More info at Hemmings:
- Mary Louise Largey, 1952 Buick original owner, dies
- 2009 article: Betsy the Buick -Meeting a 1952 Super four-door, and her feisty 90-year-old owner
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Mary Louise Largey Dies, Longtime Glendale Resident Owned 1952 Buick Since It Was New
More info at Hemmings:
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
JoS. A. Bank Clothiers Coming to Historic Bank Building at Brand & Broadway
JoS. A. Bank Clothiers is moving into the former Community Bank space in the historic Security Trust and Savings Bank building, 100 North Brand, which dates to 1923. The space in the basement of the building is also being renovated as a co-working space called Cowork 100.
100 North Brand when Community Bank was on the ground floor.
From 1906 to 1923 there was a Pacific Electric Railway Depot on the site. This is a 1909 photo of the Pacific Electric Depot, with the First National Bank Building behind it. That building dates to 1905. Levy's Kitchen is currently located on the ground floor.
1912 photo of the Pacific Electric Depot from Glendale, California: The Jewel City
The distinctive Borders across the street is still empty. But with Bloomingdale's coming into the Mervyn's space across the street, the most prominent intersection in the center of downtown Glendale will finally be three-quarters occupied again. It's the center of downtown Glendale, it's been a bummer to see the intersection empty. Well, empty aside from BJ's Brewhouse, which has displaced Hot Wings Cafe as the de facto cultural center of downtown Glendale (sigh).
Here's my favorite shot of the Borders building
- Previously: Glendale 1905: A Survivor
Monday, May 14, 2012
Pictures From The Montrose Historical Bike Ride
On Saturday, I -- in collaboration with The Glendale Historical Society, Walk Bike Glendale, Montrose Patch, the City of Glendale Community Services and Parks Department, and The City of Glendale Public Works Department -- led a group of 56 riders on the Montrose Historical Bike Ride. We had an excellent group of riders of all levels of ability who enjoyed a beautiful day exploring Montrose on their bikes. After meeting at the Montrose Bike Shop (since 1952!) we covered quite a bit of Montrose history with an extra special stop inside the gates of the former Rockhaven Sanitarium. Thanks to the City of Glendale for letting us in!
In addition to Rockhaven, we stopped at and discussed the history of the La Crescenta Women's Club, the American Legion Hall (where 12 people died during the New Years Flood of 1934), the Verdugo Wash, Crescenta Valley park and the former Hindenburg Park, the defunct Montrose Railway and
the Montrose Shopping Park. You can find out more about these sites and many others at The Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley's website.
riders on Honolulu
riding through the Montrose Shopping Park
Montrose Patch editor Nicole Charky discusses the La Crescenta Women's Club
Michael Morgan, City of Glendale Historic Preservation Commissioner, tells us about the history of Rockhaven
exploring Rockhaven
Rockhaven
riders on La Crescenta Ave
a beautiful watercolor by rider Ricardo Cerezo
Colin Bogart in front of old stone country club gates near Crescenta Valley Park. He is pointing towards the Verdugo Wash and explaining how an access road alongside the wash could be adapted into a grade-separated bicycle path.
Erik Yesayan of Walk Bike Glendale
riders on Honolulu
Colin Bogart of the LA County Bicycle Coalition, who was invaluable in helping optimize our route
Councilperson Laura Friedman rode with us. She has been absolutely fantastic on bike and pedestrian issues in Glendale. She and Erik explained the proposed road diet on Honolulu, which has very low traffic volumes and is plagued by speeders and difficult to cross on foot.
gorgeous fixie
An extra special thanks to The City of Glendale's Fred Zohrevand, who has been instrumental in improving Glendale's bike parking situation, particularly in downtown Montrose. I meant to thank him at our last stop in the shopping park but forgot. Thanks, Fred!
Graeme Whifler rode with us and took pictures which you can see here.
Montrose Patch also wrote about the ride and put up a photo gallery.
Thanks to Mike Lawler, whose Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley site was an invaluable resource for preparing my ride notes.
Montrose Patch also wrote about the ride and put up a photo gallery.
Thanks to Mike Lawler, whose Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley site was an invaluable resource for preparing my ride notes.
Glendale Galleria Remodel Has Begun
The Glendale Galleria is being renovated - here is a rendering of the updated future face of the mall juxtaposed with the same angle today.
More details are available at The Glendale Galleria and Curbed LA.
