REMEMBER the revolving circular bed from which the Mike Meyers' character Austin Powers proclaimed his shag-ability? Laugh if you must, but the Lazy Susan sleeper -- that semaphore of swinging bachelorhood -- is no longer a joke to be found solely in Hollywood comedies and special-interest hotel suites.
The latest models, available from prominent Italian furniture showrooms throughout Los Angeles, come equipped with streamlined leather headboards, custom-fitted linens and optional side pieces that function as nightstands and footboards.
Still groovy, they have found a new design niche with midcentury aficionados and space-challenged decorators.
These days the buyer is likely to be someone who thinks outside the box, but the round bed sells itself on its obvious design advantages rather than any implied aphrodisiac qualities.
"It had nothing to do with being sexy," says Pacific Palisades resident Judith Darch, who purchased a Poltrona Frau white leather Lullaby Due bed for her vacation home in Mammoth.
"I just wanted a different look; you can do so much with it, and it sleeps the same as a regular king bed."
With a diameter about equal to the length of a California king bed, the mattress-go-round offers 360-degree views of the room, which is why some decorators recommend it to clients with fireplaces, plasma TVs and multiple windows in their boudoirs.
The rounded edges also take up less floor space, and you never have to worry about hospital corners when making up the bed. That can be expensive, however. While manufacturers insist that king flat sheets can be used on circular mattresses, fussy folks may have to spend another $1,000 for fitted bedding.
The price of a mattress and base can be steep enough to induce vertigo. Revolving beds by the Italian firms Cappellini, Poltrona Frau and Prealpi typically cost more than $10,000.
In a surprising spin, however, lower-cost stationary versions of this adult novelty bed have also become popular for kids' rooms. After success with local retailers, Chicago-based manufacturer Glober Furniture Inc. offers the Sercio bed with a curved, mirror-trimmed headboard and a base illuminated with concealed rope lights. It is priced under $3,500, including the 7-foot diameter mattress; IKEA's Sultan Sandane, a round mattress on a minimalist frame, is about a quarter of the cost.
