Celebrities among those who lost homes as devastating Los Angeles fires

ENT

Celebrities among those who lost homes as devastating Los Angeles fires

2025-01-09 12:31 Last Updated At：12:42

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Wildfires that are burning in and around Los Angeles have burned the homes of several celebrities, including Billy Crystal, Mandy Moore and Paris Hilton.

California firefighters are battling wind-whipped fires tearing across the area, destroying homes, clogging roadways as tens of thousands fled and straining resources as the fires burned uncontained Wednesday.

Crystal and his wife, Janice, released a statement Wednesday saying their home of 45 years in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood was lost.

"Janice and I lived in our home since 1979. We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away. We are heartbroken of course but with the love of our children and friends we will get through this,” the Crystals wrote in the statement.

Their neighborhood is a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity residences and memorialized by the Beach Boys in their 1960s hit “Surfin’ USA.” In the frantic haste to get to safety, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot, some toting suitcases.

“Evacuated Malibu so last minute,” wrote Hamill in an Instagram post Tuesday night. “Small fires on both sides of the road as we approached (the Pacific Coast Highway).”

Less than 72 hours before, Hollywood’s highest-wattage stars had convened to walk the Golden Globes’ red carpet, the first major event of the exuberant and, for many, triumphant awards season. The revelry of awards season had quickly been snuffed out, too: Premieres of contenders like “Better Man” and “The Last Showgirl” were canceled, the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations were announced via press release instead of at a live event and weekend events like the AFI Awards were preemptively scrubbed.

The Oscar nominations are also being delayed two days to Jan. 19 and the film academy has extended the voting window to accommodate members affected by the fires.

Here's how celebrities and entertainment companies are being impacted by the fires burning in and around Los Angeles:

Moore lost her home in the Altadena neighborhood near Pasadena.

“Honestly, I’m in shock and feeling numb for all so many have lost, including my family. My children’s school is gone. Our favorite restaurants, leveled. So many friends and loved ones have lost everything too,” the actor-singer wrote on Instagram in a post that included video of devastated streets in the foothill suburb.

“Our community is broken but we will be here to rebuild together. Sending love to all affected and on the front lines trying to get this under control,” Moore wrote.

The Crystals expressed a similar sentiment about the Palisades. “The Pacific Palisades is a resilient community of amazing people and we know in time it will rise again. It is our home,” they wrote.

Elwes, the star of “The Princess Bride” and numerous other films, wrote on Instagram Wednesday that his family was safe but their home had burned in the coastal Palisades fire. “Sadly we did lose our home but we are grateful to have survived this truly devastating fire,” Elwes wrote.

Hilton posted a news video clip on Instagram and said it included footage of her destroyed home in Malibu. "This home was where we built so many precious memories. It’s where Phoenix took his first steps and where we dreamed of building a lifetime of memories with London," she said, referencing her young children.

“The devastation is unimaginable. To know so many are waking up today without the place they called home is truly heartbreaking,” she wrote.

Jamie Lee Curtis said Wednesday on Instagram that her family is safe, but she suggested her neighborhood and possibly her home is on fire. She said many of her friends lost their homes.

“It's a terrifying situation and I'm grateful to the firefighters and all of the good Samaritans who are helping people get out of the way of the blaze."

Other stars who have homes in the area include Adam Sandler, Ben Affleck, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.

Many are awaiting word on whether their homes survived the flames.

James Woods posted footage Tuesday of flames burning through bushes and past palm trees on a hill near his home. The towering orange flames billowed among the landscaped yards between the homes.

“Standing in my driveway, getting ready to evacuate,” Woods said in the short video on X. Later, he confirmed he had evacuated and added: “It tests your soul, losing everything at once, I must say.”

Officials didn’t give an estimate of structures damaged or destroyed in the wildfire, but they said at least 70,000 residents were under evacuation orders and nearly 30,000 structures were under threat.

The fire burned down Temescal Canyon, a popular hiking area surrounded by dense neighborhoods of multimillion-dollar homes. Flames jumped famous Sunset Boulevard and burned parts of the Palisades Charter High School, which has been featured in many Hollywood productions including the 1976 horror movie “Carrie,” the 2003 remake of “Freaky Friday” and the TV series “Teen Wolf.”

The Palisades fire also destroyed the historic ranch house that belonged to Hollywood legend Will Rogers. It was among multiple structures destroyed at both Will Rogers State Historic Park and Topanga State Park. The historic Topanga Ranch Motel, built by William Randolph Hearst in 1929, also burned down.

Rogers’ ranch, built on land he bought in the 1920s, occupied some 359 acres in what is now Pacific Palisades. It included a 31-room ranch house, a stable, golf course and riding trails. His wife donated it to California State Parks in 1944.

The Critics Choice Awards, originally scheduled for Sunday, have been postponed until Feb. 26.

Film studios canceled two movie premieres due to the fire and windy weather, the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park closed for the day due to the smoky and windy conditions and the J. Paul Getty Trust said two of its museums, the Getty Villa and Getty Center, would remain closed for the next few days.

Universal Studios also canceled shooting for numerous series, including “Hacks,” “Ted Lasso” and “Suits LA.”

The Walt Disney Co. closed its headquarters in Burbank, and canceled production on several series, including “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Doctor Odyssey.” ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” which tapes in Hollywood, was canceled for Wednesday and will instead air a repeat.

