Santa Monica Time Travel: Annenberg Community Beach House Tips
One does not have to travel too far from Route 66 or the Santa Monica Pier to travel back to Santa Monica’s past. Just off the Third Street Promenade are the Fairmont Hotel and Bungalows, where contracted players from MGM stayed, including Greta Garbo. In today’s post, I am going to take you to another place built when the Pacific Coast Highway was just a dirt road. A house built for a starlet by a rich media tycoon. These are my Annenberg Community Beach House tips. (Read more to see how these are related.)
Table of Contents
The History of the Annenberg Community Beach House
Before I get to my tips, I want to let you know about the Annenberg Community Beach House’s interesting history. This story starts with an old rich man and his much younger and charismatic mistress.
Many of you may have heard of William Randolph Hearst or at least the palatial estate in San Simeon named after him, Hearst Castle. At the height of his career, he owned the biggest media empire in the United States. He had also amassed one of the largest Renaissance and European art collections in the world.
You might know William Randolph Hearst from the film Citizen Kane, a film directed and written by Orson Welles (loosely?) based on Hearst’s life–among others.
Time to grab the popcorn.
William Randolph Hearst discovered Marion Davies when she was a Ziegfeld Follies girl in New York. Even though there was a large age difference, she was a teenager, and him in his 50s. Their relationship started shortly after they met. Hearst had a wife and five children at the time. To further Marion’s acting career Hearst moved both of them to Los Angeles, leaving his wife and family behind. He started Cosmopolitan Pictures just for Marion and built her a beach house to be closer to Hollywood while he continued the work on Hearst Castle.
When Marion lived at the beach house from the 1920s to the 1940s, it was one of the few houses on the sand. A neighbor and friend’s studio wasn’t too far from her, Thomas Ince’s, Inceville. Her and Ince’s lives would intertwine tragically later.
Marion’s beach house was famous for its costume parties. Sometimes, with little notice, Hearst’s people would call costume departments from area studios, like MGM, and a few hours later, truckloads of period or themed costumes would arrive to outfit famous guests. These included a long list of Old Hollywood who’s who, like, Marlene Dietrich and Charlie Chaplin.
Hearst completely dictated Marion’s career. 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.
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. The beach house was sold to a hotelier, and once they couldn’t turn a profit, it was donated to the city to cut their losses. This was when the Annenberg Community Beach House was born.
Annenberg Beach house tips
I hope you didn’t mind that meandering story before getting to my Annenberg Community Beach House tips. I always find that people want to get background information and fun facts about Los Angeles. (Keep this in your back pocket to sound knowledgeable about this historic place.)
The reason I like taking guests here is that there is something for everyone– sun worshippers to those who hate beaches. I do find myself in this conundrum often with visitors.
For those who like the sun and sand
These are my Annenberg Community Beach House tips for those who love beaches, putting on swimsuits, and don’t mind a little sand in things.
The beach and beach house
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.
The Annenberg Community Beach House has a large section of beach for you to enjoy, and it is free and open to the public. Although the community is in the name, I think a lot of people think this is part of the neighboring members-only, The Beach Club. Since people think it is off-limits, you do have more chances to find a place for your blanket and picnics.
However, you won’t have the beach to yourself. This is an active location for all kinds of activities. The Annenberg Community Beach House is the site of many company parties, family reunions, and other events. There are also paddleboard rentals, volleyball courts, surf lessons, and event spaces you can reserve through its website.
I think having a company meeting here would be difficult, I would spend too much time staring at the ocean.
Food
The main area includes a restaurant called Back on the Beach. The food is a mix of salads, burgers, and Mexican food. The Annenberg does not own or operate this restaurant. It is best to check the website for hours as they might not be the same as the beach house hours.
The Pool
The pool at the Annenberg Community Beach House is open to the public and accessible with a pool pass.
You can purchase passes on the day of your visit on a first-come-first-served basis starting an hour before the pool opens. Guest services will start a waitlist if passes sell out. For more information, go to the link below.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: The Pool
- Hours: Memorial Day-September 30, 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. (Passes
- Cost: $10 for adults, $4 for kids, and $5 for seniors. It includes access to the pool, changing rooms, and lockers. It does not include a towel, which you need to bring from home.
For the kiddos
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.
For those who hate the beach and sand in things
These are my Annenberg Community Beach House tips for those who do not like beaches. Yes, you can go to this beach and spend little to no time on the sand.
The Museum
On the north side of the property sits the museum. This structure, the guest house, is all that remains of the once palatial estate. Tours of the house are led by knowledgeable docents who share stories about Davies’ life at the house. Much of the inside is in its original condition. My favorite places in the house are the bathrooms. I know, a little strange. I love the whimsical marine-themed tilework.
William Randolf Hearst used the same architect for Hearst Castle to design the beach house, Julia Morgan. She worked simultaneously on both residences 230 miles apart from each other in the early years of the 19th century. That meant no company jet to fly Morgan back and forth to deal with a very hands-on Hearst. Julia Morgan has had a great impact on the architectural landscape of California. More people should know about her.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: Guest House Museum
- Hours: Friday-Monday, 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.
- Cost: $0
- Other information: The museum is its own event space holding retreats and weddings year-round.
The Gallery
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. This is a perfect place to hide from the sun.
General Annenberg Beach House information
Hours, cost, and information
- Website: https://www.annenbergbeachhouse.com/
- Location: 415 Pacific Coast Hwy
- Cost: Parking is free and self-service
- Other: Parking at the beach house is pretty awful. The earlier you get there the better. There are beach parking lots within walking distance. Your best bet is rideshare.
- Note: They have beach-ready wheelchairs on a first-come-first-served basis
If Los Angeles’ past interests you, please check out my Hollywood time travel post about The Egyptian and Yamashiro.
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.
[Disclaimer: I am an affiliate with Book Shop. Some of the links in this post include an affiliate link which, if you click and buy, I may get a little money from your purchase.]
Do you like Hollywood history? If you do, I share interesting stories on substack–as well as new and updated posts.
Comments (2)
Manhattan Beach
August 4, 2022 at 7:41 am
Thanks for this informative blog! I just knew now a bit of Santa Monica’s intriguing past. Do you also know anything like this about the neighborhood in Manhattan Beach?
This Ugly Beautiful City
October 16, 2022 at 5:57 pm
I hope to explore Manhattan Beach more. I know that recently a section of beach was returned to the Bruce family. You can read more about that here https://www.surfrider.org/coastal-blog/entry/bruces-beach-finally-returned-back-to-bruce-family