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Google has made available thousands of photos from the pages of LIFE magazine. They can be viewed at http://images.google.com/hosted/life. Just for fun I searched British Columbia and, among other things, up popped several photos of Hollywood actor William Holden and his wife Brenda holidaying at the Malibu Club in July, 1949. The images catch Holden on the cusp of stardom, a year before he won his first Oscar nomination for "Sunset Boulevard".

At that time Malibu was an exclusive resort, founded by the American airplane manufacturer Thomas Foster Hamilton at the entrance to Princess Louisa Inlet at the top of Jervis Inlet. Hamilton's plans to make Malibu the go-to resort for wealthy celebrities did not materialize and in 1950 the place closed, to be reborn three years later as a summer camp for Christian teenagers operated by Young Life.

I visited for the first time in 1965 when a friend borrowed his father's speedboat and we made the dash up Jervis Inlet. As I discovered that summer, Princess Louisa is one of the most spectacular places in the world. Today, much of it is preserved for public use, though the camp at Malibu continues to thrive.

The LIFE archive probably holds other BC treasures. Take a look for yourself.

Labels: PHOTOGRAPHS

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