Alison Martino invites us into one of the most vivid and transformative chapters in Los Angeles history: the Swinging ’60s on the Sunset Strip. In those years, Sunset Boulevard shimmered with possibility—a magnet for movie stars, musicians, artists, models and a restless new generation determined to rewrite the rules.

This was the decade of miniskirts and go-go boots, of mod glamour and bell-bottoms, of long hair, wild color and the psychedelic edge that closed out the ’60s in a haze of revolution and style. And it was a time when the cars cruising the Strip—Mustangs, Corvettes, Cadillacs, hot rods and sleek European sports cars—were as much a part of the scenery as the people driving them.

Night after night, the boulevard came alive with legendary supper clubs, restaurants, hotels and nightclubs. An evening might begin with dinner and cocktails among Hollywood’s old guard and end with the electrifying sound of a rock band echoing down the street. Alison revisits the Whisky a Go Go, Ciro’s, the Classic Cat, Pandora’s Box and the London Fog, along with the glamorous venues that kept classic Hollywood glowing even as a bold youth culture surged around it.

Above the neon and traffic, enormous billboards and glowing signs turned Sunset into an open-air spectacle of movies, music, fashion and desire. Beneath them, storefronts, record shops, hotels and clubs created a city within a city—a place where the crowds were as much a part of the scene as the stars.

Drawing from her remarkable collection of vintage photographs, many never before seen, Alison brings back a Sunset Strip that was glamorous, rebellious, electric, and utterly unforgettable. vintagelaphotos.com @alisonmartino