After Doheny’s untimely death in 1929, his widow, Lucy and her second husband resided in the house until they sold it in 1955. The new owner, Henry Crown of Chicago, never lived in the mansion but instead used it as a popular filming location. In 1965, the City of Beverly Hills purchased the property and turned it into the city’s largest water reservoir. The site was later recognized as a historic landmark and formally dedicated as a public park.
In 1984, the Greystone Mansion Foundation was formed to further develop the property. Fred Nicholas served as Chairman of the foundation, which was comprised of 15 community members from all areas of the city with varied interests and political ties. The goal of the foundation was to find a suitable tenant for the historic mansion without letting politics dictate the decision. During his term in office, Nicholas proposed promising tenants including the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation, which sought to use the mansion as a museum to display its highly regarded collection of modern art. Weisman had offered $6 million to rehabilitate the decaying estate, plus $1 million per year in operating funds. After two years and hundreds of hours of pro bono work, the deal with the Weisman Foundation fell through when the city proposed to instead sell Greystone to raise funds for the public school system, which Weisman felt pitted him against the public school system.
Ironically, politics between the foundation and City Council interfered with the foundation’s efforts and Nicholas resigned as Chairman in 1987. As Nicholas said at the time, “I find it impossible to do pro bono work which is maligned and unappreciated.” To this day, Greystone Mansion remains unoccupied and serves as an event venue and filming location.
