Larchmont Chronicle
VOL. 57, NO. 5
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IN THIS ISSUE
Lions arrive at Wilshire police station
Homelessness: Events at Ebell, Wells home n May 10, May 16
DESIGN FOR LIVING Sec. 2, p. 13
FAIRYTALE setting for annual hunt. 17
MARIONETTES move to hip venue. 18
By John Welborne Neighbors Lifting Neighbors is a program created by local residents Marilyn Wells and Allison Schallert. Its purpose is to help our local residents understand and embrace affordable and supportive housing as the most effective solution to end homelessness. The two ladies also have created the speakers’ series, Stories from the Frontline, where people who previously have experienced homelessness describe the programs that addressed their issues and once again got them housed. This month, the ladies are involved in two local events that will help provide this type of information to any interested local residents. Alexandria House will host its annual WomenSpeak Luncheon Fri., May 10 at the Ebell of Los Angeles, 741 S. Lucerne See Homeless, p 9
Greater Wilshire directors elected for 2-year terms n Several alternate vacancies available
SUMMER CAMPS & SCHOOLS 19 For Information on Advertising Rates, Please Call Pam Rudy 323-462-2241, x 11 Mailing permit:
The election for the board of directors of the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council (GWNC) took place at the end of March at the Barking Lot on Larchmont Blvd. Stakeholders selected board members and alternates to serve two-year terms in geographic and special interest categories, including renters and members of education, religious, business and other non-profit groups. Several alternate vacancies are still available. Below are the directors and alternates elected. See Greater Wilshire, p 31
Salute to grads!
Our annual section honoring local graduates is in the June issue of the Larchmont Chronicle. Advertising deadline is Mon. May 13. For more information contact Pam Rudy, 323-4622241, ext. 11.
MAY 2019
n Fallen Officers Memorial and Garden nearing completion
IN THE ROSE GARDEN. Foundation board member Mark Rios, FAIA, Executive Director Carolyn Ramsay, Council District Four Chief of Staff Nicholas Greif and honoree Judith Kieffer.
Parks Foundation founding executive director honored
By John Welborne Two large and majestic lion sculptures arrived April 11 at the Wilshire Division Police Station, 4861 Venice Blvd. The lions will become the centerpiece of the “Fallen Officers Memorial and Garden” originally conceived by the See Lions, p 31
n Successor Carolyn Ramsay joins host of dignitaries The Los Angeles Parks Foundation was only an idea in 2008, and now it is an insti-
Preservation update for Windsor Square n Hearing on May 6 In advance of updating the city’s guidelines for the Windsor Square Historic Preservation Overlay Zone (HPOZ), the first of two open house sessions took place April 29 at Marlborough School. The second open house will be Mon., May 6, at 6 p.m., also at Marlborough School, 250 N. Rossmore Ave. Following the open house, the Los Angeles Dept. of City Planning will conduct an official Public Hearing on the proposal, commencing at 7 p.m. A Hearing Officer will accept testimony from members of the commuSee Preservation Plan, p 9
tution. It raises funds for, and works with, the city’s Dept. of Recreation and Parks. Since 2010, one of the foundation’s successful fundraising events has been a lovely luncheon and presentation of the annual Rose Award in Exposition Park’s extraordinary Rose Garden. The awards honor women who have made a significant contribution to the See Parks Foundation, p 9
LAPD WILSHIRE DIVISION community relations officer Sgt. A.J. Kirby directs the lowering of a lion sculpture onto the Fallen Officers Memorial.
Plymouth preschool attracts generations of families n Many students are children of former students By Sondi Toll Sepenuk One of the first big decisions parents make is where to send their child for preschool. The choices can be overwhelming as parents find themselves choosing among Waldorf, Montessori, Reggio Emilia, project-based, reli-
gious, private, STEM-based, co-op, non-profit preschools and more. Many of these preschools come and go as parental whims ebb and flow. But locally, there’s a preschool that has stood the test of time, educating generation after See Plymouth, p 25
Turning 20: Big Sunday’s MOBS is here n More than 100 projects are offered in May By Suzan Filipek Big Sunday is celebrating its 20th anniversary of the very first Big Sunday with a project called “Big Sunday’s Greatest Hits.” The event takes place Sun., May 19 at an under-served Los Angeles Unified School, Lovelia Flournoy Elementary School in South Los Angeles, very close to the Nickerson Gardens housing project. According to Rachel Schwartz, spokesperson for Big Sunday, volunteers will be painting murals, planting gardens, cleaning, creating a teachers’ lounge, collecting and donating food and clothing, BIG SUNDAY volunteers at its biggest food See Big Sunday, p 29 drive, the 10K in May. Photo by Bill Devlin
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Editorial
Calendar
By John Welborne
Senate Bill 50 is bad for homeowners In late 2017, the ladies of the Hancock Park Garden Club (founded 57 years ago) published a booklet, “Your Next Front Yard.” The focus of the pamphlet is front yards — the single-family landscape that both separates homes and unifies neighborhoods. (See: hancockparkgardenclub.com/ your-next-front-yard.) A month or so later, on Jan. 16, 2018, San Francisco lawyer and former San Francisco Supervisor — and now a State Senator from San Francisco — Scott Wiener published on a blog an explanation of what he believes should be in your and your neighbors’ front and back yards. That would be four- or five-
story apartment buildings. According to his own words, Sen. Wiener has deeply-held feelings about certain problems in the modern world, in particular relating to some people having single-family homes with private open space, when other people (including some long-dead people who may have lived in California 100 years ago) do, or did, not. It is instructive to read Sen. Wiener’s own words about the haves and the have-nots. Residents owning single-family homes in our local communities, and in urban areas throughout the state of California, need to be vigilant. We need to contact elected State representa-
Building a Strong Community: Our Block Captains, the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council and Concrete Streets According to the LAPD, the most important part of safety and security in your neighborhood is an effective block captain/ neighborhood watch network. Hancock Park is fortunate to have so many community minded residents who volunteer to serve as block captains. To thank our block captains and keep them up to date on security and other issues, the Association is hosting a dinner on May 15th at the Wilshire Country Club. If you are a block captain, you should have received an invitation. If you are a block captain and have not received an invitation, contact the Association. If you aren’t a block captain and your block doesn’t have one, VOLUNTEER! Then you can share a wonderful dinner with your colleagues at the Wilshire Country Club. The Association is happy to report that Board Member Jen DeVore was elected to the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council Board. Jen is a tireless worker for the community, serving not only on the Board of the HPHOA, but also on the HPOZ Board and now the GWNC. Thank you Jen for so generously devoting your time to the benefit of our community. Councilman David Ryu has announced a targeted repair program for our concrete streets. The City has completed a pilot study from which this repair program has been developed. After a complete assessment of Hancock Park’s concrete streets (by the Bureau of Street Services), the first phase, which will repair the most hazardous areas, has begun. Portions of 2nd Street and McCadden Place, 4th Street and Rimpau Blvd., June Street and 4th Street, and an uneven pavement at 352 South Las Palmas are the first in line for repairs. The second phase is to develop an ongoing repair priority list and obtain budget financing, including two dedicated concrete crews. Remember, Hancock Park is an HPOZ, so be sure to check with our City Planner, Suki Gershenhorn (suki.gershenhorn@ lacity.org), before starting any major landscaping or before planning changes to the exterior of your house. The HPOZ Preservation Plan, which regulates our HPOZ, can be found at http://www.preservation.lacity.org/hpoz/la/hancock-park. There is also an online form you can fill out to help speed up the process (http://preservation.lacity.org/hpoz/initial. screening.checklist). Report graffiti sightings by calling 311 or at the City’s Anti-Graffiti Request System — tinyurl.com/ yyr3unhc — and by calling Hollywood Beautification, 323463-5180. Adv.
Wed., May 1 – Big Sunday launches Month of Big Sundays. bigsunday.org. Mon., May 6 – City Planning Dept. open house and hearing on Windsor Square Preservation Plan update, Marlborough School, 250 S. Rossmore Ave., 6 p.m. Wed., May 8 – Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council board meeting, The Ebell of Los Angeles, 743 S. Lucerne Blvd., 7 p.m. Sun., May 12 – Mother’s Day. Mon., May 27 – Memorial Day. Thurs., May 30 – Delivery of the June issue of the Larchmont Chronicle. tives, and we need to be prepared to vote against those local elected officials who don’t help stop the current Bay Area-led effort to confiscate our single-family residential environments. Somehow, for a number of activists in California, “single-family neighborhood” has become an evil thing that they oppose. To be fair, it’s generally only when bus stops or other transit facilities are near the usually older and established residential neighborhoods that these people (now calling themselves “YIMBYs”) vilify and try to undermine singlefamily homes. “YIMBY” stands for “Yes in My Back Yard,” but I doubt there are many YIMBYs (except real estate developers and apartment builders) who even own singlefamily houses that have front and back yards. YIMBY activists say that they prefer dense urban development. Of course, they are welcome to live in such places. But, for the millions of Californians who have invested in lower-density neighborhoods that do have yards — and who may have struggled and sac-
Larchmont Chronicle Founded in 1963 by Jane Gilman and Dawne P. Goodwin Publisher and Editor John H. Welborne Managing Editor Suzan Filipek Associate Editor Billy Taylor Contributing Editor Jane Gilman Advertising Director Pam Rudy Advertising Sales Caroline Tracy Art Director Tom Hofer Classified and Circulation Manager Rachel Olivier Accounting Jill Miyamoto 606 N. Larchmont Blvd., #103
Los Angeles, CA 90004 323-462-2241 larchmontchronicle.com
‘Do you have spring cleaning or remodel plans? That’s the question inquiring photographer Talia Abrahamson asked locals along Larchmont Blvd.
rificed for decades to build up their equity in the house they own — having a boxy, modern, five-story apartment building built next door is not a desirable thing. Nor is it desirable for other neighbors, because such a “block-busting” development will start a chain reaction of other neighbors selling out and moving elsewhere. (I’d choose Texas.) There obviously is a strong, and still unmet, housing demand. Just look at what that demand is doing to former single-family homes on the lots long zoned as multiple-family — north of Melrose on Wilcox and on Cole and the eastwest streets north of Beverly between Wilton and Western. That cannot yet happen in most of Greater Wilshire or in other large portions of Los Angeles that have single-family neighborhoods long protected by single-family zoning. But … the state legislation aggressively advocated by Sen. Wiener and his real estate development and construction industry donors and allies will change that. Your home is endangered by the bill that Sen. Wiener and his allies are promoting in Sacramento. If you or anyone in your family owns a single-family residence, whether it is in Northern California near a bus route or virtually anywhere in our central Los Angeles area including “jobs rich” hillsides, you are a part of the problem, according to the State Senator from San Francisco. Sen. Wiener wants 20 of his Sacramento colleagues in the State Senate to address that problem … and put you in your place. This conclusion is reached from reading Sen. Wiener’s own words. Read them in the Special Supplement in this issue of the Larchmont Chronicle. Then, for your own sake, convince state legislators other than Sen. Wiener to vote “no” on his SB 50 or any similar legislative offspring drafted to confiscate our single-family residential environments.
“I think we’re jumping on the Marie Kondo train. It’s amazing, and I’ve done maybe two drawers full, and now I have the rest of my entire house to do including all of my 3-year-old’s toys.” Beth Crosby (with Gracie) Larchmont Village
“We’re re-doing our dining room. New dining table, new dining chairs, because we had just a bunch of mismatched furniture. But, also mostly cleaning out our closets and making a lot of trips to Goodwill.” Kaitlin Clark and Coleman Engellenner Mid-Wilshire
“I always do it. There’s a lot of really good websites now that you can just send your stuff to, and they’ll basically take care of it.” Rachele Lynn (and ex-roommate Lindsay Hannon) Hancock Park
“I keep telling my kids that we’re going to have this big garage sale. The cleaning happened in December, and now it’s April, and we still haven’t had the garage sale.” Gabrielle Samuels Hancock Park
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
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LACMA gets a County OK for its sweeping bridge across Wilshire By Suzan Filipek In true Los Angeles fashion, celebrities joined museum officials and community members at a County Supervisors hearing that cleared the path for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) to move forward with its sweeping new design for a gallery to cross Wilshire Blvd. The County Board unanimously voted April 9 to certify the Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) for the museum’s new building for its permanent collection and approved the project. The Supervisors also authorized the issuance of $117.5 million, the balance on its $125 million contribution to the $650 million project. “This is a major milestone in LACMA’s effort to replace four aging structures with the new Peter Zumthor-designed building,” museum CEO Michael Govan announced after the vote. Zumthor’s elevated main exhibition gallery will reach
SECTION ONE
AROUND THE TOWN 16 COUNCIL REPORT BOOK NEWS POLICE BEAT ENTERTAINMENT On the Menu Theater Review At the Movies HOME GROUND CAMPS & SCHOOLS BRIDGE
6 8 10 11 12 13 15 19 30
SECTION TWO VIEW:
Real Estate, Design for Living Home & Garden
ART DEALER’S exhibit open until May 30. 18 McAVOY ON PRESERVATION 2 LIBRARIES 6 ARBORIST DIRECTORY 8 REAL ESTATE SALES10 DESIGN FOR LIVING 13 PROFESSOR 23 CLASSIFIED ADS 23
RENDERING of the proposed new LACMA building extending over Wilshire Blvd., looking west on Wilshire. Courtesy of LACMA Image
across Wilshire supported by seven semi-transparent pavilions on the north and south sides of the street. The innovative design was praised by Diane Keaton and Brad Pitt at the hearing, and Govan thanked members of the community for their comments that resulted in the final 347,500-square-foot building being “simpler, more beauti-
ful, more transparent with enhanced access to the park.” (The four buildings the new building replaces are 387,500 square feet.) Satellite locations Satellite locations throughout Los Angeles County will add to the museum exhibition space, Govan said. Also included is a new five-story, above-ground,
260-space parking structure called the Ogden Parking Structure, plus two stories underground. It replaces parking spaces currently on the surface lot at Wilshire and Spaulding. The design expands and integrates landscaped plazas, sculpture gardens and drought tolerant vegetation with the new museum build-
ing and the existing Hancock Park, home of the La Brea Tar Pits. Not everyone is in support of the new design and the 575-page FEIR prepared for the County by consultant Eyestone Environmental. The board of directors of the Miracle Mile Residential Association (MMRA) unanimously voted April 11 to pursue legal action against the County and City of Los Angeles regarding the FEIR. “Neither LACMA nor the County Supervisors have honestly addressed our many concerns and questions. They have taken a damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead approach. We have no choice but to pursue legal action,” MMRA president Jim O’Sullivan said in a written statement. MMRA’s concerns are spelled out in an 11-page letter. They range from lack of transparen(Please turn to page 6)
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Metro meetings address Purple, Crenshaw lines By John Welborne Two local Metro meetings on one night! April 25 was a busy evening for those interested in local rapid transit construction and planning. The first meeting took place in the Boardroom of the SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) headquarters building east of the La Brea Tar Pits Museum. About 25 people learned about subway construction under Wilshire Blvd. between Western Avenue and La Cienega Blvd. Crenshaw line extension There was a larger atten-
dance at the second meeting, which related to preliminary planning for a Crenshaw Line extension north from Exposition Blvd. to Hollywood. In Metro’s long-range plans for construction, this new transit line would open in 2047. However, a large contingent of Los Angeles rapid transit advocates, led by the City of West Hollywood, is seeking earlier start and opening dates for this new line. (Actually, the line would not be all that “new.” Four of the five suggested routes go north to West Hollywood in the median of
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San Vicente Blvd. — previously the route of the 20th century’s Pacific Electric Railway “Santa Monica Short Line.”) About 85 people, including Metro staff, City of West Hollywood advocates (including two council members) and local residents were packed into a room at the Pan Pacific Recreation Center for the community forum jointly hosted by Metro, the Mid-City West Community Council and the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council. There were presentations about the five alternative routes, station locations, and likely track configurations (underground, at-grade, and/ or aerial). The previous San Vicente tracks were generally at-grade, but there were some aerial bridges over intersections. West Hollywood advocates In comments from attendees, the arguments from West Hollywood advocates were repeated often. They stress that the Crenshaw extension will create an important (Please turn to page 10) Purple Line Transit Neighborhood Plan (TNP) At the end of April, Fourth District Councilman David Ryu sent a detailed letter to the City Planning Dept., outlining his concerns and vision regarding the Purple Line TNP process and outcomes. The full letter is here: tinyurl. com/y6doxweo.
