2466 SOUTHRIDGE DRIVE
RANCHO MIRAGE
Crafted by John Lautner in 1979, Bob Hope’s infamous former house, one of the area’s most recognizable landmarks, sits perched like a beacon above the 111 Freeway in Rancho Mirage. While tucked behind gates in the ultra-exclusive Southridge Community, hikers can catch an up-close-and-personal view of the place while venturing along Araby Trail (chronicled in my attractions section above). And it is certainly worth a looksie! Canopied under a draping cement plaster roofline marked by a 60-foot circular opening, the gargantuan 25,000-square-foot residence is Lautner’s largest and most ambitious commission ever. It is also one of his most contentious, requiring more than six years to complete, mainly due to design disagreements with the Hopes, with the comedian famously lamenting of its otherworldly shape, “At least when they come down from Mars, they’ll know where to go.”