Local Home Sold

Ellen DeGeneres and actress wife Portia de Rossi have sold their sprawling Carpinteria spread for a hefty $96 million.

The dynamic duo purchased the 20-acre property in 2022 for $70 million, at the time one of the largest real estate deals in Santa Barbara County.

Property records obtained by the Wall Street Journal show they sold the bluff-top home less than two years later to an entity tied to mining magnate Robert Friedland.

When Ellen bought the 1919 Tuscan-style home in Carpinteria it stood on 9,000 square feet with five bedrooms and eight bathrooms on three levels.

They also bought a second vacant three-acre lot next door for $6 million.

Expanding the Portfolio

Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison, who has a home in our Eden by the Beach, has scooped up a luxury 300-room waterfront resort just south of Palm Beach, boosting a real estate empire that stretches from the East Coast to Hawaii.

Ellison, one of the world’s richest men with an estimated $162 billion net worth, according to Forbes, purchased the Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa in Manalapan – a 1950s era property that was a playground for Vanderbilts, Roosevelts and Fords – for reportedly more than $300 million.

The Oracle co-founder bought the property from the London-based Lewis Trust group, who have owned the resort since 2003.

Ellison splashed out $173 million for a residential property in Manalapan two years ago when he broke Florida’s record for the priciest such buy in its history.

His extensive property empire also includes the Hawaiian island of Lanai, as well as locales like the Nobu hotels in Malibu and Palo Alto.

On the Way to Colombia

Prince Harry and his actress wife Meghan Markle will travel to Colombia later this week at the invitation of the nation’s Vice President Francia Márquez.

The tony twosome will visit the South American country to “engage with teachers, youth, and women” and “to experience the rich heritage of Colombia.”

The trip will precede November’s Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Bogotá. The Sussexes are campaigning to end cyber bullying and online exploitation.

During the trip the Riven Rock couple will visit Bogota, as well as the Caribbean and Pacific regions of Cartagena and Cali.

The Things Dreams Are Made of

Montecito actor Rob Lowe says it was “a nightmare” working with his son, John Owen, 28, on their Netflix series Unstable because he thought he was “going to cure cancer, not become an actor.”

During an appearance on ABC’s The View, Lowe joked his son could have worked at Jamba Juice instead of attending Stanford University where he studied Science Technology.

Referring to the TV series Unstable, which helped the father-son duo bond over their sobriety, Rob was asked if it was a dream being on-air with his son.

“No, dream? It was a nightmare!” he replied. “You have to understand I sent this kid to Stanford. I wrote the check. 

“I mean, if he wanted to be an actor, he could have worked at Jamba Juice,” as John Owen grinned awkwardly beside him.

“He could have saved me a lot of money!”

On a Roll

Santa Barbara warbler Katy Perry swears by lint rollers.

She reveals all in British Vogue’s ‘In the Bag’ series, saying the rollers keep her outfits “pristine.”

“I swear by them,” says for the former Dos Pueblos High student.

“I even roll the bottom of my feet before I get into bed. Isn’t that weird?”

Et tu Telinum?

If you’re fed up with Old Spice, try the fragrance used by Emperor Julius Caesar, which has been replicated more than 2,000 years after his death.

The Roman dictator, who reigned from 46 through 44 BC, was thought to use a scent called “Telinum,” made from a mixture of flowers, fruits, oils, and even ‘gladiator sweat.’

Scientists combed through historical accounts of Caesar before trying to recreate it themselves with a mix of mint, rose, lemon, bergamot, lavender, jasmine, water lily, violet, cedarwood, and amber.

The research team at the Scent Culture and Tourism Association (SCTA) recreated the gladiator sweat using patchouli, a type of flowering plant with an earthy musk scent famous for its intoxicatingly rich bouquet.

The Caesarian fragrance is set to go on sale in Turkey, France, and Italy in October, price unknown.

As for me, I’ll stick to Christian Dior’s Eau Sauvage Extreme, which I’ve used for decades and which I’m pleased to note from Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare is also used by his father King Charles III.

Sightings

Actor Chris Pratt at Pierre Lafond… The Weakest Link host Jane Lynch noshing at Jeannine’s… Warbler Katy Perry and British actor fiancé Orlando Bloom frolicking in Sardinia.

Pip! Pip!