There was a time when Myrtle Beach had a reputation for very aggressive, even over-the-top cops. They’d drag you out of a car on Ocean Drive for yelling out of an open car window. That’s not to say that there haven’t always been shady places in Myrtle Beach, but you had to go looking for them. The tourist district was policed thoroughly to the point of excess.
I guess that’s not true anymore.
I remember going to Myrtle Beach in the 1960’s as a kid. Sometimes a day trip, we would rent a locker and change at the Pavilion. Sometimes we would stay over night at one of the one or two story family owned motels that lined the beach in those days, no reservation required. Back then you could see the ocean from blocks away. As late as 1980 you could find a motel room on the beach for $25 a night, no reservation required.
The last time I went to Myrtle Beach in 2008, I couldn’t even see the ocean from Ocean Drive with all of the high rise hotels and condos. Crowds of unsavory looking people hanging around everywhere. Never went back.