Wild 'Cruise Ship' of a Home - Page 2

"It looks very Austin Powers," the realtor said of the home's dated interior, evoking the name of the movie secret agent.

Noting that the home is "one of the most famous houses up here," Fox said part of its reputation is because of the Probsts' famous friends from the desert. President Gerald Ford and Bob and Dolores Hope were among the guests to stay in the home's 'Blue Room,' which includes walls covered in blue silk.

"They point out this house," she said of seasonal tourist boats on the lake, adding that tour guides often falsely pad the home's guest list to include presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. She said they also claim disingenuously that its huge windows are bulletproof, and that voyeurs can see people bathing in the windowed master shower, adding, "That's kind of a famous point on the lake when they go by."

Interviewed recently, Fox said she was about to show the house to just the second set of prospective buyers in several weeks on the market, but explained that viewings are for qualified buyers only. Otherwise, because of the home's local notoriety, she said, "I would have hundreds of people from the town."

Fox said that although no Lake Arrowhead home has ever sold for more than $6 million, this became the second house this year to ask for more when it was listed in late October for $8.75 million. In doing so, it joined a 14-bedroom mansion built in 1933 by oil tycoon Edward Doheny that has been for sale since May for $9,995,000.

"It'll take a while," the realtor said of selling the former Probst home, noting that its dated décor is not everyone's cup of tea. "That's who's going to buy this house: somebody who loves it the way it is."