METRO’S NED RACINE answers community meeting in the SAG AF
ur le ine uestions at a A oardroom.
A FULL HOUSE at an aci c ecreation Center artici ated in a community forum about e tending the Crenshaw light rail line north to ollywood.
Historic marionette yard sale May 19 Take home a part of history from the Bob Baker Marionette Theater yard sale, 1345 W. 1st St., Sun., May 19 beginning at 9 a.m.
See Bob Baker closing party story on p. 18. Everything from cans of powdered tempera paint from 1950 to Christmas lights, vintage napkins and party supplies (excluding puppets) and more will be for sale. Proceeds from the sale will help perpetuate the nonprofit
BOB BAKER Marionette he ater is ha ing a yard sale.
Bob Baker Marionette Theater at its new location in Highland Park. Early admission tickets for those who want to start shopping at 8 a.m. will be available. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/y3thzf8n.
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Greetings to new GWNC board, street repairs underway councils are the direct line of communication between communities and City Hall, and they are the most localized form of representation for our unique neighborhoods. In a large city, neighborhood councils bring government to the people, and their members volunteer their time to help their neighbors and improve their communities. For GWNC, that has included traffic safety improvements, workshops and events on sustainability and water conservation, and so much more. I’m excited to get to know
May has come to Larchmont Village and the surrounding areas, and with it come fresh faces to our communities and exciting developments for our neighborhoods. First and foremost, I want to congratulate and welcome the new members of the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council (GWNC) board of directors, who were installed last month. Serving on a neighborhood council is one of the most honorable forms of public service, and it is a crucially important resource in our city government. Neighborhood
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the new board members and alternates, and I am honored to serve with them and the returning members. I’m also excited to welcome the beginning of some longawaited infrastructure repairs to our historic neighborhoods. For the first time ever, concrete streets in Hancock Park will see targeted repairs as part of a unified effort in the community. As many long-time residents know, the historic streets of Hancock
Park have been allowed to fall into disrepair because the city could never find the funding to rebuild or repair them. But together, my office, the Board of Public Works, the Bureau of Street Services and the Hancock Park Homeowners Association not only made concrete street repair possible, but a priority. In the past three years since I’ve entered office, we’ve completed a successful pilot program for concrete street repair, instituted the street damage restoration fund, which requires whole-slab replacement for damage made to concrete streets, and, most recently, I worked with the Bureau of Street Services to conduct a complete assessment of all concrete streets
Pancakes served on Firefighter Recognition Day
Book talk, spring choral concert at Ebell this month
Council Report by
David E. Ryu
Support your local fire fighter on Fire Service Recognition Day with a pancake breakfast at the Los Angeles Fire Department Museum, 1355 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Sat. May 11 from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for children, next door to the museum. The annual fundraiser is in memory of Capt. Barney Nipp this year and features LAFD fire and rescue demonstrations at the adjacent Fire Station 27. Visit lafdmuseum.org.
VOICES OF HISTORY SUMMER WORKSHOPS at Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust
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VISUAL ART WORKSHOP: JUNE 17 - 21 THEATER WORKSHOP: JULY 8 - 26 DOCUMENTARY FILM WORKSHOP: JULY 29 - AUGUST 16 Create art, theater pieces and documentary films about the life experiences of local Holocaust survivors. All workshops meet Monday-Friday, 10am-3pm. Open to students entering grades 7-12. To enroll or for more information visit www.lamoth.org or contact nadia@lamoth.org or (323) 651-3716. 100 The Grove Dr. Los Angeles, CA 90036 | (323) 651-3704
Hear an author’s book talk, the Ebell Chorale’s spring concert and an opera recital this month at The Ebell of Los Angeles, 741 S. Lucerne Blvd. Author Jo Giese will talk on her memoir, “Never Sit If You Can Dance: Lessons from My Mother,” at the Mon., May 6 luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m. The Ebell Chorale's spring concert, “The Power of Women’s Voices,” is Mon., May 20 at 11:30 a.m. preceding the luncheon. A recital featuring vocalists selected by Los Angeles Opera’s DomingoColburn-Stein Young Artists program is Wed., May 29 at 7:30 p.m., $15 suggested donation. For tickets and information visit ebellofla.com.
LACMA gets County OK
(Continued from page 3) cy (design development drawings have not been shared with the public) to tar and oil seepage in the area and noise disturbances from nighttime events at the museum. The final project is expected to cost more than $650 million. The city, which owns the airspace over Wilshire Blvd. into which the new building will extend, has its own approval process. Groundbreaking is planned for early 2020, with building completion expected at the end of 2023. Copies of the FEIR are available online at https://ceo. lacounty.gov/final-environmental-impact-report/. CD-Rom copies are also available at the Fairfax branch library, 161 S. Gardner St., and Memorial branch library, 4625 W. Olympic Blvd.
in Hancock Park. The team developed a list of hazardous areas to begin working on immediately for repair in concrete. The first phase of work will include portions of 2nd Street and McCadden Place, 4th Street and Rimpau Boulevard, June Street and 4th Street and an uneven street lift at 352 S. Las Palmas Ave. The work began in late March, when crews removed an uneven asphalt patch and replaced it with concrete on 2nd Street. The Street Services crews have been coming to Hancock Park approximately every two weeks to complete the first phase of work, expected to be completed in June. With spring comes renewal, rebirth and growth, and it’s exciting to see all the fresh faces and neighborhood improvements bloom in our neighborhood.
skin
deep by Dr. Rebecca Fitzgerald
Anyone living with rosacea or another vascular skin condition on their face knows the drill: the lengthy concealer application, the endless mixing of foundation shades, time and money spent searching for that dream camouflaging product — only to be disappointed. Vbeam uses laser light at a frequency absorbable by your blood vessels to destroy unsightly veins. The Vbeam laser is one of the safest and most effective treatments for visible vascular skin conditions, such as rosacea, facial veins, red birthmarks, spider veins, angiomas (benign growths of small blood vessels), venous lakes (dark blue to purple papules on face, head and neck), and poikiloderma (red hyperpigmentation typically on the neck or chest). We are delighted to report that the results we’re able to achieve with Vbeam are nothing short of transformative. When we address facial redness and achieve beautiful, even skin tone, patients are astounded by both their need for far less makeup and the way their eye color pops without the distraction of red, uneven skin. It’s truly a privilege to help patients look the way they’ve long dreamed to. Dr. Rebecca Fitzgerald is a Board Certified Dermatologist located in Larchmont Village with a special focus on anti-aging technology. She is a member of the Botox Cosmetic National Education Faculty and is an international Training Physician for Dermik, the makers of the injectable Sculptra. She is also among a select group of physicians chosen to teach proper injection techniques for Radiesse, the volumizing filler, around the world. Dr. Fitzgerald is an assistant clinical professor at UCLA. Visit online at www.RebeccaFitzgeraldMD. com or call (323) 464-8046 to schedule Adv. an appointment.
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
ity officials de ate policy By Billy Taylor A cannabis business located at the intersection of Larchmont Boulevard and Melrose Avenue continues to operate without a license in violation of state and local laws. As first reported in the February issue of the Larchmont Chronicle, Melrose Place 25 Cap, which is housed in a unit within the Melrose Gallery and Antiques building at 5635 Melrose Ave., is operating without either temporary approval or a license to engage in cannabis activity. In addition to lacking necessary permits, the shop is located in an area near schools and licensed day-care facilities. An official complaint on the illegal pot shop was filed with the Los Angeles Dept. of Cannabis Regulation on Jan. 8. Seeking a status update, the Chronicle turned to the office of City Attorney Mike Feuer: “It is my understanding that that location is still under review at this time,” responded spokesman Frank Mateljan. Feuer was in the press last month for seeking an injunc-
tion against a single pot shop in South Los Angeles for allegedly operating unlawfully and selling pesticide-laden products. In the suit, Feuer also named a commercial real estate broker and two of its salespeople for allegedly aiding and abetting illegal activity. Between May 2018 and April 2019, the City Attorney’s Office filed 217 cases involving 172 total locations and two delivery services, with 840 defendants. As a result, the office has received verification of closure of 113 locations. Still, many residents complain that that number is just a drop in the bucket in regard to the problem of illegal pot shops. In the geographic areas of Greater Wilshire and Hollywood, the Dept. of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) has only authorized 21 retail licenses, which means that the majority of green crosses that you see across the city are adorning illegal storefronts. Many California consumers continue to purchase cannabis at illegal dispensaries to avoid paying taxes that can add between 30 to 50 percent to the retail price, in some
PAN PACIFIC PARK was the setting for the April 28 communitywide Yom HaShoah Remembrance Day.
Community commemorates Yom HaShoah at park The annual Yom HaShoah Remembrance Day event — honoring the memories of victims and survivors of the Holocaust — took place in Pan Pacific Park on April 28. Attendees listened to the speakers under a broad canopy providing shade from the bright sun. Mayor Eric Garcetti and other elected officials attended. The event adjoining the facilities of co-sponsor Los Angeles Museum of the Holo-
caust was presented by the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and was also sponsored by numerous other organizations including American Jewish Committee, AntiDefamation League, Jewish Family Service, Jewish World Watch, Mt. Sinai Memorial Parks, Museum of Tolerance, Sinai Temple, Stephen Wise Temple, Theatre Dybbuk, Valley Beth Shalom and Wilshire Boulevard Temple.
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SECTION ONE
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hile ille al pot shops lin er
communities. In Los Angeles, taxes include a 15 percent state excise tax, 10 percent city excise tax and a 9.5 percent combined city-state sales tax, which combine to equal a 34.5 percent tax burden. Why the delay? Nevertheless, if a business is operating illegally, why does it
take so long to take enforcement action? Why is an official complaint from Jan. 8 still “under review”? Such questions were the subject of a recent special meeting of the Los Angeles Cannabis Regulation Commission. At the April 4 meeting, Commission president Robert Ahn asked Los Angeles Police Dept. (LAPD) Narcotics Division Det. Vito Ceccia to report on the status of police enforcement efforts. “In mid-March, the LAPD started efforts in the Valley Bureau on a list of 34 locations identified for enforcement action,” said Ceccia, adding that
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LPGA PLAYER Minjee Lee speaks to media after her win.
Minjee ee ins LPGA tournament The Wilshire Country Club opened its gates to women’s professional golf at the second annual “Hugel-Air Premia LA Open,” April 24 to 28. Taking the top spot, Minjee Lee from Australia finished the final round with a 3-under 68 for a four-stroke victory, leaving her to finish the tournament at 14-under 270. The 22-year-old golfer collected her fifth career LPGA title and took home $225,000 in winnings from the event.
of those, enforcement action at 22 locations had been completed. Taking a new approach, the LAPD is now working with the Dept. of Water and Power (DWP) and the Los Angeles Fire Dept. to shut off utilities to illegal cannabis businesses. In conjunction with that action, a cease-and-desist letter also is sent to the property owner. From mid-April, Ceccia said that the narcotics division would shift focus to the South Bureau: “And we will do that, bureau by bureau, until the whole city is done.” The LAPD (Please turn to page 10)
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
usinesses as neigh ors ro By Bruce Beiderwell Wine lovers know the value of neighbors: a small independent wine store is owned by and employs people who care about wine and who attend to specific questions, interests, and tastes. Customers living nearby will likely return. A give-and-take develops between those who buy and those who sell. Both sides learn as a result. It’s a relationship that bears considering in other contexts, for with the advent of online shopping, the value of a business as a neighbor has been too often
forgotten. Chevalier’s Books functions in some of the same neighborly ways as Larchmont Village Bruce Wines, Spir- Beiderwell its & Cheese. Because of their small size, both places must curate their inventory with care. They attend to their clients’ tastes of course, but they also seek to nourish, refine and challenge those tastes. A “wine of the month,” for example,
Don’t Squander Your Legacy! Admit it — your kids will blow the money you leave them. Instilling the importance of leadership and service to others stands a better chance of lasting throughout their lifetime, and is more likely to benefit society to boot. Please join your neighbors and explore all the good that local Rotarians are doing to improve the lives of others in Los Angeles and around the globe. Parking is free, and the lunch is fantastic, too!
