Tyler Perry Buys 58-Acre Georgia Estate to Tear it Down, Rebuild

Tyler Perry has just purchased a 58-acre Georgia estate and plans to bulldoze it in preparation for brand-new construction. The original asking price for the Johns Creek property had been $40 million, which seems fair for a home that boasted everything from formal gardens to its own private band shell -- but it went unsold for 17 years. Tyler picked up this American version of Versailles for the bargain price of $7.6 million. Eurweb.com reports on the new Perry real estate deal:

The entertainment mogul says he plans to demolish the whole compound and build his own home, one that is environmentally friendly and made of concrete, according to the New York Times.

An estate sale was held Friday... by the previous owner, Larry Dean, 67, who grew up without indoor plumbing in a low-income section of Atlanta, founded a financial services software company, Stockholder Systems Inc., in the early 1970s and became a millionaire many times over.

He and his first wife, Lynda, spent four years and $25 million building their own private Versailles, which they called "Dean Gardens" and finished in 1992. Their architect, Bill Harrison, said each square inch of it was given the attention to detail of a Faberge egg.

The Deans' dream was to raise their four children here in an atmosphere like "Dynasty," "only happy," and then leave the grounds to a foundation that would open it to the public for charity events.

But in 1993, shortly after finishing the house, the Deans separated and the house went on the market. It has languished there for the last 17 years. One potential buyer, Dean said, was Michael Jackson, who wanted the place in 1994 as a surprise for his fiancée, Lisa Marie Presley. But when the media reported Mr. Jackson's plan and ruined the surprise, he did not sign the contract.

Let's hope that Perry can make this home a happy one. If his personal life is as drama-filled as his multimillion-dollar film productions, that may be difficult -- but we wish him the best!

Read the full story and see more photos at Eurweb.com.