LC real estate 07 2021

HOME GROUND

MODERN ART

MINI-FOREST

Ancient Japanese house is under construction at the Huntingon Library.

LACMA Collection moved into its new home on the top level at BCAM.

Micro-forest planted in Griffith Park with help from Hancock Park Garden Club.

Page 4

Page 12

Page 6

Real estate MuseuMs, Libraries HoMe & Garden

VIEW

Section 2

LARCHMONT CHRONICLE

JULY 2021

HANCOCK PARK • WINDSOR SQUARE • FREMONT PLACE • GREATER WILSHIRE • MIRACLE MILE • PARK LA BREA • LARCHMONT

505 S. Rimpau Blvd. | Hancock Park | $8,995,000 NEW PRICE. Sophisticated, stylish & stunning estate designed by Gordon Kaufmann. 505Rimpau.com

228 S. Hudson Ave. | Hancock Park | $6,495,000 Stunning 2 sty hm on Golf Course. 4 Ensuite bds, mds & bth, 1bd 1ba GH w/kit. Recently Renovated. Elevator.

165 N. Las Palmas Ave. | Hancock Park | $4,499,000

571 Cahuenga Blvd. | Hancock Park | $2,775,000

Stately English Tudor on a beautiful treelined st. 5Bd / 4.5Bas, covered patio, large pool.

All redone in 2018. 3Bd / 3Bas + studio apt, pool.

True Hancock Park! Move in ready!

Loveland Carr Group 323.460.7606 CalRE #01467820, #0888374

Cecille Cohen 213.810.9949 CalRE #00884530

Rick Llanos 323.810.0828 CalRE #01123101

Lisa Hutchins 323.460.7626 CalRE #01018644

135 S. Alta Vista Blvd. | Hancock Park | $2,595,000 2 Story character Spanish 4/3.5 + guest house. Appx.

3,100 sq.ft. 7,400 sq.ft lot.

136 N. Beachwood Dr | Windsor Square | $1,998,000

335 S. Orange Dr.| Hancock Park | $1,899,000

403 N. Bronson Ave. | Hancock Park | $1,601,500

Unbeatable location 2 blocks from Larchmont Village.

Light filled 3BD + 2.5BA. 136Beachwood.com

IN ESCROW. Super charming 3BD, 2BA English cottage in 3rd St. School Dist. Sold in 4 day w/multiple offers.

Cecille Cohen 213.810.9949 CalRE #00884530

Loveland Carr Group 323.460.7606 CalRE #01467820, #0888374

Rick Llanos 323.810.0828 CalRE #01123101

IN ESCROW. Represented Buyer. California Bungalow located in the heart of Larchmont. 3 beds + 2 baths.

Jeannine Yates 310.739.3070 CalRE #01118844

4455 Los Feliz Blvd #708| Los Feliz | $995,000

645 Wilcox Ave. #3B| Hancock Park | $949,900

191 S. Hudson Ave.| Hancock Park | $25,000/MO

160 S. Windsor Blvd.| Windsor Square | $17,500/MO

Designer 2bed / 2bath. Hardwood floor. 9 ft. ceiling.

Modern kitchen. Doorman. Gym. Balcony.

Barbara Allen 323.610.1781 CalRE #01487763

Vista & Golf Course Views! Top floor, tree-top unit @ coveted Hancock Park Terrace.

Cathie White 323.371.3152 CalRE #02088625

LEASED OFF MARKET. Art Deco Masterpiece offered fully furnished and w/beautiful orig features thru-out.

Rick Llanos 323.810.0828 CalRE #01123101

JUST LEASED. AC Martin designed elegant 3-story Tudor in Windsor Sq. 4BD+3.5 BA, guest house + pool.

Loveland Carr Group 323.460.7606 CalRE #01467820, #0888374

210 S. Norton Ave.| Windsor Square | $12,000/MO

251 S. Citrus Ave.| Hancock Park | $8,000/MO LEASED. Charming Mediterranean w/3BD, 2.5BA plus GH. Wonderful kitchen w S/S appliances. Tree lined St.

6120 Barrows Dr. | Miracle Mile | $5,495/MO LEASED. Carthay Circle Mediterranean. 4 beds + 3 bas, living rm w/fpl, hrdwd floors throughout.

117 N. Plymouth Blvd. | Hancock Park IN ESCROW. Beautiful Spanish on great block w/ 4BD, 3BA & open floor plan. Represented Buyer & Seller.

Rick Llanos 323.810.0828 CalRE #01123101

Cecille Cohen 213.810.9949 CalRE #00884530

Rick Llanos 323.810.0828 CalRE #01123101

FOR LEASE. Handsome Traditional in prime Windsor Square. 4 beds + 3.5 baths, large yard. 210Norton.com Loveland Carr Group 323.460.7606 CalRE #01467820, #0888374

COLDWELLBANKERHOMES.COM Hancock Park 323.464.9272 | 251 N Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90004 ©2021 Coldwell Banker. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker logos are trademarks of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. The Coldwell Banker® System is comprised of company owned offices which are owned by a subsidiary of Realogy Brokerage Group LLC and franchised offices which are independently owned and operated. The Coldwell Banker System fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. CalRE #00616212

2

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

Catherine Coffin Phillips preserved California history

By Helene Seifer In the January 2021 issue of the Larchmont Chronicle, columnist Paula Panich introduced readers to Steve Inskeep’s book “Imperfect Union,” about Jessie and John Frémont, a powerhouse couple in California development in the last decades of the 19th century. A small insert in the article noted an earlier biography of the female half of the imperfect union, Jessie Benton Frémont: a remarkable 1935 first edition by fine press publisher John Henry Nash, written by another extraordinary woman, Catherine Coffin Phillips, whose writings about California history are foundational to our understanding of the people and investments that shaped our state.

The fact that her Frémont book is still in print is a testament to the historical significance of both the subject and the author.

Catherine Louise Coffin was born in Oakland, Illinois, in 1872, into a prominent family whose American roots and resources began in 1642 when ancestor Tristram Sanborn Coffin sailed from England to New England, eventually purchasing the island of Nantucket.

A woman ahead of her time, Catherine Coffin sought higher education well before most women had access, earning a

operations in the San Joaquin Delta, where he oversaw the conversion of 100,000 acres of bog into productive farmland.

To prepare for the reclamation of the swamp, Phillips studied the dikes in the Netherlands and formed nine companies to handle all aspects of the complex undertaking. He and his family moved to Sacramento from 1902 to 1907 to closely supervise the project.

(Daughter Katharine was born there.) Phillips even built an upscale hotel in Sacramento so potential investors wouldn’t have to bunk overnight on the train when they visited.

The endeavor was an enormous success. To this day, twothirds of the state’s potatoes are grown there. The hotel still stands. After a stint as part of the Biltmore chain, it has now been renovated and reopened as an apartment building.

Back in the southland, Lee Allen Phillips built a “country” home on 300 acres in Beverly Hills with that city’s first swimming pool.

The family, including his live-in mother-in-law, Susan Jane Winkler Coffin, escaped the city there until Douglas Fairbanks bought it in 1918.

After Fairbanks married Mary Pickford in 1920, it was dubbed “Pickfair.”

CATHERINE COFFIN PHILLIPS’ 1935 biography of Jessie Benton Frémont.

Bachelor of Arts from Southwestern College in Kansas in 1893 and a Master of Arts in 1895 from Indiana’s DePauw University, where she was also awarded an honorary doctorate in literature in 1937.

Her dedication to books and learning was a lifelong obsession. Lucky for us, after Catherine’s death in 1942, and after her daughter Lucile’s death in 1991, a Phillips grandson, Keith Morrison, created an eponymous research library in Tiburon, California, for her and her husband’s books, collections and papers. This was most fitting for a woman whose own home library purportedly had been described in a Los Angeles newspaper as “… one of the finest libraries in the city — a library distinctive in that her books are not for decora-

In Escrow 222 S. Plymouth| $3,700,000 4Bd+ 3Ba+GH| Hancock Park

tion but have been read over and over again.” That quote and many of the details in this article were found in pamphlets written for the Catherine Coffin Phillips Library, where her legacy also lives on through a yearly writing program for local high school students.

