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For the next 30 years, the site was a popular private beach facility called the Sand & Sea Club, a place Wallis Annenberg remembers visiting in her youth. When Marion lived at the beach house, the Pacific Ocean was a few steps away from the pool. In the years after the house was sold, the city of Santa Monica slowly extended the breakaway and filled in a few hundred yards of the ocean, creating the beach you see today. It wasn’t a secret to anyone that Marion was Hearst’s mistress. She was part of Hearst’s public life and was photographed with him often. When Hearst died in 1951, his family disowned Marion, leaving her alone to live out the rest of her life in Los Angeles.
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Annenberg Community Beach House Wins Prestigious California Preservation Foundation Award - santamonica.gov
Annenberg Community Beach House Wins Prestigious California Preservation Foundation Award.
Posted: Mon, 13 Sep 2021 07:00:00 GMT [source]
It was built in 1929 by media mogul William Randolph Hearst for actress Marion Davies, and the property was sold and converted into the Oceanside hotel and Sand & Sea Club in the 1940s. The 110-room mansion was demolished in 1956, and the beach club continued to operate under a concession agreement with the State of California, which purchased the property in 1959. Over the years, the site has been a hotel and a limited-membership beach club. Davies sold the estate to a developer in 1947 and it was converted into luxury hotel Oceanhouse and the Sand & Sea Club, a limited membership beach club. A few years later, the Oceanhouse venture ended and the main mansion was torn down.

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Carefully restored, the North House is set within gardens and terraces that create a series of outdoor rooms. A sculptural installation in front of the house by artist Roy McMakin relates to feelings of tradition and domesticity. A waterfall masks the highway sound in this space between the guest house and the Event House. The guest house accommodates community uses and didactic exhibits about the site's history. Beach activities are supported by a small building that supplies umbrellas, chairs, boogie boards and other beach paraphernalia. Beach volleyball courts are available for public use as well.
California Beaches that are Hidden Behind a Rock Arch or Tunnel
From the beach we are directly east of County Lifeguard Tower 4, north of the Santa Monica Pier and south of Will Rogers State Beach. If you do, I share interesting stories on substack–as well as new and updated posts. Research for this post came from a tour of San Simeon, the book Lady from the Black Lagoon by Mallory O’Meara, and of course, the on-site museum at the Annenberg Beach House. If Los Angeles’ past interests you, please check out my Hollywood time travel post about The Egyptian and Yamashiro. These are my Annenberg Community Beach House tips for those who do not like beaches.
To celebrate Marion’s 125th birthday back in January, 2021, the Annenberg Community Beach House hosted a virtual celebration in lieu of a live event. Stir up a Sunset on the Beach mocktail and celebrate the life and times of Davies – silent film actress, famed party hostess, and the original Beach House resident. Santa Monica Conservancy docents will be on hand to share the rich history of the Annenberg Community Beach House site from the 1920s into present day.

PARKING LOTS
I think having a company meeting here would be difficult, I would spend too much time staring at the ocean. The reason I like taking guests here is that there is something for everyone– sun worshippers to those who hate beaches. Our newsletter hand-delivers the best bits to your inbox. Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news, events, offers and partner promotions. Each year in January, the Annenberg Community Beach House and Santa Monica Conservancy throw a party for Marion’s birthday.
Walking The Santa Monica Stairs to the Annenberg Beach House L.A. on Foot #5 - We Like L.A.
Walking The Santa Monica Stairs to the Annenberg Beach House L.A. on Foot #5.
Posted: Tue, 22 Feb 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Beach House Pool
The Annenberg Community Beach House has been recognized with a Gold LEED rating from the U.S. Green Building Council and is continually making improvements to increase environmental efficiency. The Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach is a public beach facility, open to all. The Beach House is on the location of a now-demolished 110-room mansion that was built for Marion Davies by William Randolph Hearst.
Annenberg Community Beach House – Santa Monica’s Historic Oceanfront Gem
The Beach House Pool is one of the remaining elements fromthe historic Marion Davies Estate. It features marble around the deck andbeautiful tiles that were restored by hand. Because it is an historic pool, pleasebe aware that it isn’t as shallow as modern day pools. When visiting any City of Santa Monica facility, face masks, and physical distancing are required.
In the 1990s, the City of Santa Monica ran the facility, known as '415 PCH,' until the 1994 Northridge Earthquake severely damaged all structures on site. The Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach is a public facility located on 5 acres of oceanfront property. The Beach House story is one of evolution from private to public, starting with the development of the property at 415 Pacific Coast Highway as an opulent private estate in the 1920s. In addition to the pool that welcomes children accompanied by an adult, the area next to the restaurant includes a splash pad and playground that is free of charge. The Annenberg Community Beach House has a large section of beach for you to enjoy, and it is free and open to the public.
Our free 20-minute docent tours are available on a walk-up basis for individuals and groups of up to six people. Just head to the Marion Davies Guest House where you will be greeted by a docent. In the modern two-story building next to the museum is a retreat space, a quiet playroom, and a gallery. The gallery features local artists and rotates several times a year. When Marion lived at the beach house from the 1920s to the 1940s, it was one of the few houses on the sand.
Tour the Gold Coast era guest house year-round, and during summer, take a dip in the historic pool. As an event space like no other, the Beach House provides the perfect setting for meetings and celebrations, accommodating groups as intimate as ten to celebrations for 400, and available for film and photo shoots. The Beach House is a unique community destination, open to all, no membership required! With spectacular views, splash pad, playground, gallery, Marion Davies Guest House, beach courts & fields, community & cultural events, historic pool, free wi-fi, and more, there’s something for everyone to enjoy!
The mansion's original pool was rehabilitated by the Annenberg Foundation and opened to the public on a fee-for-entry basis in 2009. One of the mansion's original guest houses also still exists and is used for events. The Annenberg Community Beach House property has served as a vibrant cultural and artistic hub in Santa Monica for nearly a century.
After the Oceanhouse venture ended, the main mansion was demolished in 1956. The Sand & Sea Club continued until the City of Santa Monica took over operation of the site in 1989. It was run as a public facility open to event rental and filming until the 1994 Northridge earthquake severely damaged all structures on site. After the earthquake, the City of Santa Monica conducted an extensive community process to re-envision the role of the site as an important community gathering space. The resulting reuse plan called for a facility with a 'light touch' on its surroundings and one that would encourage a diverse group of users. In recovering from the earthquake, the City embarked on an extensive public input process to re-envision the role of 415 PCH as an important public gathering space.
This grant money allowed the city to build the new public Beach House. A team of architects and builders rehabilitated the Marion Davies Guest House and the marble swimming pool. They also constructed new, modern facilities—including changing rooms and family-friendly amenities like the splash pad, playground, and boardwalk, which is a great feature for the stroller-pushing crowd. When the beach club suffered damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the City of Santa Monica sought to repurpose the property as a public beach facility, but officials had trouble securing funding. In stepped the Annenberg Foundation chairman/president/CEO Wallis Annenberg, who supported the transformation of the property into a sustainable, accessible, public recreational center with a beachside pool. The facility offers classes, community events, and group activities including volleyball, yoga, and paddle-boarding, and it hosts countless conferences, weddings, parties, and social events throughout the year.
The roles she took were period pieces that were more in line with his tastes. Hearst Castle and the beach house might as well have been the film sets with their opulent Renaissance interiors. She wanted to be a comedian instead of the lady of the manor; in her off times, she was notoriously funny. The property was sold to the State of California in 1959, continuing to operate as the ever-popular Sand & Sea Club under a concession agreement.
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