Clifford Fletcher Reid was born in McMinnville, Oregon, in 1883. His first business venture after dropping out of college involved selling stereopticon cards. He turned out to be a natural salesman. After marrying and moving to Portland, he found real estate suited his marketing skills. The vibrant market in the Los Angeles area in theContinue reading “Clifford Reid envisioned Torrance’s Hollywood Riviera as part celebrity enclave”
Author Archives: Sam Gnerre
Redondo Beach’s Casino was a popular attraction on the city’s waterfront
When sea captains J.C. Ainsworth and R.R. Thompson began developing Redondo Beach in the mid-1880s, they saw the potential in transforming the sleepy seaside town into a major tourist attraction, especially once railroads could be built connecting it to Los Angeles. The Santa Fe railroad came first in 1888, followed two years later by AinsworthContinue reading “Redondo Beach’s Casino was a popular attraction on the city’s waterfront”
Former Torrance councilman George Vico hit a home run in his first major league at-bat
Baseball was a big part of George Vico’s life, both before and after he retired from the game. He was born to Serbian immigrant parents in San Fernando, Calif., on Aug. 9, 1923. The 6-foot-4 Vico turned out to be a natural athlete whose first love was baseball. The left-handed batting first baseman began pursuingContinue reading “Former Torrance councilman George Vico hit a home run in his first major league at-bat”
Club Bagatelle was a 1960s hot spot for Palos Verdes Peninsula teens
The idea for a teen club serving the Palos Verdes Peninsula area came from Elin Vanderlip, the daughter-in-law of pioneer Peninsula developer Frank Vanderlip. Norwegian by birth, she had married Vanderlip’s son Kelvin, who died in 1956. In February 1967, she told the Palos Verdes Peninsula News of her plans to start a social centerContinue reading “Club Bagatelle was a 1960s hot spot for Palos Verdes Peninsula teens”
The first San Pedro breakwater transformed the Port of Los Angeles
Wilmington shipping magnate Phineas Banning was among the first to understand the importance of improving the Harbor Area shoreline to accommodate larger ships. His freighters brought all manner of goods to the growing city of Los Angeles 20 miles to the north, building and construction materials chief among them. In 1869, he opened the firstContinue reading “The first San Pedro breakwater transformed the Port of Los Angeles”
Fry’s Electronics in Manhattan Beach sold more than just computer components
The shelves at Fry’s Electronics in Manhattan Beach were stocked with everything the 1990s-early oughts techie could possibly ask for, along with lots of other things they wanted more than needed. The 48,000-square-foot store at 3600 N. Sepulveda Blvd. opened in February 1992 on the southeast corner of Sepulveda and Rosecrans Ave., adjacent to theContinue reading “Fry’s Electronics in Manhattan Beach sold more than just computer components”
Broadcast television took several decades to become prevalent in American homes
For a scientific marvel that has had amazing, far-reaching impacts on almost all aspects of modern life, it took television a long time to arrive in homes. The concept of using radio waves to transmit images from one place to another began to take root in the early 1900s. The first use of the wordContinue reading “Broadcast television took several decades to become prevalent in American homes”
A long tale of a short freeway: California State Route 47
The 47 Freeway may not be the longest in the Los Angeles area – only the 3.1-mile Marina Freeway is shorter – but it provides a vital link to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Officially known as California State Route 47, or California 47 for short, the freeway was part of theContinue reading “A long tale of a short freeway: California State Route 47”
Northrop develops the first intercontinental cruise missile, the Snark, in Hawthorne
No, the Snark missile’s name doesn’t mean what you might think at first. Northrop Corp. founder Jack Northrop took the name from the author Lewis Carroll’s mythical animal character “the Snark“ in his 1876 poem, “The Hunting of the Snark.” In October 1945, two months after deploying the atomic bomb in Japan, the United StatesContinue reading “Northrop develops the first intercontinental cruise missile, the Snark, in Hawthorne”
Torrance teen’s whirlwind wedding to Swiss businessman caused a sensation in the 1950s
The wedding of Martha Morris, dubbed the “Cinderella Bride” by the Torrance Herald, to Swiss industrialist Roland DeVigier in 1951 sounds like one of those modern-day I’m-gonna-marry-a-prince movies on the Hallmark Channel. At first, anyway. The 16-year-old Morris lived with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ray Morris, on 215th St. in the Harbor GatewayContinue reading “Torrance teen’s whirlwind wedding to Swiss businessman caused a sensation in the 1950s”
