What does the name "Palm Springs" bring to mind for you? Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack? Stephen Willard, the Ansel Adams of the desert? Bob Hope? Mid-century modern architecture and design? Maybe the White Party or The Dinah? Country club living and golf?
We all have our own associations with Palm Springs. Mine goes back to the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, the first people of Palm Springs. Much of today's Palm Springs is on Agua Caliente land, and the tribe remains strong leaders in the community today. Whatever your associations, one thing is for certain: Palm Springs has a rich history and much culture and and life to celebrate and enjoy. It's a place that has a beauty all its own, blending the past and present to create not just one of the most beautiful cities in the desert, but one of the most beautiful cities anywhere.
I grew up coming out to both the hi-desert and the Coachella Valley, what I now refer to as the "lo desert" (Thanks Mona!). Both have changed dramatically since my childhood. But when I returned to the desert full time in 2000, I began working in the lo desert, first as editor for The Public Record, then operated out of the Palm Springs Life building. Soon after that, however, I found my niche as news editor of the Desert Post Weekly (back when it had news), and for most of a few years, we had a superb team that produced some great work.
I spent some time as a "liberal" foil to Marshall Gilbert's voice from the right on local radio, as well as on Steve Kelly's and Joey English's shows, and that of my late friend, Howard Gordon. I did a little local television, but when the Weekly was being gutted and destroyed in 2004, like the rest of my colleagues, I looked around for alternatives. I found that with The Sun Runner, a magazine based in the hi-desert since 1995.
I signed the deal to purchase The Sun Runner on my birthday in 2004, and since that time I've also launched and published The Joshua Tree Tortoise Telegraph, an upbeat local newspaper, the Joshua Tree Gateway Communities Visitor Guide, and produced, written, and hosted Southwest Stories, a regional travel show produced for KVCR PBS TV.
On the 13th anniversary of my purchase of The Sun Runner, I'm launching a new publication, The Palm Canyon Paradise. It's the newspaper for people who love Palm Springs. We'll be exploring Palm Springs - its past, present, personalities, culture, events, and more. Some of it will be familiar, some likely not. We'll be turning you on to our favorite places, but I'll really like it when you share your favorites - where you enjoy a dinner out, have found a fantastic new cocktail, a great shopping find, a place to stay that's a great retreat, a hike, special event, or individual that has a great story to share. The paper's not about me, after all. It's about a place that's more a way of life maybe than anything. It's about Palm Springs.
Welcome to The Palm Canyon Paradise!