It Came From Goodwill*
I love combing through the Goodwill thrift store on Brand for odd items. Here are a few recent finds:
a painting of owls
a bird made mostly of seashells
a s'more prison
a 4th grade California mission project
a bloomin' onion chopper
a 2 foot tall shiny black pirate ship/lamp/clock that says "Best Wishes" (beats a card!)
kitty cat artwork
a Glendale Bear pillow
and the ultimate in Glendale footwear
* 05/22/12 adding a few more recent finds:
creepy clown
bizarro doll with hipster glasses
sinister Santa lamp
BONUS creepy mannequin at Nordstrom
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Thoughts On The John Drayman Indictment
Something is rotten in Montrose. Former Glendale city councilman John Drayman, who formerly led the Montrose Shopping Park Association and managed the Harvest Market, has been indicted on one count of embezzlement, 10 counts of filing false tax returns, five counts of money laundering, three counts of forgery, one count filing a false financial statement and eight counts of perjury by declaration. You can read the full indictment at Montrose Patch. The investigation was started last May, when members of the MSPA realized that the sums submitted to the board were far less than the funds Drayman had collected from merchants at the Harvest Market. After Drayman was removed from handling the money from the Harvest Market and an oversight committee was established, the Harvest Market started earning approximately $100,000 more per year than it had in the years under Drayman. In fact, the market had become a money losing proposition that was subsidized by the small merchants in the Montrose in the hopes of attracting marketgoers to their businesses. Revenues jumped 300% after his exit.
The only explanations I can see for the massive financial discrepancies are:
- a) Drayman was collecting and stealing the money
- b) Drayman was exceptionally incompetent at collecting money from the merchants
- c) someone else involved with the market stole the money (apparently without Drayman realizing this?)
Drayman's attorney, Michael Kraut, has indicated that Drayman's defense will rely upon option C: nuking others involved with the market.
From the Daily News:
"The evidence is going to be very clear. The loss of money is going to come from a different person," said Michael Kraut, Drayman's attorney. "My client is cooperating with the investigation; he is talking to the police."
From the News-Press:
“[Kraut] claimed that others, who he declined to identify, were responsible for the embezzlement. ‘[Drayman] has been waiting for his time to finally say what happened in this case,’ Kraut said.”
After reading the charges, Kraut and Drayman have their work cut out for them, especially if the DA has the kinds of financial records they allude to in the indictment.
Glendale is, in some ways, a pretty small town. I knew and liked John Drayman, and found him to be a responsive when I contacted him with concerns about issues in downtown Glendale - this was before I had a blog or was especially plugged in to Glendale stuff. We also share a true interest in Glendale history. So I want to be clear that I don’t enjoy seeing someone I've known experience a downfall worthy of a Coen Brothers film. I also know Bill Weisman and his wife Sharon, who helped secure John’s bail, and know them to be good people and exceptionally loyal friends.
If the charges aren’t true, then someone who isn’t guilty has had their life ruined - and the rot in the Montrose Shopping Association goes beyond one man. If the charges are true, they represent an absolutely jaw-dropping betrayal of the trust that the community placed in John Drayman. Both options are ugly. I hope the truth comes out and justice is served, whatever that may bring.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
The Glendale Triangle, Bank of Tropico, and My Car Wash
My usual car wash on the triangular piece of land bounded by San Fernando, Los Feliz, and Central in Glendale is no longer there - it's been demolished to make way for the Glendale Triangle Project, which I first wrote about in 2008. I assume the developer's financing stalled during the recession, but now that the economy has improved somewhat the project is moving forward. Over the last few weeks the car wash, smog check, and Burger King buildings have all been demolished. What is the Glendale Triangle? From the executive summary of the final environmental impact report: PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS
The Project is a proposed mixed-use development consisting of 218 multi-family residential units, 54,000 square feet of commercial floor area, supporting parking facilities, and recreation and open space amenities. The Project as proposed consists of two five-story structures, with each structure featuring commercial uses on the ground
level with residential uses occupying the four levels above. The Project would provide 17,300 square feet of common open space and 15,000 square feet of private open space, for a total of 32,300 square feet of open space. A majority of recreational facilities and common open space would be located on the second floor, podium level. The residential portions of each building would include a lobby, outdoor courtyards, storage rooms, service, trash and recycling rooms, and shared clubhouse with outdoor pool area and fitness facility. 707 parking spaces would be provided on the ground floor and within a three-and-a-half-level subterranean parking garage. Development of the proposed Project would require the demolition and removal of three on-site buildings located along the northern and southern portions of the site
Here is the project site as it looked in 2008, and below is a view of the site today -
The triangular shaped piece of land has an interesting history - it was the center of the main business area of Tropico, which was a separate city that ultimately voted to be annexed by Los Angeles and Glendale. Much of South Glendale was originally Tropico, and the portions that were annexed by Los Angeles became Atwater Village.
