An Abridged History of How the Hotel du Cap Became the Glamorous Power Center of Cannes

“The light over the Cap is extraordinary this time of year,” the general manager of the Hotel du Cap, Philippe Perd, tells me. It’s a literal statement: The cool airs of spring have been swept away with the seasons, while the hot, heavy ones of summer have yet to set in. In May, the sun shines warm and sweet, its rays a gentle honeyed diffusion.

But it also feels like the light shines because of something that doesn’t have to do with seasons at all: the Cannes Film Festival.

Each May,…