3 min read"He'd be so down with the darkness of the theater, he would probably like that the best,” says HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones actor Tony Cavalero of his on-screen character, Keefe Chambers' (hypothetical) favorite room in the Cavalero home. If you’re familiar with the TV show, you know that, for four seasons, Tony has played the lovable yet unhinged ex-Satanist who (spoiler alert) ends up married to the youngest Gemstone child and youth pastor Kelvin Gemstone. Because the home media room gets “really dark and creepy,” even with a popcorn machine and twin recliners occupying the space, Tony thinks his character would feel right at home. However, Annie Cavalero, Tony’s wife and a jewelry designer by trade, believes Keefe would be more impressed with the home she and Tony have built together, reminiscent of the way he built a treehouse for Kelvin in the most recent season of the show.
Tony and Annie moved into the home in question—a six-bedroom, five-bathroom Spanish gem in the coveted Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles—back in 2016, after becoming taken with the house's iconic history. Built in 1939 by iconic architect Paul R. Williams, past occupants of the abode include Hollywood royalty like Marlon Brando, Wally Cox, and David Carradine, just to name a few. It was even the site for a commune and ashram called LA Yoga IYI, which celebs like Carole King and James Taylor frequented in the late 1960s. Unsurprisingly, the general lore surrounding the property, according to their neighbors and late-night Internet sleuthing by the couple and their close friends, is wild and rich.
However, even with its storied past, the home didn’t reflect the decadent Hollywood DNA on the inside that the couple anticipated when they first toured the property. “When we bought it, the interior was very nineties, very neutral,” Annie says. The downstairs media room was a weird, old reflection of when the home was last renovated, the dark kitchen cabinetry weighed down the room, and there was a boxy jacuzzi tub in the primary bathroom that took up at least half of the floor space—and that's just a few of the quintessentially '90s design choices.
The couple worked with their good friend, designer, Amber McDermitt of Spruce Your Space on redesigning the home. It was a true collaborative effort with McDermitt, who meticulously measured and sketched the floor design of the theater by hand. Together, they helped bring Annie's vision to life. “Annie's everywhere in the house,” Tony happily explains. From the crystal clusters that her geologist grandfather found that are scattered throughout every room to her late uncle’s chandelier hanging in the vivid red hallway, Annie’s touch can be found in every corner, every inch, every decision—and that’s exactly how Tony wants it.
Nothing in the home is “random for random’s sake,” Annie explains. “Everything has perspective and point of view and history; everything's three-dimensional.”
While Annie and Tony adore the home they’ve created together through a shared love of history and Los Angeles, in truth, none of it really matters—they knew it was home the moment they stepped through the front door, beige ‘90s decor and all. They weren’t seriously house-hunting at the time, but they walked in the door and, in the best way, it felt "like your grandmother’s house," Tony adds.
“I remember thinking, ‘I wonder if Annie likes this place,’ and literally as that thought crossed my mind, she turned to me and mouthed, ‘I love this place,’” he explains. “Ever since then, I was like, ‘Well, if any of them is going to be the one, it’s this one.’”
SHOP TONY CAVALERO'S SPACE
Ceramiche Boxer Leopard Statue in Ceramic
La-Z-Boy Scarlett High Leg Reclining Chair