In 1895 Catherine Coffin married fellow Illinoisan and DePauw University alumnus Lee Allen Phillips, and they moved to Los Angeles, where they had their first daughter, Lucile, who became a writer known for her children’s books.

Financial dynamo Phillips was an attorney and insurance executive. Early in his career, he was responsible for some of the largest and most important land redevelopment projects in 20th century California, including extensive

THE INDOMITABLE Catherine Coffin Phillips.

Berkeley Square In the meantime, Phillips built a home at #4 Berkeley Square on land purchased in 1905. Behind ornate gates, the one-block-long enclave of the wealthy proudly stood in West Adams between Gramercy Place and Western Avenue, north of Adams Boulevard.

Phillips also invested in property across the street from his first house and, in 1913, built his dream home there, the largest house in Los Angeles at the time, reported in various newspapers as having anywhere from 22 to 85 rooms. In an historically confusing move, this 26,000 square foot home was also numbered #4. The home was designed by archi(Please turn to page 3)

In Escrow 6277 Del Valle| $1,700,000 3 Bed+2 Bath| Carthay Circle

NEW LISTING

635 N. Martel| $1,995,000 3 Bed+3.5 Bath| Melrose Village

New Price

322 S. Rossmore| $5,495,000 5 Bed+5 Bath|Hancock Park

Sold

440 S. June| $6,806,900 4 Bed + 5 Bath |Hancock Park

NEW LISTING SOLD 581 N. Plymouth| $2,265,000 3 Bed+2 Bath| Larchmont

EXPERT SERVICE exceptional results

Sold 319 S. McCadden| $4,054,000 4 Bed+3.5 Batch| Hancock Park

3849 Bledsoe| $1,795,000 3 Bed+2 Bath| Westside LA Pete Buonocore

pete@coregroupla.com

www.coregroupla.com

323.762.2561

DRE #01870534

DRE #01279107

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

Coffin Phillips (Continued from page 2)

tects Sumner Hunt and Silas Burns. Hunt was also responsible for The Ebell of Los Angeles, the Bradbury Building and the Doheny Mansion.

The Phillips family lived in #4 until Mr. Phillips’ death in 1938, and Mrs. Phillips moved to South Ardmore Avenue.

Well past the Phillips residency, Berkeley Square fell out of favor when the more modern, and less gargantuan, homes of Hancock Park and Windsor Square became prized, spurring a decline in the once coveted neighborhood. Any hope for recovery died when the Santa Monica Freeway builders took over all of Berkeley Square in the 1960s. None of the grand mansions in Berkeley Square remains today.

Biltmore Hotel The Berkeley Square years were fruitful ones for Mr. and Mrs. Phillips. It was here that Catherine Phillips became a force in Los Angeles society and where she began her writing career. Likewise, Phillips continued his trajectory in remaking the California landscape. He was the financier behind the construction of the then-largest hotel west of Chicago, the Los Angeles Biltmore (now named the Millennium Biltmore). According

LEE ALLEN PHILLIPS married an extraordinary woman.

to great-grandson Chris Morrison, the hotel opened in 1923, 18 months ahead of schedule, because “Phillips was there cracking the whip!” The hotel’s opulent ballroom was the site of eight Academy Awards ceremonies in the 1930s.

Phillips also had projects in Arizona and New Mexico. Over the years he organized, advised or was president or director of over two dozen companies, including Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Company, Consolidated Steel Corporation, Pacific Finance Corporation and Philco Securities. Although his endeavors favored him with wealth, Morrison clarifies that “[Phillips] was not interested in money. His partners made a fortune, but he was interested in power.”

Phillips also financed his newlywed daughter Lucile’s “start-

er home” in Windsor Square, probably as a wedding present when she married Dr. Wayland A. Morrison. The Milwaukee Building Company designed the home (and many others nearby), and Lucile was expanding it continually over the years, each time she had another child (ultimately five). Coincidentally, the Morrison home is now the residence of Larchmont Chronicle publisher John H. Welborne and his wife, Martha.

Lee Allen Phillips’ renown as a successful entrepreneur, as well as his personal financial success, earned him the moniker “The Human Dynamo of Constructive Finance.”

The other dynamo Catherine Coffin Phillips was a human dynamo of a different sort, embracing the expectations of Los Angeles high society by joining clubs, boards, and charitable endeavors, all while dressing impeccably and acting the gracious hostess and brilliant dinner guest.

A cursory look at her involvements indicates that she was on the boards of directors of Childrens Hospital, the Historical Society of Southern California and Scripps College. Phillips was a sponsor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Women’s University Club, the Women’s Athletic Club, The

SECTION TWO

3

THE PHILLIPS’ HOME in Berkeley Square.

Photo: Herald Examiner Collection/Los Angeles Public Library

Ebell of Los Angeles and Kappa Alpha Theta and Phi Beta Kappa sororities. And, oh yes, she also wrote five acclaimed and meticulously researched books on California history.

Hollywood Her first tome was completed in 1929. “Cornelius Cole, California Pioneer and U.S. Senator” recounted our state’s development through the telling of Senator Cole’s many involvements over his 102-year lifespan. Of particular interest was his establishing the community of Colegrove, named for his wife Olive Colegrove Cole, on land deeded to him by Henry Hancock. The settlement near what is now the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Vine Street was the precursor to Hollywood.

Northern California Two of Catherine Coffin Phillip’s books focused on San Francisco — 1932’s “Portsmouth

Plaza, The Cradle of San Francisco” and “Through the Golden Gate, San Francisco 1769-1937,” published in 1938. She tackled the Gold Rush in her last work, “Coulterville Chronicle, The Annals of a Mother Lode Mining Town.” Phillips had just seen the first copies of “Coulterville Chronicle” roll off the presses when she succumbed to liver cancer in 1942.

Jessie Benton Frémont The Catherine Coffin Phillips book with the most lasting impact, however, and the one most closely tied to Southern California, is “Jessie Benton Frémont, A Woman Who Made History.”

One reason the book resonates so strongly even today is that the author and Frémont were friends and neighbors, resulting in Phillips gaining unlimited access to Frémont’s papers and unlimited time to (Please turn to page 5)

4

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

A dignified, ancient house for Huntington’s Japanese Garden An exquisite piece of ancient wooden Japanese architecture is under reconstruction on a site north of the Japanese Garden at the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino. Its anticipated opening date is Fall, 2022.

The Magistrate’s House, built in 1695, was painstakingly disassembled, in 2019, from its site in Marugame, Kagawa Prefecture, 340 miles southwest of Tokyo.

The house was donated to the Huntington by Yohko and Akira Yokoi in 2016; Akira Yokoi is the 19th-generation descendant of the Yokoi family and, according to the Huntington’s Lisa Blackburn,

Home Ground by

Paula Panich

“preserving a part of his heritage has been a motivating factor” in the donation of his ancestral home to this treasured Southern California cultural institution.

The male Yokoi ancestors were successive magistrates in the village near where the city of Marugame (founded 1899) now stands. The “shoya’’ residence of the village was where the magistrate, or headman,

Original Hollywoodland Mediterranean

lived with his family.

Edo: simple, beautiful And now I fall into a rabbit hole of trying to express my love for the architecture of the Edo period of Japanese history. The houses of the Edo (1615-1868) are, I think, what springs to mind with the idea of traditional Japanese vernacular architecture — simple, beautiful, and dignified.

These houses were made of wood, without nails; their frames fit together like perfectly-made, interlocking puzzle pieces; their elongated, curving roofs with wide eaves are focal points; their “engawa” (verandas), always look cool and protecting; inside, shoji dividers and “fusuma”

2801 Belden Drive, Hollywood Hills 5 Bed | 4.5 Bath | ±3,880 SF

Designed by lauded Beverly Hills Hotel architect Elmer Grey, Hollywood Hills House commands spellbinding views of Beachwood Canyon.

