Reclusive Texas Billionaire Paid $45 Million for Paul Allen’s Beverly Hills Estate

Turns out the mystery buyer who last year paid $45 million for the palatial Los Angeles home of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen was not a technology entrepreneur or crypto wizard, as some commenters had speculated. Rather, he is Randall Van Wolfswinkel, a Dallas-based construction magnate with a known passion for collecting ultra-high-end real estate. He’s also a California native whom the Santa Barbara Independent once described as “very much the elusive mystery man.”

The estate’s previous owner was also a well-known recluse. Allen, who never married and rarely attended public events, bought the main house and subsequently acquired several neighboring parcels of land, integrating them into one impenetrable and citadel-like fortress. Today, the hilltop complex sits on 3.2 acres of land high in the mountains above Beverly Hills, with a total of three gated and camera-monitored driveways.

In 2021, three years after his 2018 death, Allen’s estate put the place up for grabs at $55 million. It took some time before Van Wolfswinkel finally came calling, negotiating a cool $10 million discount. Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency had the listing, Barbara Duskin of Carolwood Estates repped the buyer.

But the property’s most famous occupant remains Rock Hudson, who lived at the home from 1962 until his 1985 death. At the time, the Spanish-style hacienda was a charming throwback to 1920s Old Hollywood, complete with breathtaking views of the entire city skyline. Following Hudson’s death, the house was sold to film director John Landis, who subsequently spent years demolishing and rebuilding the Hudson residence into a larger, grander interpretation of an authentic Spanish Revival villa.

It was Landis who sold the place in ’97 to Allen, who himself remodeled and significantly enlarged the estate. There are now five separate structures on the premises: a main house, detached guesthouse, a staff/bodyguard building with a camera-monitoring room, a detached cinema building with a movie theater, and giant recording studio. Altogether, the buildings weigh in with nearly 25,000 square feet of living space, totaling 10 bedrooms and 12.5 baths.

Highlights include terraced and bougainvillea-wrapped gardens, a sparkling pool with incredible views, and grassy lawns and broad patios ideal for hosting grand-scale events. The mansion-sized main house spans 9,500 square feet and includes vaulted ceilings, a chef’s kitchen with commercial-grade appliances, a gym, massage room, and an upstairs master retreat with dual closets and a limestone-swaddled bath.

But perhaps the property’s most notable amenity is the glass funicular, which swiftly ferries occupants from the mansion down to the tennis court, located at the very bottom of the hill.