publisher william randolph hearst but he's hardly the only american to have followed his dream as john blackstone will report in our cover story. >> reporter: where is your dream house? is it a light house on the coast of maine, a silo by a trout stream in utah or an aerie made of steel and glass high above the pacific ocean in california's big sur? you can't get closer to the edge of the continent than this. >> no, you really can't. >> reporter: we'll follow some dreamers to their dream houses later on sunday morning. >> osgood: hearst castle was designed for entertaining the brightest lights of high society and hollywood. folks in the public eye sometimes need a little redesigning themselves. that's where the man our tracy smith visited comes in. >> reporter: after more than 20 years fixing the hair of the rich and famous, the only thing hair guru frederic fekkai can't seem to do now is stop. >> i can't help but looking at everyone. it jumps up to my eyes whether it's the color of the hair, whether it's the length, the layer wrong. >> reporter: you know of course i'm very self-conscious because you said you look at everybody. the beautiful world of frederic fekkai later on sunday morning. >> osgood: after a leisurely stroll around the hearst castle buildings and grounds you might fancy a rest in a simple and practical chair. perhaps one of the very same chairs richard roth went to see made. >> reporter: baked in steam and bent by hand, the world's best-selling chair has changed design a little since 1859 but then so have we. >> not necessarily fatter, just bigger. >> reporter: bigger? later this sunday morning, a story about six pieces of wood, a handful of screws and a design that's more than 150 years old. and absolutely timeless. i'll even save you a seat. >> osgood: hearst castle, as you can see, was designed on a gigantic scale which is not to say that the smaller items inside all our homes aren't carefully designed as well as we'll hear from martha teichner it's an open-and-shut case. >> the owner of a ge knows she can depend on it to depend on any occasion. >> reporter: it was considered big in the 1930s. state of the art. not anymore. what's cool about cold? refrigerators later this sunday morning. >> osgood: when you start talking about things that open and shut, you find yourself opening a pandora's box. for example, how many cuff links does a man need. >> reporter: have you ever figured out how many pairs you have? >> if i knew i wouldn't tell you because i wouldn't want my wife to know. >> osgood: rita braver will show us her husband's answer to that one. and richard schlesinger opens the lid on a rarely exploreded realm. >> reporter: lively design is not just for the living. one casket maker considers these metal boxes underground furniture so where would you like to spend eternity? >> this is an eco-pod. >> reporter: there are now more choices than ever. later on sunday morning, designing for the dearly departed. >> osgood: we'll have much more on this special edition of sunday morning. seth doane takes us on a guided tour of the taj mahal. bill whitaker gets a bird's eye view of the latest in aircraft design. and bill geist visits a las vegas home that's a real show stopper. but first let's go to russ mitchell in new york for the sunday morning headlines. >> reporter: good morning. it is august 22, 2010. iran has taken another step towards opening its first-ever nuclear reactor. workers have begun loading fuel lines into the plant. iran insists it only has peaceful goals for its nuclear program. more than half a billion eggs have been recalled after being linked to a salmonella outbreak. more than 1300 people have fallen ill. the bad eggs were traced to a pair of farms in iowa though the source of the bacteria has not been determined. we are sad to report this morning that cbs news correspondent harold dow died yesterday. >> is it tough being o.j. simpson today. >> reporter: he was one of the most senior and most talented of our cbs on-air family. >> behind me a relative trying to find out some kind of information about their loved ones. >> reporter: harold dow had been a correspondent for "48 hours" for the past two decades. in fact, he appeared at its first very broadcast, the critically acclaimed 196 documentary "48 hours on crack street." >> this suspect did not look like a drug dealer. you didn't get all the things.... >> reporter: but harold was no stranger to our sunday morning audience. >> what is your son's name, george? >> this is george right here. his name is george. >> yes, he did name all five of his sons george. >> did you at that time feel in your own mind that they would really let you go. >> reporter: and there's barely a broad after... broadcast here at cbs news that didn't benefit from harold's contributions. >> we came here to try to understand why so many people are being killed. >> reporter: harold won five emmy awards and a george foster peabody award. those of us who were lucky enough to know harold know that his most winning qualities were his warmth and his kindness. they graced his every story and his every encounter. harold dow was 62. and we also this weekend mourn the passing of long-time technical superviseor al spiney. he was a 40-year cbs news colleague. we will miss both of these respected friends. now a look at today's weather. showers in the east. warm weather across much of the rest of the country. expect more rain and heat in the days ahead with some cooling towards the end of the week. >> osgood: coming up, his dream home and their dream homes. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, >> osgood: it's called "the enchanted hill." enchantd and breath taking. perched high above the pacific coast line of san simeon california. this was the estate of william randolph hearst, newspaper tycoon, movie mogul, and one of the 20th centuries most influential men. hearst called san simeon his little hide-away. the hill top is filled with gardens, guest houses, and a magnificent neptune pool. its crowning glory is kass a grande, a castle in the spanish style. it was all designed by the architect julia morgan, the first female graduate of the prestigious school in paris. construction began in 1919 and continued non-stop for another 28 years. through it all, hearst's guests enjoyed a hospitality as immense as his wealth and power. san simeon was the place to be for hollywood's elite but there were some grumblings about mr. hearst's strict policy of only one cocktail before dinner. dazzling though the real hearst castle may be, it's had to compete for nearly 70 years now with the ultimate reality created by a legendary film director. orson welles' 1941 klatt i can "citizen kane" was a thinly veiled and damning caricature of hearst and of his classic lifestyle. >> 49,000 acres of nothing but scenery and statues. i'm lonesome. >> reporter: largely inaccurate one says castle director hoyt fields. >> this was a very bright, a very lively, a very open place for people to come. there are just no similarities as far as i feel between charles foster kane and william randolph hearst. >> osgood: it seems that the reality of life here at san simeon was truly more vivid than any tale spun from from fiction. the enchantment of this hill top retreat is still very much alive for those who come and visit this place. so high above the sea and so close to the sky. guests at hearst castle ranged from calvin coolidge to cary grant. even winston churchill and playwright george bernier bernard shaw spent time here. before dinner company would gather in the assembly room where william randolph hearst's guests carefully nursed that one allotted drink. of course, not everyone can afford to build a dream house like this. still john blackstone tells us that doesn't keep the dreamers from dreaming. ♪ when whippoorwills call > seldom is an american's home actually a castle. the american dream house can take many shapes. ♪ my blue heaven > it can be a dramatic statement in glass and steel perched above the pacific. >> people can't get this house out of their mind the moment they see it. >> reporter: or a dream house can be inspired by the simple structure of a corrugated metal grain silo ♪ you see a smiling face, the fireplace ♪ > even an old light house on the atlantic coast can have the makings of a dream house. >> this room is quite nice because it looks due south out the open ocean. >> reporter: wherever it is, the location is often the first ingredient for a dream house. and few places offer the spectacular settings of big sur on the california coast. you can't get closer to the edge of the continent than this. >> no, you really can't. >> reporter: john saar is a real estate agent who specializes in big sur's multimillion dollar properties. this dream, called terra mar can be yours for a mere $8.5 million. >> everything about this house is a kaleidoscope of views. up the coast, down the coast. redwoods in the back. >> reporter: it was designed by saar's favorite big sur architect. >> every house is totally different, but they all have the same theme of functional art. so you're living in a piece of art. >> reporter: you might call this dream house a piece of folk art which began life as a grain silo. its owner, earl stein admits he built the place to please just one person: himself. >> my concept was design a place for me. at this point in my life. the ultimate man cave. the men out there know a lazy boy, a remote control and a fridge, really the essentials of life. >> reporter: stein calls his house on the banks of the provo river in utah mone-silo. for this avid fisherman it's the perfect location for the house of his selfish dreams. >> it just has a great feeling to it. >> reporter: lloyd kahn admits he built his house in california just to please himself. a house he's been working on for 40 years. >> i chose everything. the wood. for the floor and for the walls. you know, the way things are arranged, we designed it according to the way we want to live. >> reporter: kahn built his house largely with his own hands. and in his books he's written since the 1970s he's encouraged others to do the same. to create a true home. >> there's some places that you walk into and they just, the feng sway is good. the dream part for me is the feeling, the inside. the basic parts of this house were recycled hum ber. >> reporter: most everything in his house including his front door is salvaged or recycled. >> i have six of those doors in a trash bin. like 1971. the ultimate low cost, simple exercise device, a piece of rope and a branch. >> reporter: he has a do it yourself workout room too. >> you can stretch backwards. >> reporter: his fitness at age 75 seems proof that a modestly equipped home can work just fine. >> building smaller doesn't have to be a lesser home. >> reporter: a message sarah susan ka, the author of the "not so big house" books says is particularly appealing in these tough economic times. >> it's so funny just how many people have realized they can't build that dream home that they thought they could. or at least they have to pare down that vision somewhat. >> we knew we weren't going to build a dream house actually because we weren't starting from scratch. >> reporter: the levy family's house is a case in point. they had outgrown their small ranch house in deer field illinois but weren't quite ready to leave. >> we loved our neighborhood. >> reporter: with the help of architect bud dietrich who mrs. levy found through susanka's website the family reimagineded their little ranch house. >> this was the old garage, did i hear? >> that's right. >> reporter: they opened up the living area, added a new master bedroom and plenty of light. the kitchen with windows looking out to the backyard garden is now the center of the house. >> we live in this room. this is basically our family room. my kids can sit in here while i'm cooking. as a family we generally eat in this room. >> reporter: many of these ideas, susanka says are not new or hers alone. >> like you're welcome to the brown house. >> oh, wow. >> reporter: in fact this small house on a quiet street in evanston, illinois, was