111 Places in Los Angeles that you must not miss
By Laurel Moglen, Julia Posey and Lyudmila Zozova
4.5/5
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About this ebook
Features interesting and unusual places not found in traditional travel guides
"In Los Angeles, everyone is a star." — Denzel Washington
For more than a century, seekers of sun and celebrity from around the world have flocked to this sprawling metropolis on the Pacific, which Dorothy Parker once described as "72 suburbs in search of a city." But beyond the red-carpet reputation and Tinseltown trappings is a west coast wonderland teeming with unexpected cultural experiences, iconic architecture, gorgeous open spaces, quirky museums, hidden vistas, unconventional art, and obscure stories about the starlets, moguls, personalities, and players who have made Los Angeles their playground. This unusual guidebook explores 111 of the city's most interesting and unknown places and experiences: wander a serpentine path in a spiritual quest of your own making; channel your inner cowboy at a tried and true honky tonk bar; pay homage to the Dude at the bungalow where the big Lebowski lived; turn your car tires into musical instruments on the country's only "musical" road; sleep with the ghosts of Marilyn Monroe and Charlie Chaplin; view a constellation of stars more vivid than anything Hollywood Boulevard has to offer. From the San Gabriel Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, Angelenos and vistors will fall in love with the real Los Angeles. Adventures beckon. Surprises await. Just imagine how much more scintillating your dinner-party storytelling will be…
»In Los Angeles, everyone is a star.« – Denzel Washington
Seit mehr als einem Jahrhundert strömen Menschen auf der Suche nach Sonne und Prominenz in die riesige Metropole am Pazifik. Doch findet sich hinter dem ganzen Glamour ein unerwartetes Wunderland, in dem es von beeindruckender Architektur, hinreißenden Parks, schrulligen Museen, versteckten Aussichtspunkten, unkonventioneller Kunst und unbekannten Geschichten über Starlets, Filmmogule und Playboys nur so wimmelt.
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Reviews for 111 Places in Los Angeles that you must not miss
3 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ok, included are many commerical places to visit, but the museums here are more prolific, colorful, and include more "open to the public" parks...I like the photos better, I like the written descriptions better... These are places I want to visit, unlike those in the the afore mentioned title....This book is laid out alphabetically by name of destination: 2nd Street Tunnel, Audubon Center, Brady Bunch House, Descano's Ancient Forest - York Blvd, plus 5 pages of street maps.... and the table of contents is one that may be used as a checklist! For me, this one is a keeper....
Book preview
111 Places in Los Angeles that you must not miss - Laurel Moglen
111 Places in Los Angeles That You Must Not Miss
Laurel Moglen and Julia Posey
emons: Verlag
Imprint
© Emons Verlag GmbH // 2016
All rights reserved
Text: Laurel Moglen and Julia Posey
All photos © Lyudmila Zotova, except: Boone Children’s Gallery (p. 31) – Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA; Kayaking on LA River (p. 123) – LA River Kayak Safari; L.A. Derby Dolls (p. 125) – Photo by Marc Campos, L.A. Derby Dolls; Machine Project (p. 133, top image) – Photo of Josh Beckman’s Sea Nymphcourtesy of Machine Project; Museum of Broken Relationships (p. 141) – Courtesy of the Museum of Broken Relationships; Norton Simon Museum (p. 157) – Norton Simon Art Foundation; The Source Restaurant (p. 195, top image) – The Source Family aftermorning meditation, photo by Isis Aquarian courtesy of Isis Aquarian Source Archives; Wildlife Waystation (p. 227) – Photo by Billy V Vaughn, Wildlife Waystation
Art credits: Machine Project (p. 133, top image) – Sea Nymph by the artist Josh Beckman; Velveteria (p. 217) – artwork pictured reprinted by permission of the artists: Caren Anderson (Liberace in blue vest); Caren Anderson & Cenon (center Liberace); Jennifer Kenworthaka Juanita’s Velvets (Liberace with red cape); CeCe Rodriguez (poodle in square frame, left of center Liberace)
Design: Emons Verlag
Maps based on data by Openstreetmap, © Openstreet Map-participants, ODbL
ISBN 978-3-96041-018-8
eBook of the original print edition published by Emons Verlag
Did you enjoy it? Do you want more? Join us in uncovering new places around the world on: www.111places.com
Table of contents
Foreword
1_The 2nd Street Tunnel |
Basking in the glow of traffic
2_Adams Pack Station |
Haulin’ ass since 1936
3_Amèrica Tropical |
A long-lost triumph rediscovered
4_Angelus Temple |
Step right up to hear a tale both wondrous and true
5_Audubon Center |
Into the wild
6_Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook |
A different point of view
7_Berendo Stairs to the Griffith Observatory |
Stairway to the stars
8_Biddy Mason Memorial |
From slave to wealthy landowner
9_Bluewhale |
Hitting all the right notes
10_The Bob Baker Marionette Theater |
The art of pulling strings
11_Boone Children’s Gallery |
Where anyone can make their mark
12_Brady Bunch House |
Here’s the story of a house called Brady
13_Bukowski’s Bungalow |
Home of a dirty old man
14_Bulgarini Gelato |
A taste of Rome in LA
15_The Bunny Museum |
Hare hoarding
16_California Institute of Abnormalarts |
Gaffs! Wonders! Truth! Illusion!
