Breakers Hotel (Long Beach, California)
Encyclopedia
Breakers Hotel is a landmark 14-story building on Ocean Avenue in downtown Long Beach, California
. The building opened in 1926 as a luxury oceanfront resort hotel. The building has gone through multiple changes of ownership and has been renamed at various times the Hilton, the Wilton, and the Breakers International Hotel. It has had a history of financial problems and closures and is now operated as a retirement home. The building has been designated as a Long Beach Historic Landmark.
The original structure consisted of a single-story base that spanned an entire city block with a central tower rising thirteen stories above the main body of the building. The complex also included arcade and basement floors beneath the Ocean Boulevard level.
The development, with architecture described at the time as “ultra Spanish,” opened in September 1926. At the time, the total cost of the luxurious building was said to be $3,000,000. The building opened with a banquet and dinner at which Long Beach’s Mayor Condit and Fred Dunn spoke of an era of success. The banquet also included a program of entertainment by vaudeville artists.
When the hotel opened in 1926 (three years before the opening of the Villa Riviera
), the building’s imposing tower, rising 15 stories from the beach, gave it “a prominence greater than that of any other in the city.” On its opening, the Breakers was promoted as one of Southern California’s finest luxury resort hotels. The hotel had 330 guest rooms and 232 feet of prime ocean frontage in downtown Long Beach. Other features of the hotel included an elaborate 500-seat dining room known as the “Hall of Galleons,” roof garden, coffee shop, beauty shop, barber shop, Turkish bath, and “smart shops.” The hotel catered to “surf bathers” with a special elevator that transported the bathers, after they had “donned their bathing suits in their rooms,” to the Arcade level, from which there was an entrance to the beach.
One of the hotel’s unusual features was the availability of radio broadcasts in each guest room. An October 1926 article in the Los Angeles Times described the “outstanding” in-room entertainment feature as follows:
At its opening, the Breakers was available for both temporary guests and others who made it their permanent residence. The hotel was expected to “be the means of attracting thousands of people to Long Beach.”
The onset of the Great Depression
and the Long Beach earthquake of 1933 pushed the Breakers into bankruptcy. The 1933 earthquake, which resulted in over 100 deaths, caused only minor damage to the Breakers, but the widespread destruction in Long Beach caused major damage to the city’s tourist trade. The hotel served as the headquarters for the Red Cross relief efforts following the earthquake. In August 1934, the Los Angeles Times reported that the hotel had sustained a significant operating loss in 1933 and was delinquent on its real estate and personal properties taxes for the past three years.
at a reported cost of $150,000 and $35,000 in back taxes. Hilton turned the Breakers into the eighth hotel in the Hilton chain. Hilton spent at least $200,000 on renovations and converted the penthouse into the Sky Room.
In 1938, Hilton opened the Sky Room atop the hotel, and it became one of the most popular restaurants gathering spots in Southern California. Movie stars such as Clark Gable
, Errol Flynn
, Rita Hayworth
, Cary Grant
and John Wayne
were said to have been customers at the Sky Room during the Hilton years. One customer recalled the Sky Room as follows: "It was a dating place, like the Brown Derby
and Coconut Grove. It was the place to go."
During World War II
, two pillboxes with gun-mountings were installed on the rooftop for harbor defense, and the Sky Room became the official Airwatch headquarters for Long Beach harbor. One of the pillboxes and gun mountings remained intact on the roof as late as 1991.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram pronounced the hotel "a dead behemoth on the beach." Others noted the hotel's over-reliance on convention business: "This hotel had to try to make 80 percent of its revenues from convention business. There is no rail service or air service to Long Beach, and the 20-minute run on the freeway to Los Angeles where the industry is hurts all the hotels." One commentator opined, "God and Conrad Hilton couldn't have saved this hotel." The hotel's head bellman, Paul Grantham, who had been employed at the hotel since 1928, blamed the "coming of the motels."
In January 1964, the hotel was sold at auction to pay off the hotel's creditors. Despite an appraised value of $4.3 million for the land and improvements, the property sold for $1.75 million. The high bidder, Long Beach realtor Harvey Miller, announced plans to convert the structure into a retirement hotel.
The hotel remained shuttered for nearly three years and was referred to as "the West Coast's largest pigeon roost."
