Singer Michael Feinstein is buying Pasadena’s spectacular Cravens Estate

Listed nearly one year ago, Pasadena’s dazzling Cravens Estate has found a buyer in musician (and principal conductor of the Pasadena Pops) Michael Feinstein. While the noted performer and champion of the Great American Songbook is paying more than a song for the lavish landmark—$7 million—that’s still a sizable chunk less than its original asking price of $10.5 million.

Completed in 1930, the Millionaire’s Row residence was commissioned by John S. Cravens, president of the Edison Electric Company, and designed by Louis P. Hobart, architect of San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral. With a construction cost of $1.25 million, it held the title of the most expensive home built in Pasadena for several decades.

It would certainly appear that was money well spent, however, as the nearly 20,000-square-foot mansion has held up beautifully.

Among its outstanding original elements are multiple murals by renowned painter Ernest Pexiotto, which were restored when the estate served as the Pasadena Showcase House of Design in 2010.

Other notable features include six carved marble fireplaces, a fur vault, elaborate woodwork, and a show-stopping atrium skylight.

The 1.5-acre estate has been owned by the Red Cross since 1962. Proceeds from its sale will be directed to the national Red Cross headquarters in Washington, D.C., which will disperse the funds to various agency operations throughout the U.S.

• Grand 1930s mansion comes with original murals and a fur vault [Curbed LA]
• The Cravens Estate - 430 Madeleine Dr [Sotheby’s]