Party on, Marion Davies, at the Beach House!

Film
1927: Conrad Nagel (1896 – 1970), Marion Davies (1897 – 1961) and cast and crew of the MGM film ‘Quality Street’ celebrate director Sidney Franklin’s birthday. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Marion Davies (1897 – 1961) — silent film actress, party hostess and the original occupant of the (now called) Annenberg Beach House — is ...

Pauline Wagner’s fateful Santa Monica beach encounter with Marion Davies

Film
Photos show Pauline Wagner, 101, celebrating the birthday of Marion Davies. William R. Hearst constructed the faux-Georgian mansion, with rooms numbering 100, precipitously near to the ocean. This unnatural structure was mercifully demolished in 1969. Remaining is the estate’s refurbished colonial guest house, now operating as the Annenberg Beach House, a community arts center. §   ...

Ballerina’s beautiful beach birthday bash 1

Dance · Film
Last year I wrote an article about former New York City Ballet ballerina Yvonne Mounsey coaching a young dancer, Melissa Barak, in the lead role of George Balanchine’s “Prodigal Son.” Mounsey danced the role in the early 1950s. By all accounts, she was an amazing, full-blooded dancer. She went on to become a great ballet ...