Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Leonardo DiCaprio's New York City Rental


RENTER: Leonardo DiCaprio
LOCATION: Walker Street, New York, NY
PRICE: $35,000 / month
SIZE: 3,200 square feet (approx.), 3 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Three bedrooms, ech with their own ensuite baths and Poliform closets & Tre-Piu doors, rest on the first floor accented by Wenge wood floors, while the living room, dining area, and the Varenna kitchen are below. Also featured on this level finished with limestone floors throughout is a 1,500 square foot private garden complete with a full size private swimming pool and built-in Jacuzzi, private sauna with adjacent steam shower. With a Crestron sound system installed and 5 flat-screen plasma TVs, this is perfect for the discerning eye with a flair for the utmost level of finishing touches.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Yes children, we know that all this was reported back in June of 2007 by Braden Keil in the New York Post and subsequently on Gawker, but rare is the apartment in New York City that has a private swimming pool, so we thought we'd give it another toss through the blog cycle.

Located on newly swanky Walker Street in TriBeCa, this ground floor duplex apartment is the very place a-list actor Leonardo DiCaprio leased over the summer while in New York filming "Revolutionary Road," which is a far better book written by the amazing Richard Yates than a movie could ever be, even in the sublime hands of a director like Sam Mendes. Sorry, but that's just Your Mama's opinion...some books are just too good as books to turn into films, and children, this is one of them.

Your Mama is going to make another confession here that very well may not be popular with many of the children: We don't get Leo DiCaprio. We find him frightfully uninteresting, not nearly as good looking as we're always reading he is, and we're a little concerned that as he gets older, his model gurlfriends just get younger. He seems to be modeling his career and dating life on that of the legendary Jack Nicholson, and if you ask Your Mama, that's just stoopid.

Anyhoo, let's move on to the real estate. While it certainly sounds impressive, and it is indeed remarkably unusual for a Manhattan apartment to have a private swimming pool, Your Mama is not so sure that this particular swimming pool is very practical. First of all, it's not large enough to swim laps, which means as an exercise apparatus you are relegated to water aerobics only.

Secondly, the photographs are a wee bit deceptive in that, like with most ground floor outdoor space in New York City, there is really very little privacy. The backyard and swimming pool is completely surrounded by apartment buildings that all have visual access right down on to the pool deck. So be assured there was no nude sunbathing or frolicking happening here by Mister DiCaprio and his moe-dell gurlfriend Bar Rafaeli.

Sketches of the pool area (like that shown on the Gawker site) indicate there is supposed to be some sort of covering over the swimming pool, but none of the photos we located show this covering has actually been built. Obviously that would help with at least some of the privacy issues.

But it's not all about the swimming pool here. The building also offers residents a "cyber doorman," whatever that is. The interior of the apartment has been fitted with all sorts of high grade materials like Wenge wood, a Varenna kitchen and Poliform closets. All very nice and very expensive, but honestly, it's all been put together in a very standard and not very inspiring manner. Your Mama would love to see what a nice gay decorator could do with a couple of assistants and a couple hundred thousand dollars in paint, artwork and furniture.

Your Mama also notes a couple of issues with the layout. We appreciate the that apartment was given a proper and large entrance hall on the upper floor, but we do not like one bit that after descending the stair case, you wind up in the dining room. We would have chosen to put the kitchen at the back of what is currently the living room. This would make the current dining room and kitchen area the living room and the current living room an open plan dining room and kitchen, a much more sensible flow in our play book of space planning.

We're also a little perplexed by the sauna room. Your Mama loves nothing better than to sit around in a wooden room and sweat out the gin and toxins, but it concerns and bothers us that in order to access this sauna, one must exit the apartment and dash through what we assume is common building space. For $9,000,000 clams Your Mama does not care to have the neighbors to see us dashing around wrapped in nothing but an itty bitty towel.

Apparently Mister DiCaprio and his moe-dell friend have vacated the premises, because the 3,200 square foot duplex with 3 bedrooms and 3.5 bathroom has come back on the market. Mister Keil at the NY Post reported Mister DiCaprio was paying $35,000 per month to lease the unit which Gawker reported had also been for sale at $7,500,000. Apparently a temporary celebrity tenant drives up the price, because the place is currently available for lease at $40,000 per month and for sale at $8,995,000. Any takers?

