13. Raccoons Fell Through the Roof, and One Room Had Human Feces
It would be hard to overstate the level of filth the documentarian’s crews found when they began filming Grey Gardens in the early 1970s, around the time of the Suffolk County Health Department’s inspection. The team had to wear flea collars during the duration of the filming due to an infestation of rodents and insects in the home.
There were so many holes in the roof and between floors that raccoons were seen freely moving between the outdoors and inside. The entire property was covered in garbage, which attracted mice, rats, and raccoons into the inside of the property. The property had lacked running water for an unknown length of time, and human feces were found in one bedroom. It is entirely possible the women had selected a bedroom to use as a toilet in the absence of running water.
When a private buyer purchased the Grey Gardens mansion in 1979, they reported that the walls were so rotten they would swing when touched as though on a hinge. The floor was covered in a thick layer of dirt, and the smell of cat urine permeated the entire house. A piano left behind literally crumbled when a single key was pressed.