•

Knoll W/ Panoramic Views

•

Indoor/Outdoor Entertaining

•

Chapel (Presently A Home Office)

•

Guest Apartment with Separate Entrance (Original Chauffeur’s Quarters)

•

Gated & Private

•

Original 1926 Hollywoodland Home

•

Charming Courtyard W/ Fireplace

Jill Galloway Estates Director, Sunset Strip 323.842.1980 | jill@jillgalloway.com jillgalloway.com | DRE 01357870

Compass is a licensed real estate broker (01991628) in the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, condition, sale, or withdraw without notice.

ARTIST’S RENDERING of the reconstruction with the original shoya residence in the center, two kura storehouses at the rear and re-creations of the gatehouse and interior garden.

Image courtesy of GPM Design Studio

(gliding doors) organize space; and tatami mats dictate the size of rooms.

This fascination has deep roots, but with my first trip to Japan, some 30 years ago, the sharp awareness of traditional architecture came to the fore. I read, during this trip, “In Praise of Shadows,” by the novelist Jun’ichiro Tanizaki. This is a nonfiction book about notions of Japanese beauty and aesthetics.

Even in 1933, when the book was first published in two magazine articles, Tanizaki despairs of building a traditional Japanese house.

How to hide electric wiring?

And the “snarl and bulk” of an electric fan? The problem of lighting vexed him; he searched old shops for lamps, then electrified them.

Heating was a problem. He built a large sunken hearth, as in an old farmhouse, and installed an electric brazier.

Whether his family’s gathering round it in winter was sufficient for the right mood, he doesn’t say.

Will they use nails?

But revisiting Tanizaki only whets my appetite for understanding the reconstruction — and what is behind it — of a 320-year-old house in San Marino. Artisans from Japan have joined the construction (Please turn to page 6)

OFFERING OF FRUITS. Atsushi Fujimaki (left) and Koji Nakamura of the Shinto faithbased Shumei America make offerings to the spirits at a roofraising ceremony.

Photo by John Diefenbach

Larchmont Chronicle

(Continued from page 3)

listen to her stories.

In fact, Chris Morrison states, their proximity was no accident. “[Jessie’s husband] John Frémont made millions on this sweetheart gold mine deal up in Mariposa, about $100-$200 million,” explains Morrison.

“He bet his earnings on another mine and lost everything, leaving them penniless. They even lost their house.”

That’s when Catherine and Lee Phillips stepped in, says Morrison. “You don’t want to let somebody of that historical significance sit in a rooming house and die.” In the late 1890’s, a committee of ladies, including Catherine, presented to Frémont a house built for her on Hoover Street.

Morrison was born after his great-grandmother died, so his stories about her are from his father, Keith, Lucile’s and Wayland’s fourth son. Chris Morrison was told his great-grandmother was elegant, formal, beautiful and incredible. He also knows she enjoyed a good cocktail. “My dad used to mix drinks for her.

She’d say, ‘Son, go over there and make me a martini and make one for yourself.’” Morrison pauses and laughs. “He was 11! Back then it was okay.”

Both Catherine and Lee Phillips are buried not far from Berkeley Square — in Rosedale Cemetery, in what is probably the most prominent family plot in the cemetery, a large oval of grass at the top of the entrance road.

It is a sad testament to the times that, in spite of her

enormous accomplishments, the January 9, 1938 “New York Times” obituary of her husband referred to Mrs. Phillips

5115 La Roda Avenue

2021 Speaker Series

Windsor Square Native & Marlborough Alumna DRE 01952539

by Ken Bernstein

by Julia Claiborne Johnson

Wed., July 7 @ 7:00

Wed., August 25 @ 7:00

Adrian:

Ghosts of Greystone: Beverly Hills

by Richard Matukonis-Adkins

by Clete Keith

Wed., September 22 @ 7:00

Wed., October 27 @ 7:00

L.A.’s Legendary Restaurants

The Genius Team Who Created Los Angeles’ Famed Art Deco Masterpiece

Bullocks Wilshire:

by George Geary Wed., November 3 @ 7:00

by Margaret Leslie Davis Wed., December 8 @ 7:00

Visit windsorsquarehancockpark.com/category/events to reserve your tickets

Sold | Represented Sellers Designer Done Beverly Grove 3 Bed | 3 Bath | Guest House | $2,303,000

Ali Jack

Better Luck Next Time

American Designer, Hollywood Original

Sold | Won in Multiples | Represented Buyers Eagle Rock Bungalow 3 Bed | 2 Bath | 1,662 Sq Ft | $1,411,000

Co-listed with Bryant \ Reichling

Preserving Los Angeles:

How Historic Places Can Transform America’s Cities

17027 Vintage Street

Sold | Won in Multiples | Represented Buyers 1959 Custom Mid-Century Modern 3 Bed | 2 Bath | 1,906 Sq Ft | $1,215,000

1922 Tamarind Avenue, Unit 1

213.507.3959 ali.jack@compass.com @thealijack TheAliJack.com

5

er mentions her given name.

The headline declares, “Mrs. Lee Allen Phillips, Writer on California, Dies.”

HISTORICAL SOCIETY

sociation of America. He was in conversation with Daniel Weiss, co-founder of Angeleno Group, on Glickman’s book “Laughing at Myself: My Education in Congress, on the Farm, and at the Movies.”

There are more live events waiting in the wings for July and August. Check in with Chevalier’s Books at chevaliersbooks.com for more information.

6407 Drexel Avenue

only as “his widow.” Similarly, her 1942 “Los Angeles Times” obituary, although listing her numerous achievements, nev-

WINDSOR SQUARE - HANCOCK PARK

Chevalier’s holds first live event since early 2020

Last month, summer solstice (June 21) signalled more than the beginning of summer. It was also the beginning of Chevalier’s Books starting up its live events again — following the pandemic shutdowns in 2020.

The first event of the “live” season was a talk by Dan Glickman, former representative for the 4th congressional district of Kansas and former chairman of the Motion Picture As-

SECTION TWO

Sold | Represented Buyers Franklin Village Condo 1 Bed I 1 Bath I 669 Sq Ft | $510,000

Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01991628. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footages are approximate.

Coffin Phillips

JULY 2021

6

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

As in Paris, a micro-forest sprouts in Griffith Park

By Helene Seifer There is a Chinese proverb that posits, “When is the best time to plant a tree?” And it answers, “20 years ago. Or today.”

Volunteers with the Los Angeles Parks Foundation and the conservation committee of the Los Angeles Zoo took

the proverb to heart on June 19, planting 145 indigenous trees and shrubs to establish a micro-forest in Griffith Park, the plan for which was first reported in the June issue of the Larchmont Chronicle.

The 1,000-square-foot circular future forest, planted in

the dense Miyawaki Method that encourages rapid growth, is located in the Bette Davis Picnic Area of the park. After two years of care, the forest should be self-sustaining.

A number of factors planted the seed for the micro-forest project, and it took three

Homes for an Era, Agents for a Lifetime Available Great New Price! Majestic Estate

In Escrow

VOLUNTEERS PLANT FOREST in Griffith Park.

Photo by John Hughes

178 N. June St.

180 N. Las Palmas Ave.

6 BR / 5.5BA + Family Room + Office Offered at $4,695,000

For Lease

In Escrow

Leased

429 N. Sierra Bonita 4 BR / 2 BA Offered at $5,100/MO

404 N. Formosa Ave 3 BR / 2 BA Offered at $1,895,000

302 N. Orange Dr. 3BR / 3.5BA + Den Offered at $6,250/MO

For Lease

435 N. Formosa Ave. 3 BR / 2 BA Offered at $6,950/MO

4 BR / 3.5 BA + Family Room + Pool Offered at $3,880,000

Naomi Hartman Leah Brenner

dynamic women to sprout the idea. They are: Carolyn Ramsay, executive director of the Los Angeles Parks Foundation (and a Windsor Square resident), Michaela Burschinger, then-vice president, now president, of the Hancock Park Garden Club (HPGC) (and a Brookside resident), and Katherine Pakradouni, the project and program manager of the Los Angeles Parks Foundation.

