Walt Disney’s former estate sold for $74 million

There isn’t much left of Walt and Lillian Disney at the Carolwood Estate where they once lived in Holmby Hills, Calif. There’s the front gate, which may — or may not — have hidden Mickeys in it. And a few of Lilian’s rose bushes, which the real estate agent says must be 70 years old.

And then there’s the 90-foot underground tunnel that once was home to Walt Disney’s Carolwood Pacific railroad, a one-eighth-scale steam railroad that famously was one inspiration for Disneyland. The door to the tunnel, which has “1950” etched above it, remains. It looks as if you might be able to hear the Seven Dwarfs whistling while they work deep inside the tunnel.

Walt Disney never slept in this house. Still, it’s a little bit of Hollywood history. And now it’s changing hands. The estate has been sold to an unidentified international buyer for $74 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The dream home Walt and Lillian Disney built in 1949 is long gone, replaced by a 35,000-square-foot mansion with all the accoutrements of modern wealth: 8 bedrooms, 17 bathrooms, three bars, a wine cellar, tennis court and putting green.

And the barn where Walt had the control room for his train was saved in 1999 and moved to Griffith Park in Los Angeles, where it is open to the public.

The home was listed for sale in October 2012 for $90 million by its owner, investor Gabriel Brener, who  bought the property from the estate of Lillian Disney in the late 1990s for about $8.5 million. Brener later acquired additional land to expand the estate to 4.3 acres.

See the estate and hear a little bit about its history from the real estate agent in the CNN video below: