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The Iconic Playboy Mansion
The Provenance…
The original mansion was a 70-room classic French brick and limestone residence in
Chicago at 1340 North State Parkway, which had been built in 1899 for Dr. George Swift
Isham. The mansion was designed by James Gamble Rogers, architect of several stately
buildings, including the campuses of Northwestern and Yale universities.
In 1914, Dr. Isham had the house to the south built as a wedding present for his daughter
and the house was connected to the mansion. It was acquired by Hugh Hefner in 1959
and became the Chicago Playboy Mansion. For a period in the 1970s, Hefner divided his
time between the Chicago Mansion and the Mansion West before moving full time to
California. Hefner leased the Playboy Mansion to the School of the Art Institute for $10 a
year and it then became a student dormitory in the eighties.
In the mid-1990s, the mansion was purchased by Bruce Abrams, principal of well
respected LR Development firm and was completely gutted and transformed into seven
luxury condominiums of varying sizes. It has since remained the most desirable address
in Chicago’s renowned Gold Coast neighborhood.
Today 1340 North State Parkway is home to many high profile individuals and their families
who desire a home-like feeling, an intimate building, services, privacy and security.
