L.A.'s Past's Vision of the Future: Bradbury Building

WROUGHT METAL RAILINGS frame the staircases and run along the wall, leaving a great wide open space in the middle with which to admire the straight black lines of everything. Ornately patterned, these rails and the open elevators are like the icing atop this century-old building located on 3rd Street and Broadway in LA.

The ceiling is all of glass, and gives the space a natural glow, with the sun bleaching the places where it falls directly. Unlike any building in Los Angeles, the Bradbury Building has a charm that history did not need to add anything to, but even so, its story is as unique as is the architecture.

Mining tycoon Lewis Bradbury fired his original architect, only to hire one of the man’s draftsmen, named George Wyman. Wyman didn’t originally want to take the project, but he and his wife were spiritualists, and decided to try to see what the spirits were telling them to do. According to lore, they were meditating over what was similar to an Ouija board, and they received a message from Wyman’s brother, Mark, who had died at the age of 8, telling him to take on the project. His inspiration for the project was supposedly a science fiction book he had read, that depicted a building in the year 2000. The great irony comes now in the year 2000, when movies like 500 Days of Summer feature the gorgeous building as a model of great architecture in LA history.

-- Kimberly Dennis

(photo caption: steam-powered elevator, the bradbury building

photo credit: pink_fish13, flickr, creative commons)

"We Tell Stories . . ." : Norman Klein

"In 1974, when I first moved to the neighborhoods west of downtown Los Angeles, I was soured by the omens I sensed there. One vacant store had been a kosher butcher shop in the fifties now with a rusted sign, but very similar to the dismal store my father had run in Brooklyn for thirty years. In an utter reversal of Proust sipping tea, I remembered the smell of raw meat in the sawdust on the floors, the armies of cockroaches under the display cases, the look of chicken guts stuck to the sides of garbage pails out back.

I learned that across the street from my apartment on Glendale Boulevard, Tom Mix used to ride a horse to work from his ranch in Mixville (now a Hughes market shopping Center). But no recognition could be found anywhere that the entire film industry had once been centered there (1912-192). It was clear that the city of Los Angeles would never announce formally that the movie business had started in what was now, forgettably a "Mexican" neighborhood. At first, the sheer neglect left me dreary, reminding me of family repression during my own childhood. It took at least a year for me to realize how much vitality existed west of downtown."

-- Norman Klein
-- from The History of Forgetting



(photo captions: edendale and mixxville
photo credit: lapl archives)

On the Subject of Helms . . .

AS MENTIONED IN class this is a subject that has been coming up of late...some images:






-- L.G.

photo credit: L.G.

Myrna Loy Returns to Venice High

FEW STARS MOVED as easily from silents to talkies, as Myrna Loy. Most famous for her Nora Charles role in the Thin Man movies with William Powell, Loy grew up in Los Angeles and (according to the L.A. Observed site) attended the Westlake School for Girls when it was indeed situated in the old Westlake neighborhood on Alvarado across from what is now MacArthur Park.

For decades a statue of Loy, titled "Inspiration," graced the front of Venice High School (protected by a fence). Over the weekend, the statue was rededicated on the school's front lawn. The statue figured prominently as plot point in Bret Lott's 2008 novel, Ancient Highway, a fictionalized account of his family's trek to Los Angeles.

Here's my L.A. Times story about the book, a haunting family story where Los Angeles figures as one of the main characters. I spent the day walking around with Lott in his old neighborhood in Echo Park; it was a profile of place as much as it was about the author himself.

-- L.G.

Old Los Angeles TV Special

A QUICK NOTE for anyone interested in seeing the Los Angeles of the past: KCET has a re-occurring documentary special narrated by veteran broadcaster (now deceased) Ralph Story, called "Things That Aren't Here Anymore"- Los Angeles edition. There is also a second part which is fittingly titled, "More Things That Aren't Here Anymore". I haven't seen either yet, but my Grandparents were overly enthusiastic about how it made them feel and wouldn't stop ranting about the memories that it inspired of times past. The T.V. schedule can be found on KCET's website. I couldn't find the DVD anywhere but the networks website (even on Amazon), where it is quite expensive, but here is a description of the film:

"Los Angeles’ golden past: couples crowding the dance floor at the Cocoanut Grove…the sounds of Jazz and Rhythm and Blues filling the nights on Central Avenue…a romantic glice aboard an Angel’s Flight. In those early years, you could wake up to the mouth-watering aroma of fresh baked bread delivered by the Helms Bakeries…have countless thrills at Pacific Ocean Park and bask in the glories of Hollywood at Schwab’s. From the 1920s to the 60s, these well-loved icons helped define the colorful character of Los Angeles. Although many of these relics of the past are no longer with us, they’re certainly not forgotten. "Things That Aren’t Here Anymore" brings it all back in this memorable video scrapbook filled with personal photographs, film clips, home movies and reminiscences gathered from the attics and collective memories of Angelenos who shared their personal experiences of the things they saw and the places they enjoyed. Veteran broadcaster Ralph Story is your guide on this remarkable journey!"

I'm working on appropriating the funds for the set and possibly bringing it to class?

-- Greg Boss

LA Heritage Day

FOR THOSE OF you looking for inspiration -- the intersection where past meets present and converse -- this might be an event for you. This weekend is L.A. Heritage Day hosted by the City of Los Angeles. Admission is Free! And will be held at the Heritage Square Museum, near the Pasadena Freeway. A little bit about the museum from their website:

A living history museum reflecting the settlement and development of Southern California from the Civil War to the early 20th Century, Heritage Square Museum offers visitors a look into the everyday lives of Southern Californians at the close of the 19th Century.

Guided tours of the museum are supplemented by special events, such as Museums of the Arroyo Day®, which take our guests back in time to the era where electricity was a novelty, a trip to the beach was often a full-weekend activity, and manners were distinctly different from those of today.

The eight historic structures located at the museum, constructed during the Victorian Era, were saved from demolition and serve as a perfect background to educate the public about Southern California's early development. From the simplicity of the Octagon House to the opulence of the Perry Mansion, the Museum provides a unique look at the lifestyles of the people who contributed so much to the development of modern Los Angeles.

The event will go from 11am to 4pm at Heritage Square Museum. This event is for anyone who has an interest in Los Angeles, history. Over 75 heritage organizations will have displays and booths set up -- Pink's hot dogs (Sorry, Michael. Sadly, no Phillipe's) will be for sale.

For those who want to go "green": There is a free shuttle from the Gold Line "Heritage Square Station" to the event at the museum, and secure bicycle parking will be provided at Heritage Square. Parking will also be available.