The parade of comedians who made their pilgrimage to the Oceana Apartments reads like a chuckling Who’s Who: Jerry Lewis. Marcel Marceau. Dick Van Dyke. All aspired to give the world the giggles in the early 1960s. And all came to glean advice from the king of clowns who resided inside Room #203.
Stan Laurel lived in Room #203 until the day he passed away in February of 1965. Years afterward, the Oceana was refashioned as a resort hotel. Room #203 was split into two during a 2007 remodeling, and in 2013, the Oceana Beach Club Hotel renovated its lobby and courtyard, adding modern sophistication and a new color palette of cool blues, grays, and whites. Two-star Michelin Chef Josiah Citrin opened Tower 8 restaurant onsite.
“I’d rather be skiing,” Laurel reportedly said on his deathbed. “Oh,” his nurse asked, “are you a skier, Mr. Laurel?” “No,” he replied, “but I’d rather be skiing anyway.”