"A two story brick block has been erected at the junction of San Fernando Road and Central Avenue, in which are located the Tropico Bank, the City Hall and office of the Tropico newspaper, "The Sentinel," below, the second story being devoted to rooming apartments."
The Bank of Tropico is the triangular shaped building on the right. Below is an image from Google Maps, showing the Burger King that has now been demolished for the Glendale Triangle.
Below is an advertisement for the Bank of Tropico from the same 1912 brochure, "Glendale, California: The Jewel City".
Bank Vice President Burt W. Richardson was the son of W.C.B. Richardson, who owned the Santa Eulalia rancho that became Tropico (before it became South Glendale and Atwater Village). Burt Richardson was murdered in Tropico in 1915, but I'll save that story for a future post.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Ex-Councilman John Drayman Indicted For Embezzling $304,000 to $880,000 From Montrose Harvest Market!
From the Glendale News-Press, which is completely owning this story:
"Former Councilman John Drayman was indicted today on charges that he embezzled between $304,000 and $880,000 from the weekly farmers market in Montrose.
In the indictment filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, prosecutors also allege that Drayman falsified tax returns to hide the embezzlement, which they say occurred between 2004 and 2011.
Drayman, who was arraigned on the felony charges at a downtown Los Angeles courtroom, pleaded not guilty to the charges. They include one count of embezzlement, 10 counts of filing false tax returns, five counts of money laundering, three counts of forgery, one count filing a false financial statement and eight counts of perjury by declaration."I highly recommend you read the ongoing coverage at the News-Press. As of this writing they've also put up a timeline of Drayman's extensive legal problems (this indictment doesn't even touch the ADI scandal) and have posted a PDF of the full indictment against him.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Armenian Pop Icon Harout Pamboukjian on Adult Swim's "Tim and Eric"
Was just tipped off to this great clip of Armenian pop icon Harout Pamboukjian as children's singer Bread Harrity on Adult Swim's "Tim and Eric"-
Celebrate Harout's awesomeness with this gorgeous poster by artist Sako Shahinian, signed by both Harout and the artist- it's available at http://haroutrocks.com/
Play us out, Harout!
Join Me on the Montrose Historical Bike Ride this Saturday, May 12th!
This Saturday I will be helping lead this bike ride of historical spots in the Montrose area, including the Rockhaven Sanitarium and Crescenta Valley Park. Please RSVP here via Facebook.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Monday, April 30, 2012
Hitler Reacts To Proposed Honolulu Road Diet
Love this!! For more information on the proposed Honolulu road diet - which would create bike lanes on super wide street with extremely low traffic volumes - check out Walk Bike Glendale. via @GlendaleJewels
The Museum of Neon Art's Neon Cruise: A Wild Ride Through LA History
On Saturday I hopped on a double decker bus for The Museum of Neon Art’s Neon Cruise. The Museum of Neon Art is in the midst of moving to Glendale, so we started this special Glendale version of the tour at The Americana, just across from MONA’s new location on Brand. The tour was quite different - and better - than I had expected. Many of the neon signs we saw were fantastic, but what really makes the tour worthwhile is guide J. Erik Lynxwiler’s expansive, frequently hilarious and deeply knowledgeable stream-of-consciousness narration on LA’s history and culture. His knowledge truly makes the tour worthwhile.
Also, and this I didn’t expect: everything is much more interesting from 15 feet up. You notice details you just don’t pick up at ground level. You also occasionally have to duck for trees (really). I highly recommend the tour, which runs on Saturdays from June to September. They hope to do the modified Glendale version of the cruise once a year as a special event; the normal cruise departs from Chinatown. Get your tickets here (they sell out) and dress warmly!
Here are some pictures from the cruise below. I’ve also uploaded an expanded version of this photo set to my flickr.
looking down Brand from the top of the bus
Leaving The Americana
Future site of Lex on Orange
Great White Hut
Zinke's Shoe Repair
Cruising down Brand
Seeley's
Victorian Houses in Angelino Heights
Downtown Los Angeles from Angelino Heights
watch out for those trees!
Los Angeles City Hall
new LAPD HQ
Chop Suey/Far East Cafe
Philippe The Original
The Orpheum Theatre
The Eastern Building
The Pantages
The Museum of Neon Art's Future Site on Brand Boulevard
Which will soon look like this-
- Get tickets for the Neon Cruise here
- The Museum of Neon Art
- my expanded Neon Cruise photo set on Flickr
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