Hot Property: Cher selling her Malibu estate for $45 million

As far as Malibu goes, Cher may be the biggest name with the smallest local presence. While the occasional and uninformed paparazzo might loiter camera-ready across the street when her fortress-like gates open each day at 4:30 p.m. to discharge the housekeepers, the Queen Diva is rarely around. No Starbucks sightings, she isn't a regular at Planet Blue, and nobody has ever spotted Cher squeezing tomatoes at the local Ralphs.

As best as locals can determine, Cher comes into town often enough to redecorate but otherwise doesn't spend a whole lot of time there. Two years ago, she auctioned off all her furniture because the mood struck.

But changing homes isn't quite the same as changing wigs, and rumors have been circulating for years that she wanted to unload the Palm Tree Palace. Then, out of the blue, there it was in the Multiple Listing Service on Aug. 1. She is reportedly still doing some work on the interior.

The house, which Cher built to look like an Italian Renaissance mansion, sits on 1.7 acres on a bluff high above the Pacific. Palm trees line the driveway and dot the property, distinguishing it from the other bluff mansions. The 14,000-square-foot villa has six bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a theater, gym and verandas from just about every possible window and door. There's a tennis court, pool, spa and a detached guesthouse.

The property is carefully landscaped, and little is visible from the street, especially if you are whizzing by along PCH. What is visible is the spectacular ocean view beyond and the knowledge that the Coastal Commission's new regulations probably wouldn't allow this house to be built today.

Robert Kass of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, is the listing agent.

The footsteps of famous ghosts

The allure of living where a long-dead celebrity once lived largely escapes me. Nevertheless, it is clearly tremendous in Los Angeles. To that end, we bring you the house where both Judy Garland and Sammy Davis Jr. once hung their dancing shoes -- not at the same time, of course.

The property, high in the hills above Sunset Strip and listed at $4,995,000, has a 5,000-square-foot main house plus a guesthouse. There are five bedrooms and 7 1/2 bathrooms in total, plus views galore.