The MALIBU COLONY COCKTAIL
The Pacific Coast of California is considered one of the world’s great wonders of nature. And one of the most idyllic sections of the coast would become known as Malibu. By the early 1920s, May Rindge, was the last private owner of the 13,000-acre Rancho Malibu. While under severe litigation, causing a substantial financial strain, she began to lease beachfront lots.
Soon motion picture insiders and celebrities discovered the soothing cool ocean breeze and laidback atmosphere. Located approximately 20 miles from the studios of Hollywood, Malibu offered an abundance of fun in the sun. Originally, Malibu was a summer or weekend destination. Early residents included Swedish silent film star Anna Q. Nilsson, Gloria Swanson, Jackie Coogan, Bing Crosby, Gary Cooper, John Gilbert, Ronald Coleman, Marie Dressler, Harold Lloyd, Dolores Del Rio, Frank Capra, Adela Rogers, Clara Bow and Constance Bennett.
By 1936 Rindge began to sell beach front lots. What started out as simple shacks and cottages now morphed into bungalows and ultimately, mansions. The favorite outdoor sport there was tennis, with a tournament held every summer. Raucous house parties were common, both during and after Prohibition. It would become known to many as “Babylon-by-the-sea.”
A young Budd Schulberg and his family were some of the original part-time residents. He would later recall his first visit to this new stretch of seaside beach. “It was called Malibu, and belonged to the Rindge Estate, which had inherited one of the sprawling land grants into which Spanish California had been divided. The Rindge Estate had been a self-contained enclave with its own cattle on a promontory overlooking the bay, and sullen armed guards to keep the curious away. Now a choice private beach was being opened to the public at last.
“From the foothills ran a freshwater stream that spilled into a crescent-shaped lagoon between the imposing Rindge mansion and the insulated beach. On the other side of the coast road, several thousand acres of rich land were under cultivation by Japanese farmers. On a knoll rising above the foothills was a monastery. Below it, near the deserted beach, was a jerry-built office where an energetic salesman with the country smarts, Art Smith, was waiting for his first customers.”
Writer Will Fowler, son of writer Gene Fowler, also saw Malibu in its infancy. He later wrote, “Somewhere in the vicinity of fifty years ago there was a sandbar just north of Santa Monica, California, with a sprinkling of beach houses facing the Pacific Ocean. During these days of Prohibition, one could not shout to a person in the next house because it was so far distant. One of the handful of the structures was uniquely fashioned after the upper decks of an ocean liner. It belonged to screen star Lew Cody. He was one of Fowler’s drinking companions and one of first of the motion picture world to move to this then remote spot. He had a wet bar with a huge fake telephone and a “hot” silver dollar screwed and electrically wired to the mahogany counter top. When one surreptitiously tried to pick up the silver dollar, Lew would flip the electric switch and give him a cautionary jolt.”
The late Lew Cody would probably have a hard time recognizing the place now. Today, the Malibu Colony is more popular than ever, more densely populated than ever, and home to some of Southern California’s most expensive real estate.
With all the notoriety attributed to the Malibu Colony and the enduring legacy as a place to party, it was only natural that a delightful and refreshing cocktail would be named after this oceanside oasis.
THE Malibu Colony Cocktail
2 oz. light or dark rum
2 oz. cranberry juice
2 oz. pineapple juice
2 oz. orange juice (optional)
1 oz. coconut syrup
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously. Pour into a tall Collins glass with ice. Top with club soda. Garnish with pineapple wedge and maraschino cherry.
