Jeff Bezos first held the title of the richest person in the world in 2018, ending Bill Gates’ 24-year run as number one.

Gates then dropped even lower on in the ranks to number three in July last year, when he was overtaken by Bernard Arnault. That was short-lived, and Gates was soon in second place, once again.

Then Bezos lost the top spot in October when Amazon stocks took a 7% nosedive, knocking his fortune down to a paltry $103,9 billion and putting Gates in the lead once again.

Since then, Amazon has righted itself, and Bezos has reclaimed the crown.

So, what do you do when you’re once again the richest person in the world? Apparently, you buy an incredibly expensive mansion.

Los Angeles Magazine reports:

The world’s richest human is said to have paid $165 million (roughly R2,5 billion) to music mogul David Geffen for the storied Warner Estate in Beverly Hills, reportedly setting a new record for real estate in the city.

Warner Bros. chief Jack Warner built the 13,000 square-foot Georgian mansion on his 9.4 acre estate in 1937. Geffen picked it up for a cool $47.5 million in 1990.

The mansion is one of the most iconic in Beverly Hills.

It features “expansive terraces and gardens, two guesthouses, nursery and three hothouses, tennis court, swimming pool, nine-hole golf course and motor court complete with its own service garage and gas pumps.”

The mandatory movie theatre is also included in the package. Is it even a mansion if it doesn’t have a movie theatre?

Apart from all the trimmings that you’d expect from an R2,5 billion mansion, it also has a rich and fascinating history. Jack Warner is one of the famous Warner brothers, the sons of a Polish immigrant shopkeeper, who would go from humble beginnings to owning one of the biggest film distribution studios in the world.

“I remember one New Year’s Eve party in 1939 or 1940,” Olivia de Havelland has recalled. “All the men were glorious in white tie. Errol Flynn was behind the bar, Howard Hughes was my date, and Jimmy Stewart was seated on a stool.

Just the four of us having our first drink of the evening. All those beautiful women dressed in wonderful elegance.

Dolores Del Rio in a white satin gown that contrasted her dark hair and dark eyes. Ann Warner, herself a striking presence. Those beautiful women, looking marvelous in this wonderful setting.”

Marvellous, darling.

The mansion, which was originally constructed in the Georgian style, was revamped with an impressive Greek Revival Portico after Warner’s first divorce.

Post-divorce, new beginnings. It looks like Bezos and Warner have more in common than just the impressive property, which the former will soon be calling home.

[source:lamag]