Rock Hudson at Home: 10 Photos of Hollywood’s Quintessential Leading Man in His LA Sanctuaries

Though he is without a doubt one of the most famous faces of Tinseltown’s Golden Age, Rock Hudson came from humble beginnings. Born Roy Harold Scherer Jr. on November 17, 1925, the future movie star and his parents spent part of his childhood living with his maternal grandparents in suburban Chicago. A one-bedroom bungalow on 719 Center Street—with a single bathroom shared by six adults and five children, per Sara Davidson’s Rock Hudson: His Story—was home. Hudson’s Hollywood career took off with hit films like Giant, Pillow Talk, Lover Come Back, and All That Heaven Allows. As his public profile rose, he began to see his various mansions as his refuges. “My house is the only place I really have any privacy,” he said in Rock Hudson: His Story. “Outside the house, everything I do is watched and talked about, but once I come in those gates, I can relax and let go. I love to work on my house; to tear down walls and lay bricks.” We’ve rounded up 10 photos of the film legend in his personal sanctuaries through the decades—including the sprawling estate he called home until his death in 1985. Cohabitation In this 1952 photo, Hudson is pictured with actor Bob Preble outside of their shared home in Los Angeles. Per Rock Hudson: His Story, the pair lived together for three years in four different homes. Their last, on Avenida del Sol, was designed to look ahead for its time, with futuristic glass fixtures. The dwelling boasted scenic views of the valley and picturesque surrounding mountains. Preble moved out when he married actor Yvonne Rivero. Rumors circulated that Hudson, a closeted gay man, was in a relationship with Preble. Preble seemed to confirm the speculation in Rock Hudson: His Story. He shared that he and Hudson did “a little experimenting…but nothing you would call a definite relation.” He added, “I guess he hoped the barriers would come down. The situation did come close to spilling over to something that would have been foreign to my whole being, my whole behavior. But before that happened, I left and married Yvonne.” 9151 Warbler Place Hudson married secretary and interior designer Phyllis Gates in 1955. The couple is pictured at home in Los Angeles that year. Hudson bought the place near Sunset Boulevard in 1954 and asked Gates to move in with him. The two-bedroom ranch-style house at 9151 Warbler Place featured a warm brick-and-wood kitchen. Because Hudson had invested all of his money into the house, he furnished the living room with redwood lawn chairs. Outdoor furniture was far from top of mind in the heart of the couple’s home, as Gates was said to be a great cook; her specialties were pork chops, meatloaf, and mashed potatoes with gravy. A rocky marriage The marriage was reportedly arranged to conceal Hudson’s homosexuality. Gates discussed their union many years later, assuring the press that their love was genuine. “I was very much in love,” she said in Rock Hudson: His Story. “He was charming, his career was red hot, he was gorgeous, six foot six inches tall. How many women would have said no? If I had heard things about his being homosexual, I just put them in the back of my mind. So what if it was true?” When they eventually divorced in 1958, she was awarded alimony of $250 a week for 10 years and was given the house at 9151 Warbler Place, which was then valued at $35,000. The beach house This 1958 photo shows Hudson on the deck of his Malibu house, where he moved after the divorce. The coastal abode, which was situated atop of stilts, was the actor’s primary residence while filming the 1959 film Pillow Talk. At high tide, the waves would rush under the structure. According to Rock Hudson: His Story, he befriended a group of actors and stuntmen who lived near the beach. Actor Don Burnett painted a picture of their idyllic life in Malibu. “We went swimming in the ocean without wetsuits all year round,” Burnett said. “We did a lot of running in the Malibu hills, then we’d come down to the beach and jump in the ocean. We went sailing and scuba diving—we taught Rock.” In the summer of 1959, Hudson left Malibu and briefly moved to Newport Beach. 9402 Beverly Crest Drive While Hudson was on set filming the 1961 romantic comedy Lover Come Back, Universal Studios leased him a nearby residence at 9402 Beverly Crest Drive. The pad, where he’s shown in this 1963 photo, belonged to agent and producer Sam Jaffe. Its exterior, inspired by classic Spanish-style houses, featured a red-tile roof, stucco walls, and dark wood beams. The three-and-a-half–acre property was surrounded by cliffs. Hudson loved the house and wanted to own it, but despite his surging career, he couldn’t afford it. So Universal used the residence as a bargaining chip when the star’s contract expired in 1962, drawing up a deal to buy him the house in exchange for him re-signing with the studio. He agreed and Universal purchased the home from Jaffe for $167,000, transferring the title to Hudson five years later. Home sweet home To transform the former rental into his own sanctuary, Hudson began a complete overhaul. According to Rock Hudson: His Story, he bought books to guide him along in the project. Tomes on Mexican colonial architecture, which he referred to as the Bibles helped the actor bring his vision to life. Hudson took many design cues from homes across Mexico and the American Southwest, factoring in features like stone archways, hand-painted tiles, wooden doors, and ceilings made of tree limbs. He filled the home with eclectic details like zebra skins, African masks, and four-foot-tall pewter candlesticks. The Castle Hudson affectionately referred to the home as The Castle and decorated it with a handful of figures from the animal kingdom, including giant statues of eagles and horses, an ornate lion’s head fountain, and mounted brass elephant heads on the wall of the primary bedroom, whose trunks functioned as a towel rack. Another recurring theme was the nude male form. The actor displayed nude male metal sculptures by the Mexican artist Victor Salmones on the grounds, and a nude male figure, inspired by Spanish mythology, was carved into the headboard of his bed. Beyond the art featured throughout, the home also boasted resort-like amenities like a 40-foot pool, a spa, a theater, and an outdoor fireplace. Open-door policy Despite his supposed penchant for privacy, Hudson reportedly had an open-door policy and refused to lock the doors of his home. Actor George Nader was quoted adding some context to Hudson’s philosophy in Rock Hudson: His Story, “There was always the chance of an encounter that way. He wanted the world to enter. He liked the excitement of the unknown.” Hudson also loved to receive fan mail. His housekeeper Joy added that the star would be “at the door faster than the dogs. When the phone rang, he’d grab it. I used to say, ‘That cat will answer the phone from the casket.’” Green thumb At The Castle, Hudson inherited Jaffe’s gardener, Clarence Morimoto, and flexed his green thumb. The greenhouse was filled with orchids, tulips, zinnias, and roses. He even grew limes for frozen daiquiris, mint for mint juleps, and peaches for peach ice cream, which he made every summer. Corn, squash, and tomatoes were also harvested on the property. In Rock Hudson: His Story, Hudson reflected on his hobby. “For real relaxation, there’s nothing like gardening,” he said. “When I’m thinking about career decisions and working out new roles in my head, I like to go out in the garden and sweat! Where’s my nippers? Where’s my pruners? I’ll prune and water and plant, sometimes I’ll just pull weeds for hours, and be totally lost in my thoughts. If I had it all to do over again, I’d probably be a landscape architect.” Forever home The Castle was Hudson’s home until he died from AIDS-related complications on October 2, 1985. In this photo, he’s pictured in January of that year. The actor’s memorial service was held at his home. 300 people attended, including his Giant co-star Elizabeth Taylor. The same year the home was appraised at $3 million. Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen purchased the home in 1997 for $9 million and owned it until his death in 2018. Three years later, Allen’s estate put the residence on the market for $55.5 million.