Lido Pizza Afternoon in Van Nuys/Sherman Oaks?

Attention Members of Demolay, Jobs Daughters and Rainbow, word has just come down that an afternoon of Pizza and fun is planned for Sunday September 13th at 2:00pm at Lido Pizza. I am sure everyone remembers where it is, but just in case Lido's is at 15232 Victory Blvd. in Van Nuys or Sherman Oaks, wherever the hell it is now, blame Phone Rat for that confusion. It is on the south side of Victory just east of Sepulveda. Renee is planning this so please e-mail her if you know it. For those who see it here please e-mail me at this blog account: vannuysboomers@gmail.com and I will forward you to her.

The Drive-In

Follow this link to a wonderful website with pictures, information and recollections of old theaters including our own valley hangouts:

http://cinematreasures.org/

August 1969

I just saw online that today, August 8th is the 40th anniversary of the Beatles photo shoot for cover of their Abbey Road Album. Surely some of you remember albums. The record was released in September 1969 about the same time I started Birmingham High School. I have distinct memories of hearing Come Together and other songs being played at the schools cafeteria.

Last night I was watching part of a Fox news special about the Manson family and their murder rampage. Curiously the murders at the Sharon Tate house took place on August 9, 1969, only a relative few hours after the Beatles photo shoot. Another curious connection between Manson and the Beatles.

My family was in Las Vegas at the time of the crime but after we got back I remember the fear that hung over the city until the murderers were found. I read later that the Manson family drove on the 405 to get to Benedict Canyon. Our apartment on Haskell was just across the street from the freeway.

Memory is a funny thing sometimes. Those memories Of Birmingham and the Beatle songs seem like only yesterday, but the Manson family, the murders and the things surrounding them actually feel like 40 year ago.

Voyeurism & Confessions

Last night while in my office I was wrestling with a small bout of boredom. Idle hands being the devils workplace I gave in to one of my baser proclivities. I logged onto Flickr and typed in the words, "office desk". In a split second up came thousands of pictures of home offices, work offices, desks, some neat and tidy and others with papers stacked to the ceiling. I confess, I have always had an interest in where people work and create.

It first started when I saw photos of Picasso in his studio. Being an art major at the time I found it fascinating to look around the creative space. The seed was planted. Years later I picked up a book called, The Writer's Desk by Jill Krementz. Her book is a collection of photos of famous writers at their desk and in their creative spaces. I was hooked and shortly thereafter started searching for more pictures online. Famous or not famous, it did not matter. Soon the addiction took on new forms and I started to Google and Flickr Ham radio shacks.

So as a form of confession I am presenting my home office, the headquarters if you will of Van Nuys Boomers. This is where it all comes together, or sometimes falls apart. It is a nice corner room in the back of our house. I have a door and patio as well as a window. When we moved back here I gave up my wonderful Roll Top desk and well as about four good sized bookcases, and books.

I now have a small desk I bought on clearance at Staples, with a matching file cabinet. The bookcase was bought and assembled by my Dad sometime back in the 1950's. I have a few books out but the rest are in a cubbyhole at the landing for the stairs. So the office is functional but not how I would ideally have it. Since I am too lazy to tie up all the wires I have it facing the wall.

This all has nothing to do with Van Nuys, but it was in Van Nuys that I had my first desk, all my own. It was made of metal and served many purposes. It was for school work, for writing music and for playing on with my Matchbox and Hot Wheel cars. As I still have a few of those cars my current desk has served as a race track when I play with my grandson. And here is another confession, I still like playing with the toy cars!

Jerry Dunphy and the Ram's Horn

When my family lived on Haskell Ave. in Van Nuys our downstairs neighbor was a wonderful lady and school teacher named Lucille Flanders. She was exceptionally nice to me which puzzles me considering how loud I used to blast my stereo, a behavior I have not really modified over the years. In spite of my behavior she helped me with school work and even gave me an old World Book Encyclopedia from about 1959. I loved that set of books and only parted with it when I moved back to Ohio. I wish I still had it. It may sound crazy but I can still smell those dusty old volumes.

One night Lucille was talking about a restaurant bar she sometimes goes to called The Ram's Horn at 16705 Ventura Blvd. in Encino. She then mentioned that Jerry Dunphy and some of the KNXT newscasters frequented the restaurant. Lucille knew the Big News anchor Jerry Dunphy. Well soon after this Lucille and my parents went to the Ram's Horn for cocktails and dinner. That night that got to meet Jerry Dunphy along with Bill Keane the weatherman. If you grew up in Los Angeles in the 1960's The Big News was the news, followed by Walter Cronkite, who sadly just passed away.

Eventually we moved from Haskell Ave. and lost track of Lucille however my parents would often go to the Ram's horn for a drink and to listen to the piano player whose name I now forget. I went a couple times with my parents and it was nice but at the time a little to sedate for me. Now it sounds like just my speed.

In my photo box I have a picture of Lucille in our apartment for one of my birthday parties. I will have to scan it and post it here. But until then thank you Lucille for putting up with a kind of nice, but loud teenager.

