Cigars & Arnold Schwarzenegger

One of my best friends just sent me a red leather travel humidor with 10 CAO brand cigars in it. All the cigars are rated very high with a couple being among the best of the year cigars. So the other night when my old Landlord Jane Russell passed away I decided to light up a CAO Cameroon in memory of her. I had one last Amstel Light in the refrigerator so I opened that and poured it in my special beer mug from Solvang California.

My Dad took up cigar smoking when the doctor made him give up cigarettes. Of course being a cigarette smoker for so long, he inhaled them. My Mom bought him a beautiful humidor for Christmas. After he died I kept the humidor but he was stolen from an apartment I was moving into. Over the years I had smoked a cigar now and then but never seriously until the mid nineties. Unfortunately I didn't have his humidor so my Mom bought me a nice small one which was more than adequate for my needs. It now sits on the mantle about the fireplace (which  doesn't work).

Back in the late nineties my wife worked at a company called CBO in Hollywood. They were a post production company who designed ads, media artwork and so on. One of the 3 owners was best friends with Arnold Schwarzenegger. CBO did the artwork for his movies, print ads and tapes and DVD's. Many of the guys at CBO smoked cigars and Arnold had bought each of them a high end cigar humidor made by Daniel Marshall. As I recall they were the model above but a lighter colored wood.

So it took me and hour and a half to smoke the CAO Camaroon and it was excellent. The Amstel Light beer wasn't bad either. RIP Jane Russell.

Roberto Alvarez of Van Nuys CA

My best friend back at Hazeltine Ave. Elementary School was Roberto Alvarez. Roberto lived in our apartment complex on Sherman Way. Whenever I think back on those days I always think of Roberto and wonder what happened to him after we lost touch. His family moved away from our apartment and we kept in touch for a little while but eventually we lost track of each other.

I'm wondering if any of my fellow Hazeltine Elementary classmates remember Roberto, or might still be in touch with him. I would love to hear from you if you are. That is Roberto and me in the photo above pointing out toys guns at the camera. In spite of my German helmet we were pretending we were soldiers from the TV show "Combat" and we were killing bad guys. I should add that Roberto was originally from Argentina.

Roberto Alvarez 1960's

The Model Shop, an L.A. Movie

Late last night...well actually 4am, so early this morning I woke up in my living room chair and saw a movie playing on the Turner Classic Movie channel called "Model Shop" (1969). I have the movie before and always try to include it on my list of L.A. movies when someone asks for suggestions. The film covers 24 hours in the day of George Matthews, played by actor Gary Lockwood.

Matthews spots a beautiful woman dressed in white at a car lot. He is intrigued and follows her around until they eventually have a brief encounter. One film writer called the movie "a road movie that doesn't go anywhere." Consequently the star of the movie is really the Los Angeles of the late 1960's. For me that was the appeal of the movie. The story, script and performances are not compelling so you end up not caring about any of these people. Nevertheless it is an interesting depiction of our city and for that worth a bit of your time. Here is a link to the movie review on TCM:

http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article.jsp?cid=212818&mainArticleId=212815

Goodbye 2010, Happy New Year

Okay so this is not the baby new year, its me in April 1955 at 3 months old. Judging by the picture I either had gas or a future revelation about how lousy the year of 2010 would be. I am not sad to see it go. I am reminded of the old adage for pilots, any landing is a good landing. However some are bumpier than others and for me, and a few good friends this was a bumpy year, bring on 2011. Happy New Year 2011!

Christmas Movies with Ida "Pumpkin" Duncan

This year I have seen move of the old traditional Christmas movies on TV then I recall seeing in a long time. From the numerous Scrooge versions to Christmas in Connecticut. AMC has been highlighting a few old perennials, Holiday Inn, White Christmas and A Miracle on 34th Street.

I remember the first time I saw Holiday Inn and White Christmas as a double bill on TV. It was back in the early 1960's. I was downstairs being babysat by our family friend and neighbor Ida Duncan. She had told me about the movies and invited me down to see them. The big thrill being she and her husband Duke had a color TV. I don't think I had ever seen anything on TV in color before. While I actually preferred the movie Holiday Inn, I was enthralled by the look and color of White Christmas. I think I also developed a slight crush on Rosemary Clooney. It was a great evening that I now relive everytime I see either of these movies.

