Two of Liberace's many pianos can be viewed by the general public. His nine-footed mirrored Baldwin concert grand piano, seen in the movie Behind the Candelabra, is on display at the Family Music Center West, at 8125 W. Sahara Avenue. The other, a seven-foot crystal Baldwin grand piano, which featured in Liberace's Radio City Music Hall performances, is on view at Family Music Center East at 2714 N. Green Valley Pkwy., in Henderson.
The remainder of the collection is at the so-called "Thriller Villa," named in honor of its most famous occupant, Michael Jackson. The original builder and owner was Horst Schmidt, whom Liberace Foundation President Jonathan Warren has described as "an eccentric theater developer." (Indeed, eccentricity seems to be a prerequisite for dwelling there.) Jackson leased it from El Salvador's honorary consul, Aner Iglesias, in 2006.
After Jackson's death, Iglesias had the mansion redone in hacienda style. Its Neverland Chapel is now a concert hall. "It wasn't used as a performance hall [before]," Warren told TV station News3LV, "but we know that's how it was designed by Horst Schmidt, because the sound is so perfect. It is completely soundproof."
In 2010, thanks to the intercession of Warren, Liberace's pianos made their way to the Thriller Villa and Jackson and Liberace are more than coincidentally juxtaposed there. Warren says they were friends, traveled together, and shared a costume designer. "There is a record of the influence of Liberace on Michael Jackson with regard to costuming," Warren adds.
Pianos, costumes and other Liberace mementos are showcased in the Thriller Villa's basement, but only to members of the Liberace Foundation or supporters (who purchase a $129 "backstage pass") thereof. The collection was recently augmented with the donation of a gold-leaf, double-keyboard piano, "a bit of a mystery, as are most things concerning Liberace," according to the foundation. It may well have been the piano featured in Liberace's 1966, Tommy-gun-wielding, guest appearance on Batman
However, Liberace's car collection is about to make a big comeback. On March 17, 2016, it was announced that some of Liberace's fleet (he owned at least 30 cars over the course his career) would find a new home at Las Vegas' Hollywood Cars Museum on Dean Martin Drive.
Five thousand square feet will be reserved for vehicles such as a 1962 Rolls-Royce Phantom V, a 1957 Rolls-Royce convertible, a Crystal Roadster that also figured in his Radio Music Center appearances, where he would drive it onto the stage, and a London taxicab which "Lee" would take to McCarran International Airport to greet family and friends when they arrived in town. Addiitional cars currently under the auspices of the Liberace Foundation (which will receive some of the proceeds from the car exhibit) include a Volkswagen/Rolls-Royce hybrid, as well as two others.
The Roadster and Phantom both figured in a temporary Liberace exhibition at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in 2014. Talks to give the maestro's fleet a permanent at Neonopolis in downtown Vegas fell through at about the same time, as did talks with "a legendary Vegas casino where Liberace once performed." (The Riviera?) The deal with the Hollywood Cars Museum thus represents an answered prayer for the Liberace Foundation, which will convert the proceeds into scholarships for deserving young musicians.
Liberace's mansion, at 4982 Shirley St., recently achieved a unique milestone: It is the first place to be designated a historic site by the Clark County Commission. It was sold in 2006 for $3.7 million to United States Police Officer’s Association President Terrance Lee "Dez" Dzvonick but became a victim of Las Vegas' housing crisis. The house, and many of its contents, were then auctioned off as part of a 2010 foreclosure (Dzvonick challenged the process in court, but lost).
However, when British Liberace enthusiast Martyn Ravenhill learned that the mansion (actually two houses built by Wilbur Clark that Liberace merged into one) was on the market, he snapped it up for $529,000 cash. After restoring most of the mansion – an ongoing project which included shoring up the sinking south wall – Ravenhill went door-to-door seeking signatures in favor of a historic-site designation. (Our Stiffs & Georges columnist, David McKee, was surprised one afternoon to find Ravenhill at his door, pen in hand.)
"The historical designation will help safeguard the vision and initial design of the residence as envisioned and executed by Liberace, and to preserve the integrity and maintenance of the mansion," read Ravenhill's petition. In return for special protection by the county, Ravenhill promised to open the mansion to public viewings and educational events. Noise and parking abatements were also part of the deal struck by the county. Now that Clark County has begun designating historic sites, one wonders what will be the next one to be given special protection?