In 1975, the residential retirement hotel was refurbished again. The renovations included all new carpets, drapes, furnishings, automated elevators, and an updated phone system. The owners stated their intention to create the ultimate in retirement living for the senior citizens of Long Beach.
In 1978, New Breakers Hotel Company sold the property to Stoneridge Management Company for less than $3 million.
style. At the time of the re-opening, the Los Angeles Times wrote:
The excitement about the Breakers' restoration was short-lived as the hotel failed to draw a sufficient number of guests to turn a profit. The hotel closed its doors again in January 1987.
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
. The building opened in 1926 as a luxury oceanfront resort hotel. The building has gone through multiple changes of ownership and has been renamed at various times the Hilton, the Wilton, and the Breakers International Hotel. It has had a history of financial problems and closures and is now operated as a retirement home. The building has been designated as a Long Beach Historic Landmark.
Development and opening (1925–1927)
The Breakers Hotel was developed by a local Long Beach banker and capitalist, Fred B. Dunn. Construction began in the fall of 1925 with a projected cost of $2,250,000.The original structure consisted of a single-story base that spanned an entire city block with a central tower rising thirteen stories above the main body of the building. The complex also included arcade and basement floors beneath the Ocean Boulevard level.
The development, with architecture described at the time as “ultra Spanish,” opened in September 1926. At the time, the total cost of the luxurious building was said to be $3,000,000. The building opened with a banquet and dinner at which Long Beach’s Mayor Condit and Fred Dunn spoke of an era of success. The banquet also included a program of entertainment by vaudeville artists.
When the hotel opened in 1926 (three years before the opening of the Villa Riviera
Villa Riviera
Villa Riviera is a registered historic building on Ocean Boulevard in the Alamitos Beach neighborhood of Long Beach, California, USA. From the time of its completion in 1929 through the mid-1950s, it was the second-tallest building, and the tallest private building, in Southern California...
), the building’s imposing tower, rising 15 stories from the beach, gave it “a prominence greater than that of any other in the city.” On its opening, the Breakers was promoted as one of Southern California’s finest luxury resort hotels. The hotel had 330 guest rooms and 232 feet of prime ocean frontage in downtown Long Beach. Other features of the hotel included an elaborate 500-seat dining room known as the “Hall of Galleons,” roof garden, coffee shop, beauty shop, barber shop, Turkish bath, and “smart shops.” The hotel catered to “surf bathers” with a special elevator that transported the bathers, after they had “donned their bathing suits in their rooms,” to the Arcade level, from which there was an entrance to the beach.
One of the hotel’s unusual features was the availability of radio broadcasts in each guest room. An October 1926 article in the Los Angeles Times described the “outstanding” in-room entertainment feature as follows:
Each room in the new hostelry has four radio jets, each connecting with the radio-receiving room in the tower. By plugging in on any of these four jets, programs from broadcasting stations are heard … If there is a particular program on the air which a guest particularly desires to hear, it is only necessary to phone the receiving room and the operator will tune it in.
At its opening, the Breakers was available for both temporary guests and others who made it their permanent residence. The hotel was expected to “be the means of attracting thousands of people to Long Beach.”
Years of decline (1929–1935)
Less than a year after its opening, the hotel was sold by Fred Dunn to an unnamed group of investors from Pasadena, Los Angeles and New York. The sale price in 1927 was reported to be $1,750,000. The new owners announced plans for extensive remodeling, including the closure of several dining rooms and conversion of the ballroom into a summer garden.The onset of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and the Long Beach earthquake of 1933 pushed the Breakers into bankruptcy. The 1933 earthquake, which resulted in over 100 deaths, caused only minor damage to the Breakers, but the widespread destruction in Long Beach caused major damage to the city’s tourist trade. The hotel served as the headquarters for the Red Cross relief efforts following the earthquake. In August 1934, the Los Angeles Times reported that the hotel had sustained a significant operating loss in 1933 and was delinquent on its real estate and personal properties taxes for the past three years.
Hilton years and Sky Room (1938–1947)
In 1938, the hotel was purchased by Conrad HiltonConrad Hilton
Conrad Nicholson Hilton was an American businessman and investor. He is well known for being the founder of the Hilton Hotels chain.-Early life:Hilton was born in San Antonio, New Mexico...
at a reported cost of $150,000 and $35,000 in back taxes. Hilton turned the Breakers into the eighth hotel in the Hilton chain. Hilton spent at least $200,000 on renovations and converted the penthouse into the Sky Room.
