The Terrible Catsafterme

Bob and I were rising and we were most definitely shining very early on the morning of Sunday, June 13, 2010. We got ready and got our stuff packed up from the Motel 6 in San Simeon, California, in time to get down to the lobby, eat some breakfast in the adjoining Sunset Grill restaurant (where I enjoyed a delicious and very filling seafood benedict), and head out to our first and foremost major destination of the day. It was a little country cabin in the hills known as Hearst Castle.

Hearst Castle was built by publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst in 1919. Hearst had grown fond of the land in the Santa Lucia mountain range as a boy, when his father purchased the land. As his wealth mounted – and his mother passed away and left him the land – he decided to build the home to end all homes. As a result of his fondness for Europe, the castle is a conglomerate of a variety of styles found abroad. He filled the castle with artwork, game rooms, dining areas, a movie theater, swimming pools, and lavish guest rooms.

The location was also noted during the 1930’s and 40’s as being the hangout for the elite and the famous. Among the notables who would be invited to stay at the mansion as Hearst’s guests were President Calvin Coolidge, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Hal Roach, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, the Marx Brothers, Charles Lindbergh, James Stewart, and Joan Crawford. Hearst would fill their weekends with organized activities, dining, and free time to explore the grounds.

Picture of a fun gang visiting the castle: seated at left is Hal Roach, seated second from the right is Buster Keaton

There were several tours available, each of which showed off different parts of the grounds. We chose the basic first floor tour, which took us through parts of the main mansion, Casa Grande, and the middle-sized of the three guest houses, Casa del Sol.

We started out with an 8:15 screening of Hearst Castle: Building the Dream in the visitor center theater. We then boarded a bus an hour later that took us through the windy mountain hills and the private zoo where animals still roam to the castle itself. We started out on the exterior and interior Casa del Sol ,visited the giant Neptune pool (which Hearst had re-built three times; he was quite picky), and then into the Casa Grande for a tour of the Gothic Study, dining room, billiard room, movie theater, and the indoor pool. Overall the tour was about an hour and a half. It was quite a sight and made me covet the celebrities who were fortunate enough to stay and play here.

Outside the visitor center at Hearst Castle, obviously

We saw the first showing of the day of Hearst Castle: Building the Dream

The screening wouldn’t be a screening without a sleeping Bob

Having fun in the Hearst Castle gift shop while we waited for our bus

Outside the visitor center with the Santa Lucia mountains in the background

Bob kept careful count of the steps during the tour, to make sure that they didn’t slip any extras in

No, this is not the mansion. It is the guest house Casa del Sol. And it’s not even the biggest of the three.

One of the guest house sleeping quarters

Overlooking the refreshing Neptune Pool. It costs like $10,000 to go for a swim. I considered falling in accidentally.

Marble statue of the Three Graces by Antonio Canova

An ancient Egyptian statue with the Casa Grande – the main house – behind us

The front door of Hearst Castle. No one was home.

William Randolph Hearst would assemble his guests in the Gothic Study and then slip in through this ‘hidden’ door

The lavish dining area

Now where did I put that billiard room?

After watching a few of Hearst’s home movies in the estate’s movie theater. I want one.

After the evening movie, Hearst would typically invite his guests to go for a midnight swim in this, the indoor pool

Bob and I after experiencing the dream

We had about an hour drive to our next location, which although a bit morbid, was interesting to see nonetheless. This was the site in Cholame, California, were James Dean fatally crashed his car on September 30, 1955. About 900 yards from the crash site is a memorial to Dean. Since the memorial is wrapped around a tree, I had incorrectly assumed that Dean had wrapped his car around this tree whilst speeding maniacally down the highway. Actually Dean had not necessarily been speeding, nor was the accident his fault. He was hit head on when another car crossed into his lane while attempting to take the fork from State Route 466 (now 46) to State Route 41.

The exact times and dates of James Dean’s life span

Me and Bob at the Memorial

After lunch we ventured out to the actual crash site at the intersection of State R0utes 46 and 41. The roadways have been somewhat re-aligned to make a safer junction.

On the property of the memorial is the Jack Ranch Café, where Bob and I had lunch amidst the James Dean memorabilia. I only ordered french fries and a root beer float, but also ate Bob’s tomato and noodle soup.

Lunch with James Dean at the Jack Ranch Café

We had about a two hour drive up the 101 from Cholame to Salinas, where we would be visiting the Garden of Memories Memorial Park, arriving around 3:30 that afternoon. Located here was the grave of John Steinbeck, acclaimed author of such works as Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. He wasn’t too difficult to find, but it took quite a while to locate another one of Bob’s Medal of Honor recipients. This one was named Ovila Cayer, a Union soldier from the Civil War.

The grave of John Steinbeck

As we drove slightly further north, the 101 became clogged with a traffic jam, so we veered off and followed the GPS on a dirt road path that looked like the world’s longest driveway. By 5:00 we ended up at the Mission San Juan Bautista. I would have liked to have toured it, but unfortunately by this time it was closed. We were able to see the most important part, however, the exterior areas seen in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo. The stables and hall across the street can also be seen in the film (all of these film can be seen in further detail here).

Mission San Juan Bautista, or at least the sign indicating it

With the statue of Fray Junípero Serra, founder of the California missions

Outside the Mission San Bautista. The Vertigo bell tower is notably absent. More on that later.

Dinner that night was in Carmel-by-the-Sea, a town most notable because of its famous former-mayor Clint Eastwood, who held the post for one term in 1986. We ate at the Hog’s Breath Inn, which Eastwood had owned ten years earlier, located in a building complex that he currently owns. Although the name of the establishment sounded disgusting (as Erin noted repeatedly), the atmosphere and food were fabulous. There were blazing fireplaces both inside and outside the building to add to the ambiance, and the hazelnut salmon and au gratin potatoes were top notch.

At the entrance to the Hog’s Breath Inn and in the building complex owned by Clint Eastwood

With the great movie poster behind my head as we dined

Deluxe dining – Eastwood style

Monterey was only about five miles from Carmel-by-the-Sea, so we headed over to the Super 8 motel in town. We were lucky to find a reasonably priced place considering the Pebble Beach U.S. Open was about to take place in the area. I think that is some sort of golf event. I was happy to retire in the cozy motel early, turning in to some internet action for the evening while Bob took a walk around the area.

More Northern California fun will continue the next day…

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 1st, 2010 at 6:02 am and is filed under 2010's - Early, Famous Graves, Historical Locations, Vacations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.