Dateline>City of Angels

In light of the historic events shaping the national political scene both yesterday and today, I thought it appropriate to choose a video that illustrates how far we’ve come over the last century and a half. A remarkable figure in Angeleno history, Biddy Mason helped break barriers for African Americans as well as women in a day and age fraught with prejudice and obstacles. I only wish this short two-minute teaser delved deeper into her amazing story.

Today’s pop quiz is dedicated to Mission San Gabriel, which celebrates its 237th annual fiesta tomorrow through Sunday. Founded Sept. 8, 1771, it was fourth in California’s chain of 21 missions, and among the most prosperous. It can also be called L.A.’s Mother Church, since the pobladores set out from here to found the City of Angels. But the current site is not the mission’s first location.

The Question: Where was the original site of the mission? (Follow the “Read More” jump for the answer.) Read more

Militant Angeleno “sort of” covers this weekend’s Sunset Junction Street Fair, an event your humble blogger also stopped going to about two years ago.

There’s little I can add to the Militant’s post — his observations are dead-on. Sunset Junction used to be a fun event with an edge: An unpretentious celebration in which rag-tag bohemians, resident gang bangers, hardcore leather daddies and other diverse locals all mingled joyously and harmoniously in the dog days of summer. A true neighborhood experience, admission was free and the food, beers and booth trinkets were cheap.

Nowadays, most daddies you spot are the stroller-pushing Silver Lake Dad variety, while the “bohemians” are all hipster wannabes. (Oh for those good ol’ days….)

L.A. Metblogger Jason Burns has the perfect recommendation for the new downtown streetcars proposed by the Bringing Back Broadway initiative: Make them vintage, à la San Francisco’s famous trolleys and cable cars.

Burns makes an eloquent case for such vehicles in his full post, a snippet of which reads:

While the very notion of a new streetcar line in Downtown Los Angeles should excite all of us, L.A. would be missing a monumental opportunity by installing a modern streetcar line that pays no homage to our fair city’s past.

Here, here! This idea is one downtown initiative that Dateline>City of Angels can really get behind — as long as the underlying mechanicals are up to date. We wouldn’t want the trolley line doing to tourists what  Sinai and Olivet did in 2001.

Hollywood is known for countless oddball pairings: Laurel and Hardy. Spanky and Alfalfa. Sonny and Cher.

But in my mind one of the oddest has to be Rudy Valentino and DeLongpre Park. There is no historical connection between the two. Yet here in the pocket park commemorating the famous floral artist Paul DeLongpre, you’ll find not one but two statues of the silent screen icon who died 82 years ago today.

Stranger still, the fleshly rendition of Valentino at the center of the park was originally sculpted by Roger Noble Burnham for a planned tomb for the actor. When that tomb failed to materialize, the memorial was instead placed here on Valentino’s birthday in 1930 — against protests of residents who found it a bizarre addition to a park honoring DeLongpre. (A second bust, below, was added in 1979.)

Ghost of the Town…

Not surprisingly, over the years there have been persistent rumors of paranormal activity around the graven monument, along with several mysterious incidents of vandalism. In fact, Valentino, who is buried in a borrowed crypt at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, remains one of the Southland’s most ubiquitous ghosts. Ever restless, his spirit has allegedly been sighted hundreds of times at numerous “lifetime haunts,” including:

• His former Falcon Lair mansion in Beverly Hills.
• Downtown L.A.’s Alexandria Hotel.
• Hollywood’s Musso and Frank Grill.
• The Paramount Studios wardrobe department.
• An apartment court at Hollywood’s Valentino Place.
• Mission San Fernando, where he once shot a film.
• An Oxnard beach house and an inn at Santa Maria.
• Riding an Arabian horse in Glendora and driving a roadster through Hollywood’s Whitley Heights.
• And of course, hanging about his final Hollywood Forever resting place.

As if that’s not enough, the spirit of Valentino’s faithful dog Kabar is also said to invisibly nip and lick at visitors to his L.A. pet cemetery grave.

As usual, many of these hauntings are highly suspect. For instance, historical research shows that, local legends notwithstanding, the actor had no actual link to Valentino Place.

Neither did the Latin Lover ever work on the present-day Paramount lot. He made his films at the Lasky Studios near Sunset and Vine before they relocated and became Paramount in 1926.