Please join us for lunch this May on the 1st & 8th at 11:55 AM
facebook.com/wilshirerotary wilshirerotary.org
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at the Ebell of Los Angeles 741 S Lucerne Boulevard Los Angeles, California 90005
fine
might gently press customers outside a comfort zone, just as one of the staff member book picks — highlighted above the service counter at Chevalier’s — will occasionally prompt readers to move beyond the algorithms that serve up our “likes” on Amazon. “Staff pick” I recently read one of those staff picks, Octavia Butler’s “Kindred” — a modern classic of time and space dislocations that I had long heard about but never read. Without the prompting, I may have left this haunting novel, first published in 1979, unread. I’m glad to have been introduced, in part because Dana and Kevin (the two main characters in the novel) are neighbors of a sort, too. These creations of Butler’s imagination had just moved to a house in Altadena. When Dana and Kevin met, though, they lived still closer — Dana on Crenshaw and Kevin nearby just west on Olympic. While those familiar streets don’t factor into the main story, their mere mention helped me understand that “Kindred” isn’t about a distant time and place the characters enter and exit through some merely fantastic conceit. Rather, their sudden back and forth movements to and from the antebellum South make that painful history both current and compelling. Dana, a black woman, and Kevin, her white husband, become people I live near — even people I sometimes am. “Kindred” is dis-
ines to goo
oo s
comforting in the way great books are often discomforting. I’m grateful that someone at Chevalier’s thought to recommend it. Books as neighbors Such a vital exchange about something as LARCHMONT VILLAGE Wine, Spirits personal as a book is Cheese offers counsel on selections. a special benefit of a small independent store. The exchange can continue in conversations with staff, with other customers, in book groups, and over dinner with family and friends. The exchang- CHEVALIER’S BOOKS, the oldest ines can be sustained by dependent bookstore in Los Angeles, events (check Cheva- was established on Larchmont in 1940. lier’s website for those McBride’s “The Good Lord scheduled). And they can lead us to further reading. Bird,” or Colson Whitehead’s After all, books, too, inhabit “The Underground Railroad.” neighborhoods of sorts. If you These neighbors speak to each have read or reread “Kindred,” other and to us. you might ask the staff at Bruce Beiderwell resides Chevalier’s about books that engage related genres, sub- near Larchmont and formerly jects, or territory, say Toni taught at UCLA and directed Morrison’s “Beloved,” James the UCLA Writing Program.
e an o usinesses o en an ans c oses on Larch ont New on the boulevard, opened in March, is Good Goose, 5210 Beverly Blvd., an “Asian inspired café” that specializes in modern Thai dishes and Japanese raw fish rice bowls. The space at the corner of Larchmont Blvd. is formerly the home of Albert’s Mexican Grill and Larchmont Deli before that. Closed Tuesdays. For more information, visit goodgoosecafe.com. Also new on Larchmont is Dr. Jessica Coote, Larchmont Animal Clinic’s newest vet. She has a bachelor of science in animal science from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and a
doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Western University of Health Sciences. She takes a special interest in preventative medicine and obtained a masters in public health from The University of Minnesota. Old on the boulevard — for at least 25 years — was Hans Custom Optik, formerly at 212 N. Larchmont Blvd. before moving north to 419 3/4 Larchmont Blvd. However, the store closed its doors at the end of April. Hans Fiebig, owner of the store, was the creator of Elvis’s and Sir Elton John’s custom eyeglass designs.
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
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Parks
(Continued from page 1) quality of life in Los Angeles. This year, the foundation’s board selected its founding executive director, lawyer and nonprofit executive, Judith Kieffer, as the awardee. Present for the ceremony were hundreds of friends, including locals Mayor Eric Garcetti and Kieffer’s successor as executive director, Carolyn Ramsay of Windsor Square. Former Larchmont Boulevard architect, Mark Rios, FAIA (of Rios Clementi Hale Studios, which moved last year to new quarters along the Expo Line)
SUNNY ROSE GARDEN in Exposition Park was the scene of Los Angeles Parks Foundation Rose Award Luncheon.
is on the foundation board. Also there to celebrate Kieffer was
Councilmember David Ryu’s chief of staff, Nicholas Greif.
Good Samaritan Hospital Auxiliary Invites you to our
Annual Meeting and Luncheon MAP SHOWS Windsor Square Preservation Overlay Zone. Windsor Square is undergoing an update to its Preservation Plan.
Preservation (Continued from page 1) nity and the public regarding the Preservation Plan Update. The Dept. of City Planning began updating the Windsor Square Preservation Plan (adopted in 2007) at the request of the Windsor Square community. The updated plan
Homelessness (Continued from page 1)
Blvd., starting with a reception at 11:30 a.m. The event provides a platform for women of accomplishment and compassion to speak about their work as well as past residents of Alexandria House to describe their journeys. This year’s featured speaker is State Sen. María Elena Durazo, whose district includes the area west of Plymouth Blvd. Additional information about the May 10 luncheon may be obtained via 213-381-2649 or: pam@alexandriahouse.org. Neighbors Lifting Neighbors will host an intimate living room conversation on Thurs., May 16 from 9-10:30 a.m. in the Hancock Park penthouse home of Marilyn and John Wells. This event will provide information to residents open to exploring sharing a guesthouse or a room in their homes with someone needing housing. Alexandria House representatives will be at this breakfast gathering to share the successes they have experienced with using this model for housing the homeless.
Jazz at LACMA
Jazz at LACMA continues with Sweet Baby J’ai May 3. Greg Reitan performs May 10, and the Cannonball / Coltrane Project is featured May 17. Show times are Fridays 6 to 8 p.m. on the Smidt Welcome Plaza through November. Free.
reflects recent changes to the citywide HPOZ Ordinance and incorporates successful provisions from other recently adopted Preservation Plans, says city planning associate Kimberly Henry, who has been overseeing the project. Further information: https:// preservation.lacity.org/hpoz/ la/windsor-square. Wells says of this program, “Inviting someone into your guesthouse or granny flat is a big step. Many organizations working with homeless people offer the services that are necessary to ensure the right fit for the host family by matching tenants and host families, helping to take care of any issues that may arise. These services allow the host family to be the ‘host’ and a friendly, welcoming presence without having to become caregivers and landlords for their new tenants. “There’s a long list of families and individuals already vetted and ready to move into housing. The need for hosts is great. Seniors, the fastest growing homeless population, are often homeless because of rent increases or other misfortunes and are in desperate need of shared housing opportunities.” People interested in learning more or attending the May 16 breakfast should contact: allison.jandmwellsff@gmail. com.
Gilmore Auto Show marks 25 years
The 25th annual Gilmore Auto Show comes to the Original Farmers Market, 6333 W. Third St., Sat., June 1 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. This year’s theme is the American muscle car. More than 100 classic cars will be on view at the free event. Visit farmersmarketla.com.
Featuring
Wayne Ratkovich “Making History by Preserving History” Bringing LA’s Old Buildings Back to Life Tuesday, Thursday, May 16 at 11 a.m.
Wilshire Country Club, 301 N. Rossmore Ave. Complimentary Parking
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
POLICE BEAT
crea in
icti s scare off
O ROBBERY: Two male suspects approached a female victim walking on the 300 block of S. Cochran Avenue on April 1 at 12:55 p.m. One suspect tackled the female in an attempt to grab her mobile phone, but after knocking her to the ground, both suspects fled the scene empty-handed. BURGLARIES: A suspect entered a home through an unlocked front door on the 700 block of S. Citrus Avenue
Pot shops
(Continued from page 7) divides the city into four geographic bureaus. Agency coordination After several rounds of questions between Det. Ceccia and Commissioners, the biggest
WILSHIRE DIVISION Furnished by Senior Lead Officer Dave Cordova 213-793-0650 31646@lapd.lacity.org Twitter: @lapdwilshire and stole property on April 4 at 5:25 p.m. It is unknown if property was taken from a home on the obstacle to enforcement became painfully clear: coordination efforts between agencies. Det. Ceccia spoke about the necessity for a “task force” to coordinate efforts among the DCR, LAPD and DWP, among other agencies. At one point, Ceccia suggested that the
325 N. Larchmont Boulevard, #158 Los Angeles, California 90004 www.windsorsquare.org 157 N. Larchmont Boulevard
Urgent! “No” on Senate Bill 50! Summer is approaching — time to enjoy swimming, or cooking out, or simply the peaceful beauty of our Windsor Square backyards. That could all change drastically, however, if Senate Bill 50, currently wending its way toward consideration by the full State Senate, is finally approved. If this State legislation passes, it would override local zoning and allow four- and five-story apartment buildings to be built, lot line to lot line, right next door to single-family homes. Now imagine that backyard swim in full view of dozens of new neighbors living in the dense new buildings twice as tall as your home! SB 50 may have been intended to create more housing near transit lines, but the effect will be to eliminate all local control over affected neighborhoods. The Windsor Square HPOZ protections will no longer exist. There will be few limitations on new buildings, but there definitely will be insufficient parking for them; that’s part of SB 50. There also will be no increased City budget for necessary infrastructure improvements — water, power, sewage, etc. — to go with new development (over-development) in our older areas of Los Angeles. The result — if SB 50 is adopted by the State — would be the destruction of the character of Windsor Square as it has been since 1912 and as we know and love it. Additional housing is certainly necessary in our state and our city, but a statewide, “one size fits all” mandate like SB 50 is the wrong way to create such housing. The Los Angeles City Council, including our councilmember, David Ryu, has voted to oppose SB 50. So has the San Francisco City Council. However, the fate of the Bill is in the hands of State Legislators in Sacramento. The Bill, introduced and promoted by State Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco, still needs to come before the full State Senate, probably in May. Please contact Windsor Square’s locally elected State representatives to urge them to vote “no” on SB 50, to help keep Windsor Square — and surrounding neighborhoods — the beautiful family neighborhoods they are.
600 block of S. June Street after a suspect smashed a rear bedroom door to gain entry on April 4 at 8:08 p.m. Around the same time as the incident above, a suspect climbed onto a second-floor balcony and smashed a glass door to gain entry to a home on the 300 block of S. June Street and stole jewelry and a purse on April 4 between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. A suspect smashed the front window of a home on the 400 LAPD does not have access to the DCR complaint registry, confusing Commissioners. “There have been discussions of creating a task force,” said Ceccia. However, after being pressed for details by Commissioners, he added: “That is part of the [enforcement] issue. The task force has not been created, and there is no timeline that I’m aware of.” Ceccia suggested that such decisions are “above [his] paygrade” and should be taken up by the Mayor’s office and City Council. Commissioner Misty Wilks said she was confused and frus-
Metro meetings (Continued from page 4)
East of the centerline of Plymouth Boulevard: State Senator Maria Elena Durazo: District Office (213) 483-9300. State Assembly Member Miguel Santiago: District Office (213) 620-4646.
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West of the centerline of Plymouth Boulevard: State Senator Benjamin Allen: District Office (310) 318-6994. State Assembly Member Richard Bloom: District Office (310) 450-0041. The Windsor Square Association, an all-volunteer group of residents from 1100 households between Beverly and Wilshire and Van Ness and Arden, works to preserve and enhance our beautiful neighborhood. Join with us! Drop us a line at 325 N. Larchmont Blvd., #158, Los Angeles, CA 90004, or visit our website at windsorsquare.org. ADV.
r lars in
north-south connection from LAX and Inglewood through West Hollywood to Hollywood & Highland, where it will connect with the Red Line, and they say the extension will produce the highest ridership of any light rail line in the country with over 90,000 daily boardings. Learn more at whamrail.com. The other main theme of the comments and questions generally was Mid-City residents near San Vicente Blvd. expressing concerns about potential train noise and similar matters. These issues are like the ones raised by Westwood residents, circa 2000, prior to re-establishment of light rail transit in their area (literally adjacent to some residents’ back yards). There, another old Pacific Electric right-of-way was re-used — for the Expo Line. Other speakers at Pan Pacific stated that Metro route planning must be coordinated with the City of Los Angeles “Transit Neighborhood Plans” process (described at latnp.org). Metro staff members reinforced to attendees that these are the very early stages of planning. Based upon community input it will be receiving in coming months, staff hopes to recommend to the Metro Board of Directors, by the end of 2019, a reduced number of alternative routes for detailed environmental study.
ilshire Oly pic
block of N. Highland Avenue on April 5 at 3 a.m., but fled the location after a female resident began screaming.
O M O BURGLARIES: A male suspect entered a female victim’s home while she slept on the 600 block of N. Beachwood Drive. The suspect fled after the victim awoke and started screaming on March 30 at 3:10 a.m. A suspect removed a window screen and was caught climbing into the window by the resident who started yelling that he was calling the police on the 500 block of N. Van Ness Avenue on April 10 at 7:50 p.m.
trated by the delay in enforcement: “I used to see police officers stopping brothers to search them for drugs, using police dogs and intimidation tactics, so I know that you guys have the ability to find drugs,” she said. “And here it is 2019, but now that we have
some rich investors running these dispensaries, making all this money, you guys can’t find the illegal sale of drugs! I’m at a loss how you can’t find these businesses, because they are advertising on Weedmaps,” she concluded to loud applause in the chamber.
OLYMPIC DIVISION Furnished by Senior Lead Officer Joseph Pelayo 213-793-0709 31762@lapd.lacity.org Twitter: @lapdolympic
We are an elected advisory body to the City of Los Angeles, made up of volunteer stakeholders who are devoted to the mission of improving our communities and bringing government closer to us.
Save the Date and Nominate The GWNC Sustainability Committee's Third Water Wise Garden Tour will showcase gardens in the historic neighborhoods of Windsor Square and Ridgewood Wilton. Please submit nominations for gardens to be considered for the tour to sustainability@greaterwilshire.org by Saturday, June 1, 2019. Photos of the nominated garden(s) will be greatly appreciated.
