Swimming

The biggest home in Los Angeles County is ready for a new nickname: The 56,500-square-foot Manor, dubbed Candyland after owner Candy Spelling, has been sold to another wealthy socialite, British heiress Petra Ecclestone, in an all-cash deal for $85 million. As steep as that price is, it's not a record or even close to what Spelling was asking. The priciest Southland home transaction was the 2000 sale of an 8-acre estate in Bel-Air to financial executive Gary Winnick in a deal that included the trade of other land, for a total value of about $94 million.

Mary Killman and Maria Koroleva were synchronized swimming rivals when they began the sport, competing against each other on Northern California club teams. Not much more than a year ago, they were paired together as an American duet. Though the U.S. failed to qualify for the London Olympics as a team, a failure that shocked Killman and Koroleva, they have qualified in the Olympic duet to salvage some success from the U.S. program. And Killman, 20, of Santa Clara, Calif., and Koroleva, 22, a Russian native with U.S. citizenship now living in Concord, Calif., are so determined to be side by side in the pool that they even share an apartment bedroom.

The city will offer two weeks of free swimming lessons for beginning swimmers, infants, preschoolers and their parents starting Monday and continuing through July 12. Because registration is limited, those interested in participating should contact the Recreation and Community Services Department at (818) 898-1290 soon, said Gwen Indermill, the city's recreation supervisor. This is the first year that the city has offered free swim lessons, Indermill noted.

With work set to begin soon on a $1-billion luxury hotel in downtown Los Angeles, developer Korean Air revealed some details about the tower that is expected to dramatically alter the city's skyline. The skyscraper will be the second-tallest structure in Southern California at 70 stories, only slightly shorter than the US Bank Tower office building, said Yang Ho Cho, the chairman of Korean Air. The design is still a work in progress, but guests are expected to be whisked by high-speed elevators to the lobby on the 70th floor, where they will check in. The top floor will also have a restaurant, bar and infinity swimming pool.

Retired Huntington Beach firefighter Robert LaFever, 61, and his wife, Gaye, 57, a retired dental hygienist, wanted to stay fit with daily swimming and water running, but didn't like the heavily chlorinated water at the gym and didn't have the budget and backyard space for their own full-size pool. The solution? Last year they got a swim spa -- essentially an elongated hot tub with a current emanating from one end.

A diamond-encrusted lining is emerging in Southern California's cloudy real estate market. At least a half-dozen Westside mega-estates have sold for more than $20 million so far this year — creating a deafening buzz in local realty circles. Only a few home sales in other Southland counties have surpassed the $20-million mark. On the horizon is the close of Candy Spelling's larger-than-White-House-sized "Manor," which has reigned supreme from its $150-million listing price perch in Holmby Hills for more than two years and is expected to eclipse last year's record $50-million Bel-Air sale by a wide margin.

Beckoned by her swimming instructor, Surbhi Shah stretched out on her stomach and started to float, only to get so nervous she scrambled back to the side of the pool. "I always feel like I'm going to lose control," said the 52-year-old Northridge woman on the first day of her swimming class at the North Valley Family YMCA. "I have a fear of water, that's why I'm doing this. I'd like to not have that fear." A few minutes later, Shah made a breakthrough by sitting on two foam tubes.

The sexual abuse scandal at USA Swimming has revealed its biggest name yet — the former director of the national team. Everett Uchiyama was on a list released Tuesday by the swimming organization showing 46 people who have received lifetime bans or permanently quit the organization, most for sex-related offenses. According to USA Swimming, Uchiyama received his suspension on Jan. 31, 2006. The oldest suspension on the list was handed out in 1991, but most occurred in the past decade — including 11 since the beginning of 2009.

German Franziska Van Almsick broke her four-day-old world record in the women's 100-meter short-course freestyle race at the Beijing '93 ATV Swimming World Cup, swimming it in 53.33 seconds, the Xinhua News Agency reported. The 16-year-old swimmer finished in 53.46 seconds four days ago in Shanghai.