17_Candelas Guitars |
Guitar heroes
18_Catalina Tile |
Chewing gum, red clay, sun, and sea
19_The Charlie Hotel |
If only the walls could talk
20_CicLAvia |
Pedal power
21_Cindy’s Diner |
Site of the original cheeseburger
22_Clifton’s Cafeteria |
An homage to kitsch and kindness
23_Corita Art Center |
Nun with a mission
24_The Cowboy Palace Saloon |
Where honky-tonk and horses still reign
25_Demonstration Gardens at Theodore Payne |
Go native!
26_Descanso’s Ancient Forest |
The land before flowers
27_Discovery Room at the NHM |
Don’t just look – touch
28_Drum Barracks Civil War Museum |
When camels roamed the west
29_The Dude’s Bungalow |
Does this place look like I’m married?
30_Echo Mountain Resort |
Los Angeles has ruins too! Seriously, it does!
31_Echo Park Lake |
A heartwarming tale of stealing the right thing
32_Edelweiss Chocolates |
Where Lucy’s lightbulb lit up
33_The Edison |
Like stepping into a glass of whiskey
34_Egyptian Theatre |
Home of the first movie premiere
35_El Segundo Butterfly Preserve |
A site for winged creatures, great and small
36_Evergreen Cemetery |
All comers accepted
37_Fast and Furious Home |
Living life a quarter mile at a time
38_Fire Pits at Dockweiler Beach |
Vanity of the bonfire
39_Frank Gehry’s Residence |
Where the master architect makes his bed
40_Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation |
Home is where the art is
41_Front Porch Farmstand |
Family farming in the city
42_Gaam Karaoke |
Noreabang until the sun comes up
43_Gower Gulch |
Calling all cowboys!
44_Griffith J. Griffith Statue |
Ode to a deranged philanthropist
45_Hare Krishna Cultural Center |
A feast for the soul
46_Harvey House |
The last stop for a groundbreaking designer
47_Heritage Square Museum |
A sanctuary for homes
48_Highland Gardens Hotel |
Where Joplin spent her final night
49_Highland Park Bowl |
Booze and a bowl, no prescription required
50_Holyland Exhibition |
Treasures of the real Indiana Jones?
51_Homestead Museum |
The saga of an old LA family
52_Idle Hour |
A barrel of fun
53_Inspiration Point at Will Rogers State Park |
A ranch to riches story
54_Institute for Art and Olfaction |
Making scents
55_It’s a Wrap! |
As seen on TV
56_Judson Studios |
A light shines through it
57_Kayaking on the Los Angeles River |
Big-city rapids
58_L.A. Derby Dolls |
Classic banked roller derby with a modern twist
59_Leo Politi Mural |
Painting over the past
60_Libros Schmibros |
A book and a cozy nook
61_Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society |
Where Ray Bradbury got his start
62_Machine Project |
The art of making
63_Moore Lab of Zoology |
Birds of a feather flocked together
64_Mosaic Tile House |
A million little pieces
65_Mount Wilson Observatory |
A star-studded event
66_Museum of Broken Relationships |
Art of the broken heart
67_Museum of Death |
To live and die in LA
68_Museum of Jurassic Technology |
A cabinet of curiosities
69_Music Box Staircase |
What goes up must come down
70_The Musical Road |
Hi-yo Silver!
71_Neon Retro Arcade |
The greatest hits of coin-op video games
72_The Nethercutt Collection and Museum |
Every car will break your heart
73_New Beverly Cinema |
Something old, new, borrowed, and blue
74_Norton Simon Museum |
Portrait of a lady, by a lady
75_Orcutt Ranch |
The oldest citrus orchard in town
76_The Original Los Angeles Subway Terminal |
Lost but not forgotten
77_Pasadena City College Flea Market |
Trash and treasure
78_Pasadena Model Railroad Club |
A giant miniature world
79_Peace Awareness Labyrinth & Gardens |
Find your self
80_Philippe’s |
Send in the clowns!
