Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE SKY ROOM
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The Breakers Hotel first opened in 1926. Serving thousands of visitors as an exclusive waterfront
resort, it was a favorite playground for many of the well-to-do. Long Beach was severely damaged
by a very large earthquake in 1933, which destroyed buildings for miles around. The city slowly
rebuilt itself over the next two decades, eventually attracting the motion picture industry.
In the process of building the Hilton hotel empire, Conrad Hilton acquired The Breakers in
1938, making it the eighth in the chain. The Sky Room restaurant had been the Penthouse, high
atop The Breakers Hotel, when Hilton decided to convert it into a restaurant.
Hilton's prominence in the community caused many stars and celebrities to be attracted to The
Sky Room: Charles Lindbergh, Babe Ruth, Clark Gable, Merle Oberon, Errol Flynn, Cary Grant,
and many more. Elizabeth Taylor spent her first of eight honeymoons at the Breakers Hotel, when
she married Nicky Hilton, the son of Conrad Hilton.
Long Beach was well known as the motion picture capital of the world—until after World War
I when Hollywood supplanted it. Offering the world-famous balmy Southern California climate,
Long Beach was the perfect setting for the industry. Eight film houses, two stock companies, and
various amusements were located along the shore of downtown Long Beach. The most famous tenet
was the Balboa Amusement Production Company, the world's most prolific silent-film studio. W.
C. Fields and other stars occupied beautiful mansions in the Bluff Park neighborhood along Ocean
Boulevard and First Street, and many of these homes remain in the families to this day.
A visit to The Sky Room restaurant, with its newly renovated Art Deco design, will bring you
back to the Supper Club era of the 1920s and 1930s. This Spanish Baroque-style, sandstone-colored
landmark offers a stunning 360-degree view of the harbor and city of Long Beach.
The Sky Room
40 South Locust Avenue
Long Beach, California 90802
(562) 983-2703