Pocket doors slide away to connect the indoors and outdoors at this sleek contemporary. Designed for entertaining, the modern house features a massive concrete fireplace, a glass-walled loft and walls of glass looking out onto the swimming pool and deck. Location: 1060 Woodland Drive, Beverly Hills 90210 Asking price: $6.995 million Year built: 2009 House size: Four bedrooms, 41/2 bathrooms, 5,868 square feet Lot size: 20,420 square feet Features: Porcelain tile floors, walnut floors, bar, breakfast bar, office, recessed lighting, media room, service entrance, alarm system About the area: In the first quarter, 60 single-family homes sold in the 90210 ZIP Code at a median price of $2.85 million, according to DataQuick.

Music producer Terry Lewis and his wife, Indira, have listed their Malibu estate for sale at $4.5 million. The one-acre property includes a Spanish-style house, open and covered patios, a sports court, a swimming pool with a spa and gardens. The 6,710-square-foot open-plan home, built in 2001, includes a media room, five bedrooms and 51/2 bathrooms. The ocean-view master suite features a sitting area and two walk-in closets. Lewis is part of a songwriting and production team with Jimmy Jam. The Grammy-winning Jam and Lewis have produced hits for singers including Janet Jackson, Boyz II Men and Mariah Carey.

Julie Adams nearly turned down the role that has made her a legend among sci-fi and horror films fans: Kay Lawrence in 1954's "Creature From the Black Lagoon. " But who could blame her? As a contract player at Universal six decades ago, she had played opposite Arthur Kennedy in 1951's "Bright Victory," Jimmy Stewart in the 1952 western "Bend of the River" and heartthrob Tyrone Power in 1953's "Mississippi Gambler. " And now the studio wanted her for a black-and-white 3-D horror film that was sort of a fishy version of "Beauty and the Beast.

A California gray whale found tangled in a fishing net off the Orange County coast swam free after a lengthy rescue over the weekend. Whale-watching boats spotted the young cetacean stranded outside Dana Point Harbor with about 50 feet of netting and rope wrapped around its flukes, or tail. With permission from the National Marine Fisheries Services, Dave Anderson of Capt. Dave's Dolphin and Whale Safari attached a buoy to the animal to monitor it overnight as a team of whale-watch crew members, wildlife rehabilitation staffers and boaters with specialized training and gear assembled for a weekend rescue attempt the next morning.

It's not unusual for a high school team to be honored by the local city council or school board for winning a championship, and that's what happened last week for the Santa Ana Valley girls' water polo team. They showed up at the board of education meeting to be recognized for winning a second consecutive Southern Section Division 7 championship last month. What surprised many in the audience was the revelation they heard after a question was asked by a board member: "What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome?"

Retired professional baseball player Eric Davis and his wife, Sherrie, have listed their home in Calabasas at $2.195 million. The Mediterranean-style house, built in 1994, sits on about half an acre with a swimming pool and spa, barbecue pavilion, half basketball court and stretches of lawn. The 7,239-square-foot home features a marble-floored entry, a wrought-iron staircase, a media room with a wet bar, an office, four bedrooms and six bathrooms. Davis, 49, played for the Dodgers in the early '90s and ended his playing career with the San Francisco Giants in 2001.

Tour boats were buzzing with activity Thursday as sightseers spotted dozens of killer whales cruising the Southern California coast. Whale-watching vessels reported seeing 20 to 40 of the marine mammals, also known as orcas, swimming up the coast from Dana Point to Long Beach. It's not uncommon for killer whales to roam Southern California waters in search of sea lions and other prey, according to the experts who track and identify them. Seeing them in such numbers, however, is unusual.

Dreamworks Animation Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg has listed a mansion in Beverly Hills at $9.4 million. The contemporary Mediterranean, built in 1985, occupies a half-acre lot with a two-bedroom guesthouse, a swimming pool and a cabana. The 9,200-square-foot house features a two-story foyer, a library with a wet bar, a theater with a wet bar, a gym and four en suite bedrooms for a total of five bedrooms and six bathrooms. Katzenberg, 61, owns another Beverly Hills estate that he bought in 2009 for $35 million.