Magnum, P.I. is not on the case, but plenty of amateur sleuths are
trying to figure out if the mysterious buyer of the Hawaiian mansion
where the 1980s detective show was shot is none other than President
Obama.
The 11,054-square-foot home on three acres of Honolulu beach front
was sold Monday for $8.7 million in a tricky transaction that includes
some tantalizing clues. The official buyer is listed as "Waimanalo
Paradise," which turns out to be a Delaware corporation set up by a
Chicago attorney and longtime Obama supporter. The deed and mortgage are
signed by Judy Grimanis, an executive assistant at a a Chicago private
equity firm run by another Obama pal, and a former employee of Penny
Pritzker, the real estate millionaire Obama tapped to be Secretary of
Commerce in 2013.
“It is hard to imagine a president living there."- Linda Ryan, Magnum, P.I. actress
No one is confirming that the home known as "Pahonu" will be the
First Family's post-Pennsylvania Avenue address, but then no one would
be expected to, either. The Obamas own a home in Chicago, but recent
reports have said they may relocate to New York when his second term
ends. Hawaii, however, where the president lived his teenage years, has
been a recurring vacation spot for the Obamas since moving to
Washington.
A spokesperson for the administration would only say they had no
comment because the President is not a party to the transaction.
Pahonu is one of Oahu's most recognizable properties, even if it is a fixer-upper at this point.
“It is hard to imagine a president living there,” Linda Ryan, who appeared on several episodes of the show, told FoxNews.com.
The home, with five bedrooms and 6 bathrooms, was originally designed
in a European style by Louis Davis, and includes a tennis court,
fireplace, 3-car garage, boathouse, bathhouse and maid’s quarters. The
home is located on Kalanianaole Highway, at the edge of a white sand
beach with stunning turquoise waters fronted by a rare historic turtle
pond that formed a protective salt pool. In the TV show that starred Tom
Selleck, the property was portrayed as “Robin's Nest,” an oceanfront
estate owned by fictitious novelist Robin Masters.
“It’s gone into disrepair since Magnum P.I. days. It’s an 80-year-old
house that has not been cared for for a while – an $8 million fixer
upper,” said Michael W. Perry, Hawaii’s most well-known radio
personality of KSSK’s Perry & Price Show. “However, it is a great
area, between Sea Life Park and Kailua, with the most spectacular views
you can possibly get. If the place was good enough for Magnum and his
friends, then it is definitely good enough for a President.”
Waimanalo Paradise was formed Feb. 6 with the help of Chicago lawyer
and Obama supporter Seth Madorsky, who specializes, according to his web
site, in commercial real estate and counseling real estate investors,
real estate investment funds and sponsors on capital investment and the
formation of joint ventures to develop, own and operate commercial real
estate.
Grimanis, now an executive assistant at The Vistria Group, signed the
deed and $9.5 million mortgage, a larger amount than the sale price and
one which could allow for repairs or security upgrades befitting a
retired leader of the free world. Martin Nesbitt, founder of Vistria,
served as national treasurer for Obama’s two presidential campaigns and
is a board member of the Barack Obama Foundation. One more possible clue
is that the realtor who brokered the deal is Joel Cavasso, the same
realtor who helped facilitate the rental of the so-called “Winter
Whitehouse” in Kailua, where the President has stayed while on Oahu.
Scott Carvill, principal broker of Carvill Sotheby's' International
Realty, who sold one of the $10 million homes that Obamas’ friends rent
while in Hawaii with the First Family, said the beachfront properties in
the area are coveted.
“Waimanalo and windward Oahu have some of the best beaches in Hawaii sought by people all around the world," Carvill said.
The home was purchased from former Republican state representative
and environmental activist, Eve Anderson, a well-known figure in the
political and windward communities, who is the step-daughter of Cox
Communications heiress Barbara Cox Anthony. Anderson’s grandfather was
the original owner of the property.
Ryan recalled shooting five episodes of the show, but said filming
was done outside the house, and all interior scenes were shot in a
studio. Still, she remembers the home fondly.
“It was a beautiful setting and an exquisite property,” Ryan said.
There may be security concerns, however, should the President live at
the home, because it sits on the heavily-trafficked Kalanianaole
Highway and on a public beach and is easily accessed from either.The
home is just five minutes from the popular Sea Life Park, Makapuu Beach
and Makapuu Light House trail, popular tourist attractions.
The surrounding Waimanalo community, home to many native Hawaiians,
is diverse in terms of income of its residents, with some of the state’s
most impoverished people living just behind some of the island’s
wealthiest.
While no official ties to the Obamas have been confirmed, because all
people involved in the transaction reportedly signed confidentiality
agreements, analysts speculate this could be a similar deal to one
hatched on behalf of the Clintons, whose 11-room Dutch Colonial home in
Chappaqua, N.Y., was purchased for $1.7 million in 1999 with the help of
Clinton's chief fund-raiser, Terry McAuliffe, now the governor of
Virginia.