From Graceland in Memphis to Hearst Castle in nearby San Simeon, the opulent showpieces of the rich and famous have long attracted travelers fascinated to see what results when a vivid imagination meets an unlimited budget.
The latest in that proud line of American mega-homesteads to open its doors to the hoi polloi is Sunnylands, the 200-plus acre estate in Rancho Mirage built as a winter home by late publishing magnate Walter Annenberg (he of TV Guide and American Bandstand) and his wife Leonore in 1966.
Located in one of the priciest slices of desert realty adjoining Palm Springs (Larry Ellison has a modest 246-acre retreat of his own there), Sunnylands is completely encircled by thick walls that Leonore decreed be painted pink in homage to the desert’s famous sunsets. Eminent guests such as Presidents Nixon and Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Queen Elizabeth and Bob Hope visited over the years, and perhaps hit the links on the nine-hole private golf course within the estate’s pastel perimeter. For decades the walls effectively served as a candy-colored moat between this aloof desert fortress and the outside world.
But this year Sunnylands opens its gates to the public for the first time under its new billing as a “West Coast Camp David.” A visitors center and sustainable nine-acre garden highlight a new emphasis geared toward the general public. Sunnylands Center & Gardens is open free to the public Thursdays through Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. until May 31, and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June 1 to July 31 before closing in August.
The gleaming, midcentury-style visitors center is a large white pavilion with 16-foot walls. Inside, artifacts from the estate’s swanky past drape the walls, such as a golf ball signed by Richard Nixon. The decoration is the work of Michael Smith, the interior designer of the Obama White House.
The estate’s assortment of greens, swimming pools and man-made fishing lakes will still be reserved mainly for those invited to exclusive powwows with lofty goals such as advancing world peace, with accommodations for 23 guests for retreats.
Tours of the Annenbergs’ former 25,000-square-foot residence will be available on a limited basis when retreats are not there.
In the Annenbergs’ time (Walter died in 2002 and Leonore in 2009) the estate was foremost a Republican fiefdom-Walter Annenberg was Nixon’s ambassador to the Court of St. James in Great Britain and Leonore was Reagan’s Chief of Protocol, and the pair often returned the favors at Sunnylands festivities.
But the new Sunnylands Center is clearly aiming at a younger demographic and a futuristic feel. Now there are films and videos, as well as sleek modern flourishes like a solar field for electrical power and an Australian-designed subsurface irrigation system for the 50,000 desert plants that pepper the assiduously maintained garden.
All signs point to a full-throttle mission to make Sunnylands relevant for a new generation to serve as a reminder that while revolutions may start on Facebook, peace deals can, and might continue to be, brokered with a seveniron.
For more information visit sunnylands.org.
Pam Price writes for blogs.forbes.com/pamprice/