Mid-Summer Updates

A few quick updates and news:

I hear rumblings of a Demolay/Jobs/Rainbow reunion for some time this fall. I sent out a mass mailing asking for ideas and suggestions for the reunion. If you were not on the list or just found us here please e-mail me at this blog.

We are hearing from more Hazeltine Ave. School alumni. A few might even get together in the coming months. I also posted a link to the Photobucket page with a lot of old school pictures and much more. The link is to the left of this page.

Below the Photobucket link is one to a Reseda High School class page. Many of you might have gone there or know friends who went there. Be sure to check it out. The photo for this post is one I copied from their website. Check out the movie playing at the theater.

SF Valley School Yearbooks & Pictures

Follow the link below to the Photobucket page of our friend Bob Walance who has scanned yearbooks from the following schools: Van Nuys High School 1972, 1973, 1975 as well as Birmingham High School from 1973. He also scanned the complete yearbook from Taft high School from 1973 as well as quite a few class pictures from Hazeltine Ave. Elementary School. If anyone out there has any additional scanned yearbooks or Hazeltine Class pictures, or any San Fernando Valley School pictures please let us know.

http://s403.photobucket.com/albums/pp118/BobW_2000/


I just had a request for a Grant High School yearbook from 1972 - 1973. If anyone has one or has a scan of one please contact us, a fellow classmate from Hazeltine is looking for one.

As well Bob is looking for Hazeltine school pictures from 1965/4th grade, 1966/5th grade and 1967/6th grade.

I personally have my yearbook for 1969 from Fulton Jr. High School to scan and I hope to get to that soon.

Radio Rat Rocks

This past July 3rd Radio Rat had a chance to sit in on drums with the band playing for the capacity crowd at Jethawks Stadium in Lancaster CA. Radio Rat played drums on the Georgia Satellites song "Keep Your Hands to Yourself." A montage of his performance is available on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvvu3w2JHDY

Radio Rat looked back at home behind the drums, shades and all. If I can one day make my way back Radio Rat and I are going to meet up with our old lead guitarist Karl Inman and what damage we can still do.

Builders Emporium Reseda Store #618

My collection of Builders Emporium pictures is thin so I think this is the last photo I have. Of course it was Halloween 1977 which accounts for my fellow paint department employee (Sam) being dressed up as some sort of elf. Thankfully I had left Builders the previous August so I didn't have to dress up at work. I did dress up that night when we all got together. I wore my oriental pajama bottoms and a black vinyl jacket. I wanted to be comfortable. Whenever we had parties I would dress up as Hawkeye from M*A*S*H in a bathrobe and a cowboy hat.

I was just talking to Radio Rat about his previous BE post. It has received quite a few comments which we are grateful for. So far we have only heard from one fellow employee (Jeff)from our Reseda store #618. Radio rat reminded about the Thriftymart that was across the parking lot and how he used to go get a coffee cake for the 10:15 am break. I had forgotten about the Thriftymart stores. He also mention a place called Zig's that had a great bullet sandwich. Does anyone remember it. He said it is still there.

When I read the last comment on the previous BE post I wrote back wondering if anyone had started a BE group on Facebook. I know we just started one for our Demolay days. We look forward to hearing from anyone who worked in the BE organization.

Farmers Market Free Live Music

Every Thursday and Friday night this summer at Farmers Market you can experience live music on the Market's west patio. Not to mention food from the vendors in that section of the market. For years my wife and I used to go on Friday night eat drink, smoke and listen to the music. I'm guessing the PC people don't allow smoking anymore but its still a great time. Most of the bands that play were Jazz oriented but yo also had the Blues, Swing music and a bit of rock. Our favorite back then was a group called Red & the Red Hots. Red Young led the group and they played Jazz, Swing and Boogie for the most part.

My wife worked in Hollywood at the time at a post production company so after the concert we would go back to her work for awhile. The company did all the artwork for Arnold Schwarzenegger's movies. I used to kill time by playing a pinball machine in the lobby for one of Arnold's movies.

Here is a link to the website where you can view the concert schedule:

http://www.farmersmarketla.com/newsandevents/index.asp


Thankfully the market still retains most of its original flavor. I have been to the Grove only once and it seemed well done. The changes were inevitable but they seem to have done as good a job as possible. They did remove one section of the market that had rows of independent shops. I remember going to the market as a kid with my parents. We always had to have a corned beef sandwich. At the end of this row of shops was a place that had little plastic models of sports figures. I would always go to check out the new figures. Only once was I able to buy one, it was the great Chicago White Sox shortstop Luis Aparicio. I no longer have the figure. At the time I also had models of all the Universal Studio Monsters. Naturally being a boy Mr. Aparicio had many battles with the Wolfman and Frankenstein. Once GI Joe came along no one stood a chance in a fight. All the figures are now gone but I still have my original GI Joe foot locker, though I painted it black and it now holds some small stereo equipment such as microphones, jacks and 45 inserts.