Still, even in death, Rudy continues to bask in the immortal limelight. To learn more about his career, legacy and supposed afterlife exploits, visit the following links/entries:

• Wikipedia on Rudolph Valentino
  
• Rudy’s IMBD Filmography
• You Tube Tributes and Film Footage
• Troy Taylor’s Haunted Hollywood

They say turnabout is fair play…

Having argued for years that their company has legally appropriated characters in the public domain for its cartoons (i.e., Bambi and Peter Pan), Disney officials may soon be in the uncomfortable position of fending off challenges to their own copyright on none other than The Mouse himself.

According to an extensive article in today’s L.A. Times Business Section, legal technicalities surrounding the earliest “Steamboat Willie” renditions of Mickey (pictured above) may have inadvertently left the trademark rodent in the public domain.

But first, a legal disclaimer of my own: Before anyone accuses this blog of copyright infringement, please note that low-res images reproduced for the purpose of non-commercial commentary on a work are commonly considered fair use under U.S. law. Moreover, for now at least, Steamboat Mickey remains the property of Disney and may not be reproduced from this site for any other purpose. (There. You are warned.)

Even so, if legal experts are correct, Dateline>City of Angels and other would-be copyright violators may have nothing to worry about.

“That ‘Steamboat Willie’ is in the public domain is easy. That’s a foregone conclusion,” says copyright scholar Peter Jaszi in the Times piece, which adds:

The issue has been chewed over by law students as class projects and debated by professors. It produced one little-noticed law review article: a 23-page essay in a 2003 University of Virginia legal journal that argued “there are no grounds in copyright law for protecting” the Mickey of those early films.

The essay apparently sent Disney suits into a tizzy, and their blustery reaction makes for comical reading in the full article.

Birthplace of the Controversy?

Meanwhile, while the lawyers and scholars duke it out, your humble blogger went in search of a “neighborhood angle” to the story — and found it in L.A.’s nearby Franklin Hills district.

Call it the House the Mouse Built. In fact, the home pictured at left could very well be the birthplace of the newly contentious cartoon character.

About 1925, as Uncle Walt was preparing to open his first studio along Hyperion Ave., he purchased two lots at the corner of Lyric and St. George, within walking distance of his new enterprise. The following year, he completed the construction of two $8,000 houses, one for him and wife Lillian, and the second for brother Roy. Although Mickey made his celebrated debut in 1928, film historians say the Disney brothers had been at work on the character as early as 1925, with Walt possibly tinkering on preliminary sketches in his garage studio.

Back then, he called his would-be star Mortimer, but when he shared his creation with Lillian, she suggested the name Mickey instead. Disney made the change and released two animated shorts starring the mouse in 1928, neither of which was picked up by distributors. Undeterred, Walt took another stab that year with “Steamboat Willie,” the first animated cartoon to synchronize sound and action, performing the voices of Mickey and Minnie himself. This time the magic clicked, propelling Mickey and his creator to fame and fortune.

Four years later, Walt and Lillian moved out of their Lyric Ave. home, presumably for a fancier private domain.

You’d think Sasquatch investigator Tom Biscardi would’ve seen this one coming. Certainly the warning signs were all there.

First, the two men who claimed to have discovered the over-seven-foot carcass in northern Georgia this past July couldn’t stick to a coherent story as to how they bagged it in the wilds, dragged it out, and iced it down in an undisclosed freezer somewhere.

Next there was Jerry Parrino, owner of a large Halloween store in Port Washington, NY, who warned that the beast in the photos closely resembled a costume his company sells (pictured left).

Finally there was that matter of the “finders fee” (rumored to be in the neighborhood of $50,000), which the pair negotiated for turning their frozen friend over for examination.

But noooo… Biscardi went ahead, paid the gents, and scheduled a Palo Alto press conference last week to announce to the world that the creature’s unveiling was imminent.

Of course, with the money in their hot little hands, the guys who “found” the corpse beat tracks faster than the elusive beast ever could, leaving behind a slowly thawing hoax that left Biscardi and an associate good and frosted.

