If the bars of Los Angeles could talk, they’d have an awful lot of tales to tell — old Hollywood was full of famously hard drinkers. And while LA’s watering holes are keeping their secrets, one author, Mark Bailey, has uncorked a slew of stories from the city’s plastered past.

In his book Of All the Gin Joints: Stumbling through Hollywood History, Bailey details the history of Hollywood’s love affair with liquor. It’s full of tales of beloved actors, directors and screenwriters behaving badly, from the early days of film all the way up to the 1970s — and includes recipes for some stars’ favorite cocktails.

via How Tinseltown Got Tipsy: A Boozy Taste Of Hollywood History : NPR.