As in Paris Carolyn Ramsay started the process. She had read an article about officials in the City of Paris planting trees along sidewalks and anywhere else

they could fit a copse — in order to fight climate change. She thought, “We can do that here!”

Then an architect friend told Ramsay about the Miyawaki Method of forest planting, and she was hooked on the idea.

Coincidentally, the HPGC was expanding the mission of the club beyond the neighborhood.

Understanding the importance of greenery, HPGC members committed to supporting tree planting elsewhere in Los Angeles, especially in underserved communities. They planted 14 trees in the Watts (Please turn to page 7)

Home Ground

the State?

These are just the beginning of my questions about this marvelous house-inprogress. The site will also include two “kura,” storehouses; a new gatehouse, based on the original; and a compact, interior garden mirroring the former garden in Japan.

I aim to find answers to these questions, and more. I’ll be back on this subject.

(Continued from page 4)

323.860.4259 / 4245 nhartman@coldwellbanker.com lbrenner@coldwellbanker.com CalRE #: 00769979 | 00917665

Members ~ Society of Excellence www.naomiandleah.com

©2021 Coldwell Banker. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker logos are trademarks of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. The Coldwell Banker® System is comprised of company owned offices which are owned by a subsidiary of Realogy Brokerage Group LLC and franchised offices which are independently owned and operated. The Coldwell Banker System fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. CalRE #00616212

HEIDI B DAVIS

team, working for American contractors. Will they stay for the duration of construction?

Are they using nails? How are joints, once bound by rope in Japan, now joined in 21st century California? How are the ancient elements of post and beam construction stored on site? What are the earthquake protocols required by

Your Neighborhood Realtor HEIDI B DAVIS Just Sold

Your Neighborhood Realtor

Just Sold

VIEW OF THE MAGISTRATE’S HOUSE in its original location in Japan, before it was deconstructed in 2019.

Photo by Hiroyuki Nakayama

www.116SouthVista.com

Sold

Listed

110 S Martel Avenue*

Stunning Estate Property w/Guest House & Pool

930 N Wetherly Drive #304 www.930NorthWetherly.com

Sold

110 S the Martel Avenue* Need the facts about Stunning Estate Property w/Guest House & Pool real estate market today?

Let’s chat!

Listed

930 N Wetherly Drive #304 www.930NorthWetherly.com

www.1478CrescentHeights.com Be well,

Be Well,

Heidi BDavis

HeidiDavis5@gmail.com // 213.819.1289 HeidiDavis5@gmail.com / / 213.819.1289 www.simplyheididavis.com // dre# 01831924

www.simplyheididavis.com / / dre# 01831924

Be well,

HeidiBDavis INTERIORil.com VIEW of traditional post-and-beam HeidiDavis5@gma // 213.819.1289 roof of theavis.com 320-year old01831924 Magistrate’s House. www.simplyheidid // dre#

©LC0721

HeidiBDavis

construction of the

Photo by John Diefenbach

Larchmont Chronicle

DYNAMIC WOMEN leading the forest project are, L-R: Carolyn Ramsay, Michaela Burschinger and Katherine Pakradouni.

Miyawaki

(Continued from page 6) Unity Garden and other neighborhoods that lacked green spaces. They also published the booklet “Your Next Front Yard,” available for free at Chevalier’s, about droughttolerant planting.

Member Burschinger reached out for help with the new club initiatives to fellow member Ramsay, who told Burschinger about the microforest approach to building a better forest and her desire to plant one in Griffith Park. Immediately, Burschinger was intrigued.

During this time, Pakradouni began working for the Los Angeles Parks Foundation, and she was tasked with collecting and growing seeds plucked from Griffith Park for use

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

PLANTING A COAST LIVE OAK for the forest canopy project at the Bette Davis Picnic Area.

Photo by John Hughes

throughout the park system.

A native plant horticulturist, Pakradouni previously had worked for the Theodore Payne Foundation, a California native plant nonprofit nursery.

Taking on the tiny forest was a natural for her. “It was totally up my alley,” Pakradouni states. “I already knew what kinds of plants would work.”

“Katherine sent a super detailed funding proposal” to the HPGC, Burschinger enthuses.

“The club thought it was such an exciting new thing, with such potential.” The HPGC embraced the micro-forest idea and pledged to fund the project. “$15,000 will take care of maintenance, watering, preparing the site, and paying Katherine to oversee it,” explains Burschinger.

Pakradouni decided on appropriate indigenous plant species and chose the small circle format.

“It’s an easy design to start with. I’d seen similar designs, and they were nice and inviting. I didn’t want it to be overwhelming,” the horticulturalist explains. “I want to demonstrate how much of an impact can be made in such a small space.” There is a curving 40foot path through the middle of the forest, which Pakradouni says will “encourage people to walk through it. A participatory quality will be a part of it.”

Griffith Park itself was the source of nearly all the seeds Pakradouni collected and grew for the forest project. Seeds were started in October 2020 in preparation for the late

spring planting on June 19.

The 13 species she selected include Mexican elderberry, lemonade berry, California wild rose, mugwort, and coastal live oak, which were started earlier and donated. Several of the elderberries were donated by the California Botanic Garden, a native plant nonprofit in Claremont, California.

Haphazard, two feet apart The morning of the great planting, Pakradouni placed the seedlings two feet apart, mindful of the Miyawaki Method of not putting the same species or height tree next to another and avoiding the regimentation of neat rows. This seemingly haphazard arrangement will encourage healthy competition among the plants, speed up the growing process, and increase biodiversity.

LITTLE HANDS can plant big forests.

Then the volunteers started digging, mulching and turning a dry patch of dirt into a home for little seedlings. Two hours later, the circle was planted and, if one squints, one can believe a real forest will soon appear.

Updates on the forest’s progress will also be posted at hancockparkgardenclub.com.

TWO-DAY-OLD FOREST.

Photo by John Hughes

Leased off market

165 north las Palmas avenue - $4,499,000

191 South Hudson Ave - $25,000/month

Hancock park ǀ 5 Bed + 4.5 Bath + pool

Hancock park ǀ 5 Bed + 5 Bath, art deco masterpiece

In escrow

leased

335 south orange drive - $1,899,000

251 south citrus avenue - $8,000/month

Hancock park ǀ 3 Bed + 2 BATH, 3rd street school

Hancock park ǀ 3 Bed + 2.5 BATH + guest house

(C) 323-810-0828 (O) 323-460-7617 rllanos@coldwellbanker.com @RickLlanosLA, CalRE#01123101

7

LIVE THE AMER AMERICAN ICAN DREAM

8

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

410 N. Rossmore and the design of additions to historic buildings

For a few months now, I have been watching with some interest the saga of 410 N. Rossmore Ave., the sturdy art deco stump which sits between the stately dowagers, the El Royale and Country Club Manor, just north of Beverly Boulevard. The proposed project has given rise to multiple news articles, acrimonious review committee meetings and enflamed community passions. It is one of those cases where multiple interests, and multiple issues, collide in a pitched battle over the future of an historic building.

Some people side with the remaining tenants and neighborhood opponents — who extol the historic pedigree of the building, decry the loss of rent stabilized units, fear increased traffic and construction woes and the potential of a troublesome coterie of coliving co-eds — while others join with the developer Domos in heralding a new life for the historic apartment block, a future that promises not only preservation and expansion but also transformation to meet the needs of 21st century urban living while addressing the city’s need for more affordable housing.