As this past weekend has again reminded us, fires have long been the scourge of Griffith Park. Devastating as the 2007-2008 fire seasons have been, however, the worst disaster in the park’s history remains the Great Fire of 1933, seen in this vintage AP photo sent by a Dateline>City of Angels reader.

Like the recent spate of burnings, arson was the suspected cause of the firestorm that erupted almost 75 years ago, with several witnesses saying they had seen a suspicious man running from a rapidly rising column of smoke at the blaze’s flashpoint.

The original Associated Press wire caption to this Oct. 5, 1933, photo reads as follows…

“Twenty Seven Known Dead in Brush Fire: A front line scene of fire fighters building breaks to stop the raging brush and timber fire in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, October 3. Twenty-seven persons were known to have lost their lives, and officials expected the death list to mount higher.”

Remembering the Tragedy

The official death toll did indeed rise to 29, but during the aftermath inquests some citizen groups challenged those figures, arguing that the number killed was almost certainly higher.

Being the Depression Era, there were more than 3,000 men in the park clearing brush and maintaining trails as part of a workfare program when the fire broke out. As the flames spread, the workers were pressed into service to battle them. Inexperienced in fire fighting, their foremen often barked conflicting and dangerous orders, and many found themselves trapped in canyons by wind-swept flames that suddenly turned on them. Assessing the missing, injured and dead took days.

To honor the victims, a memorial cedar tree and bronze plaque were erected Nov. 23, 1933, near the park’s Vermont entrance. That plaque has since disappeared.

A few decades ago, a SoCal day at the beach often meant a trip to Santa Monica’s Pacific Ocean Park (POP), a 28-acre seaside amusement extravaganza designed to rival Disneyland. Featuring a Sea Circus, pier, funhouses, thrill rides, and even a few outer-space themed exhibits, the park opened in 1958, attracting more than a million visitors its first year.

Despite its early success, 1965 redevelopment of the surrounding area curtailed street access to the park, strangling attendance figures and forcing closure two years later. Except for some underwater pilings from its dismantled pier, no traces of POP remain today. It has completely vanished into the sands of time, leaving us nothing but childhood memories.

As the world celebrates the Beijing Olympic Games, it seems only fitting to serve up a pop quiz paying tribute to the City of Angels’ Chinese community, which has overcome tremendous adversity over the last 156 years…

The Question: Centered around North Broadway, New Chinatown is among L.A.’s most popular tourist attractions. However, as the name implies, it’s not the city’s original Chinese settlement. So where was the first Chinatown, and what occupies that site today? (Click the continuation link to find out.) Read more

Next time you see two Jeeps approaching each other in traffic, be on the lookout for their drivers flashing the Jeeper gang sign.

Known as the Jeep Wave, it’s a common greeting among Jeep owners, usually reminiscent of the Victory symbol from War War II. This, of course, makes sense because the vehicle’s roots can be traced to that conflict. During the 1950s, soldiers returning stateside bought up surplus models to explore our open country as recreation, spawning the off-road craze. It’s not hard to imagine that the Jeep Wave was exchanged way back then.

Since getting my Wrangler, I’ve been totally oblivious to this custom. Occasionally, I’d catch other Jeepers flashing a sign and a nod, but thought they were just being oddly polite.

The past few months, however, as I’ve begun to customize my vehicle beyond stock, I’ve noticed the waves increasing. Lo and behold I come to learn that there’s actually a protocol at work here. The more badass the Jeep, the greater the onus on “lower rankers” to initiate the countersign. When unsure of another Jeep’s stature, the official rule is “When in Doubt, Whip it Out.” (Incidentally, whipping it out at Hummers is a big no-no.) Apparently, my recent mods have made my Jeep more worthy of salute. I’m so proud.

And also embarrassed: For the last year or so I’ve been totally snubbing my Jeeping counterparts, and perhaps contributing to the Jeep Wave’s slow demise. You’d think as the former editor of an off-roading magazine, I’d know better.

Fellow Jeepers, forgive me. I promise to show better manners from here on in.

Posters and fliers in search of lost pets are a common sight in any neighborhood, but this is the first time I’ve seen a fullsize billboard.

This one overlooks the corner of Sunset and Alvarado in Echo Park and seeks the return of Hedkayce, a 10-pound mixed breed who vanished from her front yard in the Hathaway Hills near Silver Lake.