Join the Conversation All GWNC meetings are open to the public Agenda items may be submitted to info@greaterwilshire.org Board of Directors Wednesday, May 8 , 7:00pm Ebell of Los Angeles – Dining Room 743 S. Lucerne Blvd., 90005
Land Use Committee Tuesday, May 28, 6:30pm Marlborough School – Collins Room, D-200 250 S. Rossmore Ave., 90004
Outreach Committee Saturday, May 4, 9:00am Bricks & Scones Café 403 N. Larchmont Blvd., 90004
Environmental & Sustainability Committee Tuesday, May 7, 7:00pm, Marlborough School – Collins Room, D-200, 250 S. Rossmore Ave., 90004
Transportation Committee Monday, July 17, 7:00pm Marlborough School – Collins Room, D-200 250 S. Rossmore Ave., 90004
www.greaterwilshire.org info@greaterwilshire.org
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
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Rooftop restaurant at The Line Hotel now Openaire The Line Hotel was an early adopter of the hotel as hip hangout in Los Angeles. When it opened in 2013 with a vibey lobby bar and Roy Choi’s food as performance art, the place to be was Choi’s rooftop greenhouse restaurant, Commissary, where mismatched chairs and oversized plastic glassware set the cheeky tone. Suddenly, this past summer, Choi departed to concentrate on a new hotel restaurant concept in Las Vegas, and in moved Chef Josiah Citrin, a two-starred Michelin chef from the fine dining westside stalwart, Melisse. Los Angeles diners got whiplash. But put on your neck brace and be prepared for some dazzling flavors at Openaire. The space itself hasn’t changed from its original incarnation, a large glass structure surrounded by outdoor lounge and dining areas, leading to the hotel’s pool. Instead of the previous funky interior decor, cushy chairs and metal- or wood-topped tables nestle under the myriad hanging plants and lend an overlay of sophistication. Bright and airy by day, intimate by night, it’s a comfortable environment in which to settle in for horchata bourbon or lemongrass vodka and some bites. The menu is, per the current
On the Menu by
Helene Seifer dining trend, seasonal and easy to share. Portions are larger than at many restaurants, so three to four dishes are plenty for two to enjoy. Citrin handles ingredients with respect and impeccable technique. Although foodies will delight in finding plates graced with coconut lemongrass sauce, miso-cured egg, and truffle vinaigrette, the main ingredients are enhanced, not obscured, by the novel treatments. A perfect example is the broccoli, a vegetable I’m never excited to see on a menu. Steamed to the sweet spot between crunchy and flaccid, the ubiquitous accompaniment at many a rubber chicken dinner is here served with sculptural flourish; florets down, stalks up, mounted in pistachio butter, and dusted with the cuminscented spice blend, dukkah. The nutty, Middle Eastern flavors transformed the broccoli from a side dish to a star. Fitting for an eatery encased in a greenhouse, all the vegetables hold particular inter-
est: mashed fingerling potatoes with fermented garlic aioli, caramelized cauliflower with Urfa pepper and golden raisins, maple-glazed carrots with polenta. Smoked beets are served in large chunks, dolloped with a thick almond horseradish cream, crowned by skinny crunchy onions and sluiced with lemon. The smokiness was subtle, and the sweet and pungent combination works. Our server recommended the tagliatelle with duck ragout, pistachio and pecorino as one of the chef’s standout dishes, and indeed, it must be popular since it comes in two sizes: regular and for four. The housemade
pasta was perfectly al dente and the ground duck and nuts made an earthy, crumbly sauce. The usual rich fattiness of the duck was tamed by the pistachioforward flavor and texture. We finished every strand. I should learn by now that my least favorite dishes are the mains, and Openaire is no exception. Black cod with spring vegetables showcased the silky, flaky fish in a pool of butter made with koji, a Japanese mold, and scattered with baby greens. A comforting bowl, it just didn’t wow the way the others had. Perhaps the suckling pig with XO sauce would. Next time — and
Le Petit Marché joins Food Bowl Le Petit Marché, 5665 Melrose Ave., joins the Los Angeles Times Food Bowl this month with a dish and cocktail entry in the month-long “Things in a Bowl” program that includes this year’s inspirational ingredient — the artichoke. Le Petit Marché’s dish, “L’Artichaut,” includes a sunchoke and chickpea purée with a dash of Angostura, red beets, salted chips, artichoke heart confit, za’atar spices (generally a combination of dried thyme, oregano, marjoram, toasted sesame seeds, and salt), topped
with crumbled feta cheese and seasonal pea shoots. The cocktail, “Artichoke Boulevardier,” combines Four Roses bourbon with Aperol and Cynar liqueur, which includes artichoke among the herbs and plants infused in the liqueur. Eleven other eateries are participating in the “Things in a Bowl” portion of the Food Bowl this year, including Angelini Osteria, 7313 Beverly Blvd., which will be serving a casserole of braised baby artichokes. For more information, visit lafoodbowl.com/thingsinabowl.
there’ll definitely be a next time. Dishes are mostly $9 to $24; mains and large plates run $29 to $68. Openaire, 3515 Wilshire Blvd., The Line Hotel, 213368-3065. Contact Helene at onthemenu@larchmontchronicle.com
Live the wild life at Beastly Ball Enjoy food, fun and music with the wild things at the 49th annual Beastly Ball at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Garden, 5333 Zoo Dr., Sat., May 18 beginning at 5:30 p.m. The event, sponsored by the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA), will feature live and silent auctions of trips and other one-of-a-kind experiences, up-close encounters with zoo residents, and food from a variety of restaurants and caterers, including El Cholo, El Coyote and Pink’s Hot Dogs. This year’s fundraiser honors oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle; first-ever Conservation Hero Award recipient Glen Curado (founder and CEO of the World Harvest Charities and Family Services); and recently retired GLAZA President Connie Morgan (for her 16 years of service to the Los Angeles Zoo).
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Tony-nominated ‘Falsettos’ among thought-provoking openings Theater Review by
Patricia Foster Rye ham) and Cordelia (Audrey Cardwell). The versatile set by David Rockwell consists of a large cube framed by a stylized city skyline. The cube breaks into modular pieces to form various locations. The entirely sung score takes us through the chapters of Marvin’s life. The music is hummable, some of the numbers outstanding like “Four Jews In a Room Bitching,” and Trina’s hysterical “I’m Breaking Down.” This is an amazing cast, with outstanding vocal and acting abilities. Excellent choreography by Spencer Liff.
James Lapine’s direction is, as always, impeccable. This is a funny, moving, very entertaining evening. Through Sun., May 19. Ahmanson Theatre, Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave., 213-972-4400, centertheatregroup.org. 4 Stars • • • Duet For One by Tom Kempinski centers on concert violinist Stephanie Abrams (Mia Christou). Forced to retire from a successful musical career by a debilitating disease, she’s feeling “low,” in her limited self-analysis. At the behest of her husband, she seeks help from psychiatrist Dr. Feldman (Howard Leder). What follows, in this two-character play, is a riff on Stephanie’s life and what contributed to her becoming an outstanding artist and her
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Celebrate Mother’s Day With A Taste of Greece
struggles to cope with this latest life tragedy. We learn of her childhood; her relationship with, and love of, music; her consideration of suicide; her physically abusive family; and her caring husband — all masterfully controlled by the intuitive doctor. What makes this premise and dialogue come alive are the performances. Ms. Christou gives a mercurial and nuanced interpretation of this troubled musician. She ranges from angry to sardonic to stoic and more, in a galvanizing portrayal. Mr. Leder, as Dr. Feldman, is superb as the analytical German therapist, totally in control until the crucial turning point of the play. Director Allen Barton keeps the balance even and the interest in both characters strong. The play is long at over two and a half hours, but the audience’s interest is maintained and the dialogue is fascinating, including the thoughtprovoking conclusion. Through Sun., May 12. The Beverly Hills Playhouse, 254 S. Robertson Ave., Beverly Hills, 800-838-3006, duetforonebhp.brownpapertickets. com. 4 Stars • • • We are at an elite university in the Northeast, the setting for The Niceties by Eleanor Burgess. The time is late March 2016. Zoe Reed (Jordan Boatman), a young black student, is meeting with her renowned white history professor Janine Bosko (Lisa Banes). The professor’s office is framed by a severely angled roofline that encloses the room and lends a confined feel to the proceedings. The excellent scenic design is by Cameron Anderson. Zoe and the professor are discussing Zoe’s paper on the American Revolution. The discussion is polite at first, but slowly builds as their opposing positions on race are stated. The professor wants her to include evidence and stories to back up her positions in the paper and suggests a substantial re-write. Zoe declines. It’s obvious they are on opposite sides. By the end of the first act, the arguments are volatile and Zoe carries out a
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Falsettos, music and lyrics by William Finn, book by William Finn and James Lapine, opened in 1981 as “March of the Falsettos.” In 1990, a second new musical, “Falsettoland,” opened in New York. In 1992, the two oneact musicals were combined and opened on Broadway as “Falsettos.” That production went on to win the 1992 Tony awards for Best Musical and Best Original Score. This current 2016 Lincoln Center Theater Production was nominated for five Tony Awards. It’s the story of Marvin (Max Von Essen), a gay man, his lover Whizzer (Nick Adams), Marvin’s wife Trina (Eden Espinosa), about-to-be-barmitzvahed son Jason (Jonah Mussolino), their psychiatrist Mendel (Nick Blaemire) and the lesbians next door, Dr. Charlotte (Bryonha Marie Par-
dangerous undertaking that threatens to take the dispute to a broader stage. In the second act they meet to discuss the results of Zoe’s action that have been harsh for both of them. The final line of the play is particularly effective and thought provoking. Both Banes and Boatman are superb and totally attuned to their characters (according to the program, Boatman originated the role of Zoe in New York). Director Kimberly Senior finds the pace and rhythm of this intriguing and sometimes explosive play. This is a timely play for many reasons and shouldn’t be missed. Through Sun., May 12. Gil Cates Theater, Geffen Playhouse, 10886 LeConte Ave. 4 Stars • • • The Things We Do by Grant Woods centers on Bill and Sara and Ted and Alice. The play is defined as a sex dramedy about middle-aged people. Bill (Blake Boyd) is having an extra-marital affair with Sara (Marlene Galan). Sara is an enthusiastic participant. Sara’s husband, real estate salesman Ted (Stephen Rockwell), almost surprises their fun and games. Bill and Sara decide to encourage a relationship between Ted and yoga instructor Alice (Liesel Kopp), Bill’s wife, mostly to clear the way for their ongoing affair. Alice isn’t interested in Ted, especially as she misses her children, now living elsewhere. Ted tries to sell a house to Bill. Of all of them, Ted seems the most stable, as he is willing to forgive his wife’s infidelity when it’s finally revealed to him. The play is a combination of dialogue and positions stated, by the cast, on a variety of subjects (some not necessarily pertinent to the plot) delivered directly to the audience or in scenes. Playwright Woods is the former attorney general of Arizona. This is an excellent cast, and director Elina de Santos has guided them masterfully. Through Sun., May 12. Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., 310-4772055x2, odysseytheatre.com. 3 Stars
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
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The White Crow (9/10) Runtime 127 minutes. R. In this story of the defection of Rudolph Nureyev, Oleg Ivenko plays Nureyev and does all the dancing himself, as Ivenko was a Ukrainian dancer from the Tartar State Ballet Company. Similar in stature to Nureyev, Ivenko carries the movie and captures Nureyev’s haughtiness and confidence. Unlike most films that center on ballet, the film does not concentrate on the dancing, but on the personalities and tension of the situation. Very well done, this is a longish movie, but I never felt it lag. Teen Spirit (8/10) Runtime 92 minutes. PG-13. Tightly written and directed by Max Minghella and greatly enhanced by inventive cinematography (Autumn Durald). While it’s a prosaic tale of a teenaged girl, Violet (Elle Fanning), entering a singing contest, it’s the music, production values, and the choreography that serve as the surprises of the film. Fanning sings the songs herself, and their presentation knocks your socks off. Fanning is buttressed by two scintillating supporting performances. Violet is “managed” by a decrepit-looking but sympathetic Russian, Vlad (Zlatko Buric). Rebecca Hall plays an ambitious music agent. Both are award-quality (as is Fanning) and add immeasurably to the film. The Chaperone (8/10) Runtime 107 minutes. NR. Louise Brooks (Haley Lu Richardson) was the original “it” girl in 1920s movies. This is the story of her trip from her home in Kansas in 1922 at the age of 16 to take some dancing classes that started her on the road to stardom. Her mother won’t send her unless she has a chaperone, Norma (Elizabeth McGovern). Norma’s relationship with Brooks is mostly a device to tell the fictional story about Norma exploring her past and her involvement with a janitor she meets, Joseph (Géza Röhrig, in a very good performance), resulting in an unrealistic denouement that would have been highly unlikely in the ’20s, especially
At the Movies with
Tony Medley in the Midwest. The Best of Enemies (8/10) Runtime 127 minutes. PG-13. This stimulating tale of a simmering, contentious confrontation between a heroic black activist, Ann Atwater (Taraji P. Henson), and C.P. Ellis (Sam Rockwell), the Exalted Grand Cyclops of the Ku Klux Klan in Durham, N.C., barely scratches the surface of who Atwater really was and where she came from. Henson knocks it out of the park with her performance. At the end, there are film clips and comments by the real Atwater and Snow, both of whom are now deceased.
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this teen sin in contest sin s Non-Fiction (7/10) Runtime 107 minutes. R. When a writer’s novel blurs the line between fiction and fact and involves his publisher and his publisher’s wife, tension mounts. This picture in time of the bohemian intelligentsia of the Parisian publishing world is filled with convincing, realistic, thoughtprovoking slice-of-life dialogue. The characters’ incestuous infidelity is treated with a wink and a nod. This is a good one, even though it is all talk. In French. Opens May 10. J.T. LeRoy (7/10) Runtime 108 minutes. R. In the early 21st century, a writer named Laura Albert (Laura Dern) created a hoax when she wrote “Sarah,” an apparently first person, autobiographical account of a homosexual male inflicted with HIV named J.T. LeRoy and his struggle with life. She got her sister-in-law Savannah Knoop (Kristen Stewart) to be
the avatar of LeRoy and, together for six years, they pulled the wool over the eyes of the public who read the book. The movie is based on Knoop’s memoir, “Girl Boy Girl.” While Dern’s performance is annoying, maybe that’s what she’s supposed to be. Stewart gives a credible performance, assuming that Savannah really was going along against her better instincts. Since they did it for six years, though, that’s a little hard to swallow, especially when Knoop has made a career out of what she did. Creepy as it is, it doesn’t hurt to repeat here that what they did was blatantly dishonest and reprehensible. Red Joan (4/10) Runtime 108 minutes. R. This is an astonishingly sympathetic ro man à clef of the story of Melita Norwood, who was a Russian agent in London for 40 years providing the Russians with
the information to make an atomic bomb. While it is factual in what Norwood did, it is 100 percent rubbish in her motives and her background. It whitewashes a woman who was either a fool or a despicable traitor, or both. She should have been thrown in jail, if not executed, instead of becoming the subject of a fawning movie. The acting is superb; it moves quickly. If you don’t know anything about what really happened, you feel sympathetic for poor ol’ Melita (renamed Joan). But it’s partisan hokum. As an entertainment, it’s high quality. As history, it’s a disgraceful use of art as a weapon, which is right out of the Communist playbook. Even if a movie is entertaining and technically well made, if it’s touting a lie, it’s not praiseworthy. Stockholm (3/10) Runtime 91 minutes. R. A soporific drag.
