show ad

EXCLUSIVE - Meet Michael Sam's boyfriend Vito and his mob relatives: Swimmer's father was jailed for sports gambling and grandfather was infamous gangster known as 'Willie the Rat'
AJ McCarron in Twitter rant after he was FINALLY drafted into the NFL: QB argues with fans that he 'sacrificed a lot' for Alabama after disappointing draft
White House wanted Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner to LIE to the public about social security being behind the deficit
Second American case of lethal MERS virus discovered in Florida after Indiana man fell ill
How the tune played by ice cream truck is one of the most RACIST songs in history
Fifth teen dies after horrific head-on Mother's Day car crash
Mystery on the Chattahoochee: Three bodies pulled from river in less than two weeks as FBI investigates
'I don't love him, I pity him': Shelly Sterling says she wanted to finally divorce her disgraced husband but her financial advisor told her 'not now'
Wet and wild! New Orlando water slide is the tallest and steepest in Florida city
Is this the Facebook phone? Latest patent images reveal a handset with touchpads on the SIDE of the device
Fed up with your friend's annoying updates? Twitter launches mute button to temporarily silence annoying tweeters
Second part of Ukraine asks to be taken over by Russia after ‘rigged’ referendum as Putin says he will ‘respect’ outcome of votes
Searchers fear 'pings' they thought were from missing MH370 were not from the plane at all - casting doubt on any future salvage effort
Family of five en route to Disneyland on Mother's Day killed after van flipped and landed on top of their car
Could Google fix an election? Researchers warn search ranking can have major influence on undecided voters
Were dinosaurs wiped out by a 'nuclear winter'? Dust from the asteroid impact may have blocked the sun and caused temperatures to plummet
Spring storms dumps THREE FEET of snow on the Rockies... while New York City basks in 80 degree heat
Beat yo-yo dieting for ever - by tapping on your face: It sounds too good to be true. But this could be the simplest weight-loss regime yet?
Shocking video shows just how easy it is to break into your suitcase - and leave it looking like it's never been touched
Pictured: The nine-month-old boy shot dead by masked gunmen in retaliation for a spate of murders outside Atlanta
Teenage boy 'who planned Columbine-style massacre' pleads not guilty as he faces up to 18 years in prison
'Peeping Tom' Steven Powell's home sold to mother of the young girls whose he photographed naked as part of restitution
'Stop f---in around an start a family an stop breaking the law': The scribbled suicide notes found in prison cell of man, 20, who hanged himself after murdering a cop
Golfer defends his decision to carry on playing after his caddie died of a heart attack on the course

Rooftop hideaway! Bette Midler reveals inside her stunning multimillion dollar New York Penthouse

Published: 11:17 EST, 7 May 2014 | Updated: 15:35 EST, 7 May 2014

105

View
comments

Who needs the wind beneath your wings when you have the whole of Manhattan under your feet?

Bette Midler certainly doesn't, thanks to her stunning New York Penthouse.

Opening up her 3,100-square-foot to Architectural Digest, the Divine Miss M has given fans a rare sneak peek into her private domain - and it is breathtaking.

Scroll down for video

Life's a beach: Bette Midler has opened up her 3,100-square-foot New York Penthouse, giving fans a rare sneak peek into her private domain

The star's need to find light in New York City has meant the 68-year-old has created her own rooftop oasis which overlooks Central Park's reservoir.

Featuring in June's issue of the magazine - which hit newsstands on Tuesday - the Upper East Side home stands out even against the rest of the Carnegie Hill luxury proprieties.

After first buying the Fifth Avenue 12-room triplex co-op in 1996 for $3.5 million - a steal compared to its worth today - the Beaches star has transformed the rooftop units into one giant penthouse with wraparound terraces and even a glass enclosed garden.

Unparallelled view: The star's need to find light in New York City has meant the 68-year-old has created her own rooftop oasis which overlooks Central Park's reservoir

Garden in the sky: Taking influence for English country houses, the terraces are covered in climbing rose bushes and clematises and filled with green tress, which create shaded escapes for hot New York summers

From her living room the film icon is able to stare out across the reservoir, and then the terraces - which were designed by architect Brian Sawyer - allow her to soak up what many New Yorker's do not get a chnace to, light and air.

Clearly taking influence for English country houses, the terraces are covered in climbing rose bushes and clematises and filled with green tress, which create shaded escapes for hot New York summers.

Cover worthy: Featuring in June's issue Architectural Digest magazine - which hit newsstands on Tuesday - the Upper East Side home stands out even against the rest of the Carnegie Hill luxury proprieties

Inside the home - which Bette shares with her husband of 30 years Martin von Haselberg - the focus has been about bringing the light in.

And while the star hired team to furnish and remodel the apartment, the home does not stick to any time period or particular style - and that is the way the Hocus Pocus actress likes it.

She told the magazine about her eclectic style: 'I don’t make a study of anything - if I fall in love with something, I want it.'

It is her varied career of singing, acting in films and starring on Broadway which she said is to blame.

'For me, working in many media, it’s hard to just do one thing.'

The actress has made sure however, that those furnishings that make the cut include luxurious fabrics and have a focus on craftsmanship.

'My mother was a great seamstress, really brilliant, because of her I’ve been crazy about textiles all my life.

'And my father painted houses for a living. I grew up around people who worked with their hands, so I love how you can see the care and affection that craftsmen pour into their creations.'

Her husband - who is an investor and performance artists - is responsible for the apartment's artwork, which has a focus on 'really juicy paintings'.

Mix and match: While the star hired team to furnish and remodel the apartment, the home does not stick to any time period or particular style - and that is the way the Hocus Pocus actress likes it

While Bette is lucky she can indulge her love of light and gardens, she knows other New Yorkers are not as lucky, so the actress tries to give back through, the New York Restoration Project.

The project - which she founded - sees volunteers revitalise forgotten parks and create community gardens.

The star told the magazine: 'If you live in the kind of apartment that most people do, you’d want to go sit on a park bench too. I lived that way for years when I moved to New York.

'People suffer from the lack of light in this town, there aren’t enough windows.'

Bette Midler's Lush Manhattan Penthouse and Garden

MOST WATCHED NEWS VIDEOS

Comments (105)

Share what you think

View all

The comments below have not been moderated.

Poppy, edinburgh, United Kingdom, 3 days ago

Start spreading the news, I'm leaving to day I'm gonna be apart of it NEW YORK NEW YORK. Oh yes please

Click to rate

Hortensia, Truro, United Kingdom, 3 days ago

Oh!......Wonderful apartment. Just perfect. To sit outside and have light and sun. New York is so cramped, that hundreds of buildings never get any sun. I felt claustrophobic as I looked up at this huddle. Greed has removed nearly all green spaces. There was a graveyard, which was green, and I thought, "How long, before they dig everyone up, to build and build".....Bette Midler! ....Well done! You deserve it. ..