81_Plaza |
Where machismo is a wallflower
82_Poketo at the Line Hotel |
Art for your everyday
83_Royal Palms Beach Tide Pools |
Down by the sea
84_Runyon Canyon |
A walk above it all
85_San Antonio Winery |
Prohibition survivor
86_Santa Anita Stables & Jockey Clubhouse |
Follow in the hoofsteps of Seabiscuit
87_Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area |
Dam it all
88_The Schindler House |
Quintessential California living
89_Serra Springs |
Where sacred waters still flow
90_Shumei Retreat House |
From literary nest to spiritually blessed
91_Silent Movie Theatre |
[Scream!]
92_Skeletons in the Closet |
Macabre merch
93_The Source Restaurant |
Peace, love, and sprouts
94_Stoney Point |
The boulder approach
95_Sugihara Sculpture |
The power of one
96_Surfrider Beach |
Dude, here rolls the perfect wave
97_Tam’s Burgers #21 |
Come for the gangsta history, stay for the fries
98_Terminal Annex Murals |
Perfectly preserved government-funded art
99_Time Travel Mart |
Wherever you are, we’re already then.
100_Tonga Hut |
Return of the killer zombie
101_Trapeze School New York |
Look Ma, no hands!
102_VDL Research House II |
Ashes to ashes
103_The Velaslavasay Panorama |
The precursor to motion pictures
104_Velveteria |
Plush art gets fresh start
105_Venice Art Walls |
Where it’s okay to spray
106_Vineland Drive-In |
Just like when Grandma and Grandpa were kids
107_Walt’s Barn |
Where Mr. Disney’s imagination wandered
108_West Hollywood Park Tennis Courts |
Practice your groundstrokes on a rooftop
109_Wildlife Waystation |
Lions and tigers and bears
110_The Wishing Well |
A symbol of renewal
111_York Boulevard |
The coolest shopping street you’ve never heard of
Gallery
Maps
Foreword
Dear Los Angeles,
So often you are misunderstood, viewed by the world through thenarrow lenses of the media and outsiders. Their images portray afame-obsessed metropolis filled with beautiful people in sceniclocations wearing seriously curated wardrobes. There’s also the trafficof course, so thick at times, drivers may as well turn their ignitions off.But we devoted Angelenos know that much more is going on outsideof the picture frame. Beneath your gridlock and glitzy veneer lies amarvelously sprawling city filled with experiences diverse, strange,titillating, nutritious, and imperfect.
We know you as a place of opportunity; of big dreams, searingdisappointments, and painful ideals. A city where the wild mesheswith the urban, the beautiful with the ugly, the magical with thereal. Brimming with surprises, you offer access to wildly contrastingplaces and experiences: a club where Mexican drag queens lip syncto 1970s hits, a punk-rock DIY perfume lab, a museum housing thecollection of the real Indiana Jones – and always close by is a hike ona chaparral-scented trail.
And the people! Angelenos speak 224 different languages andcome from more than 140 countries. You harbor deep thinkersand innovators, contributing to the world cutting-edge art andarchitecture, scientific advancements, and brave new ideas. To exploreyour deepest secrets we hung out with surfers, rock climbers, nichecollectors, two-steppers, artists, and historians – all of whom helpedus discover and divulge the rich and unexpected tales and localesdisclosed within these pages.
Sweet LA, this book is our humble attempt to celebrate your depthand complexity. You’re the city so many love to hate, and hate to love.But we know the explorers who read this authentic chronicle will,like us, come to adore you, and that means all of you.
– Laurel Moglen & Julia Posey
View full image
1_The 2nd Street Tunnel
Basking in the glow of traffic
Philip K. Dick fans, get your Blade Runner on and see something truly beautiful by entering the 2nd Street Tunnel in the evening at Figueroa Street and heading east. Watch the red reflections of brake lights illuminate the rainbow-shaped tunnel in a glittering spectacle. In the movie, solitary replicant hunter Rick Deckard drives through the tunnel awash in blue hues, the entrance and exits dripping with the constant acid rain of the futuristic city of Los Angeles.
Although Deckard is a loner, he’s not alone. The white tiles that line the 2nd Street Tunnel and the ability to easily cordon off the area to traffic and lookie-loos have made it a favorite location for car commercials and fashion shoots as well as other films like the notable sci-fi cousins Terminator and Gattica. The tunnel may be one of the most filmed unknown icons in Los Angeles. And it almost didn’t happen.
Info
Address 2nd Street between Figueroa and Hill Streets, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (enter by car from Figueroa Street heading east toward Hill Street for the best view) | Hours Always open. Reflections are most dazzling from dusk to dawn.| Tip The Blue Ribbon Garden atop nearby Disney Concert Hall (111 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012) is almost an acre of tranquility amid the business of Downtown. Enter via the stairs on Grand Avenue near 2nd Street.
