What was Phyllis Diller's Net Worth?
Phyllis Diller was an American stand-up comic, actress, and author who had a net worth of $18 million at the time of her death. As we detail at the end of this article, a large percentage of her net worth at the time of her death was the value of her mansion in LA's Brentwood neighborhood, located on infamous Rockingham Avenue. She died on August 20, 2012 at the age of 95. Phyllis Diller was known for her wild, eccentric stage manner and self-deprecating sense of humor. One of the first solo female comedians to become a household name, she appeared frequently on television, with credits including many game shows, variety shows, comedy and drama series, and her own short-lived sitcom. Diller also appeared in a number of films, including "Splendor in the Grass" and "Eight on the Lam," and lent her voice to such animated films as "Mad Monster Party?" and "A Bug's Life."
Early Life and Education
Phyllis Diller was born as Phyllis Driver on July 17, 1917 in Lima, Ohio as the only child of Perry and Frances. She was of Irish and German descent and was raised Methodist. Diller was educated at Central High School, where she discovered her gift for comedy. She went on to study piano for three years at Columbia College Chicago's Sherwood Music Conservatory. Eventually choosing not to follow a musical career path, Diller transferred to Bluffton College in Ohio. However, she didn't complete her degree.
Career Beginnings
In the early 50s, Diller moved to Alameda, California and landed a job at KROW radio in Oakland. She also filmed several 15-minute comedy segments for Bay Area television, and worked as a copywriter at KSFO radio in San Francisco. Encouraged by her husband, Diller eventually made her debut as a stand-up comic in 1955, holding her first professional show at the Purple Onion in San Francisco. Her show was a major success, resulting in an 89-week booking at the Purple Onion. Diller honed her act over the years, developing a distinctive stage persona characterized by self-deprecating humor, outlandish fashion, and a cackling laugh.
Television Career
Diller made her first appearance on national television in a 1958 episode of Groucho Marx's quiz show "You Bet Your Life." She went on to make appearances on "Tonight Starring Jack Paar" and "The Ed Sullivan Show," launching her to national fame. Throughout the 60s and 70s, Diller was a regular on the popular game shows "Match Game," "Hollywood Squares," and "Tattletales." She also made frequent appearances on many variety shows, including "The Bob Hope Show," "The Andy Williams Show," "The Dean Martin Show," "The Hollywood Palace," and "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In." From 1966 to 1967, Diller had her own sitcom, "The Pruitts of Southampton," which was eventually renamed "The Phyllis Diller Show."
In the 80s, Diller made guest appearances on such shows as "The Love Boat," "As the World Turns," "The Jeffersons," and "Night Heat." She also continued to appear regularly on game shows, with credits including "Body Language" and "Super Password." In the 90s, Diller had recurring roles on the sitcom "Blossom" and the soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful." Later in the decade, she lent her voice to episodes of numerous animated series, including "Animaniacs," "King of the Hill," "Cow and Chicken," "I Am Weasel," and "Hey Arnold!" Diller continued acting steadily into the new millennium, with notable appearances on "Titus," "7th Heaven," and "Boston Legal." She also voiced characters on the animated shows "The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron," "Robot Chicken," and "Family Guy."
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Film Career
Diller made her big-screen debut in 1961 in Elia Kazan's period film "Splendor in the Grass," portraying actress and entrepreneur Texas Guinan. Throughout the rest of the decade, she mostly appeared in low-budget films, such as "The Fat Spy," "Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number!," "Eight on the Lam," and "The Private Navy of Sgt. O'Farrell," the latter three of which costarred Bob Hope. Diller also starred in "Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady?" and "The Adding Machine," and lent her voice to the stop-motion animated musical comedy "Mad Monster Party?"
Diller appeared less frequently on the big screen in the 70s and 80s; her handful of credits included "A Pleasure Doing Business," "Pink Motel," and "Doctor Hackenstein." In the 90s, she appeared in a range of films, including the direct-to-video horror film "The Boneyard," the Hungarian comedy "The Perfect Man," and the parody film "The Silence of the Hams." Diller also voiced characters in a number of animated films, notably Pixar's "A Bug's Life." In the 00s, Diller was in such films as "Everything's Jake," "The Aristocrats," "Unbeatable Harold," and "Forget About It."
Books
Diller penned several books that took irreverent, sardonic looks at domestic life. Among her titles are "Phyllis Diller's Housekeeping Hints," "The Complete Mother," and "The Joys of Aging & How to Avoid Them." Later in her career, in 2006, she released her autobiography "Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse: My Life in Comedy," which was co-written by Richard Buskin.
Personal Life and Death
While at Bluffton College, Diller met her husband Sherwood; they were married in 1939. The couple had six children before divorcing in 1965. Diller then married actor Warde Donovan. Although she filed for divorce just three months after their marriage due to the revelation that Donovan was a bisexual alcoholic, the two reconciled and remained married until 1975. A decade after that, Diller began a relationship with Robert P. Hastings, with whom she was with until his passing in 1996.
In August of 2012, Diller died at her home in Los Angeles; she was 95 years of age. She left a lasting legacy as a pioneering female comedian and outspoken advocate of plastic surgery.
Brentwood Mansion
In 1965 Phyllis bought a 9,200 square foot, 22-room mansion in LA's Brentwood neighborhood. Her mansion was located on S. Rockingham Avenue, a one minute drive from O.J. Simpson's one-time Rockingham mansion. A month after Diller's death, her son listed the 1.2 acre property for sale for $12.6 million. Three months later, in December 2012, the mansion sold for $9.35 million. The next owner scraped the lot and proceeded to build a 12,000 square foot mansion that today is easily worth $20-30 million.