In 1938, Hilton opened the Sky Room atop the hotel, and it became one of the most popular restaurants gathering spots in Southern California. Movie stars such as Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
, Errol Flynn
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:...
, Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
, Cary Grant
Cary Grant
Archibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
and John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
were said to have been customers at the Sky Room during the Hilton years. One customer recalled the Sky Room as follows: "It was a dating place, like the Brown Derby
Brown Derby
The Brown Derby was the name of a chain of restaurants in Los Angeles, California. The first and most famous of these was shaped like a men's derby hat, an iconic image that became synonymous with the Golden Age of Hollywood....
and Coconut Grove. It was the place to go."
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, two pillboxes with gun-mountings were installed on the rooftop for harbor defense, and the Sky Room became the official Airwatch headquarters for Long Beach harbor. One of the pillboxes and gun mountings remained intact on the roof as late as 1991.
Wilton (1947–1961)
In 1947, Hilton sold the hotel to Frank Fishman, who renamed it the Wilton Hotel. The hotel remained the "Wilton" for 14 years. During the 1950s, the hotel changed ownership several times, and promises to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to remodel the aging hotel were not kept.Breakers International and closure (1961–1964)
In 1961, the hotel was purchased by Fred Miller. Miller was one of the founders of Flying Tigers Airlines and purchased US Airlines in 1951. After buying the Breakers in 1961, Miller renamed the hotel the Breakers International and spent $1.25 million refurbishing the property from top to bottom. Miller reportedly hoped to "recapture, for Long Beach, the beauty, dignity and service of the city's greatest hotel." However, even with Miller's efforts, he was not able to turn around the fortunes of the Breakers. In 24 months as owner of the hotel, Miller reported that he lost half of his net worth. In November 1963, Miller gave up and closed the hotel.The Long Beach Press-Telegram pronounced the hotel "a dead behemoth on the beach." Others noted the hotel's over-reliance on convention business: "This hotel had to try to make 80 percent of its revenues from convention business. There is no rail service or air service to Long Beach, and the 20-minute run on the freeway to Los Angeles where the industry is hurts all the hotels." One commentator opined, "God and Conrad Hilton couldn't have saved this hotel." The hotel's head bellman, Paul Grantham, who had been employed at the hotel since 1928, blamed the "coming of the motels."
In January 1964, the hotel was sold at auction to pay off the hotel's creditors. Despite an appraised value of $4.3 million for the land and improvements, the property sold for $1.75 million. The high bidder, Long Beach realtor Harvey Miller, announced plans to convert the structure into a retirement hotel.
The hotel remained shuttered for nearly three years and was referred to as "the West Coast's largest pigeon roost."
Retirement hotel (1967–1982)
The hotel remained closed for three years as plans to convert it into a retirement hotel stalled. In September 1966, the hotel re-opened as a combination permanent retirement hotel and transient hotel for overnight guests. By January 1967, the property was occupied 70% by permanent residents who had the option of an American plan at $175 per month including hotel conveniences and three meals a day, or a European plan at $115 a month without meals.In 1975, the residential retirement hotel was refurbished again. The renovations included all new carpets, drapes, furnishings, automated elevators, and an updated phone system. The owners stated their intention to create the ultimate in retirement living for the senior citizens of Long Beach.
In 1978, New Breakers Hotel Company sold the property to Stoneridge Management Company for less than $3 million.
Re-conversion to hotel use (1986–1987)
In 1986, the hotel was re-converted into a tourist hotel and placed under the management of the same company responsible for management of the city's major tourist destinations, the Spruce Goose and the Queen Mary. Before its re-opening in 1986, the hotel had undergone a three-year $15 million renovation and restoration. The new version of the Breakers opened with 242 guest rooms, including 20 suites, a restaurant and night club on the top floor, and a ballroom restored to its original 1920s decor. The Sky Room, which had been given a Polynesian theme by prior owners, was renovated in an Art DecoArt Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
style. At the time of the re-opening, the Los Angeles Times wrote:
"Its 60 years have been a roller-coaster ride of ups and downs, prosperity and penury, bright lights and gloomy emptiness. Just now, its direction is up."
The excitement about the Breakers' restoration was short-lived as the hotel failed to draw a sufficient number of guests to turn a profit. The hotel closed its doors again in January 1987.