Palm Springs has been known as a 'Playground for the Stars' since the 1930s.
Nestled near the base of the San Jacinto Mountains in southern California, celebrities such as Judy Garland, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, and many others have called the city their home — or at least their winter get-away. Palm Springs has also been a favorite to many U.S. Presidents, and various business tycoons.
This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in.In November of 1960 Fortune magazine was covering the winter golf scene in Palm Springs. They sent French photographer Robert Doisneau to document the socialites frequenting the country club courses throughout the city.
Doisneau's critical eye captured a humorous take on Palm Springs during the cusp of the 1960s era. His outtakes from his visit have been collected in the book "Robert Doisneau: Palm Springs 1960." Ahead, a selection of images from the book.
Palm Springs is famous for its lush golf courses, multi-million dollar vacation homes, and mid-century modern architecture.
As an outsider, Doisneau had a somewhat cynical view of Palm Springs. He's quoted in the intro of his book: "I have been introduced to millionaire golf-players as 'Robert-from-Paris'... I will have contacts in the oil, cinema, and the automobile industry."
In 1960, there were 19 golf courses in Palm Springs. One of the more popular courses was Thunderbird, a prestigious country club with an 18-hole course that had opened in 1951.
Today, there are 124 irrigated golf courses in the area. In the intro of "Robert Doisneau: Palm Springs 1960" Jean-Paul Dubois writes: "Doisneau confided in several letters his discomposure in discovering such a desert studded with 19 golf courses drilled into the heart of this oven."
Source: Golf Digest
The private pool is a vacation home must in Palm Springs — about 75% of the homes have them.
In the '50s and '60s, pioneering architect William Krisel built more than 2,000 mid-century modern homes in Palm Springs — including the famous Elvis Presley Honeymoon Hideaway — which is currently on the market for $6 million.
Source: Sotheby's
As Dubois says in the intro, Doisneau's images of Palm Springs in 1960 capture the end of an era — a "twilight time" in Palm Springs.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufonyxrcumZKyoop67qL%2BMoqVmrJiaenKFlWmqZmpgZoNugg%3D%3D