as Hearst often referred to it and the stories and gossip that emerged was the type of stuff that Hollywood legend is made of.
One star that wasn’t quite so welcome at the ranch was Hollywood boy-genius, Orson Welles, who partly based his legendary film, Citizen Kane, on Hearst and the fictional estate referred to in the film as “Xanadu”. Hearst was absolutely livid about the film and offered a huge sum of money for copies of it to be destroyed. When that didn’t pan out, he banned any mention whatsoever of the film from his newspapers and other publications.
Today, the castle is owned by the State of California and offers 5 separate tours of the grounds as well as a biographical film of Hearst and the house’s construction. A word of caution: One should expect a bit of a workout from each of the tours, as each require a great deal of standing and stair climbing (sometimes over 400 stairs in one tour). There is a tour, however, that is specially designed for people with mobility issues. Still, you would be advised to get plenty of rest prior to taking one of the tours. Your legs will thank you.
Each tour features stops at one of the two magnificent Greco-Roman pools, one indoor and one outdoor, which are adorned with enough ancient Greek and Italian artwork to rival a museum. Casa Grande, the granddaddy of all private residences is the Main House and filled with another museums worth of art, including priceless Flemish tapestries and Spanish antiques. On the upper floor is the massive kitchen, the Venician Doge’s Suite, and a 4,000-volume library adorned with more Roman and Greek antiquities. A tour of the north wing offers a glimpse into the lavish bedrooms with their imported Spanish ceilings and yes, more magnificent artwork. And finally, the evening tour allows visitors to see what it was like to be a part of the evening festivities that Hearst offered his guests. All of this excess is, of course, viewed with a backdrop of breathtaking panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean, accompanied by refreshing breezes of salty sea air to complete the experience.
And what an experience it is, a glimpse into a level of wealth that is almost unfathomable to us mere mortals, who dream of the day when our lottery ticket will win the big bucks. Of course, you are going to have to win a lot of lotteries if you ever hope to build something that even remotely compares to Hearst Castle. There has never been anything quite like it, and likely, there never will be again. It’s just about the only thing that can make those Beverly Hills “mansions” look pretty lackluster by comparison.