Not only am I guessing she was stolen, but I can identify with the desperation her family must be feeling right now.

When I first moved here about three years ago, my two Dobies escaped from the new house while I was out to dinner. (Strong Santa Ana winds were blowing that evening, and the door latch was apparently faulty.) Unfortunately, I’d given them both baths earlier that day and hadn’t put their collars or tags back on either of them.

It’s bad enough knowing your dogs are loose without ID. Worse is realizing no one is likely to take in two scary-looking Doberman strays until the owner comes looking for them. For 45 minutes I searched as night fell, convinced I’d never see them again. I probably would’ve splurged on a billboard too, if it had come to that.

Thankfully they were found several blocks away, exhausted from exploring their new neighborhood, but otherwise safe and sound.

I sincerely hope Hedkayce makes it home in similar fashion. She’s obviously very much loved and missed.

Believe it or not, right now, the “hottest” spot in Southern California is someplace outside Fillmore in Ventura County, but unless you’re a thermogeologist, it’s probably no place you’d want to visit.

Experts are reportedly still baffled over the “thermal anomaly” that caused ground temperatures on a small patch of terrain to soar to more than 800 degrees Fahrenheit, sparking a three-acre brush fire. Even now, several weeks after the incident, temperatures remain high enough to melt the rubber off the sneakers of anyone who tries to get too close.

Whatever the cause, it seems we can rule out space aliens, the CIA, Bigfoot, global warming and all the other usual suspects behind weird natural phenomena. The leading theory is that some type of hydrocarbon caught fire deep below the surface and is seeping up through fissures in the earth.

Just the usual housekeeping note to advise readers that posts here will remain sporadic as I focus on a looming deadline for the automotive trade magazine, Styling and Performance.

The article, due this week, is on the emerging Chinese automotive market and the opportunities to be found there for American makers of aftermarket parts. It’s a business piece, but my research into the topic may actually be interesting for general readers as well — especially if you’re a car buff.

For years American manufacturers have been outsourcing to China. Many have kept their overseas operations on the QT, however. Hardcore car enthusiasts tend to be true “red, white and blue” buyers, and recent media reports about shoddy and even unsafe Chinese products have only helped to reinforce their “Made in America” buying habits. (The truth, though, is a surprising percentage of aftermarket styling and performance components are sourced from China, with American companies enforcing rigorous quality and assurance standards.)

Nevertheless, for about a decade there has been a trade imbalance with China. They’ve sold parts and knock-offs into our marketplace, while we’ve scarcely penetrated theirs.

All that’s about to change. With its emerging middle class, China’s automotive industry is exploding. And with automobile ownership comes a natural desire for customization and enhanced performance. Given their expertise in these areas, American manufacturers are ideally poised to deliver such goods to the Chinese. Interestingly, Peter MacGillivray, vice president of events and communications for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), predicts that makers of off-roading accessories will be among the first to prosper.

Turns out that, similar to Americans in the 1940-1950s, China’s growing middle class is developing quite a yearning to tour the countryside from the seats of their autos. (Think “See the USA From Your Chevrolet,” but in China.) Outside the major cities, China’s underdeveloped highway structure makes off-road-capable vehicles the perfect choice for sightseeing and outdoor recreation.

Yes, folks, this is some of the stuff I write about when I’m not blogging here. As you can see, one of the great things about being a freelance writer is all the fascinating things you learn with each new assignment.

If this past week’s 5.4 Chino Hills quake rattled your nerves, you’d best brace yourself for The Big One that experts say has a better than 99 percent chance of striking California by 2038. To help prepare you, here’s an 8-minute excerpt from a PBS documentary focusing on the San Andreas Fault and highlighting a few of the real shakers from our past.

Drive-By Shot: While cruising along Main Street this afternoon, I caught sight of this giant carousel pony in a salvage yard near Avenue 20, at the edge of downtown.

Towering a full story in height, I first thought the equestrian unit might be the project of some artist living and/or working in the nearby lofts. Then I realized our prancing friend is more likely a fugitive from an old Rose Parade float.

Whatever he’s doing here, let’s hope this rusting pony isn’t headed for the glue factory — or in this case, the scrap heap.

There seems far too much spirit left in him for such an ignoble end.