Long Beach has islands. Four of them. And you can clearly see them as you fly into the airport (LGB) or traverse Ocean Avenue. But these are artificial islands. Wonderful fakes, designed to vibe palm trees, waterfalls, blue-and-white condos and more. At night, the islands sparkle in Long Beach Harbor with colorful lights. Amazingly, they…
L.A.’s Koreatown is home to one of the city’s most interesting historical buildings. Chapman Plaza, originally known as the Chapman Park Market, is located in the heart of this vibrant neighborhood. It is an historic retail center that occupies 50,000 square feet of space on West 6th Street and Alexandria Avenue. Built in 1929, the…
Who could resist? They were meant to catch the eye. Perhaps the most notable thing about any of the Doggie Diners was that 10-foot-tall, 300-pound, grinning dachshund sporting a white chef’s hat. His bowtie so jaunty, his wide-eyed, pointy-nosed grin so . . . odd? OK, oddly charming. Maybe inviting, I guess. “Hot dog, Coke,…
Not many locals know that L.A.’s treasured Griffith Park was once the site of a major public housing project. Well, let’s dial back the clock to post-WWII. Military vets are returning home and a baby boom is just about to begin! From 1946 to 1954, a bustling pop-up village, complete with Quonset-hut homes and gardens…
Drive a certain stretch of the 134 (Ventura) freeway, heading east between Glendale and Pasadena (just opposite the Figueroa exit), and you can’t miss it. And if you grew up in the northeastern section of the San Fernando Valley, you’ve seen it your whole life. It’s the actual “Eagle Rock”—a name you most likely associate…