What is fascinating from

On Preservation by

Brian Curran

a preservation standpoint is that 410 N. Rossmore is an unrealized building. Max Maltzman’s original French Chateauesque design existed only on paper, and Gilbert Stanley Underwood’s Art Deco high-rise barely made it off the ground. Its current truncated form, a handsome yet austere deco design, was completed by the Army Corp of Engineers during WWII. The building is not an Historic Cultural Monument, nor is it in an HPOZ. It only has been recognized as an historic resource by Survey LA. Developer Domos has chosen Lorcan O’Herlihy to be the final architect of 410 N. Rossmore, in an attempt to succeed where so many others’ ambitions have failed.

O’Herlihy has produced a design that approaches the building with the dignity and respect it deserves, crowning it not as a chateau like its neighbors, but today’s equivalent, a Hollywood modern-

ist castle, its multiple towers and ramparts of varying scale capped not with turrets and statuary but sundecks and swimming pools.

The developer and the architect have both said that their design is intended to follow the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation, the federal principles and guidelines suggested for the preservation of historic buildings, including additions. Did they succeed? My predecessor at this column, Christy McAvoy, while complimentary of the design, told me she was troubled by the scale of the addition and the potential loss of character-defining features with the reworking of the existing interiors.

In my humble opinion, architect O’Herlihy does succeed, creating a new and exciting addition, considerate of its historic surroundings, compatible with, yet differentiated from, the historic original, set back from the original façade so the addition is obscured at street level, and keeping its extensions to the rear of the building. I too have concerns about the loss of historic materials and interior characterdefining features, which I hope have been recorded and, if possible, retained.

ORIGINAL RENDERING for the apartment building proposed for 410 N. Rossmore Ave., between Country Club Manor and El Royale Apartments.

Future landmark?

Ultimately, however, it would be for the Office of Historic Resources and the Cultural Heritage Commission to make the call by answering this question: Would 410 N. Rossmore be eligible for designation as an Historic Cultural Monument if this design is fully executed? Regardless of the an-

swer, there is nothing that prevents the project from going forward as it is by-right, and the city wants more housing.

The question is just tantalizing to those of us who care about such things: Will we have an embellished old monument — or an O’Herlihy-designed landmark — in our midst in perhaps 30 years time?

HAPPY

4 T H O F J U LY

1255 N. FORMOSA AVENUE

214 N IRVING BLVD

4551 KESTER AVE UNIT 1

FOR SALE $1,750,000

LEASED $4,300/MO

FOR SALE $625,000

3 Bed | 3 Bath | WEHO

3 Bed | 1 Bath | 1,350 Sq Ft

2 Bed | 2.5 Bath | 1,317 Sq Ft

Just Reduced!

Represented Both Sides

FRANCISCO MONTES | BROKER ASSOCIATE 310.988.0057 DIRECT FRANCISCO.MONTES@COMPASS.COM DRE#01807283 Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01991628. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate. If your property is currently listed for sale this is not a solicitation.

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

9

Wilshire Vista West ‘saved’ and is now officially historic

By Jane Galbraith Angelenos can celebrate another unique Los Angeles neighborhood being moved into the “saved” column with the listing of Wilshire Vista West on the National Register of Historic Places and the California Register of Historical Resources.

This mid-city neighborhood is bounded by Orange Grove Avenue to the west, San Vicente Boulevard to the north, Genesee Avenue to the east and Packard Street to the south. It’s in a prime location that had been targeted by developers to replace existing low-density housing in favor of multi-story buildings because of its proximity to transit, allowing for denser building under the city’s Transit Oriented Communities (TOC) regulations. But this area was specifically noted to be historically significant by SurveyLA, similar in architectural scale and significance to the multi-family Beverly Fairfax neighborhood that earlier earned its National Register of Historic Places designation.

Threat noted in 2018 Preservation efforts for this area actually began in 2018 when a Wilshire Vista resident noticed that two build-

WILSHIRE VISTA WEST duplex apartments on Ogden Avenue.

ings on Genesee Avenue — one an Art Deco four-plex and the other a Spanish duplex next door — were vacant and apparently slated for demolition. Neighborhood opposition to the potential loss of these two structures was fierce, and applications for both properties to be granted City of Los Angeles HistoricCultural Monument (HCM) designation were submitted with strong neighborhood support. The city’s Cultural Heritage Commission, whose members toured the properties, not only recommended the designations in early 2019, but also urged the community to find a way to save additional historic homes in the immediate area.

Grassroots committee A grassroots committee, Save Wilshire Vista West,

was formed in May 2019 and began to gather support and funding to retain the professional services of Architectural Resources Group to prepare the documentation needed to secure the protective designation on the National Register of Historic Places. A summer afternoon backyard launch was followed by putting up a website, going door to door speaking to owners and tenants alike, distributing flyers and sending letters to every property owner, and securing a grant from the P.I.C.O. Neighborhood Council.

Even during the shutdown of many public agencies due to COVID-19, the volunteers behind the Save Wilshire Vista West campaign continued to work on the project. The final review of the district applications took place via a Zoom

call with officials in Sacramento last October. The goal was to secure the historic designation for 113 multi-family buildings — a majority dating to the 1920s and ’30s — 96 percent of which are still in their original condition.

“We were determined to see our National Register application go through, even when many of our stakeholders were in lockdown mode due to the pandemic,” said Barbara Kroll, co-chairperson of Save Wilshire Vista West. “I hope that our success in saving the beauty and history of our little enclave will inspire others in historic pockets of Los Angeles to work towards similar goals,” Kroll added.

Wilshire Vista West’s his-

toric status has been brought into being through the hard work of an enthusiastic and committed team and strong community support. All that remains, now that most City staff members have returned to work following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, is to secure the production and installation of Historic District signage by the City of Los Angeles. The request is currently with the Office of Council District 10, represented

by Mark Ridley-Thomas. The community is eager to celebrate the sign postings with a street party, now that such gatherings are permitted.

Jane Galbraith co-chairs Save Wilshire Vista West with Barbara Kroll.

WSHPHS hosts Bernstein talk on preservation Principal city planner Ken Bernstein and photographer Stephen Shafer speak on their book, “Preserving Los Angeles: How Historic Places Can Transform America’s Cities” on Wed., July 7 at 7 p.m. via Zoom.

The talk, hosted by the Windsor Square-Hancock Park Historical Society, focuses on City of Los Angeles historical

preservation programs and the citywide survey of local historical resources and monuments.

Tickets are $10 for members, $15 for non-members, or $66 including an autographed copy of the book for members and $71 for nonmembers.

For more information, visit windsorsquarehancockpark. com.

June Ahn

Featured Listings for the Month of July by

69 Fremont Place Offered at $8,000,000 Magnificent French Colonial style celebrity estate located in 24hr sec guarded Fremont Pl. This 26,595 corner lot is perfect for entertaining. Extremely private 5br/6bas. Main house has a new open gourmet kitchen that leads to a fam room, breakfast room. Hardwood floors, French windows and crown molding thru-out house. 4 bedroom and 4 bath upstairs, one bedroom & 1.5 bathroom downstairs. Master suite w/incredible new bath & closets. Separate fully designed new 2 story garage/guest house. Downstairs large garage - 4 cars can be parked there or it can be used as additional work space . Full guest house upstairs. Cozy & European style backyard. Approx. Lot Size: Property Public Rec shows 22,500 & Data Quick shows 26,595. Living space with permit **6,521S.F. = ** 5,188/main house + 1,333/ Guest house w/1 bed & 1ba, full kitchen & laundry inside. Co-listed.

