Cockatoo Inn
Cockatoo Inn was a hotel located on Hawthorne Boulevard and Imperial Highway in Hawthorne, California. The hotel was a popular destination in Los Angeles, serving US politicians, Hollywood actors, and members of the American Mafia. Cockatoo gained a reputation for being a gathering place for the elites in Los Angeles. The 210-room hotel featured intricate European furnishings, grand banquet halls, and an eccentric bar. The hotel was founded in 1958, when a notorious American Mafia member Andrew Lococo built the hotel. Cockatoo Inn quickly became popular in Los Angeles. Guests of the hotel include John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, and Mickey Rooney. An acting US Attorney identified Andrew Lococo as a prominent member of the American Mafia, making Lococo subject to federal investigations. Shortly afterward he was convicted of horse race-fixing, gambling violations, and perjury in a grand trial. Lococo proceeded to sell the hotel two years after his conviction. The hotel business continued to prosper, but by the late 1980s, the hotel began to suffer and became bankrupt in 1991. The next corporation to buy the bankrupt hotel was also unable to make the Cockatoo Inn profitable and sold the property to investors from China. The