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14 stars who've had homes in Oregon (and a few who were rumored to)
Oregon has long held appeal for celebrities who like to have a place to get away from the pressure of Los Angeles and New York. Here are some of the famous names -- including Sam Elliott, pictured -- who, over the decades, have had homes in Oregon (plus a few who, rumor has it, spent time here.) -- Kristi Turnquist
1. Bruce Campbell
Actor Bruce Campbell, who has swaggered his way to fan-favorite status through the "Evil Dead" movies, and is currently having one hell of a good time on Starz in "Ash vs. Evil Dead," bought property in Southern Oregon in 1998. At the 2015 Summer TV Press Tour, Campbell told me his family has "a little place in Ashland," and "a place out in the boonies in the Applegate."
2. Sam Elliott
Sam Elliott, who brings classic Western charm (and sometimes menace) to his roles in everything from "The Big Lewbowski" to the new Netflix comedy, "The Ranch," went to David Douglas High School in Portland. At the 2015 Winter TV Press Tour, Elliott told me he still spends a lot of time in Oregon. "My mom's house is still there, and we still own it," he said. "I've got a place in the Willamette Valley, down near Eugene. I'm ultimately hoping to move back to Oregon."
AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast
3. Jim Belushi
Actor Jim Belushi worked with contractors to build a vacation cabin on the Rogue River in Southern Oregon, a process chronicled in the DIY Network series, "Building Belushi."
4. Carrie Brownstein
Musician/writer/actor Carrie Brownstein grew up in Redmond, Washington, and moved to Portland in 2000. She recently moved to Los Angeles, but, she says, lives part of the time in Oregon.
5. k.d. lang
The Canadian-born singer and songwriter k.d. lang moved to Portland in 2013. As she told me an interview, "I was really attracted to the city for years and years. It just got to the point where I felt it was time to leave Los Angeles, and Portland was my No. 1 destination. So I just kind of bit the bullet."
6. Kim Novak
Kim Novak, the star of such classic movies as "Vertigo" and "Bell, Book and Candle." bought a place on the Rogue River in Southern Oregon in the late 1990s, where she lives with her husband. "We love it here," she told me in a 2010 interview. "It's very important for us to be on the water. I loved living on the ocean before, and now we're on the Rogue, we've got two islands, and wonderful places for the horses."
7. Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers, fabled dance partner to Fred Astaire, and a top star during Hollywood's Golden Age, lived in Southern Oregon for decades. The Medford Mail Tribune reports that Rogers first bought property in Jackson County in 1940, and that she later moved to Medford, where she kept a home in addition to a house in Southern California.
8. Rainn Wilson
Actor Rainn Wilson ("The Office") grew up in the Northwest, and he and his wife have a cabin in Sisters, in Central Oregon. Wilson told 1859 Magazine in 2011, "Oregonians are like Canadians -- impossibly nice and they wear whitewater sandals with wool socks."
9. William Hurt
Actor William Hurt ("The Incredible Hulk," "Humans") performed with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in his younger days, has since acted onstage in Portland. and, it was reported in 2010, had a ranch in Central Oregon.
10. Kirstie Alley
Actress Kirstie Alley ("Cheers") years ago bought a ranch in Jacksonville, in Southern Oregon. "I fell in love with that area," Alley said in an interview with a local station. (She also worked in some promo for Jenny Craig.)
11. Donal Logue
Actor Donal Logue ("Gotham") bought a home in Shady Cove, north of Medford, about a decade ago. Logue also had a hand in some local enterprises, including a hardwood company and a transport business.
12. Annette O'Toole
Actress Annette O'Toole ("Smallville") lived in the Ashland area in the 1980s and 1990s, before moving back to California.
Joel Ryan/Invision/AP
13. Gus Van Sant
Award-winning movie director Gus Van Sant ("Good Will Hunting," "Milk") moved to Portland with his family when he was still in school, and has maintained various homes in Portland in the years since. Van Sant's Sauvie Island home sold for $1.4 million in October, 2015. Van Sant is pictured here with Matthew McConaughey, who starred in Van Sant's film, "The Sea of Trees," at the 2015 Cannes film festival.
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14. Claire Coffee
Actress Claire Coffee (Adalind on "Grimm") and her husband, composer/mandolinist Chris Thile, bought a house, she told me in 2015. "So we're officially Portlanders now." Coffee is pictured holding her baby, Calvin, at an event at the Ace Hotel in downtown Portland in September, 2015.
Andy Kropa/Invision/AP
Rumors, rumors, and more rumors
Over the years, rumors have circulated about other stars having homes in Oregon. Some reports say Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson bought a place in the Brookings/Harbor area, on the Southern Oregon Coast. Others speculate about Johnny Depp turning up in and around Ashland. And Brad Pitt, some have reported, has relatives who live in the Bandon area. Do you know of any stars with Oregon homes that we've missed?
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