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‘Backstage at Geffen’ fundraiser May 19 Geffen Playhouse will honor Harry Belafonte and Lily Tomlin at the 17th annual “Backstage at the Geffen” fundraiser at Gil Cates Theater, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Sun., May 19. Honorary co-chairs are Sidney Poitier, Quincy Jones, Cher, Barbra Streisand, Mellody Hobson, George Lucas and Bette Midler. The event helps raise funds to support artistic and educational initiatives. Visit geffenplayhouse.org/backstage.
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ene t on attleship sal te to athers eterans heroes largest, privately funded organization combating senior hunger, features dinner and dancing, with live entertainment as well as a silent auction. Items to be offered include a curated dinner for 10 on a fireboat. Held the weekend before
Father’s Day from 5 to 9 p.m, the nautical fundraiser, which also benefits San Pedro Meals on Wheels, will pay tribute to “fathers, veterans and heroes.” There will be a 4 p.m. VIP tour of the historic battleship, first commissioned in 1943. To purchase advance tick-
ets or for more information on St. Vincent Meals on Wheels programs, visit stvincentmow.org or call 213-484-7112. Right: WWII BATTLESHIP USS Iowa is dwarfed in Los Angeles harbor by 4,004-passenger Norwegian Bliss cruise ship. Photo by Jonathan Smith, SVMOW
lac ea ty aris o e tory and li e sic are at he allis Watch the retelling of “Black Beauty,” plus contemporary ballet performances and the life of Claude Debussy are featured this month at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd. See the story of “Black Beauty” told through puppetry and music Fri., May 3, 7 p.m. and Sat., May 4 and Sun., May 5 at
2 and 5 p.m. Watch Hershey Felder’s “A Paris Love Story” as he explores the life and music of Claude Debussy in his oneman show beginning Fri., May 24 at 7:30 p.m. Show runs through Sun., June 9 at 7 p.m. Cellist Amanda Gookin performs Thurs., May 30 and Fri., May 31 at 7:30 p.m. Visit thewallis.org.
ROSEWOOD MIRAMAR BEACH hotel in Montecito celebrates its opening with an April 10 ribbon cutting ceremony with (from left) Rosewood president Radha Arora, Caruso founder Rick Caruso and hotel managing director Sean Carney. The resort, which opened its doors on March 1, boasts 161 “ultra-luxury” guestrooms and suites, including beachfront accommodations.
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In Barcelona, newly revealed ancient walls speak of the past (Barcelona) — I was standing at the threshold of what was, until 1391, the Greater Synagogue of Barcelona. But the synagogue, so to speak, was below street level in the medieval section of Barcelona. I descended stairs into murky light. It felt as if I were stepping down 20 feet. In reality, it was about six. Yet I was slipping through millennia. The oldest stones I would see in this subterranean space likely date from Roman Barcelona, in the fifth century C.E. But — the words “greater” and “synagogue” imply a building of rather epic proportions, such as Los Angeles’s Wilshire Boulevard Temple. Yet, here in Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter, the larger of the two rooms of this synagogue is 40-by-20 feet. The smaller, where visitors touch down from the stair, is still an archeological site. Early ruins are visible through a glass floor, and some, such as dyeing vats dating from the late 15th century, are tender, visceral reminders of the intimacy of a working family once residing within these stone walls. The street level of Barcelona is now six feet above the ground floor of the tiny synagogue, now mostly a museum. A young Israeli woman, fluent in several languages, greets visitors and talks about the history around us. Part of the palimpsest of stone here are those of the opus africanum style of masonry, known from Roman times — pillars of vertical stone alternating with smaller blocks in between. But finding this synagogue within Barcelona’s medieval Gothic Quarter was not easy. A taxi driver had no idea how to find the address I gave him. I got out of the taxi and walked in the narrow mazes of medieval Barcelona, and I stopped people to ask about it. They shrugged. The next day I tried again. The new taxi driver was able to place me closer, and I spied a shop selling Jewish religious goods and wine. I was around the corner from the modest exterior marker of the synagogue. In fairness, the modern world has just been introduced to this ancient site. A medievalist researching in Roman legal documents in the 1980s began to suspect the existence of a Call — that is, a Jewish Quarter — layered into medieval Barcelona. That the synagogue ceased to exist in 1391 is a tangled, tragic political story that cannot be unwound here. But the Massacre of Jews in the spring
Muslims on the Iberian Peninsula. To the brilliant Islamicist Maria Rosa Menocal, this tolerance meant a “liberal and productive understanding of what is called dhimma in Arabic, the covenant that mandates the protection of the other Peoples of the Book, as Christians and Jews are called, when they live under Muslim sovereignty.” But as is well known throughout history, widely divergent interpretations of covenants and laws are in constant motion around us. But the three religions have a shared history that is itself part of European history, not separate cultures based on religious differences. The traditions instead were part of a broad, expansive braided culture. Deep inside those ancient walls, visitors, I think, can get a sense of what was.
Home Ground by
Paula Panich
and summer of 1391 in Barcelona and elsewhere on the Iberian Peninsula was a first blow to what would become the expulsion of all Jews from Spain a century later. But another part of this story is what the culture of Medieval Spain was like for 600 years before what might be called the rise of the expedient and political antisemitism, which set the tone for unleashing the massacres of 1391. For more than half a millennium, a balanced and nuanced culture of tolerance existed among Christians, Jews, and
BARCELONA’S Gothic Quarter.
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Fashion and philanthropy in r n ay ala sprin l ncheon Around the Town with
Patty Hill pose: giving new and highly gifted designers a platform and raising funds for FIDM’s Scholarship Foundation. • • • On the following Tuesday afternoon at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, at the 31st annual Colleagues Spring Luncheon, The Colleagues and Oscar de la Renta presented actress, author, and philanthropist Marlo Thomas with the Champion of Children Award, which honors those who have made a lasting impact on the lives of children. Emmy winning actor Henry Winkler gave a rousing introduction of the Presidential Medal of Freedom awardee and National Outreach Director of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. “I went to Memphis, and in the hospital lobby, there was a party with cake, balloons. I asked whose birthday is it? I was told it wasn’t a birthday, but an ‘end chemo’ celebration. Parents applauded the recovery of the young patient while hoping for the same outcome for their own children,” said Ms. Thomas during her acceptance speech. Cara Leonetti Esposito, Col10:09:24 PM leagues president, carries on a
F and Barbara Bundy arrive at FIDM Debut Runway Show.
O attendees Shar Penfold and Susan Kneafsey enjoy the Oscar de la Renta show.
was the bene ciary of the luncheon and fashion show attended by Laura Collins and Michele McMullin.
and honoree Marlo Thomas at The Colleagues 31st annual Spring Luncheon and Oscar de la Renta fashion show.
F O O from Oscar de la Renta was viewed by Dina Phillips, Melanie Boettcher and Mary Jaworski at Colleagues Spring Luncheon.
five-year-old forced to advocate for himself, we are the storm,” said Ms. Esposito, speaking from her heart and gut. She was applauded by a contingent of Hancock Park and Windsor Square ladies including Shar Penfold, Mary Jaworski, Melanie Boettcher, Susan Kneafsey, Karla Ahmanson, Michele McMullin, Jackie Kruse, Laura Collins, Robin Chehrazi, Dina Phillips, Amanda Mansour and Arsine Phillips. More than 500 guests of The
Colleagues were treated to a runway show of Oscar de la Renta’s up-coming Fall Collection and went home with a bottle of the designer’s Bella Rosa Eau de Parfum. All of the proceeds go to The Colleagues’ sole beneficiary, Children’s Institute, Inc., to serve those who suffer from violence, abuse and neglect in the city’s most vulnerable communities. Fashion and philanthropy, these ladies make it work! And that’s the chat!
Photo by Alex J. Berliner
and Susie Goodman enter the FIDM Debut Show.
O , Louie Anchondo and David Paul party at F IDM’s 2019 De but. Photos above: ABImages
legacy begun by this column’s first writer, Lucy Toberman, who founded Children’s Institute, Inc. in 1950. “For these children, such as a
Mother’s Day lunch May 19 to ene t ood hepherd Celebrate mom at a luncheon hosted by Gamma Tau Sorority in a Windsor Square home on Sun., May 19 at 1:30 p.m. Proceeds benefit Good Shepherd Shelter for Women & Children in Los Angeles and the Holy Family Orphanage in Lebanon. The catered garden lun-
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In the April “Around the Town” column’s reference to the Big Sunday Gala at Candela on La Brea, the name of honoree Jon Vein’s wife, Ellen, was misspelled as “Elaine.” honored Jon Vein, shown with his wife, Ellen Goldsmith Vein.
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Fashion was at the center of charitable giving in April. The annual Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) Debut Runway Show and Gala, celebrating the creativity of select graduating designers, was presented at Santa Monica Barker Hangar on April 6. The hangar was transformed into a visual and audio feast that was the ultimate launching pad for 26 Advanced Design students of fashion, theater costumes and interior design fabrics and furniture. Leaders in the industry flocked, as they do every year, to this gala to seek new talent. Dinner tables lined either side of the runway and guests enjoyed tenderloin filet, wild mushroom timbale, and a dessert of apple crisp vanilla bean ice cream. Among the 600 bedazzled and bedecked were Hallie Fisher, FIDM Museum Director Barbara Bundy, Guess, Inc.’s Lausanne Miller, Gustavo Garibay, Christopher Nardi, Claudia Silva, Brooke Merlo and Natali Paziotopoulos, also Center Theatre Group’s Louie Anchondo, fashion designers Kevan Hall with his wife Deborah, Angela Dean and T.J. Walker, (a triple powerhouse partnering on a new label), Sheila Tepper, Susie Goodman, Project Runway star Nick Verreos and husband David Paul, Cindy and Tom Keefer and president of the California Fashion Association Ilse Metchek. EC Catering - 6x6.67 AD.pdf 1 4/15/2019 The event served a dual pur-
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Brookside children hunt for eggs in annual area tradition By Sondi Toll Sepenuk On Sunday, April 14, girls and boys dressed in their pretty dresses and buttoned-up collared shirts fanned out over Sandy and Bill Boeck’s expansive Brookside backyard lawn for the annual Brookside Easter egg hunt. About 75 Brookside families and children showed up, baskets in hand, to joyfully rush the fairytale lawn, complete with rippling brook and fanciful wooden bridge, in search of 300 bright and cheery hidden plastic eggs. This year’s eggs were filled with M&M’s, Tootsie Rolls, stickers, SweeTarts and Jelly Beans. The hunt was aimed at children under the age of seven. Delilah Rudnick, 11, volunteered to hide the eggs. While hiding them, she reminisced about her own egg hunts as a youngster in Brookside. “My favorite part of the hunt is eating!” Delilah exclaimed. “The candy and anticipation are so fun!” The annual hunt was an idea that Sandy Boeck and a few neighbors cooked up back in 2007. “It gives me a lot of joy to share our garden with our Brookside neighbors,” says Sandy. “It’s one of the things
ANNUAL EVENT drew Alice Roth, Delilah Rudnick, Jonathan Rudnick, Sandy Boeck, David Ryu, Regina Yoon.
CHILDREN of Brookside celebrate Easter with annual egg hunt and games.
that makes Brookside so special.” Brookside resident Heather Crossner, who helped organize this year’s event, along
with Jonathan Rudnick and Nick Carreras, was thrilled with the turnout. “I never expected to have so many community events
when we bought our house in Brookside,” says Crossner, who has three young children, Emmy, Arden and Leif. “It’s wonderful to get the kids together, and it’s so nice that Sandy and Bill open their house to the community.” City Councilmember David Ryu, his fiancée Regina Yoon, and his senior deputy Alice Roth all showed their community spirit while socializing with the parents and children. Ryu ran games for the children while a giant Easter bunny delighted the little ones with one-on-one and family photo ops. “This is our first year to come to this event,” said Brookside
resident Jon Huddle, whose children Hudson and Harper are 3 and 1, respectively. “It’s such a beautiful backyard. The Boecks are so kind to lend their home and yard to the kids, and we enjoyed having Councilmember Ryu as part of the festivities. And of course, the kids absolutely loved it!” It’s feedback like that that encourages co-organizer Jonathan Rudnick to continue the tradition. “I love volunteering for this event as a way to give to the Brookside community and to see the smiles on all of the kids faces,” he declares. “Oh… and I love eating all of the Boecks’ kumquats.”
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ei h ors athered or nal are ell precedin p ppets Nearly 100 lucky humans, many from local neighborhoods, enjoyed their special welcome at the original home of the Bob Baker Marionette Theater on Sun., March 31. It was special because the theater and we puppets were being packed up for our move to our new home in Highland Park. Nevertheless, in the midst of a jumble of boxes and racks of puppets, many of those puppets and their puppeteers managed to put on a wonderful “farewell” show. Dancing cacti, spooky skeletons illuminated with ultraviolet light, prancing bears, cats and birds, and an abundance of clowns delighted the children and adults. The majority attending, with cocktails in hand, were adults because the “goodbye” party was organized with them in mind. Brookside’s Vivian Gueler recruited Windsor Square’s Martha and John Welborne to join her in inviting friends for this final event at the longtime home of the marionette theater that opened there 55 years ago. Gueler is a board member of the nonprofit organization established to keep the Bob Baker Marionette Theater a thriving institution in perpetuity. The Welbornes have many friends who have brought children to the theater for four decades or more. Seen at the party were Vivian’s daughter Nikka and mother Laura, Daryl and Jim Twerdahl, Elizabeth DeBreu with her father Judge Richard (Skip) Byrne, Priscilla and Michael Wright, Kevin O’Connell and Mary Adams O’Connell, Carl Anderson, Carolyn and Jamie Bennett, Scott Johnson and Meg Bates, Betsy Anderson, Larchmont’s Bob Day and Monica, Farm-
o e to ne
theater
BOB BAKER Marionette heater s farewell attendees include from left aryl werdahl li abeth e reu riscilla right Michael right Ke in O Connell Mary O Connell Jim werdahl Carl Anderson Carolyn ennett etsy Anderson Meg ates Miles aley Caroline racy and Cynthia mmy ose and hoeni ay.
