Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/18929
LONGBEACHMAGAZINE.COM 77 something called radio jets hooked up directly to the "radio receiving room" in the hotel's tower. But that was back in 1926, and by 1929 something called the Depression had slapped an iron muzzle on the roaring '20s. Much like the Vaudevillians who headed the bill at the opening banquet, the days of hopped-up prosperity were living on borrowed time. In 1927 Dunn managed to sell the hotel at a considerable loss. His $300 million investment could only bring $1,750,000 on the real estate market. The new owners planned to remodel the hotel, restoring it to its past glory. But that was in 1929, and in 1933 something happened that would devastate the city's cachet as a recreational destination and demolish many of its homes and commercial buildings. The 1933 earthquake left Long Beach in rubble and pushed the Breakers into bankruptcy. Because the hotel sustained only minor damage, it was used as headquarters for the Red Cross rescue efforts, but its operating losses put it three years in default on its property taxes. In 1938, the world's most famous hotelier, Conrad Hilton, bought it and made it the eighth hotel in his international chain. He spent a reported $200,000 on renovations, turning the penthouse into the Sky Room, which soon became a Mecca for the likes of Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Rita Hayworth, Cary Grant and John Wayne. The glitterati flocked to the nightspot, which was compared to the Coconut Grove and the Brown Derby as a place to see and be seen. But that was 1938, and in 1944 World War II intervened in everyone's lives, as the gaiety of nightlife was replaced by fears over the fate of "the boys" overseas and the effort to equip the largest invasion force ever mounted with the necessities of combat. Even such luxury icons as the Queen Mary traded in their elegant trappings for drab-gray paint jobs, Steak, Seafood Sushi & Oyster Bar Waterfront Dining Heated Patio & Fire Pit Live Music Banquet Rooms For Holiday & Special Gatherings www.Mckennasonthebay.com 190 Marina Dr. LB 562.342.9411 Happy Hour Mon-Fri 3pm-7pm Monday Monday Night Football Specials $1 Oysters & $7 Martinis Tuesday Half Off Sushi All Day & All Night Happy Hour Prices Wednesday Half Off Bottles of Wine Thursday All Night Happy Hour Prices Sat & Sun $12 Breakfast Specials & $4 Mimosas filling the staterooms of the rich and famous with bunks for the common grunt. The red tile roof of The Breakers became a key location in harbor defense when two pillboxes with gun-mountings were installed. The Sky Room became the official Airwatch headquarters for Long Beach Harbor. Bobby soxers with knee-length skirts and pageboys replaced the flappers in their fur wraps and swinging pearls, and jitterbugging sailors nudged the tuxedo-clad dandies off the dance floor. In 1947, the Breakers became the Wilton, and nothing good came after that. It was bought, sold and renamed several times, but no one could turn it around. Even the company that owned the Queen Mary couldn't — ahem — keep it afloat. Some said it was the location, miles from the convention centers in Los Angeles, that prevented the hotel from reclaiming its former grandeur. Others said it was haunted. A ghost could reportedly be heard splashing in the elegant swimming pool – which would not have been noteworthy at all, had the pool been filled at the time. One longtime employee probably posed the best reason — "It was those danged motels." No matter. Today, the Sky Room has again become one of the city's most elegant restaurants. In 1997 the hotel opened as a residence for senior citizens. Now Rosie the Riveter and G.I. Joe populate a building that stands – like they do – in testament to a gloried past where greatness was more than just an aspiration, and splendor was as close to home as downtown. n The Breakers Hotel 210 E. Ocean Blvd. Photo courtesy of the Long Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Flirty flappers visited a bank of 'smart shops' while their well-heeled escorts indulged in a Turkish bath."