6 groovy homes built in the 1970s
Featuring a skylit conversation pit in Texas and a sunken living room in California
Sands Point, New York
Architect Richard Meier designed Steamboat Landing, a 1971 3-acre estate on Long Island's north shore. The waterfront five-bedroom main house features a double-height living room with columns, exposed ducts, clerestory window, glass wall, fireplace, and loft; an attached three-story corkscrew escape slide; and Hempstead Bay views.
Outside are a one-bedroom boathouse, staff house with two apartments, carriage house, ice house, tennis court, pool, and private beach. $7,990,000. Rachel King and Chase Landow, Serhant Real Estate, (914) 643-5724.
Piney Point Village, Texas
Jack Stehling formed this 1970 house from two glass cubes. The renovated five-bedroom home has a rosewood-paneled, skylit conversation pit, a marble-and-glass primary bath with amoeba tub, and a chef's kitchen with an island connected by a deck to the three-story glass atrium.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The wooded, landscaped lot with Zen-style gardens sits on a bluff above Buffalo Bayou; Houston is about 25 minutes' drive. $2,900,000. Walter Bering, Martha Turner Sotheby's International Realty-Central Houston Brokerage, (713) 851-9753.
Greenwich, Connecticut
Spector Group created this four-bedroom home in 1979 on a 4.2-acre' 70s-modern estate about 15 minutes from downtown. The house features three shed roofs with clerestory windows, a living room with a wall of glass, a roomy kitchen and breakfast area with saltillo tile floors, and a finished lower level with office, gym, en suite bedroom, and flex space.
The lush property, in a cul-de-sac surrounded by wetlands, includes a tennis court, decks, and a pool. $3,995,000. Amy Balducci, Compass Connecticut, (917) 318-7841.
Napa, California
The update to this 1971 five-bedroom home retained its characteristic period details. The house has glass walls, cork floors, a double-doored entry with slatted screens, a vaulted, sunken living room centered on a floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace, an eat-in chef's kitchen with a pantry, and a 1,200-bottle wine cellar.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The 20-acre wooded hillside lot includes xeriscape gardens, deck with kitchen, firepit, outdoor shower, and pool; vineyards are nearby and Sacramento is an hour's drive. $3,200,000. Stefan Jezycki, Engel & Völkers Napa, (707) 738-2945.
East Hampton, New York
The Butterfly House, designed by Hobby Miller and owned by star hairstylist Sally Hershberger, dates to 1976. The midcentury-modern two-bedroom features an open-plan top floor with black-beamed ceilings, oversize windows, living room with fireplace, skylit kitchen, wrap-around deck, and spiral staircase to the first-floor bedrooms.
The forested 1-acre lot has a pool surrounded by indigenous grasses, lawns, and specimen trees, and private-path access to Gardiner's Bay. $2,995,000. Kathy Konzet, Sotheby's International Realty-Bridgehampton Brokerage, (631) 252-0254.
Fountaintown, Indiana
This three-bedroom split-level ranch house was built in 1976 on 6 acres of farmland 30 minutes from Indianapolis. The home has a step-down family room with rustic wood beams and paneling, brick wall, and woodstove; an eat-in kitchen; and a separate dining room.
Beyond the screened patio overlooking the pool are mature trees, lawns, fenced gardens, a pole barn, a firepit area, a two-car garage, and wooded hiking trails. $549,900. Jim Perry, F.C. Tucker Company-East/ Luxury Portfolio International, (317) 281-9239.
This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here.
-
England’s ‘dysfunctional’ children’s care system
In the Spotlight A new report reveals that protection of youngsters in care in England is failing in a profit-chasing sector
-
Cider farms to visit this autumn
The Week Recommends With harvest season fast approaching, spend an afternoon at one of these idyllic orchards
-
Endangered shark meat is being mislabeled and sold in the US
Under the radar It could cause both health and ecological problems
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful north
The Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Giorgio Armani obituary: designer revolutionised the business of fashion
In the Spotlight ‘King Giorgio’ came from humble beginnings to become a titan of the fashion industry and redefine 20th century clothing
-
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale – a ‘comfort’ watch for fans
The Week Recommends The final film of the franchise gives viewers a chance to say goodbye
-
The Paper: new show, same 'warmth and goofiness'
The Week Recommends This spin-off of the American version of The Office is ‘comfortingly and wearyingly familiar’
-
Rachel Jones: Gated Canyons – ‘riotously colourful’ works from an ‘exhilarating’ painter
The Week Recommends The 34-year-old is the first artist to take over Dulwich Picture Gallery’s main space
-
Born With Teeth: ‘mischievously provocative’ play starring Ncuti Gatwa
The Week Recommends ‘Sprightly’ production from Liz Duffy Adams imagines the relationship between Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe
-
Art review: Lorna Simpson: Source Notes
Feature Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, through Nov. 2
-
Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is more
Feature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more