Stringing Along by
Percy the Birthday Dog
ers Market’s Hank Hilty and Diane, Lorraine Wild and John Kaliski, Patsy Lowry with son Patrick, Amy Forbes, Sally and Van Dyke Parks, Caroline Tracy and children Miles and Anna Paley, Laurie Brown, and Cynthia, Emmy, Rose and Phoenix Lay. More locals attending with children were Carrie and Matt Alling, Stephanie Levine, Neenu Khemlani, Esther Lee and Jordana Stoppani. And lots more not from the imme-
diate Larchmont Chronicle neighborhoods, of course! Before the parade of puppets, there was a brief welcome by the party hosts and by Executive Director & Head Puppeteer Alex Evans and Director of Development Winona Bechtle, who described their immediate efforts of packing — packing the puppets plus the rest of the contents of Bob Baker’s puppet-designing and puppet-making workshops — and then transporting every-
thing to the not-faraway new home in Highland Park. That was another of the “good news” items shared during the five minutes of speeches preceding the puppet show. There now is a wonderful new venue for our revered theater company — on hip York Boulevard in Highland Park. Until that new home is up and running (tentatively set for this summer), many of us puppets will continue to visit the Miracle Mile Toy Hall,
5464 Wilshire Blvd., at 11 a.m. on the last Sunday of every month. The next show there is May 26. More information is available at: tinyurl.com/ yykjszde. To learn details about the history of the theater and our new home, visit bobbakermarionettetheater.com. Columnist photo of an early Bob Baker creation, Percy the Birthday Dog, by Lisa Whiteman.
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Camps & Schools Unplugged, rustic bliss: Camping in the High Sierra By Nina Adams As summer approaches, every kid has an activity he or she looks forward to most. For some it might be video games; for others it is traveling with family; for me, it was always Gold Arrow Camp. Gold Arrow is a sleepaway camp located on Lake Huntington in the High Sierra for kids ages six to 15. The camp is a traditional summer camp in the truest sense, offering campers an unplugged (as in no electronic devices!), rustic outdoor experience. Campers live in cabins for two weeks, and they participate in daily activities including horseback riding, hiking, water skiing, backpacking and rock climbing. When I left for sleepaway camp at age 10, I had tears in my eyes and an unmatched anxiety. Would I make friends? Would I get homesick? I was beyond nervous concerning the two weeks I was about to have away from home. After my long, five-hour bus
ride to the High Sierra, my feelings instantly changed. No one could have prepared me for the thrill and excitement I would feel when I stepped off the bus onto the campgrounds on Lake Huntington. As the days went on, I started to make friends through activities like water skiing, archery and horseback riding. As my first year of summer camp came to an end, I was so sad to leave that I cried on the bus ride home. My parents, temporary empty nesters, were excitedly waiting for their kids’ (I went with my brother) returns home. Instead of a joyful reunion, they got two weepy kids begging to go back for another two weeks. The following years, returning to Gold Arrow Camp was the highlight of every summer. Returning to familiar counselors and friends became a staple in my life, and camp quickly felt like a second home. The experience of
Above: CAMPERS Nicole Isacsen and Nina Adams.
(Please turn to page 20)
Right: A YOUNG Nina Adams boards the bus for camp.
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Teens dig it at La Brea Tar Pits fossil site Curious and motivated teens were invited to join La Brea Tar Pits Teen Program debut season, which ran from last November to this past
March 2019. Ten 13- to 16-year olds worked behind-the scenes at the Ice Age fossil site with experts from La Brea Tar Pits.
Applications for the 201920 season will be available in the summer on the website, tarpits.org/museum/programming.
PARTICIPANTS sort microfossils.
PAGE ACADEMY Celebrating Our 111th Year
TEENS from the Tar Pits Teen Program work with fossil lab manager Stephany Potze. Applications for 2019-20 will be available in the summer.
TEEN Program participants explore the new “Mammoths and Mastodons” installation.
Have fun, make art, raise money at Hammer Museum
Sleepover with s tter ies dinosaurs at NHM
People of all ages can take part in painting, sculpting and other artistic hands-on workshops, and help fundraise for “Hammer Kids,” at the Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Sun., May 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The 10th anniversary of the Kids Art Museum Project (K.A.M.P.) will feature art workshops throughout the museum courtyard and terraces, favorite stories read aloud by celebrity guests, and music spun by DJ Chocolatebarbangs. Guests will take home artworks ranging from ceramics to paper plane sculptures. Tickets are $150. Visit hammer.ucla.edu/kamp.
Gold Arrow Camp
(Continued from page 19)
SUMMER CAMP ACTIVITIES Hands-on Projects Swimming & Field Trips Before & After Care Included Computer Science & Technology Camp Hours: 9:00am-3:30pm
Beverly Hills Campus
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323.272.3429
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323.463.5118
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making friends without phones and social media in the beautiful Sierra mountains changed me for the better. My closest friends are still the ones I met at Gold Arrow Camp eight years ago, and my fondest childhood memories are the ones I made waterskiing, sailing and sleeping under the stars. Since I “graduated” as a camper in 2015, I have taken on other projects to fill my summers. This summer, I will finally be returning home to Gold Arrow Camp, this time as a counselor. I am looking forward to reuniting with my friends from several summers ago and reliving my camp childhood memories. Former intern Nina Adams spent her freshman year at John Cabot American University in Rome.
Kids ages five to 12 years old can have a sleepover with bugs, butterflies and dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd. Besides access to exhibits, sleepovers feature themed crafts, a scavenger hunt, 3-D movie and performances. The next sleepovers are with bugs and butterflies Fri., May 31 and with Antarctic dinosaurs Fri., June 21. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Campers need to bring a sleeping bag, pillow, sleeping pad, pajamas, toiletries, flashlight and walking shoes, as well as an adult chaperone. Tickets are $75 for members and $85 for non-members and include admission to the museum the next day. For more information, visit nhm.org.
Antarctic dinos explored at NHM
Follow the journey of Antarctic scientists and paleontologists when they discovered a new species of dinosaur. See the exhibit at the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd. The new species was discovered at a dig on Mount Kirkpatrick from 2010 to 2011. Featured in the exhibit are full-sized replicas of four species of dinosaurs in their prehistoric habitat, touchable fossils, and gear and equipment belonging to past explorers. The exhibit is on view through Jan. 5, 2020. For more information, visit nhm.org.
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CAMPS & SCHOOLS
Children’s Tea assorted mini muffins, fresh fruit skewers assorted tea sandwiches Peanut Butter & Jelly • Chicken Salad Mini Cheese Sandwich Milk, Hot Chocolate, Kids Champagne (apple juice with sparkling water)
$19.50 per person DRUMMING at camp is James Thiess.
LEARNING robotics at camp.
Swim, make art, run, play at Page summer camp Kids in kindergarten through 7th grade can swim, make arts and crafts projects, go on field trips, run, play and work on academic enrichment courses at summer day camp at Page Academy, 565 N. Larchmont Blvd., beginning Mon., June 17. The seven one-week session themes are We Are Family, Space Adventure, Stars and Stripes, Art Antics, Hollywood, Wind and Sea and Music Makers. The final week, Mon., Aug. 5 to Fri., Aug. 9, is childcare only. Camp hours are 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., but early drop off beginning at 6:30 a.m. and after hours care until 6:30 p.m. are both available. For more information, call 323-463-5118 or visit pageacademyca.com.
with the same counselors and the best swimming pool in town!” Appel said. The cost for summer camp is $460 until May 15. After that, the full price is $475 per week. Visit westsidejcc.org.
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In the Original Farmers Market • 3rd & Fairfax Open 24 Hours
SWIMMING is open to all campers.
EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTERS OF WILSHIRE BOULEVARD TEMPLE
Summer Camp July 22 - August 15 Sign up at:
wbtecc.org MANN ECC 11661 W. OLYMPIC BLVD.
Every Saturday from 2pm to 4pm
All ages welcomed
Swimming, Hebrew classes at summer camp at JCC A four-week Hebrew immersion camp is launching this summer for kindergarten through third graders at the Westside Jewish Community Center, 5870 Olympic Blvd. “This is an amazing opportunity to be exposed to all our JCamp program offers with four weeks of added language learning,” said camp director Edana Appel. This program runs from July 15 to August 9. The full summer camp program for kindergarten through high school juniors runs from June 10 to August 16. Specialty camps range from science to rock band, theater, filmmaking, swimming, sports, chess, cooking, art and more. “We offer weekly registration, swimming four days a week, weekly field trips around Los Angeles and a wide variety of specialties. Our goal is for campers to have the opportunity to explore a number of different specialties in the same space,
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wbtcamps.org/openhouse
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CAMPS & SCHOOLS BUCKLEY
By Jasper Gough 9th Grade ERB testing for grades 6 to 8 is scheduled for May 1. The following day, parents will have the chance to sit down and talk with Buckley’s new Head of School, Alona Scott. Grades 6 to 11 will pick their class representatives for the next school year on May 3. These representatives will lead meetings and assemblies. On May 4, the 10th and 11th graders will take the SATs. Soon after, middle schoolers will present TED talks that they’ve
been working on all quarter. The Buckley School Orchestra will hold their spring concert on May 18. The last day of senior classes before finals will be May 20. Later that week on May 23, Buckley will have its annual spring fair. The junior and senior prom will take place on May 25. Finally, on May 29, there will be a party for the Buckley “lifers”. These are students who have been at the school since developmental kindergarten.
MORASHA EDUCATIONAL By Aryeh Carmel 4th Grade
My name is Aryeh Carmel, and I am a 4th grader at Morasha Hebrew Academy. As to my education, I am convinced that Morasha is a better school than all others I have been to. We have almost as many adults in this school as students on campus. Teachers really pay attention to everyone, and help us all the time. We have parents who support us, bring their vision to our school. What makes us unique is that we have zero tolerance for bullying or
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fights. They are stopped at the very beginning thanks to what we had learned from Gabriella Van Rij in person, who brought her heart-warming book, I Can Fight My Might, and shared her own experience with us last year. We also like to discuss issues of proper behavior and respect, and want to be better students. We are such a small community that everyone knows one another. It is great to be able to spend a lot of time together on and off campus, take regular field trips with friends and families. We learn a lot by discussing our monthly trips and meet new people. I am grateful that Morasha makes it all possible for me. These are some of the reasons why I would like to stay at this school as many years as possible.
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The 2019 school year is finally coming to an end. Every year, the month of May tends to be very busy. All grades are finishing up schoolwork, getting ready for summer, and the 8th graders are preparing for graduation. The 8th graders take two fun field trips to Magic Mountain and the tide pools. At the end of May, they will take graduation photos and prepare to host their annual Mini Carnival. Saint Brendan’s talent show is happening on May 10. Students from all grades can participate in the show. Finally, at the end of the year, we have our student council elections. Grades 4-7 can run for office for the next school year. Overall, this school year has been amazing, and we can’t wait to finish it off the right way.
NEW COVENANT By Ashley Kim 11th Grade
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April was an exciting month for New Covenant Academy as our high school collectively worked on a project for the first time in NCA’s history. Deviating from our usual classes, students took part in an Interdisciplinary Thematic Unit. This activity was designed to investigate a particular issue while incorporating knowledge from different subject areas. This year, we focused on gentrification. Since our school is located in the heart of Los Angeles, gentrification is a prominent issue that we experience firsthand. We visited Little Tokyo, Jefferson Park and Echo Park and explored their economic and health concerns. Six teams filmed, discussed and reported what we found.
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By Paige Mendiola 5th Grade It’s now the month of May!! This month MAY be the most exciting month ever! We start the month celebrating our awesome teachers and we also get to appreciate our amazing mothers with our annual spring show and Mother’s Day BBQ on the 10th. It is wonderful to watch the spring show and see each class perform their dance numbers. I can’t wait to show off our dancing skills to everyone and enjoy delicious food together! Then, we have Spirit Week to show our school spirit! I like that we are able to dress up during the week based on the different themes. Some students (and staff) get really creative... As the weather is now warmer, we will participate in Heal The Bay’s Beach Clean Up on Saturday, May 18th, a program where volunteers help to collect trash to make the beach a nicer place. This will be my first time participating so I’m excited to help the environment! Field Day on May 22 is the day to play friendly competitive team games and have fun with the students from our Newport Mesa Campus. We wrap up the month with our field trip to Kidspace Children’s Museum! Exhibits are outdoors and very exciting to see. I’ve been there and everything you see looks like it’s from another world!! These are the most of our highlights in May. We may be busy but we always know how to have fun!
CHRIST THE KING By Curtis Won 7th Grade
The month of April was filled with many activities. Our 8th grade students went on a field trip to the Museum of Tolerance to learn the history of the Holocaust. Our Transitional Kindergarten students enjoyed a day at Underwood Family Farm. Students throughout the school participated in our annual SpellA-Thon to raise money for our school. During Lent, students participated in a project called Feet the Homelesss, and donated a large quantity of used shoes for homeless people. CKS is now preparing for its International Festival which will be held on May 4 and 5. Students are practicing their class dances, which they will perform during the Festival. Our Drama Club is meeting regularly after school, and students are memorizing their songs for the upcoming production of Frozen, which they will perform in June. The Track and Field teams are practicing in preparation for their upcoming meets.
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
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CAMPS & SCHOOLS CATHEDRAL CHAPEL
HOLLYWOOD SCHOOLHOUSE
By Adriana Brady 8th Grade
Happy April everyone! Spring has sprung and track season has begun at CCS. Coach del Pozo reports that both preliminary meets have gone well, especially the relays. April began with honors assemblies for all grades. Parents and guests enjoyed the K-4 Spring Concert. Students in grades 3-8 prepared for Easter with a Penance service and confessions at the church. Kindergarten took a field trip on the 10th to our local Ralph’s to learn about ecology and what happens behind the scenes. Second graders traveled to the Star Eco Station and learned about ecosystems and wildlife. Before students, faculty, and staff started their Easter vacation, the eighth grade presented the Living Stations of the Cross to the entire school. Students were dismissed for Easter vacation on April 17th. Many students will use the vacation to prepare for the Chapel Religion Bee set for April 30th. Cathedral Chapel School sends wishes for peace, love and Easter blessings to all of God’s children.