621 S Mansfield Avenue Listed at $3,199,999

2238 Century Hill SOLD | $1,650,000 June Ahn

International President’s Elite

Cell: 323.855.5558

267 San Pedro St. #122 SOLD | $425,000

136 S. Vista St. SOLD | $2,349,000

juneahn21@gmail.com www.juneahn.com CalRE #01188513

6104 Warner Dr. LEASED | $6,000

Hancock Park 251 N. Larchmont Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90004

The property information herein is derived from various sources that may include, but not be limited to, county records and the Multiple Listing Service, and it may include approximations. Although the information is believed to be accurate, it is not warranted and you should not rely upon it without personal verification. Affiliated real estate agents are independent contractor sales associates, not employees. ©2021 Coldwell Banker. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker logos are trademarks of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. The Coldwell Banker® System is comprised of company owned offices which are owned by a subsidiary of Realogy Brokerage Group LLC and franchised offices which are independently owned and operated. The Coldwell Banker System fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. CalRE #00616212

10

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

Homes end homelessness — we need to say ‘yes’ to new housing

Recent polling found 66% of California voters (54% of whom were Republicans) approve of a bill to amend the California Constitution to establish a fundamental human right to housing.

So, how is California doing — housing our residents?

Sadly, Los Angeles allowed the population of the unhoused to escalate to crisis levels before taking action. Those working in the field to provide care and find adequate shelter were not prepared for a crisis of this scale. As the growing number of unhoused people languished on the streets, the trauma they experienced there compounded their inability to help themselves or to receive help. As a result, the unhoused population continues to grow more chronic and intransigent.

Once homelessness became visible to the wider community, outrage toward public officials grew. Officials directed government funds to quick fixes such as building shelters, sweeping encampments, and

The NIMBY Diaries by

Marilyn Wells arresting “loiterers.”

Newer efforts are working.

Programs and new housing options have been developed during the past few years, allowing us to house 207 of the unhoused each day. But, each day, 227 more people fall into homelessness. So, why?

The causes are numerous and unmanageable, the amalgamation of which thwarts success. I will argue that NOTHING will change until adequate (500,000) affordable units are built, but we also can no longer overlook the effects of a broken mental health system, poverty and racism (next month’s column).

Our homeless crisis is our housing crisis Successful cities in oth-

er countries build housing based on the economic needs of their population. The lack of available affordable housing in our city has created a high-priced housing rental and ownership market that effectively forces people out of their homes and onto the street. Our unhoused population is increasingly made up of families and individuals who simply can no longer afford a place to live.

Our elected officials are well aware that Los Angeles has not built the necessary housing to support our population.

But influential developers and investors have been allowed to take advantage of lax ordi-

Nithya Raman recall is afoot in Council District 4

A recall effort is underway to unseat Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman.

The Fourth District Councilmember, who has been in office barely six months, was served June 9 with a Notice of Intent to Recall, according to the group CD4 for CD4.

The group argues that Raman is a novice, unresponsive and politically radical.

According to a report in the “Los Angeles Times,” Raman responded to the recall effort by saying that that she is focused on a “broad progressive agenda” that helps renters, small business owners and people experiencing homelessness.

“I love the people and the neighborhoods of this district.

That’s why I ran to represent it,” she said. “I invite the organizers of this recall to work with me on making it an even better place to live, work and raise our children.”

Raman has 21 days to reply to the notice, if she chooses.

Meanwhile, a petition for signatures to support the recall can begin circulating on July 7 — 28 days after the Notice of Intent was served.

The petition needs 27,000 valid signatures by early November to get the recall on a ballot for the 4th Council District.

Clint Lohr

Realtor®, GRI, CNE, SRES 818-730-8635 rholcwl@pacbell.net clintlohr.kw.com

KELLER WILLIAMS® LARCHMONT 118 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90004 Each office is independently owned and operated

Donating clothes for the homeless? Please call me!

nances to build a record number of luxury units, many of which currently sit vacant.

Meanwhile, the difficulty of building affordable housing in Los Angeles remains one of

our most seemingly intractable problems. Another of the main reasons for this inaction is that many residents are against affordable housing (Please turn to page 11)

Real Estate Sales

SOLD: This home at 646 N. Cahuenga Blvd. in Hancock Park was sold in May for $1,295,000.

Single family homes 440 S. June St. 542 N. Poinsettia Pl. 232 S. June St. 320 S. Irving Blvd.

315 S. Mansfield Ave. 5651 Clinton St. 808 S. Dunsmuir Ave. 200 S. Alta Vista Blvd.

434 N. Citrus Ave. 116 S. Vista St. 510 N. Bronson Ave. 309 N. Bronson Ave. 358 S. Sycamore Ave. 748 S. Cloverdale Ave. 410 N. Martel Ave. 906 S. Sierra Bonita Ave. 409 N. Plymouth Blvd.

854 S. Ridgeley Dr. 946 S. Victoria Ave. 527 N. Windsor Blvd.

612 S. Citrus Ave. 317 N. Norton Ave. 895 S. Bronson Ave. 960 4th Ave. 122 N. Wilton Pl. 4091 W. 8th St. 621 N. Windsor Blvd.

5017 Elmwood Ave. 646 N. Cahuenga Blvd.

810 S. Wilton Pl. 7462 Clinton St. 5130 Melrose Ave. 5140 Raleigh St.

$6,806,900 4,050,000 3,660,000 3,501,138 3,175,000 3,050,000 3,000,000 2,750,000 2,180,000 2,105,000 2,100,000 2,100,000 2,100,000 2,070,000 2,025,000 1,999,000 1,907,000 1,825,000 1,803,000 1,800,000 1,800,000 1,700,000 1,694,000 1,575,000 1,570,000 1,470,000 1,416,000 1,400,000 1,295,000 1,200,000 1,199,000 1,140,000 855,000

Condominiums 308 N. Sycamore Ave., #402 120 S. Sycamore Ave., #120 871 Crenshaw Blvd., #302 350 S. Norton Ave., #4 109 N. Sycamore Ave., #505 333 Westminster Ave., #404 5037 Rosewood Ave., #201 5132 Maplewood Ave., #207 4407 Francis Ave., #105 837 S. Windsor Blvd., #2 4407 Francis Ave., #110 152 S. Gramercy Pl., #11 152 S. Gramercy Pl., #12 645 Wilcox Ave., #3D 620 S. Gramercy Pl., #133

$1,795,000 1,005,000 970,000 850,000 805,000 780,000 730,000 720,000 700,000 656,000 595,000 590,000 585,000 545,000 455,000

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

NIMBY Diaries (Continued from page 10)

being built in their communities. Even though 77% of voters approved bond measures Prop HHH and H, local communities still come out in force to protest low income, supportive and bridge housing in their neighborhoods. We’re happy to support the bonds to build necessary housing, but we seem unwilling to have that housing built near us.

Our classic “not-in-my-backyard” response.

There is little room to build Los Angeles lacks the available land to build the housing we actually need. With 80% of the city’s land zoned for single-family homes, the amount of land available for multi-family zoning is inadequate. Our many slow-growth policies, (enacted over the last 50 years), have created a system that can’t keep up with demand. During each of the last five years, we’ve built less housing than the previous year. According to a study released by the National Association of Realtors, people want to live in urban environments, but zoning and density restrictions put affordable housing out of reach for many.

We need to fix our zoning.

Scarcity of land creates competitive pricing, higher building costs and rental prices.

Tens of thousands of people have lost their housing as rents have climbed and incomes haven’t kept up. This is particularly true of the incomes of our “essential workers” who will continue to fall into homelessness in record numbers as long as their jobs don’t pay them enough to afford our high rents. As long as the costs of land and construction remain prohibitive for building affordable housing, we will be pushing more and more people into homelessness, and

zoning restrictions drive these trends.

Stopping this cycle requires a willingness for all of us to compromise and realize that the only real solution is for affordable housing to be built

SECTION TWO

in ALL parts of the city. Near us, down the block from us, next door to us.

We simply need to say YES to ALL housing being built in our neighborhoods. “Yes” to fewer parking requirements

for new buildings. “Yes” to more density along transit corridors so people can get around without a car. “Yes” to taller buildings with rents that shop owners at street level and working people in

11

apartment units above can afford. Say: “Yes, we want MORE affordable units in ALL NEW housing developments.”

No loopholes or buyout provisions. We need to say YES and say it loudly.

