Background
Pictorial California debuted in December 1925 by founder Eugene Swarzwald. The magazine was self-described as the first rotogravure
magazine with a 24-page picture book format. Volume 5, number 1, January 1930, appeared with a name change to Pictorial California
and the Pacific. The expanded geographic coverage included a new directory of hotels, resorts and other travel information
The magazine was later operated by Vivian Smith Swarzwald as Publisher and Editor through the issue of Volume 43, number 1
Winter 1968. A new incoming owner, William L. Lemons, published the next issue for the Spring of 1968 without introduction,
but the following issue, Volume 43, number 3, introduced the publication in color. For an additional biographical and historical
note, see a related collection at the Huntington Library, the Eugene Swarzwald "Pictorial California and the Pacific" Collection
of Photographs.