Real life 'Great Gatsby' mansion to be demolished; Will be replaced with McMansions

Sadness! The Long Island mansion said to have inspired "The Great Gatsby" is set to be demolished in order to make way for a subdivision.

The 25-room property that occupies the tip of Sands Point will be replaced by five custom homes starting at $10 million each, according to Newsday. Or as we like to call them, "McMansions" -- Oh hey, blatant "O.C." shout out.  

In it's heyday, the historical house (called Lands End) hosted several partygoers through the 1920s and 30s -- including Winston Churchill, the Marx Brothers and Ethel Barrymore. Reportedly "Gatsby" author F. Scott Fitzgerald would often sit on the back deck, observing the scene.

Today, the once-grand estate is in shambles with the front door off its hinges, torn up wood floors and missing windows.

"The cost to renovate these things is just so overwhelming that people aren't interested in it," explains Clifford Fetner, Lands End project construction manager. "The value of the property is in the land."

"Gatsby" is one of our favorite books of all time, so we're bummed to see a piece of the history go. Though never officially confirmed, many experts believe that Lands End was the inspiration for Daisy Buchanan's home in the novel.

Baz Luhrman  is currently working on an adaptation of the story to be released in 2012, with Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role. We have no doubts that a lavish set will be in the works, but how cool would it have been to shoot in the real life house?

Though the 1974 film version is sub-par to the book, it does star a young Robert Redford. So that's a plus.