The Magic Isle Catalina Island—like Southern California untouched Story and Photos by Richard Varr
Cubillo, noting the 12-story structure actually never was a gambling hall but instead had a giant dance floor with such events broadcast live on the radio. “And what did they do when 6,000 people needed a drink?” he quips. This is my first visit to Catalina Island, sort of an extension of the rugged coast and scenic hilly landscape of sunny Southern California—dry and mountainous desert terrain with cactus and tumbleweed-like brush inland, but also with its harborside town of Avalon and its colorful cityscape. With few cars on the island, golf carts instead sputter through Avalon’s narrow streets. Shops and open-air restaurants line the mostly pedestrian main drag, Crescent Avenue, which faces the calm waterfront with views of the iconic casino at almost every turn. “On the left-hand side, the home with the American Flag is where Marilyn Monroe used to live before she was discovered to become a movie star,” points out Cubillo as the tour continues. “It’s a small town, everybody talks.” Although used in the 19th century for cattle ranching and mining, and occupied by Union troops during the Civil War, it wasn’t until the late 1880s that the island, just 22 miles from the mainland, became a resort destination. But in 1915, a fire razed many of Avalon’s new hotels and development to the ground and thus paved the way to begin building modern Avalon. That’s because in 1919, chewing gum magnate William Wrigley, Jr. purchased the island. “What you see and enjoy in Avalon today is really his vision,” says Gail Fornasiere, Deputy Director of External Affairs for the Catalina Island Museum for Art & History. “He was a lover of birds and he really gave back to the people who bought his gum. He wanted them to have an island vacation. The island was kind of a utopian dream for everyone, not just the rich.” “He was super gregarious. They say he would smile for a photographer two blocks away,”
Our tour bus chugs down the curving road alongside parched green bushes and gangly treetops when we reach a clearing. We’re high on a bluff and I find myself skipping a breath, agape in awe. “How would you like to wake up every morning with a beautiful view like this?” asks Carlos Cubillo, our driver and tour guide. I see boats gently bobbing in a half-moon harbor atop Caribbean-like, aquamarine surf and surrounded by a mountainous landscape. At the harbor’s edge, the red-roofed and rounded building with its imposing columns gives it all away—the unmistakable landmark of this famous American getaway. “In 1929, the Catalina Casino was the tallest building in L.A. County. Six thousand people could fit up there. Imagine 6,000 people dancing in the big ballroom with the big orchestras, Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman,” continues
A view of the Catalina Casino from the water.
View of Avalon from a nearby hill.
THE MAGIC ISLE
COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE SUMMER 2023 | 15
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