By Nirel Davies 6th Grade
In sixth grade History class at the Hollywood Schoolhouse, we are learning about Greek Mythology. Over spring break, my class had an extra credit opportunity where we could make a video, structure, or poster that showcases a lesson we have learned during the trimester. I made a stop-motion video
PILGRIM
By Siobhan Schallert 7th Grade As students came back from Pilgrim School’s spring break, within the first week there were already some exciting things going on. On Thursday, April 4th, we had our annual Headmaster’s Dinner. In the morning, elementary students had a Headmaster’s breakfast, and later at night, the dinner took place for Secondary students. The dinner was to celebrate students who have achieved academic excellence throughout the year. There was amazing food, and lots of proud students, teachers, and parents. One of the best things about Pilgrim School is how students
about the Greek myth, “Echo and Narcissus.” The story explains how echoes and vanity came to be. It is quite interesting! Mrs. Nelson’s Book Fair is back! The whole school is going to get a chance to purchase the latest novels. Reading is a great way to go on adventures and connect with book characters. If someare acknowledged and celebrated for their hard work in academics, athletics, the arts and in the community. As a middle schooler, I also appreciate how much time we get around the high schoolers, and it was great to see members of this year’s senior class acknowledged at their final Headmaster’s Dinner. The next week was Spirit Week for our Secondary students, which gave them all a chance to dress up and show school spirit (and creativity) around themes like Luau Day and Meme Day. Each class is awarded spirit points based on how many of their students participate. So far, seventh grade has won two trimesters, which means free dress days, a valuable commodity on campus. Last month, Ms. Scmalenburg’s Loonies and Toonies beat other teams at the school in a volleyball game that had students screaming.
thing is bothering you in the real world, reading a book can help you get your mind off of it, or you could even learn a life lesson from the story. Even though it is my last book fair, I’m sure it will be the greatest one yet! My class is anxiously waiting for the day when it is time to go to Astrocamp. Astrocamp is a
sleep-away trip like Outdoor Ed. that lasts for three days and two nights. The trip is for sixth graders only, and I am so excited! The classes are science based, and we get to participate in some thrilling experiments and challenging activities outdoors too. I can’t wait to tell you all about it in my next article!
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
CAMPS & SCHOOLS IMMACULATE HEART By Lena Mizrahi 12th Grade
Happy May! Mary’s Day, Immaculate Heart’s most beloved tradition day, is timed with May’s arrival. This year’s event features the theme “Sister Through All Seasons” which will be evident through our decorations and student presentations. Student committees, representing all grade levels, have been preparing for this May 3 event. The celebration will allow students to step away from the typical day-today stress of school and enjoy a morning of community that will
include food and entertainment. Recently, Immaculate Heart honored more than 120 athletes with a 3.5 grade point average or higher at the 30th Annual Scholar Athlete Luncheon. This event celebrates immense academic success and commitment to sports. Family members filled the school auditorium and applauded as students achieved this special recognition. Last month, Immaculate Heart’s Drama Club — the Genesians — staged the spring show, 67 Cinder-
ellas. The show was a phenomenal success. The production’s ballroom choreography and subtle humor drew a full crowd to each of the four performances. As the drama season concludes, the club prepares for their performances at the upcoming class day, which marks the end of the school year. Additionally, last month the Spanish Club hosted the Student vs. Faculty soccer game. The game is a favorite of both the students and administration alike. Many gathered on the field sidelines to cheer during the competition. This year, the students defeated the faculty 4-1!
MARLBOROUGH By Avery Gough 7th Grade
Hello everybody, this month has been relaxing and busy at the same time. We just got back from a relaxing two-week spring break. The first day back we had an All School Meeting (ASM), and a representative from Food Forward came to talk to us. We watched a video about Food Forward’s tenyear anniversary and another video about food waste, and what Food Forward is trying to accomplish. I really enjoyed this ASM because I have volunteered with Food Forward and know first-hand about the good work that they do. On April 12, there was an Alumnae morning. Each 7th grader was
OAKWOOD SCHOOL By Scarlett Saldaña 8th Grade
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At the start of the third trimester, students look forward to the week featuring Gorilla Games. Gorilla Games is the time for students to competitively play against other grades for a prize that honors the entire grade. After that, students experience Arts Festival, a much loved event in which students enjoy supporting visual and
assigned a member of the class of 1969, and we had to write a poem about them and their class. Lastly, after our spring break, the Marlborough athletes jumped into their sports. On April 8, 9, and 11, the varsity lacrosse team played Notre Dame, El Segundo High School and Louisville High School, respectively. The 7th and 8th grade lacrosse team played Chaminade Middle School and Oaks Christian School. Lastly, on the April 9 and 11, varsity swimming competed against Immaculate Heart High School and Louisville High School. performing arts. Last year, students set up art exhibits and displayed their talents in a special-all-school showcase. Then, on April 28, Oakwood 6th graders will have their annual trip to Washington D.C. There, they will visit The United States Supreme Court and take a tour of the White House.
Music roundup: PUP, Chai and Queens of the Stone Age By Elijah Small Welcome back, music fans! Before I get to my reviews, I want to share with you some exciting news. A few friends and I are in a band called Research and Development, and we are scheduled to play a set at the Cat and Fiddle, located on Highland just north of Melrose, on Sun., June 2 at 4 p.m. Come check us out, if you’re around. Find us on Instagram @theeresearchdevelopment. Now to the albums for this month.
Mor id t ff The third album by indiepunk band PUP, released April 5, is not only good, it’s great. The album starts off with the title song “Morbid Stuff,” which hooks the listener with a weird, off-beat sound. The album continues with bombastic choruses and catchy hooks. I can’t really find many bad things to say about this album. Review: 8 out of 10. Punk This is the second album from the all-female Japanese band, Chai. The Nagoya-based band delivers a light-hearted and over-the-top album that still rocks. When the songs first
dropped, I listened to the opening track and instantly knew it was going to be good — from the first beat, I was hooked and could not stop listening. The album has a lot of charm, and the band members display personalities that are both hilarious and awesome. My review: 7 out of 10.
Villains Although not a new release, this 2017 album by band Queens of the Stone Age is a classic. In fact, this is one of my favorite bands. And “Villains,” the band’s seventh album, is the most accessible contemporary rock album in years. Band songwriter and lead singer Josh Homme joins with music producer Mark Ronson to create an exciting and unconventional rock sound. Compared to previous albums, Homme’s voice in “Villains” is better suited to his style of singing, but instrumentally, the album is not as complex as others. My review: 8 out of 10. Elijah Small is a student at Pilgrim School.
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Plymouth
(Continued from page 1) generation of greater Hancock Park area children. The Plymouth School, founded in 1972 by Penny Cox, Sylvia Johnson, Gayle Smith, Ruth Traub, and Darlene Smolan, lately finds itself in the position of teaching students who are the children of former Plymouth School students. Whew! Did you get that? So if you find yourself walking down Larchmont Boulevard, there’s a good chance that you’ll bump into someone who sent their children, went as a child or now currently attends this word-of-mouth school. “Plymouth is special because it is a school with deep roots in our community,” says Windsor Square resident Pamela Wright, who attended the school from 1982 to 1984. Her future husband, Andrew, also attended. “Yes, I met my husband in preschool!” laughs Pamela. “My fondest memory of Plymouth was listening to music during nap time. In my day it was records. While the records are now gone, I am happy to see the children still listen to music and stories before nap time.” Originally located in the United Methodist Church on Wilshire and Plymouth, the
GENERATIONS of local families (here, Pamela, Andrew, Rita and Nico right nd themsel es drawn to a familiar childhood e erience: Plymouth School.
school moved to the Wilshire Presbyterian Church on Oxford and 3rd in 1992. The preschool focuses on play-based developmental education in a loving and nurturing environment, which appeals to the parents who want their children to have the same childhood experiences that they had. Pamela and Andrew loved their own time at Plymouth so much that they decided to send their two children, Rita and Nico, there as well. “I love that the school has remained steadfast in its commitment to play-based learning regardless of the trends in early education,” says Pamela. “Trends come and go.”
Hancock Park area residents Pat Tostado (who attended Plymouth from 1977 to 1980) and his wife Kristen Wallace Tostado, also wanted to keep tradition in the family. “Pat’s parents chose Plymouth because of the play-based learning in a sweet setting, where the kids and teachers weren’t afraid to get dirty,” says Kristen. “I love that Plymouth is real and authentic. It’s not flashy or fancy.” Their children Oliver and Chloe attended Plymouth from 2007 to 2010 and 2011 to 2014. “I like the freedom [the school] encourages and the self-expression,” affirms Kris-
WOLFS: Matt and Marisa Wolf, with children Audrey (left) and Julia right ha e lymouth School connections.
GONZALEZES: Maureen Gonzalez with sons John (left) and Nicholas (right).
TOSTADOS: at Oli er Kristen and Chloe Tostado.
ten. “The families we befriended from Plymouth with our kids are still some of our closest friends… Small town living in a big city!”
Pat’s sister Marisa Wolf also attended Plymouth (1974 to 1977) and sent her own children, Julia and Audrey, from (Please turn to page 26)
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Individual attention is the key to Morasha Center’s approach By Billy Taylor The Morasha Educational Center is quietly serving a niche community of students thanks, in part, to the vision of the school’s principal, Rabbi Shlomo Harrosh, who lives by the motto of “no Jewish child left behind.” What makes Morasha unique is its student population. The all-boys school caters to highly gifted individuals with learning differences. Sometimes the student is on the autism spectrum, or struggles with issues like attention deficit disorder, while other stu-
dents simply failed to thrive in a traditional school setting and require more resources. Morasha serves both homeschoolers — who can join students a couple of times a week for classes or trips — and full-time students in grades kindergarten to 8th grade in Judaic and secular studies. Morasha — located on Beverly Boulevard, directly across from Pan Pacific Park — began when Perutz Etz Jacob Hebrew Academy shut its doors in 2016 due to a lack of funding. As the former principal of Perutz Etz Jacob, Rabbi Har-
rosh says that he worked to find new schools for most of the students. However, for various reasons, there was still a small body of students that was left without a place to transfer. That’s when Harrosh says he called “an emergency meeting” with school stakeholders and local religious leaders. These children cannot be left behind, he urged them. “Things evolved from there,” Rabbi Harrosh explained. Tifereth Zvi Synagogue offered Rabbi Harrosh some classroom space, while others volunteered their time, and
STUDENTS review their work with a teacher at Morasha Educational Center.
by 2017, Morasha was serving more than a dozen students with a customized curriculum. Rabbi Harrosh is passionate in his belief that all of his students can succeed in learning by the school just providing the right environment, one that develops their strengths while giving one-on-one support to any differences in learning. “The key is individual attention,” Harrosh told me last month at the Morasha campus. At that exact moment, there was some commotion in the nearby classroom. “For example, that student was getting too upset in class, so one of the teachers took him on a short walk to clear his head,” said Harrosh. To provide that kind of individual attention, the school tries to maintain a two-to-one student-teacher ratio. For at least one local student, the school has made all the difference. Fourth grader
Aryeh says that he loves his new school: “I was homeschooled, but didn’t have any friends. Now I can walk to school, and I have many friends,” the Fairfax resident said with a big smile. Rabbi Harrosh notes that Aryeh, as a homeschooled student, was sitting at home struggling with how to express himself, but now he is a student thriving, both academically and socially. “We want each child to reach his full potential, and our formula is to utilize the student’s abilities, building off his strengths,” said Harrosh. While the school is religious-based and offers group prayers and a strong Hebrew education, it also offers a secular curriculum with electives such as computer programming, art and music. To learn more, visit morashaej.org.
Plymouth
it opened. Her 25-year-old niece, Shelby Upshaw, attended Plymouth in the 1990s. Her brother Rick’s daughter, Adriana, attended Plymouth in the early 2000s, and her own two sons, John and Nicholas, attended from 2011-2015. “Plymouth is a true neighborhood school,” says Maureen. “I gained an amazing group of mom (and dad) friends who have helped me in times of need and shared this crazy journey of parenthood with me… Plymouth not only gave me a great educational foundation in my early years, but it gave me my village when my kids went there.” Marisa Wolf agrees. “I love that it is still the same special neighborhood school it has been since the 1970s.” When all is said and done, though, leave it to current 29-year Plymouth teaching veteran Fran Hentz (her daughter Jeanne graduated from Plymouth’s first class) to best sum up the generational pull of families towards the school: “This school gives people the feeling of being in a small town, rather than smack in the middle of a huge city. The families know each other and they like each other. You really gain a true sense of community and home.”
(Continued from page 25) 2012 to 2017. “I love that Plymouth is a neighborhood school. I have stayed close over the years with many of the friends I met there,” says Marisa. “Now, 40 years later, my kids are in school with my [Plymouth] friends’ kids.” Penny Cox retired as director in 2014 after 42 years at the school. The new director, Brookside resident Megan Enright Drynan (whose siblings Michael and Erin Enright attended Plymouth School in the 1970s, as well as Drynan’s three boys, who attended in the last decade), wanted to keep the old-school traditions intact while modernizing the school to meet the changing needs of modern families. “I wanted to keep the school the exact same way the founders envisioned it,” says Drynan, “but added a few 21stcentury touches, like music, yoga and gymnastics.” Maureen Gonzalez, a former classmate of Drynan who serves as the Plymouth office manager, attended Plymouth from 1974 to 1976 and has many ties to the school. Her brother, Rick Brady, attended Plymouth the first year that
Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Sip and socialize at Children’s Tea parties at Du-par’s
By Julia Stier Get ready for an afternoon tea, fit for a princess or prince! In February, Du-par’s Restaurant and Bakery (6333 West 3rd Street #210) began its weekly Saturday afternoon Children’s Teas. Fun for the whole family, the tea provides an opportunity to introduce children to the basics of dining etiquette and socialization. The Du-par’s at Third and Fairfax at the Farmers Market was the first of the Du-par’s locations to open — back in 1938. (A second location later opened in Pasadena, and there also was a Du-par’s in the Miracle Mile and one in the San Fernando Valley). Famous for boysenberry syrup and pancakes (the secret recipe hasn’t changed since the beginning), Du-par’s at the Farmers Market also is loved for its 24-hour service. Slide into the red vi-
FAIRYTALE EVENT. Hancock Park resident Kiel FitzGerald assists a student getting outtted for O eration School ell Prom Day. Photo by Cherie Ditcham
Dreams do come true on League’s OSB Prom Day High school girls who excel in the classroom in spite of homelessness and other hardships were treated like princesses at the annual Operation School Bell Prom Day. Stepping into a pop-up boutique, the girls found dresses, shoes and accessories and had hair styling and makeup. In all, volunteers from the Assistance League of Los Angeles — many who live in Hancock Park and other nearby neighborhoods — helped dress 200 girls from 58 Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) schools. In addition, Assistance League of Los Angeles’ Operation School Bell program annually provides new school clothes and play clothes, shoes, backpacks, hygiene products, undergarments, socks, hoodies, books and school supplies to more than 6,500 underserved and at-risk LAUSD schoolchildren grades K-5. The League, a member volunteer organization, is marking its 100th year serving the community in 2019. The League also provides live theater experiences to children, (Please turn to page 28)
TREATS are piled high on a three-tier stand at Du-par’s’ Children’s Tea. Photo courtesy of Frances Tario
nyl booths at all hours to enjoy a selection of American diner classics, prepared daily with fresh ingredients. And now, there’s another thing to love about Du-par’s
— Saturday afternoon Children’s Tea. President and CEO of Dupar’s, Frances Tario, shares that she came up with idea for the tea after noticing a lack of
opportunities for children to learn etiquette and socialization skills. “The custom etiquette classes and children’s cotillions are no longer visible anymore,” Tario observed. Looking to fill this gap, Tario started up the Children’s Tea. By providing a place for children to hone their social skills, Tario hopes to encourage them “to talk and play and interact with one another without having to play on an iPad or cell phone.” The tea is fully set up before everyone arrives, with treats piled high on a threetier stand. Guests are given coloring pages, and their very own customizable mugs, which they can color themselves. Before guests begin digging in, the staff gives an introductory lesson on etiquette. However, despite its emphasis on etiquette, the event has no dress code.