ALAKAZAM UPHOLSTERY & DRAPERY

ADT Security Services COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL

Four decades serving Mid-Wilshire Los Angeles

Let us be your 1st Responder.

• Every Style: Sofas, Chairs, Slipcovers • Replace Weather-proof Lining • Broad Selection of Fabrics • Draperies & Roman Shades

• • • •

HIGHEST QUALITY WORKSMANSHIP ©LC1218

Call Rosie for FREE Estimates 310-491-8409

©LC0720

Affordable Prices

Response Patrol Alarm Monitoring

For more details, contact Mike Ball 818-435-3179

Please call now for a special offer for new customers who sign up for patrol or response services.

Lic. # PPO 120288

12

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

Modern Art Collection has modern touches in its new home

By Suzan Filipek An audio tour that tells of a Picasso lover in his youth, and a 1920s ragtime piece, are both just a smartphone click away in the new home of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s permanent Modern Art Collection.

Walk past touchless doors to enter the light-filled, thoroughly modern galleries filled with 250 works of art on the top (third) level of the Broad Contemporary Art Museum (BCAM) at LACMA. The exhibit, which opened June 13, is a sweeping historical tour beginning before World War 1.

Works by 200 artists are represented in the Frank Gehrydesigned exhibit space. The works range from Matisse’s painting, “Tea” (1919), to bold mid-century pieces by Rothko and Pollock. One room is dedicated to paintings and sculp-

FRANK GEHRY designed the new exhibit space located on the top floor in BCAM.

tures by Picasso.

“It’s the largest exhibit of Picasso west of Manhattan,” senior curator and LACMA Department Head of Modern Art Stephanie Barron says on the audio tour — one of six thematic audio tours in the exhibit. Post-war women art-

LIPSON

ists and stories of migration and displacement are among other themes.

The Picasso tour, activated via your phone app by a QR code on the gallery walls, tells of Picasso’s life and work, including his subjects, in describing many of the 21 works in the room dedicated to the Spanish-born artist.

Music soundtracks can also be heard throughout the

Plumbing, Inc.

“Your Neighborhood Plumbers” Celebrating 45 Years on Larchmont

606 N. Larchmont Blvd., L.A. 90004 5312 Valley Blvd., L.A. 90032 lipsonplumbing@gmail.com LIC.# 481793

©LC0221

323-469-2395 INSURED

BIRD IN SPACE by Brancusi is in the lobby.

exhibit via your smart phone.

In the German Expressionist gallery, a composition by Schoenberg accompanies a painting by Wassily Kandinsky. Marlene Dietrich singing “Wenn die beste Freundin” takes you back to a swinging Berlin cabaret posted at a lithograph by Jeanne Mammen.

A section named Made in France features works mostly from Paris — the epicenter of the Avant-Garde from 1880 to 1930, Barron tells us on a brief walk through the exhibit.

San Francisco-based artist Miki Hayakawa’s “Portrait of Negro” (1924), is accompanied by a ragtime piece that was popular at the time. The artist was a Japanese emigrant and at the onset of World War II spent time in an internment camp, we learn.

Surrealism and North and Latin American galleries include works by Georgia O’Keeffe and Diego Rivera, as well as Magritte’s “This is Not a Pipe” — “one of our most well known works,” Barron says.

Abstract Expressionists in the collection include Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Ruth Asawa; Pop Art and Southern California

Assemblage styles are represented by Roy Lichtenstein, Judy Chicago and Kienholz, among others.

(Please turn to page 13)

LIBRARIES FAIRFAX 161 S. Gardner St. 323-936-6191 JOHN C. FREMONT 6121 Melrose Ave. 323-962-3521 MEMORIAL 4625 W. Olympic Blvd.

323-938-2732 Closed for maintenance.

WILSHIRE 149 N. St. Andrews Pl. 323-957-4550 ASK A LIBRARIAN 213-228-7272 infonow@lapl.org HOURS Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:30 to 7:30 p.m. For more information, ask a librarian or visit lapl.org.

for almost 50 years

We offer a wide range of residential and commercial products

• New Window Screens • Window Blinds / Coverings • Screen Doors and French Screen Door Sets

We feature the complete line of Hunter Douglas window covering products

(310) 204-4433 5715 Venice Blvd., LA 90019

PioneerandSantaMonicaShadeandScreen.com California State bonded and licensed #604653

JULY 2021

13

WOMAN WITH GROCERIES

by Jacob Lawrence, 1942.

TEA BY HENRI MATISSE reflects the artist’s interest in African art, depicted in the mask-like face of his daughter, Marguerite, right.

LACMA

“This is years in the making,” Barron said of the exhibit.

In 2018, the collection was removed from its former home in the Ahmanson Building, which was demolished to

(Continued from page 12)

WORKS BY Picasso fill one entire room in the new gallery.

SECTION TWO

Swing a door to enter “Central Meridian,” also known by its other name, “The Garage,” 1981, which is after the Modern era, but an interesting journey. Crickets chirp in this immersive recreation of a garage complete with a parked car and a moose head.

Each of the galleries includes new interpretive wall texts with recent scholarship information and engagement issues of provenance, colonialism and sociopolitical topics.

AUDIO TOURS and music soundtracks are available on your smart phone in the galleries.

prepare for a new museum at LACMA being constructed beyond the plaza east of BCAM. Purchase advance, timed tickets at lacma.org. LACMA is at 5905 Wilshire Blvd.

Z

ZAVALA ELECTRIC Call 818.500.7778 For immediate installation

• Complete Electrical • Service and Repair • Residential • Commercial • Bonded Insured

Guaranteed Excellence State Lic. #C-10 556059

Serving All Larchmont Hancock Park & Wilshire Communities

LC0509

Larchmont Chronicle

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

Local teenagers attacked leaving Wilton Place party

POLICE BEAT

Keep doors and windows locked

213-793-0650 31646@lapd.lacity.org Twitter: @lapdwilshire

213-793-0709 31762@lapd.lacity.org Twitter: @lapdolympic

An elderly man was robbed of his watch and money while walking near the corner of June Street and Oakwood Avenue after two suspects approached him brandishing a handgun on June 10 at 6:20 p.m.

BURGLARY: Credit cards,

keys and money were stolen from inside a home on the 100 block of S. June St. between June 8 at 9 p.m. and June 9 at 8:30 a.m. after a suspect forced open a locked door, stole items and fled, all while the elderly homeowner was upstairs asleep.

PLOTKE

Plumbing

Mario & Lynn (323) 463-9201 FAX (323) 463-1259

Koontz

“The hardware STore” formerly “Larchmont Hardware”

IT’S A PERFECT TIME TO BUY A GREAT BAR-B-QUE ….

Inc.

Come check out our beautiful display of over 30 glass kitchen cabinet knobs by Sietto.

Prices range from $18-$27.

We have the full line of Mrs. Myers cleaning products, more than anyone else! Plus, we are the only place nearby that has all the sizes of “soda stream” canister refills.

You will love the new “Joseph and Joseph” “nest storage” containers.

The sizes are color coordinated and the lids snap together so they are always easy to find Try our “freezable grocery bags” so that the whole bag is an ice pack.

Larchmont customers get FREE DELIVERY on Bar-B-Que’s by mentioning this ad.

We will be open on July 4 • Call for hours HAVE A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY!

310-652-0123 • 8914 Santa Monica Boulevard

• COMMERCIAL • RESIDENTIAL

SERVING THE LARCHMONT AREA FOR 60 YEARS!

between San Vicente and Robertson in West Hollywood Weekdays: 8am–7pm, Sat 8am–5:30pm, Sun 10am–5pm

LC608

License #768437

Furnished by Senior Lead Officer Joseph Pelayo

Furnished by Senior Lead Officer Dave Cordova

©LC0720

3121 W. Temple St., LA 90026

Your local roofer at the same location for 95 years.

We Now Offer Solar!

“Experience does make a difference.

