[2] The main entrance to the house is framed by an elaborate pair of Corinthian columns two stories in height topped with a broken pediment and urn.
[2] Neff designed all rooms to "have at least two exposures opening onto wide loggias and terraces which overlook the gardens and on beyond to the sea" to enhance the views from the property.
[2][4] The house was modelled by Neff on the Villa Giulia designed by Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola for Pope Julius III.
[5] Kevin Starr praises the "splendiferous theatricality" of the house in his 1991 book Material Dreams: Southern California Through the 1920s.
[5] Wurtzel's wife, Marian, decorated the house with reproduction antique furniture and English silver and crystal chandeliers sourced from Italy.