psl sept 2016 cover

Let the Season Begin!

Palm Springs Life presents the 39th edition of its annual Desert Living issue

Franklin Jones Fashion & Style, Watch & Listen - Lifestyle

psl sept 2016 cover
PHOTO BY MISHA GRAVENOR

I hope this 39th edition of Palm Springs Life’s annual Desert Living issue will amaze and delight like no other. The ingredients are here, starting with the extraordinary story lineup. Every year our editors and contributing writers stock the September book with A+ material.

We begin with Senior Editor Ellen Alperstein’s examination of the wildlife resource management work done by the Bighorn Institute. First-time visitors to our valley may be only vaguely aware that the local San Jacinto and Santa Rosa mountains are one of the few habitats left for our bighorn sheep, an endangered species that occupies a special place in local hearts and sightings of which are so rare, they seem like a mystical experience. The work the institute performs in safeguarding these local treasures is critical to their survival.

And speaking of local treasures, contributing writer Jeremy Kinser weighs in with a short, anecdotal history of The Purple Room, a supper club and cabaret that not only has been going strong for nearly 60 years but starts off the new season with a three-night engagement by Broadway legend Tommy Tune.

VIDEO: Watch a behind-the-scenes look at photographing the cover of the September 2016 issue. Video by Emily Chavous.

We think there is something for everyone in the Valley, or feature section, of the desert edition, from a profile of Top Chef’s lovely and entertaining Gail Simmons, to an exploration by author Bernadette Murphy and longtime outdoor contributing photographer Tom Brewster of the newest point of national geographic pride, our own Sand to Snow National Monument in the north end of the valley.

David Lansing, a writer lucky enough to divide his time between Palm Springs and Newport Beach, contributed a fascinating look at the history of tennis in Palm Springs, the sport of choice among visitors long before tony country clubs like Thunderbird cultivated their acreage into 18-hole golf courses.

Photographer Fredrik Brodén delivers yet another high concept style piece in “Second Chances,” a fashion fantasy that depicts a rocky start to a second honeymoon for models Michel Francoeur and Claudia Gonzalez, who are married to each other in real life.

There’s plenty more packed into these pages, including the annual September Guide, but I’ll let you discover the rest of the treats on your own.