Customer satisfaction will bring you back to our

FULL SERVICE COMPANY. Residential & Commercial

323-469-2981 • supremeroofing.net 1015 N. Gower St., 90038

B Gaddy ElEctric since 1978.

Residential • CommeRCial

• Upgrades • Landscape • Pool Lights • Phone & Computer Lines • Security & Emergency Lighting Service & Repairs

Call Bill 323-462-1023 Licensed & Insured

Local References

LIC #700914

©LC1010

Since 1959

OLYMPIC DIVISION

WILSHIRE DIVISION

white van.

“The van stopped, people got out and attacked about four-five kids. I don’t know if it was gang, robbery or what.

SSA [a private security company] came relatively quickly.

The police did not come until the third call was placed to them. The van got away, and no one was able to get the license plate, though there is a picture of the van,” read Schwartz’s post, which asked residents for any additional information or footage of the incident.

The post, at the Chronicle’s press time, had garnered more than 156 comments.

©0618

WILSHIRE DIVISION ASSAULT: A man sustained serious injuries after being assaulted by a man while walking near the corner of Highland and Melrose avenues on June 7 at 4:30 a.m.

ROBBERIES: A Larchmont Village “party house” used for short term rentals on the 300 block of N. Lucerne Blvd. was the scene of a gun-related robbery after suspects used a gas propane tank to smash a window and gain entry while four victims were inside. The suspects demanded jewelry and money from the victims before fleeing on June 6 at 2:10 a.m.

By Billy Taylor Former mayoral candidate and Windsor Square resident Mitchell Schwartz took to social media site Nextdoor last month to share a disturbing incident that left his teenage son with a fractured orbital bone after a Saturday night out with friends.

Schwartz said that his son and “a few of his friends” were attacked on June 19 shortly after midnight while walking home from a house party on Wilton Place, “where there was a small get-together of neighborhood kids.” Schwartz described the attackers as “eight people/ kids” who jumped out of a large

Lic.#386172

SECTION TWO

© LC 0120

14

Larchmont Chronicle

JULY 2021

SECTION TWO

15

Be careful when looking to move into the lead; Chasing is costly

In poker, “chasing” a hand means that you are likely behind your opponent (an “underdog”) and are looking to hit a card that will move you into the lead.

New and unskilled hold’em players often make a common mistake by chasing hands. It takes real skill to know when the odds dictate staying in the hand, and when they strongly suggest throwing your hole cards into the muck. A player who chases is seeking one of a few cards to make his hand — one that could well be the winning hand.

When the odds against making such a hand — his card odds — are higher than the pot odds (the number of chips already in the pot divided by the cost to call the last bet) —

he has a negative expectation (-EV). He would be chasing if he continued to call his opponents’ bets (or raises) and is destined to be a loser.

Starting-hand selection Starting-hand selection may well be your most important decision when peeking at your hole cards. This is when you are about to make your first investment in that hand. Very tight players have their top 10 starting hands — made hands and premium drawing hands.

But, if they play only those best possible hands, they are bound to be losers as their opponents soon realize this and are prone to fold against them. So the hands they win will have small pots — not big enough to make up for the cost-to-play. Most chasers are likely to play medi-

Family-Run

Poker for All by

George Epstein um or mediocre starting hands.

A typical example: Quite often you will see an opponent playing any Ace in the hole. It could be an Ace-deuce, even non-suited. In a $4-$8 limit game, Chaser is in a middle position, holding Ad-2c. The under-the-gun (UTG) opens the betting. Only Chaser and Small Blind call. The flop is 2s-Jd-8s. Chaser now has a pair of deuces with an Ace kicker.

UTG, a loose-aggressive

player, opens the betting on the flop. With his fingers crossed, Chaser calls, hoping for a third deuce or an Ace on the turn. His chances are poor. In all, he has only five outs — two deuces and three Aces. Nevertheless, he calls UTG’s $4 bet to see the turn.

It is a blank. UTG again open bets — now doubled to $8.

Chaser should have asked himself: With just five outs, what are my card odds against connecting with one of them?

Answer: Using a readily available outs chart or the 4-2 Rule, and with two cards to come, multiply the 5 outs by 4 (5 x 4 = 20). Chaser has approximately 20 percent chance of connecting, so his card odds are 4-to-1 against him. With $20 in the

pot, the pot odds ($20 ÷ $8) are less than 3-to-1; so Chaser has a -EV, suggesting he muck his hand and save those 8 chips. He is a long-shot. In the long run, underdogs are losers. Avoid chasing. Save money.

George “The Engineer” Epstein, a long-time local resident, is the author of three poker books, including “The Art of Bluffing” and “Hold’em or Fold’em – An Algorithm for Making the Key Decision.”

Life/Poker quote of the month “Personal perfection is impossible, but it is possible to aim for genuineness, honesty, consistency, and moral purity, and to frankly acknowledge it when we fail.

– Susan Alexander Yates

Over 50 years

Custom Area Rugs to Custom Installations

Carpet • Linoleum • Hardwood • Vinyl

Don’t stay tied to rugs that don’t work for your rooms!

Custom-made area rugs made to fit your lifestyle & space! ©LC0221

Staff Experts Provide Personal Service to Select the Ideal Flooring for Your Home

Call: 323 • 934 • 7282 7815 Beverly Blvd. • Lestercarpet.com

AMAZING BRICKS

Call Tony at

OFFICES FOR LEASE Larchmont Boulevard

606 N. Larchmont Blvd.

PH (323) 466-8591

310-697-9888

DeaDline For The auguST 2021 iSSue iS fri., July 16, 2021.

For renT

This space For renT!

Four easy steps: 1)Email circulation@ larchmontchronicle.com.

2) Include gist of the ad.

3) I send you a proof.

4) You send in a check!

Pay $35/inch or $52.50/1.5 inches to reach approx. 77,000 20,000 readers homes in our delivery neighborhood.

• Newly remodeled suites • Close to Studios & Restaurants • Village Atmosphere, Parking Provided • Very Competitive Rent

Larchmont Chronicle's

Classified ads

Tell our aDverTiSerS you "saw it in the larChmont ChroniCle!"

Place a classified ad at circulation@larchmontchronicle.com.

For Sale

Carthay Circle 6120 Warner Dr.

Lofty spaces for gracious living and entertaining!

29 ft. ceilings, fireplace, pool, lg. windows.

Listed at $2,450,000 Contact Mikka: 323-435-5688 larealtyconcierge.com

For Sale

Single Crypt in Beth Olam Cemetery

To Buy Wanted:

ServiceS

Copywriter, Proofreader, Researcher

©LC1220

Amazing Simons bricks in EXCELLENT condition with sharp edges & corners.

Great quality … just like Larchmont!

ServiceS

ServiceS

Proofreader ~phoTographer~ CoPy editor peT porTraiTs, Location: Tier 7-2 Gates of German & Russian medals, Newsletters, Brochures, Ads, d eveloPmental editing headshoTs, ediTorial daggers, uniforms, flags, Press Releases, Prof. Bios, Heaven Crypt 6471.

Books, Scripts, Theses, Exp. creative professional; WW1 & WW2

silverware, & swords.

Speeches, Obituaries. $6,000 includes transfer Dissertations, Newsletters, very cat & dog savvy.

One item or whole collection. Copy editing & proofreading fee & endowment care.

Magazines & More.

Visit emiliasparagna.com or Contact: Dominic Panzica essays, theses and more.

Email Jack at aP, aPa, mla, 213-361-3935 or 10+ years of experience email: adventurer214@gmail.com mainelineswitch@yahoo.com mara.sher.fisher@gmail.com ChiCago StyleS somejerseygirl@sbcglobal.net + 20 years experience To place a classified ad for $35/inch, email circulation@larchmontchronicle.com

Also available for dog walking.

Located in Hancock Park.

Email: info@

puttputtproductions.com

16

SECTION TWO

JULY 2021

Larchmont Chronicle