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While enjoying their drinks and treats, children are encouraged to socialize with others in attendance. Guests may sample an assortment of mini muffins, fresh fruit skewers, and a variety of tea sandwiches — bite-sized kid favorites such as peanut butter and jelly, chicken salad, and cheese. Drink options include milk, hot chocolate, and kid’s champagne (don’t worry, Mom and Dad — it’s just apple juice with sparkling water!). All of the Du-par’s pastries are prepared fresh daily in the on-site bakery. To schedule your very own Du-par’s Children’s Tea experience, call 323-933-8446 or 323-933-8440 to make a reservation. The tea takes place on Saturdays, from 2-4 p.m. All ages are welcome to attend, and the experience costs $19.50 per person.
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Third Street unveils murals by renowned street artist By Vivian Gueler Hancock Park’s Third Street Elementary School unveiled two new murals last month as part of a beautification initiative. With an idea to add some color to campus, Beautification Committee chairs Esther Lee and Neenu Khemlani recruited Los Angeles-based street artist WRDSMTH (pronounced: Wordsmith) and longtime Disney animator, William Cuna, for the project. WRDSMTH is best known for his iconic image of a vintage typewriter with different sheets of inspirational text, which have been posted on the sides of buildings, utility closets and public spaces across Los Angeles. Unsatisfied with his successful career as an advertising copywriter in Chicago, WRDSMTH made his way to Hollywood in search
WRDSMTH (center, back row, under “makes”) sits with Third Street students after installing murals on campus.
PRINCIPAL Kim (left) and parent William Cuna (right) worked with students on the murals.
of a career as a screenwriter. After a stint writing short films, documentaries, and a novel, the artist felt trapped behind his computer and sought another way to express his words, which ultimately became the inspiration for his future street art. “Initially, there was a sense of intimidation in taking my
talent and time to places that need it most. Third Street parent William Cuna assisted in installing the campus murals. Third Street principal Daniel Kim says of the project, “I think it’s fantastic that we are able to expose and foster an appreciation towards the
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words and turning them into street art, but I soon came to realize that the words are the art,” WRDSMTH explained to Third Street students. The street artist, who considers himself both a writer and an artist, told students that the murals are a part of his payit-forward philosophy to lend
visual medium of street art here at Third Street Elementary. It’s also very satisfying to know that for every piece of art that we add to our campus, we’re adding opportunities that spark creativity, stimulate critical thinking and analysis, hone observational skills and inspire children.”
Free admission at Academy Museum for youth under 18 When it opens, probably at the end of this year, the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, in the former May Co. building, will offer free admission to visitors under 18 years old, thanks to a grant from the George Lucas Family Foundation, announced last month. The museum will use the donation — an unrevealed amount — to create an endowment underwriting free admission in perpetuity for guests ages 17 years old and younger. The Lucas grant was made in honor of Sid Ganis, former
president and current vice president of the Academy’s board of governors and chair of its Museum Committee. Also announced in April was that Amy Homma, formerly of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., has been appointed the Academy Museum’s inaugural director of education. Homma will oversee the K-to-12 programming, ranging from lectures and panels to in-gallery talks and online programming. For more information, visit academymuseum.org.
ACADEMY DONORS George Lucas and Mellody Hobson.
Prom Day
Across their programs, League volunteers will directly support nearly 22,000 of the city’s most impoverished children in 2019. “With OSB Prom Day, the League proudly acknowledges young women who have maintained a strong academic
standing under extremely adverse circumstances, stayed in school, and are poised to graduate and begin a new chapter in their lives,” said Melanie Merians, Assistance League of Los Angeles CEO. For more information, visit assistanceleaguela.org.
(Continued from page 27) operates a nationally accredited preschool in Hollywood, and provides thousands of Los Angeles children in the foster system with clothes and other needed items.
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MAY 2019
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Small Wonders Rocks for cause at Federal Bar May 5
Big Sunday
(Continued from page 1)
Core College Counseling SUMMERTIME, And the living is easy…. Unless you are beginning to search for colleges that are “right” for your student! There are more than 4000 colleges across the US. Some are larger than small cities (40,000 students!); some colleges offer classes with less than 8 students! What’s the easiest and the most stress-free process to find the “right” colleges? Make an appointment with NANCI LEONARD for personalized college counseling! Call NANCI for all of your college questions: 310-717-6752
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Nanci Leonard is a Certified College Counselor who has assisted thousands of students in discovering colleges that are the right “fit.” Google: Core College Counseling for more information or call 310-717-6752. Nanci has been a Brookside resident for 41 years.
and doing lots more, including hosting various enrichments programs on May 19. There will also be food and music for all the participants. And, in classic Big Sunday fashion, the organization is not just doing this for the community, but with the community, too. (Before Big Sunday became a yearround organization, and was still a one-, two- or three-day weekend event, that weekend traditionally was filled with hundreds of projects like the one that will take place at Lovelia Flournoy School on May 19 — hence the “Big Sunday’s Greatest Hits” designation). Starting small Big Sunday was started 20 years ago by founder, executive director and Hancock Park resident David Levinson as a single day of service known as Mitzvah Day. Volunteers completed 19 different projects helping seniors, homeless, shut-ins, the environment and more. This progressed each year, and continued to grow, engaging thousands of people, and eventually outgrew the one day and became Big Sunday Weekend. Big Sunday Weekend was so popular that the organization outgrew the weekend and became an independent, nondenominational nonprofit offering more than 2,000 ways for people to help 365 days a year. Nevertheless, Big Sunday Weekend in May remained the organization’s largest event. In 2016, Big Sunday couldn’t fit all the projects into one weekend, so it expanded into MOBS. For a list of projects visit; mobs.bigsunday.org/project/.
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GRADUATING SENIORS from New Covenant Academy explore the Hawaiian Islands last month as part of their graduation trip, a beloved tradition at the Koreatown school. While on the Big sland students en oyed arasailing snor eling sur ng and tra eling the island.
The Plymouth School NOW ENROLLING • Preschool program for children 2 to 5 ½. • Creative activities to encourage cognitive & social development including art, music, 31movement & play • Experienced teachers devoted to fostering self-esteem in a safe nurturing environment ©LC0917
DR. JOHN REINISCH (center, with baseball cap) and members of the Small Wonders Junior Advisory Council.
Small Wonders Foundation and its Junior Advisory Council will showcase young, talented bands from all over the city at the second annual Small Wonders Rocks on Sun., May 5. The Music With a Cause event, which will also serve brunch and lunch, is at the Federal Bar, 5305 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood. Performances will occur throughout the day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tickets may be purchased at www.smallwondersrocks.org. Last year, Small Wonders Rocks raised $10,000 and hosted a packed house at The Mint. The line-up included 15 bands performing rock, jazz and pop. Small Wonders Foundation was formed in 2005 by parents and friends of children born with facial differences that were corrected by the plastic surgery work of worldrenowned surgeon Dr. John Reinisch, of Hancock Park. For more than 40 years, Reinisch has specialized in treating children with craniofacial deformities and is a leading pediatric plastic surgeon. He regularly travels the globe to meet prospective patients and educate doctors and parents on the latest surgical techniques. Most recently he was a visiting professor at the University of Tel Aviv, Harvard and the University of Utrecht (Holland). He also recently lectured in Mexico, Beijing, Moscow and Paris.
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Larchmont Chronicle
MAY 2019
SECTION ONE
Take the Queen … now what? Careful, or you’ll lose the hand Here’s your hand sitting North, and the bidding:
Bridge Matters
82 AKQ864 96 T97
West North P 2H All Pass
East South 3S P
Partner leads the JH Here’s the dummy (on your right): Q7 53 KQ432 J652 You take the Queen and declarer discards the Ten. What do you return? If you said that you would take the second heart immediately you probably lost the hand. Partner’s lead of the
by
Grand Slam
Here is the four hand layout:
Jack must be either a singleton or a doubleton because declarer discarded the Ten. That is probably a false card, to keep you from continuing hearts. If partner has a doubleton (probably), that means that declarer has three hearts and will lose all three unless she can trump your third heart lead. There are two trumps on the board. You want to get a third heart trick so you want to get the Queen of trump off the board. So the answer is that you must lead a trump. Even if declarer has the Ace, she has to lead another heart to be
North 82 AKQ864 96 T97 West Q7 53 KQ432 J652
East KJT9653 T92 A AQ
South A4 53 JT875 K843 This is a real unfortunate
hand for east because she has only one possible entry to the board, and that’s the heart ruff which you denied her. She can take her Ace of diamonds, then the Ace of clubs, then leading the club Queen to south’s King and she’s got good cards in the minor suits to get rid of her heart loser, but she can’t get there after you take out her trump. When this was played in a club game, three declarers made either three or four because defenders failed to play trump early to keep declarer from ruffing a heart and discarding her losers on the diamonds. If north never leads a trump, the hand easily makes four. Since partner has the Ace of trump even if north takes both hearts immediately, if partner then leads a trump he can take the Ace and lead another, getting rid of both trumps on the board. But north should not count on that. The safest and best play is to lead a trump imme-
diately before taking the second heart because if declarer has the trump Ace and takes the return, she still has to lead another heart to get rid of the last heart on the board and north can take that trick and lead the second trump. If he takes the second heart immediately and then leads a trump, it’s too late because the board is now void of hearts and if declarer has the trump Ace (a better than 50% chance), declarer can take the belated trump lead, play the diamond Ace and trump his third heart to get to the diamond King and Queen to rid himself of his club loser. Played correctly, NS should take three hearts, the spade Ace and the club King, five tricks for down one in a 3S contract. Grand Slam is the nom de plume for an author of a bestselling book on bridge, an ACBL accredited director and a Silver Life Master.
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able to trump with her Queen and you can take it and lead your last trump to get rid of the last trump on the board, so she’s stuck with a losing heart in her hand and she goes down one.
Larchmont Chronicle
Lions
(Continued from page 1) LAPD commanding officers at Wilshire Division almost three years ago. To honor seven local peace officers who lost their lives in the line of duty while serving at Wilshire (the last loss being in 1996), execution of the memorial has been led by the First-In Fire Foundation.
Greater Wilshire (Continued from page 1)
Geographic Area Representatives: Area 1, Brookside: Director – Owen Smith Alternate – vacant Area 2, Citrus Square: Director – Jeffry Carpenter Alternate – vacant Area 3, Country Club Heights: Director – Brian Donahoe (appointed 4-10-19) Alternate – vacant Area 4, Fremont Place: Director – Bobbie Kumetz Alternate – vacant Area 5, Hancock Park: Director – Jennifer R. DeVore Alternate – Cindy ChvatalKeane (appointed 4-10-19) Area 6, La Brea / Hancock: Director – Tammy Rosato Alternate – Cathy Roberts Area 7, Larchmont Village: Director – Charles D’Atri Alternate – Vincent Cox Area 8, Melrose Neighborhood: Director – Philip A. Farha Alternate – vacant Area 9, Oakwood-MaplewoodSt. Andrews Neighborhood: Director – Max Kirkham Alternate – vacant Area 10, Ridgewood – Wilton – St. Andrews Square: Director – Patricia Carroll Alternate – vacant Area 11, Sycamore Square: Director – Conrad Starr Alternate – Joshua Kirchmer Area 12, Western-Wilton (“We-Wil”) Neighborhood: Director – Erica Gutierrez
MAY 2019
According to Lyn MacEwen Cohen, president of the foundation and manager for the project, this local memorial was inspired by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C. Cohen says that featuring the lions is a keystone that is critical to the local monument’s design. She explains that, “The lion is a uniAlternate – Greg Wittmann Area 13, Wilshire Park: Director – John Gresham Alternate – Kim Nortman Area 14, Windsor Square: Director – Caroline Labiner Moser Alternate – vacant Area 15, Windsor Village: Director – Julie Stromberg Alternate – vacant Special Interest Category Representatives: Business: Director – John Winther Alternate – Charlie Rosenberg Renter: Director – Hayden Conner Ashworth Alternate – vacant Education: Director – Scott Appel Alternate – Bridget Bones Religion: Director – Michael Genewick Alternate – vacant Other Nonprofit: Director – Tucker Carney Alternate – Colette Amin At Large: Director – Karen Gilman Alternate – Brian Curran The Directors met on April 10 and elected officers: Caroline Moser, president; Max Kirkham, vice president; Patricia Carroll, treasurer; Julie Stromberg, secretary; Conrad Starr, assistant secretary. The GWNC board of directors meets the second Wednesday of each month at The Ebell of Los Angeles, 743 S. Lucerne Blvd. Visit greaterwilshire.org.
SECTION ONE
versal symbol of strength and protection watching over the community as the wall quote posted says well: ‘the wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.’” Cohen explained to the Chronicle that, “It took two full years to find the right matched pair — fierce yet calm, wise and stoic, not sleeping but acting as sentinels on-guard protecting this somber space. Ultimately, there will be a very simple marker listing each fallen officer’s name and ‘end-ofwatch’ date.” [“End-of-watch”
indicates an officer’s date of death while on duty – Ed.] Each 200- to 300-pound lion rests upon a six-inch concrete pad that took three days to cure after being poured. Prior to lowering each lion in place, the areas under the lions on the pads were inscribed “United We Stand” and “In God We Trust,” and craftsmen, police officers and onlookers initialed the concrete. Welcoming the lions to the police station were Wilshire commanding officer Capt. Anthony Oddo, assisted by community relations officer Sgt. A.J. Kirby and Cohen, along
with Marc Cohen, who is chairman of the board of the First-In Fire Foundation. Funds underwriting the project are private donations and in-kind services. Primary donors to date are Loeb & Loeb LLP, Windsor SquareHancock Park Historical Society, and First-In Fire Foundation. Capt. Oddo observed: “The lions not only symbolize the strength that officers must have, but the lions also symbolize our role as protectors. I want to thank all donors for making the lion sentinels possible.”
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MAY 2019
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