In 1947, Frank Sinatra first visited Palm Springs and changed the course of the city forever. Already a hub for health tourists searching for drier air on their vacation, the city had many hotels. Sinatra, arrived looking for a weekend home for his family to get away from Hollywood. Following his Oscar win for The House I Live In, the process began for constructing his weekend getaway in Palm Springs. The house was known as ‘Twin Palms’.
It was originally commissioned as a Georgian mansion, but Sinatra was convinced by the architect to make a more non-traditional, modern rectangular house. This change delayed the expected Christmas move in, but only by a handful of days. The Sinatras were able to throw a fancy New Years’ Eve party for its christening.
The house measures over 4,500 square feet and features a grand piano-shaped pool as well as an entire wing devoted to the master bedroom. Sinatra had a recording studio linked to the house – unfortunately, this is no longer in operating condition.
Twin Palms was a part of the neighborhood known as the 'Movie Colony', an exclusive sector of town which bore the claim to fame of having many 40s and 50s Hollywood stars as residents. He was known to hang a flag bearing the Jack Daniels emblem to let neighbors know it was time to visit for cocktails at Twin Palms. As part of the Movie Colony, Sinatra often played golf at the Indian Canyons Golf Resort, where fellow resident Walt Disney eventually donated a fountain.
After divorcing his first wife Nancy in 1948, the house soon became the site of his marriage to Ava Gardner. The pair were known to throw lavish parties at the estate. Twin Palms was also the site of many of their fights, including one instance where Sinatra reportedly threw a champagne bottle at Gardner, cracking a sink, and - according to Lee Server's book Ava Gardner: Love is Nothing - another where he kicked her and Lana Turner out of the house, throwing Gardner’s possessions onto the driveway.
Film buffs may recognize the house from the 1950 film The Damned Don’t Cry, starring Joan Crawford, where it features as the house of a mobster. It’s said that Sinatra loaned his house out to Crawford and the film’s team as a personal favor. However, they were only allowed to use exterior shots of the house.
Sinatra, true to his fashion, did not stay in the house for more than ten years, moving out in 1957 after his divorce from Gardner. The house has gone under some renovations and is now available for rentals for upwards of $2,000 a night.
Later that year, though, Sinatra moved to a new home in nearby Rancho Mirage. This house was known as 'The Compound', named for the multiple additions and acquisitions Sinatra gained during his time there. During his time in Palm Springs, he met former Vegas showgirl and ex-wife to Zeppo Marx, Barbara Marx. She became his fourth wife in 1976, hosting a ceremony at philanthropist Walter Annenberg's estate Sunnylands, and then moved back into The Compound to live out Frank's remaining years in Rancho Mirage. The town would later name a street 'Frank Sinatra Drive' in his honor.
The original house was small and part of an area country club, but was later expanded to include a guest house, a movie theater, poolside bungalows with his and her bathrooms, a huge restaurant-style kitchen, and even a train caboose converted into a small spa. The Sinatra Compound hosted many guests, including President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy had planned to stay a second time, and Sinatra pulled out all the stops, even designing a new bathroom for him. Unfortunately, Robert Kennedy was wary of Sinatra's alleged Mafia connections, and advised him not to. JFK pulled out at the last second, opting to stay at Bing Crosby's house instead. Sinatra then became a staunch Republican for the rest of his life.
Sinatra's favorite color was orange - he once called it "the happiest color" - and much of the furnishings in the house were orange, including the refrigerator. This changed during Barbara's time there due to changing tastes in the 1970s as well as her own - she brought in designer Bernice Korshak to help her. She even named each room after songs he recorded. Frank, however, got to keep his master bedroom in its original citrus-colored state at the end of her renovations - as well as the art pieces in it by himself and his daughter Tina.
Sinatra used The Compound as a base, between his excursions to other homes and cities, until almost the end of his life. Sinatra's last time there was in 1995 - shortly after his last concert, a benefit for the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center. He began to fall ill, and Frank and Barbara decided to sell the house to a Mr. James Pattison, who keeps many Sinatra relics around today. His memory still lingers in the area - Frank Sinatra is buried in Desert Memorial Park near Palm Springs next to his parents. One can think of the Palm Springs area as the place Frank's heart truly was - a place where he spent most of his working years, a place to cut loose from Hollywood and relax. Perhaps this is why his grave site is here - an apt place for a final rest.
