Newport Beach in the Rearview Mirror
A look back at the events and people—famous and forgotten—that shaped Newport Beach. Follow on Instagram (newport.in.the.rearview.mirror).
Podcasting since 2021 • 39 episodes
Newport Beach in the Rearview Mirror
Latest Episodes
39: W.S. Collins – Balboa Island Visionary, Con Man or Both? (Part 1)
“W.S. Collins: Balboa Island Visionary, Con Man or Both?” takes a deep dive into the life of the most intriguing figure in Newport history: W.S. Collins. The farsighted land speculator is best known for buying the entire Newport Bea...
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42:58
38: The Secrets of Collins Castle
For more than 50 years, the Collins Castle stood sentry over Newport Harbor. The concrete mansion once rivaled the stately Balboa Pavilion—five years its junior— for the attention of boaters on the bay. Located on tiny Collins Island, which ...
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32:39
37: The Case of the Missing Beach in West Newport
For decades, the beach in West Newport would occasionally disappear when storm waves stripped away the sand. In the 1930s, one storm wiped out the beach and sent several homes to Davy’s Locker. A later storm wiped out all the oce...
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27:09
36: The 9 Lives of the Castaways
There’s no chunk of land in Newport Beach that’s more historic and has been more malleable than the Castaways. Its chameleon-like ability, enabled by its prime location overlooking the bay and ocean, has given the Castaways nine distinct liv...
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29:35
35: The Prophet Who Predicted and Saved Newport Harbor's Future
In 1909, W.S. Collins wanted to massively increase the footprint of his Balboa Island development. The land extension would have cut the width of Newport Harbor's main channel by more than half. In those days, the federal governmen...
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11:27