ISLESBORO – Emmy award-winning actress and Pier 1 pitchwoman Kirstie Alley is moving back to the island.

Town officials confirmed that the theatrical tabloid tantalizer recently purchased a home on Pendleton Point Road for $1.2 million. After closing the deal, Alley, 48, immediately ordered the house gutted and completely renovated. Work on the property is continuing.

The two-story, wood-frame residence is at the end of a narrow gravel lane and overlooks a cove on Gilkey Harbor. It has a wide swath of wooded waterfront and its own dock and wharves.

Although expansive, the house is a far cry from the one she used to share with former husband Richard Stevenson Parker Jr., 51, whose stage name is Parker Stevenson. Alley and Parker were married at Westport, Conn., in 1983. Until their divorce in 1997, the couple owned as their summer retreat the stately Mitchell Cottage, which also overlooks Gilkey Harbor.

Alley has had a steady career in television and movies for two decades. She is most famous for her Emmy award-winning role as Rebecca Howe in the NBC series “Cheers” and has recently popped up on the tube as spokeswoman for Pier 1 Imports. At the peak of her time on “Cheers,” Alley was earning $150,000 per episode for a 26-episode season, according to court documents filed by Stevenson in the couple’s divorce.

Stevenson, who has his own film production company and continues to work in TV and movies, is best known for his role as Frank Hardy in the 1970s television series “The Hardy Boys.” His divorce declaration to the California courts is posted on the Internet and details the couple’s extravagant lifestyle in Maine and elsewhere.

The couple purchased the 21-bedroom “Mitchell Cottage” in March 1991 for $1.975 million, according to the declaration. Formerly the Islesboro Inn, the “cottage” was built in 1916 and is sited on 4.3 acres. It has a three-bedroom guesthouse, storage shed, formal gardens, dock, moorings, captain’s boathouse, tennis court, gazebo, swimming pool and deepwater pier with granite cribbing.

Stevenson retained possession of the Mitchell Cottage as part of the divorce and the property is being marketed by Land Vest, of Camden, with an asking price $5.95 million. The price was lowered this month from the $7.8 million Parker had sought for a year.

“The owner is looking at the property and saying, ‘I want to sell the property this season,'” real estate broker Terry Sortwell said Wednesday. “We’ve looked at other sales along the coast and this is a price that represents its value and should inspire people to look at it and make offers on it. The price more reflects its appraised value and what we are seeing is steady sales of well-priced properties.”

While Alley has not had a home on the island since the divorce, she has continued to be a steady visitor. According to island residents, she stayed at the estate of her friend and fellow actor John Travolta. Travolta and Alley are adherents to the Church of Scientology. In May of 2000, according to the St. Petersburg Times, Alley purchased the former “sprawling waterfront home” of Lisa Marie Presley in Clearwater, Fla., for $1.5 million. The home overlooking Clearwater Harbor is a few blocks away from the church’s headquarters.

When she spent her summers on Islesboro, Alley and her two children took part in a number of local activities. In Feb. 1992, she and Parker purchased the “Ballfield Farmhouse” whose 11 acres contained the town’s ball field as well as a pond and gazebo.

According to Parker’s divorce declaration, the couple paid $110,000 for the parcel and spent another $600,000 to upgrade the property and rebuild the house. The farmhouse was used for overflow accommodations when the couple entertained on the island. The property was later sold for $1.1 million.

After assuming ownership of the town’s ball field, Alley purchase a vacant parcel down the road, built a new ball field and tennis courts, and donated it to the town.

When they were married, according to Parker’s declaration, the couple would host an annual “Peastone Ball” on the island. Named after the stones in the pavements of Maine, the ball often involved 200 guests. The cost of the annual Peastone Ball was approximately $20,000 and “incorporated lavish food, tents, bands, valet parking attendants, security and an elaborate fireworks display.” The couple hosted a regular Fourth of July party, also with fireworks.