We all love Buster Keaton. And since we all love Buster Keaton, we should all pay regular visits to his official (and quite splendid) website. Every time I do, I find several articles and other features that hook me. Earlier this evening, it was a series of articles about Keaton's famed Italian villa — a 10,000 square foot mansion he once owned in Beverly Hills. After he could no longer afford it, it went through a series of celebrity owners. One of them — James Mason — discovered an old, forgotten film vault in the back. In it were prints of several Keaton films that were thought lost, and which exist today only because Mr. Mason found them there.
The villa eventually fell into disrepair and was targeted for demolition…but a restoration company stepped in and now has it close to being back the way it oughta be. Over in the "articles" section of the website are several pieces about it, including then-and-now photos. (I can't link directly to them or I would, but they're well worth a bit of hunting.)