“To have it so visible and to have it be that hideous color…It’s at the entrance to the community and it just looks terrible.” That’s how Los Angeles City Councilwoman Joan Milke Flores described the nudie bar Shipwreck Joey’s to the Los Angeles Times in 1988. The nightclub’s “Topless” sign stood out, a garish beaconContinue reading “Shipwreck Joey’s position at the gateway to the Port didn’t please everyone”
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Miss Dawn’s educational vision included the founding of Rolling Hills Country Day School
Evelyn Dawn Thomas was born the youngest of seven children in Long Beach on July 8, 1907. The Thomas family moved to Glendale, and Evelyn graduated from Glendale High before attending USC. Her specialty was dance, and by the 1930s she had become a dance instructor. (She also had dropped her last name, becoming justContinue reading “Miss Dawn’s educational vision included the founding of Rolling Hills Country Day School”
The long road to Lomita Park’s completion predates the city’s incorporation
The small community of Lomita traces its origins back to 1907, when the W.I. Hollingsworth Co. purchased its land for development. By 1909, the first churches, banks and stores had been built in the sleepy enclave. Farmers raised a variety of crops in the area, which once boastfully called itself “the celery capital of theContinue reading “The long road to Lomita Park’s completion predates the city’s incorporation “
Romana Acosta Bañuelos’ successful Gardena food company led her to bigger things
During her lifetime, Romana Acosta Bañuelos rose higher in the federal government than any Latinx person before her. Considering that she had been deported as a child, her achievements become even more remarkable. She was born in Miami, Arizona on March 20, 1925. Her father, Juan Francisco Acosta, worked for the local Miami Copper CompanyContinue reading “Romana Acosta Bañuelos’ successful Gardena food company led her to bigger things”
The Manhattan Beach Badminton Club – yes, they have one – dates to 1936
The first meeting of the Manhattan Beach Badminton Club took place at the home of Doug Todd on Sept. 2, 1936. By then, the assembled group already had begun its search for a place to play their game. They settled on the second floor of the Marine Avenue Pavilion, a wood-frame bathhouse on the beachContinue reading “The Manhattan Beach Badminton Club – yes, they have one – dates to 1936”
Carroll Shelby worked much of his automotive magic in the South Bay
Automotive innovator Carroll Shelby’s career – race car driver, inventor, car manufacturer, chili salesman, chicken farmer – sounds like the life’s work of half a dozen men instead of just one. The man celebrated in the 2019 Oscar-winning film, “Ford v Ferrari,” came from humble beginnings. Shelby was born Carroll Hall Shelby on Jan. 11, 1923,Continue reading “Carroll Shelby worked much of his automotive magic in the South Bay”
Former industrial site in central Torrance will house soccer players for the near future
The Los Angeles Galaxy Major League Soccer team has signed a deal ensuring that the soccer fields just north of the courthouse in Torrance will stay open at least until 2028. The news has cheered fans and players in the town where the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) was born. But how did the primeContinue reading “Former industrial site in central Torrance will house soccer players for the near future”
For a time, radio/TV stars Ozzie and Harriet spent their summers in Hermosa Beach
Ozzie Nelson was casting about for a way to make a living in the aftermath of the 1929 stock market crash when he turned to music. Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1906, Nelson went to Rutgers, where he earned both his bachelor’s degree and, in 1930, his law degree. He earned money byContinue reading “For a time, radio/TV stars Ozzie and Harriet spent their summers in Hermosa Beach”
Redondo Beach’s Covered Wagon Days in the 1930s celebrated a bygone era
Citywide festivals such as Pasadena’s Tournament of Roses, Santa Monica’s Pioneer Days and dozens of smaller city-sponsored annual events served as both tourist attractions and civic promotional opportunities during the first half of the 20th Century. In 1934, Redondo Beach decided to throw its cowboy hat in the ring by staging its first annual CoveredContinue reading “Redondo Beach’s Covered Wagon Days in the 1930s celebrated a bygone era”
Wilmington’s Phillips 66 oil refinery has been a fixture since Union Oil opened it in 1919
Standard Oil became the first major oil firm to take advantage of Southern California as a refinery location when it opened the Chevron Refinery in El Segundo in 1911. Standard had found the location more advantageous than its Richmond refinery in the Bay Area. Its competitors wasted little time in following suit. Union Oil ofContinue reading “Wilmington’s Phillips 66 oil refinery has been a fixture since Union Oil opened it in 1919”
