If the architecture was exceptional from the start, subsequent owners endowed the three- level, 800-square-meter, or 8,600-square-foot, country manse with an extra dose of drama. Among the owners of the half-timbered house was Sacha Guitry, a French stage legend famed for his sophisticated Parisian comedies, who was immensely popular as author, actor and director of more than 120 plays.