Sprawling upstate New York mansion formerly owned by controversial ex-SNL star up for sale for $3.7m
A sprawling upstate New York mansion once home to one of Saturday Night Live’s original stars has gone the market for nearly $3.7 million.
Chevy Chase, the first SNL performer to anchor the popular Weekend Update segment, lived in the eight bedroom, five-and-a-half bath home when he was a kid, according to the current owner.
The home is in West Hurley, a small town right near Woodstock and about a two-hour car ride from New York City.
Richard Vizzini and Emily Wagner, the listing agents with Hudson Valley firm Corcoran Country Living, described the property as ‘rich in history set atop a hill with awe-inspiring views of the Ashokan Reservoir and Catskill Mountains.’
Built in 1918, the residence was designed by legendary civil engineer J. Waldo Smith, who is known for heading up the creation of the massive nearby reservoir that provides about 40 percent of New York City’s drinking water.
Two separate homes sit on the nearly 12.5 acres of land. The 3,500-square-foot main house, complete with five beds and three baths, boasts a columned entrance with a large porch. In the fall, the porch is lined with towering red shrubbery.
A short walk away is the carriage house, which has 3 beds and 2.5 baths. Combined, the two homes have nearly 6,000 square feet of livable space.
According to Corocoran’s listing, the neo-classic stone architecture of both homes have been ‘lovingly maintained’ throughout their century-long existence.
Pictured: Chevy Chase’s childhood home in West Hurley, New York. The mansion has hit the market for nearly $3.7 million
Pictured: The home’s massive front porch, held up with Roman-style columns
The interior of the main home is full of charms such as high ceilings and large rooms that still have their original red oak moldings and hardwood floors.
The living room has a fireplace with a mantle made of red brick and is surrounded with windows to let in tons of natural light.
The kitchen, another room with plenty of windows, has ‘a farmhouse sink, stainless steel appliances, large island and ample cabinetry,’ according to the listing.
Although there is a small eating nook in the kitchen, the space is adjacent to the formal dining room, which has the home’s characteristic hardwood floors and an elegant china cabinet.
The upstairs is where the bedrooms are found. The master has an ensuite bathroom, complete with three windows and a beautiful clawfoot tub.
The views of the mountainous, tree-topped landscape can be enjoyed on the home’s patio, which has a inground saltwater pool, or from the third floor cupola.
The carriage house offers the eventual owner a rental opportunity or the perfect place to house guests.
It comes with a cozy living room, also with a red brick fireplace. Nearby is the dining room, which leads out to a wooden deck via french doors.
The bedrooms are on the main floor, while the upstairs is home to the great room, which is big enough to be used as a yoga or art studio.
Pictured: The main home’s living room, complete with a sitting area and a red brick fireplace
The kitchen, though maintaining much of its original charm, has modern appliances
Pictured: The living area of the carriage house, complemented by a light green wraparound couch
An aerial view of the main home, along with the inground saltwater pool
The property overlooks the Catskill Mountains and the the Ashokan Reservoir
It’s not entirely clear when Chase, 81, lived in this home, though by the time he was high school age, he was attending Stockbridge School in Massachusetts. The now-closed boarding school was nearly 73 miles away from the home.
In 2019, Chase did post a picture back from 1950 of himself with his father, Ned Chase, in Woodstock. The ‘National Lampoon’ star would have been six years old in the photo.
Chase first gained notoriety in 1975 when he was selected to be a cast member on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, a show that persists to this day.
Chase coined the term the cast uses to this day to introduce the show: ‘Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!’
Known for his physical comedy, one of his most famous sketches was when he mocked President Gerald Ford for tripping while getting off Air Force One in Salzburg, Austria.
Chase later got to meet Ford and the two patched things up despite him routinely getting portrayed as a lovable klutz. A year after Ford died in 2006, Chase called him ‘a terrific guy.’
Despite being one of the original cast members on SNL, Chase didn’t last long on the show, reportedly because of his personal issues with his colleagues. Bill Murray replaced him in 1976 midway through the second season.
He is rumored to be banned from the show after he was abusive to other cast members when he hosted it in 1997.
Chase’s hot-headed reputation followed him throughout his career and many actors have publicly said how difficult it is to work with him.
Chevy Chase, then about six years old, poses with his dad in Woodstock, New York, in 1950
Chase got his first big break as the anchor of Saturday Night Live’s ‘Weekend Update’
Chase is pictured with President Gerald Ford and White House Press Secretary Ron Nessen on March 25, 1976, at the Radio/TV Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington D.C.
Not too dissimilar from his abrupt end on SNL, Chase was fired from critically acclaimed NBC sitcom ‘Community’ in 2013 after using the N-word in front of his black co-stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover.
Ten years later, Chase decided to trash his time on the show portraying politically-incorrect millionaire Pierce Hawthorne.
‘I just didn’t want to be surrounded by that table, every day, with those people. It was too much,’ he told a podcast in 2023.
Co-star Joel McHale, who played a slick, illegitimate lawyer on the show, struck right back at Chase, telling him ‘the feeling’s mutual, bud.’
‘I was like, “Hey, no one was keeping you there.” I mean, we weren’t sentenced to that show. It was like, “All right, you could have left if you really wanted that.” But yeah, you know Chevy. That’s Chevy being Chevy,’ McHale told People.
Pete Davidson, who left SNL in 2022 after an eight-year stint, famously called Chase ‘a bad person’ on The Howard Stern Show in 2018.
‘F*** Chevy Chase,’ Davidson said at the time. ‘He’s just a genuinely bad, racist person and I don’t like him.’
Chase responded four years later by saying he didn’t care.
‘I am who I am,’ he said. ‘And I like… who I am. I don’t care. And it’s part of me that I don’t care. And I’ve thought about that a lot. And I don’t know what to tell you, man. I just don’t care.’
Chase, 80, revealed he’s going to be a grandfather last March with the announcement that his daughter Emily, 36, and her partner Alex Baglieri were expecting their first child together
Chase also reunited with Christie Brinkley last summer. Brinkley starred alongside him National Lampoon’s ‘Vacation’ in 1983
More recently, Chase has stayed out of the drama and has been focusing on his family.
In March of last year, he announced on Instagram that he was going to be a grandfather.
‘I can’t wait to be a Grandad!’ he wrote, including a photo of himself with the soon-to-be parents, his daughter Emily Chase and her husband Alex Baglieri.
Emily is one of three daughters he shares with his third and current wife Jayni Luke, who he married back in 1982.
Last summer, Chase also reunited with Christie Brinkley, the 70-year-old model who starred alongside him National Lampoon’s ‘Vacation’ in 1983.
‘Vacation is always over too soon! @chevychase,’ Brinkley captioned the Instagram photos and video of them sitting in the back of a car.
Brinkley played the hot girl who drove a red Ferrari and nearly drove Chase’s character, Clark Griswold, off the road when she winked at him.
