On a Tuesday evening in mid-July, Jacunda, Jason & I set out for Mike Tyson's former mansion in rural northeast Ohio. It was remarkably easy to find, thanks to the "Mike Tyson" archway over the main driveway. We had to sit for a while in the pouring rain, waiting for our tour guide to arrive, but when she did, the rain had mostly stopped and we were able to go in.

Everyone says how bad shape the place is in, but it really isn't that bad. My place has been worse after some parties. There was some copper missing from two hot water tanks, but that was it. Most of it was just cosmetic damage. The glass rear-projection screen was broken, though, and the old Sony 3-gun video projector had seen better days. The basement was a different story. Black mold coated the drop ceiling, and it smelled really damp. I don't think there was water leaking, I think general dampness just got a foothold. But the basement was bad.

The pool is enormous. The room its in is bigger than some churches, and resembles one with the arched ceiling. The water in it is green, but really not bad. You can see the bottom. My mom's pool looks worse, and her house isn't abandoned!

The media room, just off the pool room, has the infamous zebra-strip carpet, which, really, isn't all that bad. Someone had taken a small piece as a souvenir, or maybe to find it at a carpet store. But I have seen worse decor. Such as in the bathroom. All black fixtures with gold plumbing, and black with gold brushstrokes wallpaper. The big tub had a nice view, though. I lost count of the number of bedrooms. There are still some mattresses and headboards and stuff in them.

Then there's the guardhouse. It sits out by the road and has three bedrooms of its own! Plus all the surveillance gear is still there (though the monitors have serious phosphor burn-in). The guard house wasn't too interesting, but the main house, including the tiger cages out back, was definitely worth it.

One word of warning: (OK, several) Our tour guide said some kids had gotten busted there a week or so earlier, so I assume the neighbors watch the place.

Some history:
Tyson bought the house in 1989 and added the media room, pool room, guard house, tiger cages and basketball court (complete with "Team Tyson" logo). He sold the house in 1999 for $1.3 million to one Paul Monea, who had served time for money laundering with a Canton-area auto dealer friend, and made his fortune selling TaeBo tapes via infomercials. Monea got busted again trying to sell the house, plus a 40-carat diamond called "The Golden Eye" to an undercover FBI agent who said he was buying the house with drug money. Monea was found guilty and is currently doing time. His family trust owes at least $250k in back property taxes. There's a lot more detail. Just Google Paul Monea.