Hesperia's Hollywood Era: Golf, Airport and the Rat Pack

Hesperia's 1950s "Hollywood era" was real, but a land developer and a boxer built it, not the Rat Pack. In 1954, developer M. Penn Phillips and his silent partner, boxer Jack Dempsey, bought most of the township, and a golf course followed that hosted official PGA Tour events from 1957 to 1960. We found no documented link between Hesperia and Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin or Sammy Davis Jr.

This guide separates what records show from what is only repeated locally. For a broader look at the city today, see our Hesperia community guide.

Who was M. Penn Phillips, and what did he do in Hesperia?

Per the County of San Bernardino's history feature on Hesperia, Phillips and Jack Dempsey purchased about 23,000 acres in 1954. They carved it into some 30,000 parcels, which the county ranks among the biggest land sales in state history.

A 2015 profile in the San Bernardino County Sentinel gives the sale date as April 22, 1954. It describes a 36-square-mile tract covering about nine-tenths of the township.

According to the Sentinel, the plan included:

• Land set aside for industry and for farming
• About 5,000 new homes
• A man-made lake about two and a half miles long
• A resort area

The Sentinel adds that within a week of the sale, Phillips and Dempsey announced they would renovate the old Hesperia Hotel. That never happened. A Hesperia Recreation and Park District marker says the hotel stood from 1887 to 1961. Local historian Walter Feller writes that it was built of handmade adobe bricks and that the volunteer fire department burned it for practice in 1961.

Not everything went smoothly

The same Sentinel profile reports that a state deputy real estate commissioner charged Phillips with fraud and suspended his real estate license. It says the 160-day suspension was lifted in 1961. These were the state's allegations as the paper reported them; we found no record of Phillips's own response to cite.

Did Sinatra and the Rat Pack really come to Hesperia?

This is the most repeated local story, and it is the weakest on paper. Here is what we could and could not find.

Documented:

• Jack Dempsey. The county history identifies the former heavyweight champion as Phillips's silent financial partner. The park district's points-of-interest list also includes a Hesperia Arcade and Jack Dempsey Museum, dated 1954, on Orange in Old Town.
• Unnamed celebrities. The county writes that the Hesperia Inn and golf course "drew a variety of Hollywood celebrities." The park district, which dates the Inn to 1954, says many celebrities performed there. Neither names anyone.
• Tour golfers. The golf club's history page lists Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Sam Snead, Billy Casper, Gene Littler and Julius Boros among the era's players it hosted.

Often said, but not documented in sources we could find:

• That Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. or other Rat Pack members invested in Hesperia, owned land there, played the course or performed at the Inn.
• That Bing Crosby or Bob Hope had a Hesperia connection. We found no source for either.

One possible root of the story: the Sentinel reports that Phillips invited Sinatra, along with other stars, to boat races at his Salton Sea development. That was a separate Phillips project in another part of the state, not Hesperia.

If you have a dated newspaper clipping or photo showing a Rat Pack visit, the Hesperia Recreation and Park District is the local keeper of this history.

When did Hesperia host a PGA Tour event?

The Hesperia Open Invitational counted as an official PGA Tour event for four years. Winners, per PGA Tour career records:

Some lists add a 1961 edition won by Tony Lema. His PGA Tour win list does not include it, so it likely was not an official tour event.

The club's history page also credits Gene Littler with a course-record 62 in 1959. It says the course hosted the TV series Shell's Wonderful World of Golf, without giving a year.

Who designed the golf course, and when did it open?

Sources disagree. The club's own history page says the course was built in 1957 and credits architect William F. Bell Jr. The park district's list dates the course to 1956 and mentions Roy Bearden in a line about its design, though the wording is unclear. We could not settle this with a primary record, so treat both as claims.

Is Hesperia Golf & Country Club open today?

Yes. As of November 2026, the club's course page says the public can play. It lists 18 holes with tees from 6,136 to 7,001 yards, at 17970 Bangor Ave. Call (760) 244-9301 to confirm tee times.

Who runs it:

• A club press release says Donovan Bros Golf became the manager on September 20, 2019.
• In Victor Valley News, the city attorney described it as a city-owned course managed by a private company.

In December 2022, the city tried to acquire a 15.5-acre parcel north of the course that it had leased for years as a public driving range. The owner's lawyers called it a likely "land grab," and city officials said they had been mischaracterized. The resolution to start condemnation needed four council votes and got three.

The course is still in use. The AJGA held a junior tournament there April 25-27, 2025, its second straight year at the course. We found no published 2025 or 2026 plan to sell or redevelop the course. Nearby growth is covered in our Silverwood update.

Is Hesperia Airport still open?

Yes. FAA data effective October 29, 2026, as shown on AirNav, lists:

• Identifier: L26
• Status: Unattended, no control tower
• Ownership and use: Privately owned by Silverwood Aviation Inc., open to the public
• Runway: 3/21, 3,910 by 50 feet, asphalt in poor condition with substantial cracks and raveling
• Elevation: about 3,390 feet
• Fuel: 100LL listed

The FAA record also notes public roads give access to the runway and taxiway at several points, and a road runs near the runway 3 end. If you drive near the field, watch for aircraft and stay off the runway.

How old is the airport?

The county history says Hesperia had one of the few manned and lighted airstrips in the High Desert in the 1920s. It also says Charles Lindbergh was reported to have stopped there for minor repairs, which it presents as a report rather than a confirmed fact.

The park district dates the Hesperia Air Park to 1955 and says it began as a utility landing strip. A 1991 county land use plan called it a privately owned, public use airport. At that time its owner and operator, Mojave Aviation, Inc., ran a flight school and an on-airport motel.

How can you see this history today?

• Play the course. Hesperia Golf & Country Club is the most direct link to the era, and it is open to the public.
• Read the markers. The park district put up historical markers around town in 1995. Its monument list gives locations, including the Hesperia Hotel site at Hesperia Road and Spruce and the Old School House near C Avenue, which the district calls the oldest standing building in Hesperia.
• Visit the museum. The park district lists the 1926 Stratton home on Main Street as its museum. Call the district for open hours before you go.
• Watch from public areas. The airport is private property. View it from public roads and do not enter the airfield without permission.

For more places to spend a day nearby, see our High Desert hotspots guide.

How Pleasant Hill can help

Our office is on Main Street in Hesperia. If you are thinking about a move, you can search homes, request a free home valuation, or reach Nancy Navarro in Hesperia. You can also contact us with any question.

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