Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, February 29, 1932
The vision of E.S. Babcock, built mainly by Chinese laborers from San Francisco and Oakland, and opened in 1888, “The Del” had the misfortune of opening at the end of the Southern California boom. By the 1920’s and 1930’s the hotel was Hollywood’s Playground. During World War II, it used to house pilots being trained at nearby North Island Naval Air Station. One of California’s most iconic hotels, the Hotel Del Coronado was added to the National Registry of Historic Places in 1977.
Its iconic architecture, beautiful location, and proximity to Hollywood made the Hotel Del a natural setting for movies including The Flying Fleet (1927), Some Like It Hot (1959), Wicked, Wicked (1973), The Stunt Man (1980), and My Blue Heaven (1990).
