Versace's Miami mansion
Casa Casuarina, the former home of Italian designer Gianni Versace, is shown in Miami Beach, Fla. It was there that the fashion icon was gunned down by a spree killer in 1997, and where he once entertained celebrities like Elton John and Madonna.
Did Versace know his killer? "48 Hours" investigates the killing spree that led to Miami Beach 20 years ago in "Murder by Design" airing Saturday, Dec. 30 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
Casa Casuarina
As he was unlocking the front gate to Casa Casuarina on July 15 1997, Versace was shot point blank in the back of the head by spree killer Andrew Cunanan. Versace had just returned home from buying magazines at nearby News Café.
Casa Casuarina
In 1992, while on vacation in Miami Beach, Gianni Versace took a walk down Ocean Drive and was immediately attracted to the Casa Casuarina by the "Kneeling Aphrodite" sculpture that sits at the entrance to the estate. Known to be obsessed with Greek and Roman mythology, Versace purchased the original house for $2.95 million as well as the art deco hotel Hotel Revere, next door, for $3.7 million.
Casa Casuarina
The mansion was built in 1930 in Mediterranean Revival style. Gianni Versace purchased the property in 1992 to become his residence in South Beach. He restored and expanded the building by adding a pool, garden, and south wing.
Casa Casuarina
A view of the Atlantic Ocean is seen from the rooftop of Casa Casuarina, the former Miami Beach home of Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace. "Miami's cool. Miami's a place where you can be yourself without running," Versace said in a 1994 TV interview. "Simple, beautiful, the weather is fantastic ... I wake up and I work. I'm very serene here."
Casa Casuarina
A fountain in the courtyard of Casa Casuarina in Miami Beach, Fla. Legend maintains the estate was given the name in 1930 as homage to the only remaining tree in the lot after the 1926 hurricane that hit South Florida. Casuarina esquisetifolia is the botanical name of the tropical tree known as the Australian Pine.
Casa Casuarina
The swimming pool as seen from The Rotunda at Casa Casuarina in Miami Beach, Fla. The purchase of a neighboring hotel made room for designer Gianni Versace's pool, made of more than a million Italian mosaic tiles and 24-karat gold pieces. Its design was inspired by a Versace scarf and was created in Italy, broken down, shipped in numbered sections and reassembled here.
Casa Casuarina
A lion rug in the Safari Room at Casa Casuarina, as photographed in 2008. The suite was said to be Elton John's favorite.
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Casa Casuarina
The bedroom of Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace at Casa Casuarina is shown in Miami Beach, Fla., in December 2008. Versace once told Time magazine about his Miami estate: "For reading Proust I have my house on Lake Como. Here, in Miami Beach, I don't want another monastery to live in. I want a place to read Truman Capote."
Casa Casuarina
The courtyard of Casa Casuarina, shown in Miami Beach, Fla, where, according to Gianni Versace's sister, Donatella, he would host "Italian architects, writers, Richard Avedon, Madonna, a mix of people.''
"He attracted everyone" to Miami."
Casa Casuarina
The three-story mansion is the only private home on Miami Beach's world-famous Ocean Drive.
Casa Casuarina
The dining room at Casa Casuarina is shown on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008. After Versace's death, the house was converted to a private invitation-only membership club with fees of $50,000 and then used as an event space and hotel.
Casa Casuarina
The intricate tile floors at Casa Casuarina.
The mansion was bought by VM South Beach, LLC for $41.5 million in 2013 and is now operated as a boutique hotel known as The Villa, Casa Casuarina. One bedroom suites at the hotel go for as much as $1,500 a night.