It's 'Funny' to Live In Billy Crystal's Boyhood Home

The cape homes that line the 500 block of East Park Avenue may not seem special when compared to the larger, modern and historic homes throughout Long Beach. But some pretty significant celebrity history can be found at 549 E. Park Ave., the childhood home of Billy Crystal.

In his book 700 Sundays, Crystal writes about growing up in Long Beach and his memories of that house. He reminisces about the family gatherings there, the laughter that echoed throughout, the mandolin his father played in front of the large living room window, the television shows they watched together, and the median directly across Park Avenue, where his brothers played baseball for countless hours.

Though Crystal and his two brothers, Rip and Joel (who still lives in Long Beach) sold the home after their mother died years ago, the house has yet to lose its Crystal spirit.

Though the current homeowners, Pat and Suzanne Kinnier, don't have three young boys who play ball outside, they gather in the living room to watch television together and fill the rooms with laughter, just as the Crystal's did. The family is know to be boisterous and welcoming, and has a neighborhood full of friends, which some might say makes them ideal for the next generation in the house.

Previously the Kinniers lived in the Crystal House apartments on Shore Road, the name just a coincidence, but perhaps a sign of things to come. The couple moved in to the Billy Crystal home with their two daughters, Kelly and Cloe, in April 2009. It was listed as previously owned by someone famous, but the Kinniers said its celebrity appeal wasn't what primarily drove them to buy it.

"Pat liked the energy of the house," Suzanne said.  "He told me, 'Suzy, it'd be a funny place to live.'"  

The Kinniers have always enjoyed a little humor in their day, and to get the chance to live in a house once owned by a an iconic comedic family seemed to seal the deal for them. They said they've been happy in their new home since.

While the couple has made the house their own, adding Adirondack chairs, tug boat ropes, plants and flowers in their front yard, they've embraced the Crystal spirit that came with the celebrity home, and have made it part of theirs as well.

"Eventually I want to do something with the outside," Suzanne said.  "Something with crystals."