Multi-Millionaire Does The Unthinkable In A Cave Fearing The Consequences Of The Cold War

Another Plan

So John Hay’s bunker’s relevance died down since the Soviet and America started becoming cordial. “When Gorbachev came in, I really began to lighten up,” Hay explained to interviewers that time. By October, the Celestial Seasonings co-founder was certain he would not need his bunker after all. He needed another plan now. So what would he do with his extravagant $2 million man cave?

Making Some Changes

Though Hay’s need for a bunker flew out the window, since he was a businessman, he knew what he had to do next. He had to adapt to the changes and so he did. He decided to convert the cave from a place to find safety to a place of pleasure. He wanted it to be a party house or even a vacation loft. He had to plan this and make it a reality…

A Hollywood Home

So as the heat of the Cold War began to subside, John Hay made up his mind to convert his bunker into a luxury cavern that would be up for sale soon. He made a few tweaks to it, adding a “Fred Astaire dance floor” in the great room. “I didn’t know what to do, so I thought I would make it into a Hollywood home, and see if I couldn’t sell it for a decent price,” he was quoted explaining…

On The Market

By October 1987, John Hay knew his luxury cave was not needed. He actually wanted to sell it for $4.5 million which would be about $10 million today. However, he was advised by his real estate broker advised him to reduce the price to a million dollars less. There was a potential buyer. He was a California biotech executive who seemed keen. In the year 2017, the Census Bureau Survey of the Median Price per Square Foot showed price on the market per square foot of a house would be $95.35 to about $148.45.

Mystery Buyer

His real estate broker was right to have asked Hay to reduce his asking price. Listing agent Rayne Davidson revealed that Hay ended up selling his save to a rich Missouri man under the alias “Mr. Richardson” in 1988. So then the cave that he put so much effort and money to build was now the property of a billionaire mysterious called “Mr. Richardson.”

Now A Night Club

It turns out Mr. Richardson was quite the party freak. After he bought the cave from John Hay, he flipped it into a full-fledged nightclub with a helipad for his VIP guests. This had never happened before and so it was truly a real estate revolution. So John Hay cave went on to become a hot spot where there were alleged celebrity visits too.