The production pauses added to further disruptions to the film and TV industry in Los Angeles, including the cancellation of the premiere to Universal’s “Wolf Man” and postponement of the American Film Institute awards gala, scheduled for Friday.

AP Entertainment Writers Jake Coyle, Jocelyn Noveck, Lindsey Bahr and Jonathan Landrum Jr. contributed to this report.

Hollywood Hills fire breaks out as deadly wildfires burn out of control across Los Angeles area

2025-01-09 12:36 Last Updated At：12:41

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A fast-moving fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday night, threatening one of Los Angeles' most iconic spots as firefighters battled to get under control three other major blazes that killed five people, put 130,000 people under evacuation orders and ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to inland Pasadena.

The Sunset Fire was burning near the Hollywood Bowl and about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The streets around Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and Madame Tussauds were packed with stop-and-go traffic as sirens blared and low-flying helicopters soared by on their way to dump water on the flames. People toting suitcases left hotels on foot, while some onlookers walked toward the flames, recording the fire on their phones.

Winds eased up some Wednesday, a day after hurricane-force winds blew embers through the air, igniting block after block, and hundreds of firefighters from other states have arrived to help, but the four fires burning out of control showed the danger is far from over.

More than half a dozen schools in the area were either damaged or destroyed, including Palisades Charter High School, which has been featured in many Hollywood productions, including the 1976 horror movie “Carrie” and the TV series “Teen Wolf,” officials said. UCLA has canceled classes for the week.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said air operations were dousing flames. She warned they still faced “erratic winds,” though not like Tuesday evening, when aircraft had to be grounded and much of the destruction occurred.

In Pasadena, Fire Chief Chad Augustin said between 200 and 500 structures have been damaged or lost from the Eaton Fire that started Tuesday night.

He said the city's water system was stretched and was further hampered by power outages, but even without those issues, firefighters would not have been able to stop the fire due to the intense winds fanning the flames.

“Those erratic wind gusts were throwing embers for multiple miles ahead of the fire,” he said.

On the Pacific Coast west of downtown Los Angeles, a major fire leveled entire blocks, reducing grocery stores and banks to rubble in the Pacific Palisades, a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity homes and memorialized by the Beach Boys in their 1960s hit “Surfin’ USA.”

The Palisades fire was the most destructive in the Los Angeles history, with at least 1,000 structures burned.

The scope of the destruction was just becoming clear: Block after block of California Mission Style homes and bungalows were reduced to nothing but charred remains dotted by stone fireplaces and blackened arched entryways. Ornate iron railing wrapped around the smoldering frame of one house. The apocalyptic scenes spread for miles.

Swimming pools were blackened with soot, and sports cars slumped on melted tires.

As flames moved through his neighborhood, Jose Velasquez sprayed down his family's Altadena home with water as embers rained down on the roof. He managed to save their home, which also houses their family business of selling churros, a Mexican pastry. Others weren't so lucky. Many of his neighbors were at work when they lost their homes.

“So we had to call a few people and then we had people messaging, asking if their house was still standing," he said. "We had to tell them that it’s not.”

Beyond the burned areas, residents worked wearing N95 masks, unable to escape the toxic smoke wafting over huge sections of the city.

The flames marched toward highly populated and affluent neighborhoods, including Calabasas and Santa Monica, home to California’s rich and famous.

Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes and Paris Hilton are among the stars who said Wednesday they lost homes.

Billy Crystal and his wife Janice lost their home of 45 years in the Palisades Fire.

“We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away," the Crystals wrote in the statement.

In Palisades Village, the public library, two major grocery stores, a pair of banks and several boutiques were destroyed.

“It’s just really weird coming back to somewhere that doesn’t really exist anymore,” said Dylan Vincent, who returned to the neighborhood to retrieve some items and saw that his elementary school had burned down and that whole blocks had been flattened.

The fires have consumed a total of about 42 square miles (108 square kilometers) — nearly the size of the entire city of San Francisco.

Flames moved so quickly that many barely had time to escape. Police sought shelter inside their patrol cars, and residents at a senior living center were pushed in wheelchairs and hospital beds down a street to safety.

In the race to get away in Pacific Palisades, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot.

California’s wildfire season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association.

Dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, which has not seen more than 0.1 inches (2.5 millimeters) of rain since early May.

The winds increased to 80 mph (129 kph) Wednesday, according to reports received by the National Weather Service. Forecasters predicted wind gusts of 35-55 mph (56 to 88 kph) that could rise higher in the mountains and foothills. Fire conditions could last through Friday.

President Joe Biden signed a federal emergency declaration after arriving at a Santa Monica fire station for a briefing with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who dispatched National Guard troops to help.

Several Hollywood studios suspended production, and Universal Studios closed its theme park between Pasadena and Pacific Palisades.

As of Wednesday evening, more than 456,000 people were without power in southern California, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.

Several Southern California landmarks were heavily damaged, including the Reel Inn in Malibu, a seafood restaurant. Owner Teddy Leonard and her husband hope to rebuild.

“When you look at the grand scheme of things, as long as your family is well and everyone’s alive, you’re still winning, right?” she said.

Golden reported from Seattle and Watson from San Diego. Associated Press journalists Christopher Weber and Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles, Ethan Swope in Pasadena, John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, Jeff Martin in Atlanta, Janie Har in San Francisco, Brian Melley in London, Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland, and Tammy Webber in Detroit contributed to this report.