At Home with Honorary Mayor Steve Guttenberg

In 1989, after the phenomenal box office success of ‘Three Men and a Baby,’ actor Steve Guttenberg was in the market for a new home. While he didn’t have a clear idea of what wanted, he knew that he did not want ‘a modern house’ or ‘a house that the Beach Boys had lived in, which is not my style.’ For weeks his real estate agent had him looking all over L.A., ‘mostly at houses I knew I couldn’t afford, like the Houdini mansion in the Hollywood Hills.’ Then one day his agent said he had just the right house for him in the Pacific Palisades, a place Guttenberg had visited a couple of times but ‘didn’t really know anything about, other than it had this great Mediterranean climate.’ Then, as he and the agent made their way up Palisades Drive to the Highlands, Guttenberg remembers he suddenly felt enveloped by the mountains, ‘like we were being transported into another world. I loved the winding road and, coming from New York, the natural light and ocean air. And that was even before we got to the house. Then, as we were driving up the street I noticed that everyone’s garden was so beautiful and I thought, ‘There’s no way I can afford this! What’s my agent thinking?” By the time the two men got out of the car in front of a two-story, Mediterranean-style house, which ‘had great curb appeal,’ Guttenberg says, ‘I was already sold. And then when I walked through the front door and saw this explosion of green [the house being completely open to the back garden], I instantly knew this is where I wanted to live. The pool was full of happy kids, the garden butted up against Topanga State Park, and a circular staircase in the foyer looked like it came right out of ‘Dynasty.’ When I saw that, I was SURE I could not afford the house.’ As they walked back to the car, Guttenberg asked the agent ‘How much?’and was surprised when it turned out to be exactly the amount he knew he could afford. He immediately bought the house and has since become not only the town’s honorary mayor (since 2002) but also one of its most responsible citizens. Currently he is spearheading an effort to slow down speeders on Palisades Drive, which he says some residents have taken to ‘using as a raceway. They think they’re at the Grand Prix, or something.’ As for living in the Palisades, and his home in the Highlands, Guttenberg says: ‘It has brought me such pleasure that I think it has added years to my life. I like it so much that sometimes I don’t leave for days, unless I have to go to New York. I love the Palisades. It’s a real resort town, very different from where I come from.’ Guttenberg, who commutes regularly between New York and L.A., grew up in the working- class neighborhood of Massapequa, on the south shore of Long Island, where his parents and one of his sisters still live (the other sister lives in New Jersey). Other actors from Massapequa include Alex and Billy Baldwin and Jerry Seinfeld. ‘Jerry’s father Cal was a signmaker,’ Guttenberg recalls. ‘I used to deliver signs for him when I was a teen.’ As a teenager, Guttenberg got interested in acting after working one summer with a local children’s theater group. That fall he started taking acting classes in New York and after graduating from high school he came out to California, where within weeks he landed a Kentucky Fried Chicken commercial, and a low-budget teen flick called ‘The Chicken Chronicles.’ Within a decade he had roles in several film hits, including ‘Diner,’ ‘Cocoon,’ ‘Short Circuit,’ and ‘Police Academy.’ His latest film, ‘P.S. Your Cat Is Dead,’ which he produced, directed and co-wrote, was adapted from the Broadway hit by the late James Kirkwood, co-author of ‘A Chorus Line.’ The black comedy, with its frank exploration of sexual role playing, opened to mixed reviews. ‘The film is more deeply felt than fully realized,’ said the L.A. Times. ‘Despite strong portrayals by Guttenberg, it doesn’t come alive until it’s drawing to a close that’s unexpectedly touching.’ Guttenberg still loves the stage, where he starred in ‘The Boys Next Door’ in London’s West End, and the Tony-award winning ‘Prelude to a Kiss.’ When in New York, he takes acting, dancing and singing lessons, making the 45-minute commute back and forth to Massapequa, where he stays with his close-knit family. Asked about being bicoastal, Guttenberg says he basically has no choice. ‘Obviously I like the weather better here but my family is there, which is why I spend about half of my time in New York. But people don’t do lunch there,’ he jests. ‘There’s no Cafe Vida, which is why I have to come back to the Palisades.’ When home in the Highlands, Guttenberg, who lives alone with his 9-year-old Lab Bucky, enjoys his pool, his home gymnasium and hitting golf balls that sometimes land in the state park. He also enjoys the quiet and the privacy of his garden. ‘In fact, it’s so private I could go naked out there but I don’t, you know, being the honorary mayor and all.’ These days the actor is in rehearsals with Angelica Huston and Ben Kingsley, preparing for this Sunday’s reading of ‘Sunset Boulevard’ at the Pantages Theater to benefit the Actor’s Fund. This weekend Guttenberg also plans to do some entertaining. He’s not sure if he will cater (usually from Mort’s or the nearby Hidden Cafe), or if he’ll cook. ‘Lately, it’s been with my new wok. I might do pad thai noodles, or kung pao chicken, or sizzling vegetables. Or maybe I will grill some Chilean sea bass or wild king salmon. And I like to keep things really informal. Whether I’m entertaining a CEO or the guy who delivers my groceries, I want everyone to feel comfortable in my home.’ Guttenberg had the same attitude with GuttenHouse, a halfway house he bought and renovated for young women who have grown up in foster care and are ready to make the transition into the real world. The two-story duplex in Culver City features marble-tiled bathrooms and hardwood floors. ‘I wanted it to be a beautiful place, with positive energy,’ Guttenberg explains. In the almost three years GuttenHouse has been in operation ‘we have helped about a dozen of the girls get jobs, and get ready to go to college,’ says Guttenberg, who regards the project ‘as one of my best investments’investing in the futures of these young women. But I want to say I did not do it alone. I had a lot of people help me make it happen.’ Another investment Guttenberg would like to make, with the help of other Palisadians, is in the village, specifically on the corner of Swarthmore and Sunset. ‘Imagine if we had a multiplex movie theater where the Mobil station is now? We’d also build a donut shop, a record store and have lots of parking. It would be a place that everyone could enjoy. You know, there’s a reason I was drawn to the Palisades. There’s a real energy here. You can feel it everywhere you go. That’s why I’m proud to be the honorary mayor of this town.’ Asked how he happened to acquire this prestigious position without having to spend one dollar on campaigning, Guttenberg explains that ‘it all started with a pastrami sandwich at Mort’s!’ He later accepted the offer extended by the Chamber of Commerce.