designed by frank lloyd wright to be affordable and beautiful. cost $5,000 to build in 1905. >> it's about 1100 square feet. the main room is made to look bigger and it's divided into three areas. >> reporter: gordon gibson has been restoring wright's little master piece room by room for ten years. >> if mr. wright could be around he would be thrilled that somebody is taking as much good care of this house. >> i think he'd get more than $5,000 for it today. >> so true. >> reporter: the same respect for an old architectural gem is seen at hen... this is. >> this is the sun room on the water side. fabulous view. this originally led out to the bell tower. >> reporter: designer marty muir is helping ben and lou ann the owners of the old light house turn it into a home that shines. they've added a cottage of granite and brick while respecting the history here that goes back to the 1820s. >> we've located the stone cottage as far away as we could manage it so that the light house could be kept stark and respectful to it. >> reporter: from sea to shining sea, be it ever so grand.... >> it's just stunning, stunning place. >> reporter: or ever so humble >> it's really all a man needs. >> reporter:... home is where dreams live. ♪ my blue heaven >> osgood: ahead.... >> this is a very rare refrigerator called a v-handle. >> osgood: cool! no pills, no pain. how can you get pain relief without taking pills around the clock? try thermacare heatwraps, for all day relief without pills. i was surprised, thermacare worked all day. you feel the heat. and it relaxes and unlocks the muscle. you've got to try it. 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[ ellen ] i'm beautiful. maybe it's because they pay so much for department store makeup when there's an amazing anti-aging makeup from covergirl and olay. simply ageless. this advanced formula with olay regenerist serum won't glob up in lines and wrinkles like the leading department store makeup can. so get into simply ageless. you'll look amazing and happy too. simply ageless, from olay and easy breezy beautiful covergirl. i'm a covergirl. and to look really amazing, start with my new serum primer. needless to say hearst's kass a grande had a very grand kitchen with the most modern appliances of the day. there are four refrigerators, one just for the guests. mr. hearst was known to slip in here himself to make up his own late night snack. the refrigerator does help to make modern domestic life possible. martha teichner has the cool facts. >> reporter: you'll remember the refrigerator if you saw the last indiana jones movie. >> the script called for harrison ford to get into the refrigerator. he knew an atomic blast was going to happen. >> 0! >> reporter: tucson arizona refrigerator restorer rich allen sold the movie company, two of them. >> one is flying through the air. when it lands they cut back to the other refrigerator we had sold him and he's opening the door crawling out of it. >> reporter: what better moment for a brief appreciation of refrigerator design? >> this is a very rare refrigerator called a v-handle. looks like the cadillac. the amazing part of this is it opens both ways. they only made a few of these in the early '50s. >> reporter: it looked like a cadillac because a lot of refrigerators were made by car companies. frigid air, for example, by g.m., so this is the era of car fins. >> exactly. >> reporter: seeing them all huddled together, forlorn and round shouldered, you might not appreciate that when rich allen's workmen finish spiffing them up after installing up-to-date innards, these babies will sell for $5,000-$10,000 each. >> because of the moist, cold refrigerator, we never have to cover dishes. >> reporter: okay. so you're buying an era. within the 1950s people actually had something to dance about. nifty features like a heated butter compartment. what an advance over the monitor top introduced by g.e., in 1927. >> it actually ran on sulfur dioxide which was a gas that they used. first of all it killed people. >> reporter: how reassuring. the monitor top was actually named for the civil war ironclad the u.s.s. monitor. because of the shape of its gun turret. >> here you have actually a leather handle. >> reporter: today with a little imagination and a little more cash, your refrigerator can be a thing of wonder. >> why don't you just rub your hand not on that but near that control. >> reporter: the light came on. paul clyne is general manager of brandon advertising for ge appliances. >> you could chill a bottle of wine in 15 minutes or a six pack of sodas in 30 minutes. >> reporter:. >> in this particular case we've used this as a drink tour. >> reporter: karen williams heads saint charles's kitchens in new york city. >> when closed, completely concealed, can be designed anyway you like. looks like beautiful cabinetry. >> reporter: there's the refrigerator that shouts you are a serious cook, a pro even. >> we have the glass door on the fridge. it's all stainless steel interior. >> reporter: vice president of design engineering for sub zero. >> underneath the hood, you also have water filtration. >> reporter: but the most important innovation you can't even see. the use of coolants less harmful to the environment. dramatic increases in energy efficiency. >> an average refrigerator is down to the equivalent of maybe a 60 was light bulb. >> reporter: really? >> yes. >> reporter: and here's what's next. >> then then here it shows how much energy your fridge used. >> reporter: if you're not already you will be paying more for electricity at peak use times. smart refrigerators are being designed to minimize the cost. >> the refrigerator listens for a signal from the meter that says that the rates may go up and then the refrigerator will delay its defrost. >> reporter: in 1929, 840,000 electric refrigerators were sold in the united states compared to 8.4 million in 2009. oh, the difference 80 years have made in what's basically just a box that's cold inside. >> osgood: next, pull up a chair. 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