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, that's not just some little lap pool, that's a gen-u-ine full size pool and patio area! Never saw that in NYC.

Of course, the patio is larger than my entire house... sigh...

I *do* get Leo, but I can't explain it well. He's very sexy in that mysterious, brooding way. He's an amazing actor, and he's just too cool and self-assured to film 4 so-so movies in a year... he's very discerning.

Anonymous said...

I can just imagine the detritus falling on the pool area. Yuck!

Anonymous said...

Cyberdoorman is a remote video monitoring service that also accepts packages when the residents are not home. When residents have a delivery, the delivery person is asked for identification and allowed access to the building to leave packages for residents in a secured closet.Monitored by video and spoken to using two way audio throughout the time they are at the building. The company has many sites throughout Manhattan.

Anonymous said...

Leo is NOT sexy! He looks like he has a t-nee we-nee and a HUGE ego. It must be near impossible to keep the pool water clean of dirt and bird poo. Mama is right, this place has lots of expensive finishes but no soul.

Anonymous said...

It's the ground floor - Enough said!

Anonymous said...

If Ed Norton is the king of Painfully Self-Satisfied Performances, DiCaprio is a close second. Their first priority, it seems, is making sure the audience remains constantly aware of their thespian awesomeness.

Obviously, lots of people respond to their work. Which is great. But it drives me nuts.

Anonymous said...

Modern, convenient, wide open... but lacking any visual interest. (No, I wasn't talking about myself). This apt is sort of like Leo. You want to like it, it has all the right elements, but there something missing - something that grabs at your heart and makes you say yes, that's my home-oh.

Anonymous said...

I don't get where people think Leonardo is grandiose and has a huge ego. All his costars comments on his suggest he is quite the opposite. And they do know him better than any of us know. As far as his dating young models, who cares? Just cause he is a famous actor doesn't mean it matters who he dates. People love models and would love to associate let alone, date them - guess its all about the envy thing.

I think he's gorgeous, more so in person even than onscreen or in photos, taller and more substantial body than a lot of people expect. And yes, I have seen him in person!

Anonymous said...

I think the Matt Damon school of aw-shucks, I'm just regular folks and workhorse actor ever so humble persona, is much more annoying than Ed Norton/DiCaprio ever can be.

Anonymous said...

I think his acting is o.k ... but i've seen him several times in malibu when he's bn at his mothers & he looks worse in person ... not that tall [gisele towered above] & if "more substantial body" means a few lbs overwight then yes, thats correct.

Anonymous said...

I can get where someone wouldn't get the "Leo" and find him uninteresting, especially a snarky gossip, but what of it? I suspect behind the scenes, i.e., when he isn't putting on a performance as the good, environmentally friendly Leo, he's a good deal more interesting, funny, and, yes, snarky himself. Too bad his more interesting career was sidetracked by Titanic. After all, he grew up the child of hippy parents exposed to the likes of R. Crumb, Abby Hoffman and Alan Ginsberg, amongst others. Perhaps he'll get a role in the future where that side gets put on display. One can only hope, can't one? I get this from an interview he did with a Brit journo who basically said that he has surprising "presence" in person but seems to be scrutinizing everything he says like he's giving his greatest performance --- as himself.

so_chic_darling said...

Once again Hippie Canyon hits the nail on the head.
Mama we don't care if it was in the New York Post we need YOU to write about it in your way for all the grateful children.

Anonymous said...

Too bad the pool area is a sunken well of no privacy. The actual apartment is cleanly and crisply decorated. I like it.

Anonymous said...

The floorplans at prudential say that "common space" is in fact a cellar that is private to that residence, still a bit weird but private. And I think walking down into the living room would be way too cramped the dining area suits a small table and the living area hidden in that large space. I personally love it.

Anonymous said...

OMG ! i love you leo, your sooo stunnin id tap that ;], love youuuu (LLLLLLL) xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

leoluver said...

omg i love loenarod dicaprio!!!! no joke he is my life!!!!!!!! he is so hot and i am captivated by his acting ability!!! i luv you leo!!!

Stickman said...

Leo now has a different apartment down closer to Battery Park. I have found an apartment to rent in the building so that I can attempt to run into him in the hall.

I know we'll just be the best of friends if we can just meet once. Celebrities love me!