Construction began on the 2nd Street Tunnel in 1916. Downtown Los Angeles wasn’t the cluster of emerald skyscrapers it is today. It was Bunker Hill, primarily a residential wealthy suburb of opulent Victorian mansions, which separated Downtown from the rest of Los Angeles. That is, until the tunnel came through. The signature white tiles were sourced from Germany and as anti-German sentiment during World War I grew, so did opposition to using a German product. But the architect of the tunnel stood his aesthetic ground and the tunnel was completed, Teutonic tiles and all. Ironically, many of the wealthy inhabitants of the Bunker Hill enclave began to leave the area as the war came to an end and urbanism encroached on their formerly suburban lifestyle.
Many of the Victorians were later partitioned into apartments, two of which became home to writer John Fante and artist Leo Politi (see p. 126), who both went on to champion the new working class of Bunker Hill in their work.
Nearby
The Original Los Angeles Subway Terminal (0.441 mi)
The Bob Baker Marionette Theater (0.51 mi)
Biddy Mason Memorial (0.541 mi)
The Edison (0.597 mi)
To the online map
To the beginning of the chapter
View full image
2_Adams Pack Station
Haulin’ ass since 1936
Back
In the foothills where Sierra Madre, Arcadia, and Monrovia meet, the Adams Pack Station in Chantry Flat has been providing asses, as in pack mules, since 1936, and cold beer and other sundries since 1953, to Angeles National Forest hikers and the 81 recreational cabins (serving as private vacation residences) that populate the area around and leading to Sturtevant Camp.
A walk in Big Santa Anita Canyon is like stepping back in time. Trails of varying difficulty start from the Adams Pack Station parking lot. A 3.8-mile round-trip hike past some of the cabins to Sturtevant Falls will make the bottle of icy suds awaiting your return feel like a well-deserved reward. The rustic cottages that dot the trails near Chantry Flat were built between 1907 and 1936 with materials carried in by mules and humans. The cabins exist on a special use permit from the U.S. Forest Service and cabin owners lease the land upon which the dwellings sit.
Info
Address One Chantry Flat Road, Arcadia, CA 91024, +1 626.447.7356, www.adamspackstation.com, dburgess@adamspackstation.com | Getting there On-site lot and street parking along Chantry Flat Road. Adventure Pass required for parking. Passes can be purchased at Adams Pack Station or at other adventure retailers. | Hours Fri–Sun 7am–5pm| Tip Like camping? Millard Campground (4041 Chaney Trail, Altadena, CA 91001) is like a mini-Big Santa Anita Canyon with fewer recreational cabins. A handful of sites sits next to a small stream. No potable water.
For those looking to spend the night, primitive campsites at Hoegee and Spruce Grove Campgrounds, about a two- and four-mile hike, respectively, from Chantry Flat, operate on a first-come-first-serve basis. If that seems too hardy, Adams Pack Station’s proprietress, Deb Burgess, recently acquired Sturtevant Camp. The nostalgic mountain resort offers cabins for rent on the weekends with flushable toilets and hot showers (learn more at www.sturtevantcamp.com). All food and supplies must be brought in. Make arrangements at least a week in advance with Adams Pack Station to have a mule do the heavy lifting.
Friday to Sunday, the station grills hot food on outdoor barbecues next to the main building, offering excellent burgers and fries and sometimes pulled-pork sandwiches. Live music is performed on Sundays from noon to 5:30pm. Get to the station by 8am on Friday morning for the best chance of seeing the mule team head out on their weekly canyon haul.
Nearby
Mount Wilson Observatory (2.871 mi)
Santa Anita Stables & Jockey Clubhouse (4.033 mi)
The Bunny Museum (5.3 mi)
Echo Mountain Resort (5.686 mi)
To the online map
To the beginning of the chapter
View full image
3_Amèrica Tropical
A long-lost triumph rediscovered
Back
In the late 1960s, just as the Chicano political movement was establishing its identity, hints of a mural were found bleeding through a whitewashed wall just off Olvera Street in Los Angeles. Originally created in 1932 by revered Mexican muralist and activist David Alfaro Siqueiros, the painting’s discovery was perfectly timed. Siqueiros, along with artists Diego Rivera and Josè Clemente Orozco, had become an inspiration for the then burgeoning Chicano art movement.
Siqueiros had been commissioned to create an image of America as the land of plenty. But the artist had other plans. Amèrica Tropical depicts two soldiers in the Mexican Revolution aiming at an American eagle sitting atop a double cross on which a Mexican Indian is being crucified. The painting was an enraged criticism of United States oppression and immediately sparked controversy. About a month after his shocking mural was unveiled, Siqueiros was deported from the United States. Within a year, the work was completely