San Bernardino

Evan Lovett and his "LA in a Minute" annoys me with his politically correct genuflection to indigenous Indian population which often consists of a single or two photo of Indian women standing together unnamed, not doing anything.  They are pictured wearing Indian dress or a necklace of beads, and we're supposed to genuflect to that?  And it's also asking the viewer to skip over 500 years of local and European history along with your own family history?  Okay, what about the people who actually built the cities, who didn't live in huts or who didn't ground corn at the riverbed who remain nameless?  But Lovett has to Marx up every narrative about LA, performing his best politically correct, anti-ICE, pro-immigration information warfare that he can.  Explains why he's so dull.

"Five Miles from San Berdoo," Jane Russell, 1921-2011.  The clip above is taken from the 1951 movie, His Kind of Woman, starring Robert Mitchum.  So the song was released in 1951, not 1953 as Yahoo claims.  

This 1967 essay by Joan Didion, 1934-2021, "Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream," shook me when I first read it 30 years ago because I'd always thought of San Bernardino as a sleepy town by which, around which you would drive to get to Vegas or Salt Lake City or Big Bear or access 395 north to the High Sierra's, but never a destination in and of itself for me or my family that I could remember. 

The Great California Exodus, Tom Gray, September 2012.

California and the End of White America, Ron Unz, 1999.

On Joan Didion, Wikipedia says, "She is considered one of the pioneers of New Journalism, along with Gay Talese, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Hunter S. Thompson and Tom Wolfe."  To me, she is closest in style to Truman Capote.  

In case you're interested, there are other forms of journalism.

Don & Bob's friendship was memorialized in Bob & Don: A Love Story, a 2023 short documentary film by Judd Apatow

   

Don Rickles, 1926-2017, 90, and Bob Newhart, 1929-2024, 94, were best friends.  Newhart married Ginnie Quinn, 1940-2023, 82.  Her dad was actor, Bill Quinn, 1912-1994, 81.  Rickles' wife was Barbara Sklar, 1936-2021, 84.

This was interesting.  I was at Umberto's Clam House in the summer 1989 with Frank Mobus, Catherine, Rebecca, and Jim Cline.  

Rickles befriended mobster "Crazy" Joe Gallo following a performance at the Copacabana in 1972. Gallo, whom Rickles had ribbed mercilessly during his set, despite being warned not to do so, accepted Rickles's ribbings in good humor and invited him to Umbertos Clam House after the show. Rickles declined the offer. That night, a gunfight erupted at Umberto's, killing Gallo. This situation was dramatized in the movie The Irishman, 2019.

Song of the South, 1949

@AccentsSouthern One of my most prized possessions…. https://t.co/QvfoaIFwMS

— Grouchy Old Lady 🍻🏈⚜️🐗 (@oldladysagrouch) October 11, 2026

Tyrone Power and Frances Farmer in 1942, Son of Fury.

Terrific scene between Tyrone Power and Frances Farmer @ the 15:20 mark.

Tyrone Power, 1914-1958, and Frances Farmer, 1913-1970, in Son of Fury, 1942, by John Cromwell, 1886-1979.

Possibly the Best LA Film Noir, 1954, Crime Wave, Starring Sterling Hayden

Excellent noir movie on TCM last night, “Crime Wave,” shot in 1952, released in 1954, much of it on location in Glendale! It was a gas seeing noir king Ted de Corsia and a young Charles Bronson die in a shootout (spoiler) in the old Bank of America building at Brand and Broadway where I opened my first bank account and then watching Sterling Hayden pursue getaway driver Gene Nelson all the way down Brand past the Hyperion Bridge and into L.A. A trip back in time and a highly recommended crime drama. Watch it for free on Roku.

On October 9, 1936, power from Hoover Dam reached Los Angeles for the first time—and the city celebrated with searchlights, illuminated floats + streets packed with an estimated ONE MILLION people.

90 years ago tonight, Los Angeles threw a party for electricity… And the photos are incredible.

On October 9, 1936, power from Hoover Dam reached Los Angeles for the first time—and the city celebrated with searchlights, illuminated floats + streets packed with an estimated ONE MILLION people.

At 7:36 p.m., Elizabeth Scattergood—daughter of LA power chief Ezra Scattergood, who helped bring Hoover Dam electricity to the city—pressed the ceremonial key marking its arrival from the Colorado River, 266 miles away.

Los Angeles City Hall blazed with light. Searchlights swept the sky. And Broadway became a glowing parade route for the celebration known as “Light on Parade.”

These photos capture a turning point in Downtown Los Angeles history, with familiar DTLA landmarks surrounded by a city celebrating its future.

Swipe through the crowds, the ceremony + the enormous engineering effort behind this moment—from Hoover Dam and its transmission towers to massive electrical transformers. There’s even a close-up of the preserved ceremonial key.

The Bureau of Power and Light, now part of LADWP, designed and built the high-voltage transmission lines that brought hydroelectric power across deserts + mountains to a rapidly growing Los Angeles.

LA already had electricity. This new source of power helped support the city’s growth.

Love old Los Angeles, historic architecture + the stories behind its landmarks? Join an LA Explained walking tour to explore LA history on foot. Dates and tickets at the link in bio!

Gallery includes photographs of the October 9, 1936 celebration, related infrastructure + the preserved ceremonial key. Group photo includes: U.S. Senator Hiram Johnson, Elizabeth Scattergood, maid of honor Louise Hepburn, and LADWP Board President Dr. John R. Haynes.

Photos courtesy of Los Angeles Public Library TESSA, offering instant access to rare and historical collections from Los Angeles. Additional images: Los Angeles Times, including photographers Jack Herod + Paul Calvert; California State Library; UCLA Library; Water and Power Associates.

“Buster Keaton Rides Again,” 1965.

“Buster Keaton Rides Again,” 1965, is released, also known as the making of “The Railrodder,” a behind the scenes documentary by young director, and Buster Keaton super-fan, Gerald Potterton. Enjoy one of the most loved parts of this film. Thanks to the Buster Keaton page.