Gangster Kid Cann's rumored connection to the Golden Valley house known as "The Castle" is shrouded in mystery. But the home has had other brushes with fame.
The house, designed by architect Paul Enghauser, was completed in 1940 for salesman Arch Zacherl and his wife, Molly. She served as general contractor and designed much of the furniture, according to a story in the Minneapolis Star.
Decades later, the house was owned by riches-to-rags investor Melvin B. Hansen, who was forced to sell the house and liquidate its contents after losing his fortune. In 1971, he told Star columnist Jim Klobuchar: "The only thing I really regret about all that is moving out of the castle. I feel like Lancelot with a busted spear."
Joe Breimayer, who bought the house in 1973, said Hansen once dropped by to visit — arriving by cab with a case of beer and wild tales. "He had quite the parties."
KIM PALMER