I was very fond of Ida and even came up with the nickname "Pumpkin" Duncan for her. Granted it was silly but she and I enjoyed it. Eventually her and her husband moved to a small house which I seem to recall was off of Sepulveda near Roscoe. We kept in touch for a few years but as happens we eventually lost track of each other. The picture above is her next to her apartment below us at 13760 Sherman Way in Van Nuys.

Last time I looked on Google street view the apartment building was still there, looking much the same as it did back then. Merry Christmas to Ida wherever you are and the ghost of Christmas past.

 Ida Duncan 1960 above

 Ida and Duke Duncan above. Don't know who the child is.

Duke was a contractor. I once went with him to a job he had laying down a driveway. I was very young and probably not a lot of help. It may have been the first time I ever rode in a pickup truck, and now I own one

Merry Christmas

Santa and I want to wish everyone who has visited our blog this past year a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Christmas 1961, our apartment on Sherman Way, Van Nuys CA.

Two Lane Blacktop

Here is a link to an interesting article about the cult car classic movie from 1971, Two Lane Blacktop, starring James Taylor, Dennis Wilson and Warren Oates. Two Lane Blacktop and Vanishing Point make 1971 one of the better years for road pictures. The article is an interview with the director and has behind the scene photographs as well.

http://www.highperformancepontiac.com/features/hppp_0806_behind_the_camera_two_lane_blacktop/index.html

I saw both movies on the big screen. I recall seeing Vanishing Point with my Dad and we both liked the film, and I fell in love with the Dodge Challenger. I think I saw Two Lane Blacktop with a friend. Both movies are low budget classics worth hunting down.

RKO Encino Movie Ranch Link

Tonight I stumbled across a wonderful website about the old RKO movie Ranch in Encino, which most of us know as Balboa Park, bordered by Oxnard Blvd. to the north, and Burbank Blvd. to the south. Balboa to the east and Louise to the west.

The site has photos of the lot locations and the productions that used the lot such as "It's a Wonderful Life", as seen in the photo above, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and many others.

Click on the photos and then click on the expand box in the lower right corner to see the photo in a larger size.

http://www.retroweb.com/rko_encino_ranch.html

I remember all those years we hung out in the park playing baseball, and other "wholesome activities" and I never knew the history of the park. You would think they would have a plaque or some form of commemoration for the old studio ranch.

While I'm at it, here is a link to the Culver Studios backlot and more:

http://www.retroweb.com/40acres.html

http://www.retroweb.com/studiobacklots.html

ASCII Art

I bought my first computer in 1984. It was a small, cheesy thing, called a Sinclair. It was small with touch pad keys and was no fun to use. A few years later I upgraded to A Radio Shack portable. Again not the best, but it cost almost $2,000. After I got used to it I decided to experiment with a word processing program and create some ASCII art. One of my creations is above. It looks something like an Indian designed Thunderbird blanket. It is by no means a remarkable piece, but what I find remarkable is that at one time I had the patience to sit at my desk for hours and punch codes to create this. Back then I was still a bachelor, working long hours and somehow I found doing this in my spare time relaxing. It pains me to admit to having no life back then, but I guess I created something out of it and it was better than watching TV. Maybe I was listening to an Eagles record at the time. Yes it was still the age of vinyl LP's and cassette tapes.

These types of things are much easier to create now but somehow doing it longhand if you will makes it seem like more of an accomplishment. I think of this when ever I use Photoshop or when I record music digitally instead of using tape decks. Perhaps there is still a place for the old ways. The musician Eric Johnson on recently began recording his albums digitally. There is still a studio in New York City, the name of which escapes me at the moment, dedicated to analog recording. Steely Dan has used it to recorded the rhythm tracks for their records. Many of use still believe analog is better for many things, including the bottom end.

Captain K-Earth Decoder

Here is my Captain K-Earth Decoder courtesy of The Wherehouse. I forget the exact date I got it but the date on the back says 1974 so safe to say it was the 70's. Decoders were popular when my Dad was a kid. He had a ring decoder and a pin decoder which you wore. I have them somewhere in a trunk. The cardboard Captain K-Earth decoder is a little less grand but it is still a neat memory.

The other memory is of course The Wherehouse Record store. In the old days after I got paid and covered the bills, I would head off to The Wherehouse and Tower Records to drop a few dollars into their lap. I still have some of my old record and tape collection but not the quantity I used to have. Moving it from place to place makes you thin it out over time.

There is only one used CD store near where I live now and it specializes in in genres I don't follow. I hate to sound like an old man but that's one more experience of youth that is lost. I imagine over time book stores will perish as well with things like the Kindle and iPad.