When Walter H. Morgan invited the Hollywood elite out to the desert to escape Tinseltown in the Christmas of 1926, they shed the burden of celebrity, and shared the simplicity and health benefits of good food, good drink, and good friends. The retreat was rare, but the connection was real and lasting. As Frank Capra, who returned many times to write his most famous film classics, stated, “It was the kind of place everyone was looking for; it is a wonderful green oasis in the middle of the desert, and it is absolutely private.”