See related post: Cinema Diverse Marks 10th YearĬary Grant enjoyed the privacy of his home in Palm Springs, located right by what is now Desert Regional Hospital.In those days the train departed Union Station daily for Palm Springs, although, Wallace explains, most celebrities preferred to drive, taking Highway 60 (in the pre-interstate days) and stopping for a leisurely lunch at the Mission Inn in Riverside. When asked what attracted the celebrities, Wallace simply says one word: “Privacy.” The old studio system guarded stars like gold and required them to remain within a two-hour drive of Los Angeles unless otherwise authorized. Allegedly, Wallace writes, the notorious lover and his gorgeous new wife had spent their honeymoon in separate beds.Īs the little town expanded so too did its reputation among the Hollywood elite. A year later, when he was hauled into court on a charge of bigamy, it was the White sisters who testified that the marriage had never been consummated. The silent film star and his second wife, Natacha Rambova, stayed with the sisters on their way back from a quickie marriage across the border in Mexicali. The hotel catered to an eclectic group of adventurers and artists, including Rudolph Valentino. Florilla White and her sister Henrietta, purchased the Palm Springs Hotel from Welwood Murray. The secrets and scandals of our desert oasis may have started from the very beginning, when a pair of curiously independent women, Dr. VIDEO: Author David Wallace notes Palm Springs' earliest gay pioneer. A longtime resident of both New York and Los Angeles, he now resides in Palm Springs, teaching memoir writing and giving lectures on gay and lesbian history at the LGBT Community Center of the Desert.
So how did a dusty little outpost at the base of the San Jacinto Mountains become an internationally known destination for gays and lesbians? In his book, A City Comes Out: How Celebrities Made Palm Springs a Gay & Lesbian Paradise, author David Wallace tries to separate fact from fiction.Ī former West Coast editor for People Magazine, Wallace is the author of multiple books chronicling the history of Old Hollywood.
Though the city may be a gay mecca today, for many years a conservative “old guard” ruled this resort town, insisting the pleasure pursuits of “alternative lifestyles” (as they were once called) stay hidden out of sight. Walk down Palm Canyon Drive and it’s hard not to notice rainbow flags hanging in businesses or see same-sex couples holding hands.
Editor's Note: The is the first of a two-part series on the history of the LGBTQ community featuring local author David Wallace.