Take a walk through one of Colorado’s most iconic buildings
Forbes stated the “Architectural beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but some mansions are just plain ugly. Money, after all, doesn’t buy taste.” The Genesee home is on the list with homes in New York, Illinois, New Jersey and California. See the whole list of ugly mansions. The writer commented that “this private mansion is perfect…for aliens.”
This house is most well known as the “Sleeper House” or the “Sculptured House” or the “Spaceship House.” It was made famous in Woody Allen’s 1973 movie comedy “Sleeper”. This home features five levels, 7700 square feet, five bedrooms and baths, state-of-the-art kitchen and a top level master suite. It sits high on Genesee Mountain on 15 acres. It was designed by architect Charles Deaton and is on the National Register of Historic Places for its architectural merit. Deaton also designed the elliptical-shaped bank building in Englewood at Broadway and Hampen Avenue and Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
In 2010 it sold for $1.5 million in a foreclosure auction. Prior to that, the house was sold for $3.4 million in 2006 to Michael Dunahay. Dunahay was the home’s first resident since it was completed. He continued the tradition started by the former owner of hosting benefits for charities.
The house was designed in 1963 and in 1966 Deaton finished the exterior at a cost of $100,000 which at that time was astronomical, but never finished plans for the interior of the home. In 1973 the exterior was used in Woody Allen’s movie “Sleeper”, a comedy set in the future. In 1991 a California investor, Larry Polhill, buys the property from Deaton, but never completes the home either. John Huggins buys the home in 1999 for $1.3 million and spends millions more to restore and complete it. In 2002 he puts it on the market for $10 million and eventually sold it for $3.4 million in 2006 to Dunahay. Then, John Dilday an investor purchased the home for $1.5 million at a foreclosure auction, which was a steal.
It is a landmark along the I70 corridor and is visible to everyone as they travel to the mountains. It is definitely one of Denver’s most well recognized pieces of real estate and now has another talking point, being ugly!
The architect described his inspiration for the home in this way:
On Genesee Mountain I found a high point of land where I could stand and feel the great reaches of the Earth. I wanted the shape of it to sing an unencumbered song.Take a look at these images of the entire house [photos: Kevin Joesph and Don Crossland]
– Chalres Deaton
Here’s a rare photo of the shell being constructed in the early ’60’s:
