Continued from

Larchmont Chronicle

VOL. 60, NO. 10 • DELIVERED TO 76,439 READERS IN HANCOCK PARK • WINDSOR SQUARE • FREMONT PLACE • MIRACLE MILE • PARK LA BREA • LARCHMONT •

OCTOBER 2022

IN THIS ISSUE

HALLOWEEN & HARVEST 2-12

REMEMBERED. 4

SENIORS work out. 22

OLDEST of Los Angeles in new book. 2-6

For Information on Advertising Rates, Please Call Pam Rudy 323-462-2241, x 11

Mailing permit:

‘Taste’ was enjoyed on Boulevard

n Many restaurants

served at fundraiser

By John Welborne

The post-pandemic return of the annual Taste of Larchmont was a big success, according to Hope’s Net executive director Brandy Muñiz. More than 300 Larchmontians and neighbors greeted one another walking up and down the Boulevard on Sept. 19, sampling food tastes from local eateries at the traditional Monday evening event.

The city’s surface parking lot, adjoining the Larchmont Village clock, was headquarters, with a balloon entry and multiple tent pavilions. In addition to ticket sales, the tents housed displays of raffle prizes and silent auction items. Boy Scouts oversaw a couple of tents with beverages, and there were tents featuring desserts for the purchasers of the Taste of Larchmont passports. All proceeds from ticket sales and See Taste of Larchmont, p 3

Parties, galas and a casino in the offing

n Fall season events

multiply

By Suzan Filipek and John Welborne

Following a long hiatus due to the pandemic, fundraising galas and just plain parties are making a comeback in and around our town.

Higher Ground is the nonprofit organization that uses recreation to give people of all abilities (especially our nation’s veterans) the emotional and social tools they need to feel like they belong. See Parties, p 6

Dining Guide

Restaurant and entertainment news will be featured in our Fall Dining Guide in the November issue. Larchmont Chronicle advertising deadline is Mon., Oct. 10. For more information contact Pam Rudy, 323-4622241, ext. 11.

LARCHMONT FAMILY FAIR poster is reviewed by Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell and committee member Patty Lombard.

Pumpkin patch to open

n Lots and lots of pumpkins to pop up on Larchmont

By Nona Sue Friedman

If you want to see a whole bunch of pumpkins (30,000 lbs.), swing by the Wilshire Rotary Club’s pumpkin patch at 568 N. Larchmont Blvd. Pumpkins go up for sale Sat., Oct. 8, with sales continuing through Sun., Oct. 30, or until all are sold. The patch is open weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m. and weekends from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The pumpkin patch sells “mini to giant pumpkins and everything in between,” according to Wendy Clifford, head of the Rotary pumpkin patch. In addition to pump-

See Pumpkin patch, p 30

Larchmont Family Fair to return Oct. 30

Special section: Local elections 2022

n Rides, music, food at

family-fun event

By Patricia Lombard

It’s back! After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the Larchmont Family Fair is back. Mark your calendars for Sun., Oct. 30, from 2 to 7 p.m. for the reboot of this beloved neighborhood tradition that started in 1966.

The Larchmont Boulevard Association (LBA), organizer of the fair, said they are excited about some changes longtime fair planner Betsy Malloy is proposing for this year’s event.

“We decided it was time to do something a little different,” said Malloy, who has See Family Fair, p 8

Sign up for ‘speed humps’

By Casey Russell

Residents interested in having speed humps installed on their neighborhood streets will be pleased to know that the Los Angeles Dept. of Transportation [LADOT] Residential Speed Hump Program will be accepting applications beginning Oct. 6.

Due to the COVID-19 panSee Speed humps, p 8

n Interviews featured

First Lady Jill Biden stopped at the Windsor Square home of writer/producer Marta Kauffman to attend a Sept. 16 fundraiser before visiting Homeboy Industries in Chinatown. Then she headed across the pond to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Kauffman luncheon was one of many political events taking place in our neighborhoods during this busy season leading up to mail-in voting, culminating with in-person voting on Tues., Nov. 8.

This paper interviewed nearly a dozen candidates for the most-local offices that directly affect our neighbor-

FIRST LADY Jill Biden is shown here with former resident Fr. Gregory Boyle during her visit to Homeboy Industries. hoods. Articles about these candidates, along with explanations of the seven ballot propositions, are featured in our special section, Election 2022, on pages 13-20.

By John Welborne

A strong community . . .

. . . requires resident and business support. Such support was evident last month, when the Taste of Larchmont returned to the Boulevard. A fundraiser for needy Angelenos who are served by Hope Net, this annual Monday evening event draws residents who walk up and down the Boulevard, greet one another and enjoy food and beverage offerings from local merchants.

The beneficiary is Hope Net, a local organization founded in 1988 to create and manage local food pantries serving people facing hunger in our area. There now are 12 pantries. The Taste of Larchmont got started 30 years ago this year, with leadership from this newspaper’s founders, Jane Gilman and Dawne Goodwin. (Learn more at bit.ly/3UiTyEC.)

Commendation for the September 2022 event is due to the volunteers who organized it and the many volunteers stationed at tables to check the dinner tickets. Great thanks are due to the generous businesses — mostly from Larchmont, but one from Western Avenue and one from La Brea Avenue — that donated their food and services to the equally generous ticket buyers. Specific thanks go to the raffle prize donors and the dining treat providers (listed elsewhere in this issue). Everything related to the event helps Hope Net and the community.

Coming soon is another opportunity for local businesses to help the Larchmont Boulevard community: the Larchmont Family Fair on Oct. 30. To succeed, this annual community undertaking requires sponsorship. We hope that all Larchmont businesses (and others) will join the Larchmont Chronicle as a sponsor of the 2022 Larchmont Family Fair. To learn how you can donate, you may contact larchmontfamilyfair@gmail.com.

Be Prepared for H lloween!

Do your Spooktacular Shopping in Larchmont Village

SPONSORED BY

LARCHMONT BOULEVARD ASSOCIATION

www.LARCHMONT.com

©LC1022

Majestic W.J.

Melkon & Vartan

High End Watch & Jewelry Repair

606 N. Larchmont Blvd., Suite 112 (323) 933-0288 • MajesticWJRepair@gmail.com

Ecclesia Gnostica Gnostic Christian Church

Tues., Oct. 5 — Yom Kippur begins.

Mon., Oct. 10 — Federal holiday.

Wed., Oct. 12 — Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council board meeting at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom. Check greaterwilshire.org for details.

Tues., Oct. 25 — Hancock Park Homeowners Assoc. annual meeting at 7 p.m. via Zoom. Check hancockparkhomeownersassociation.org for link.

Thurs., Oct. 27 — Delivery of the November issue of the Larchmont Chronicle.

Sun., Oct. 30 — Larchmont Family Fair, 2 to 7 p.m.

Mon., Oct. 31 — Halloween.

Letters to the Editor

Sidewalk sleeper

I want to address the reactionary letter to the photo that was taken of a homeless person sleeping in the early morning on the Larchmont Boulevard sidewalk [“Rights of the unhoused,” Sept. 2022]. The writer has thrown us a new euphemistic word to describe the sorrowful, and sometimes barely clothed, women and men who roam the streets urinating on themselves and worse.

Instead of their taking shelter and getting help for their mental conditions, we are confronted with them daily. “Unhoused” is how your letter writer describes these poor souls as if they just lost their homes in a fire last night. They did not. They are on the streets permanently until a real leader can do something about it.

Homeless encampments, people sleeping on the sidewalks, and people begging on the streets are not a source of pride for the citizens of Los Angeles. These unfortunate people who suffer from drug addiction are only a joy to see for those suffering from misplaced empathy and worse than that – virtue signaling – (plus the addicts’ drug dealers, of course). People suffering from drug addiction should never be on the streets of Los Angeles. It is a crime in my eyes.

To bring up a wonderful annual event like the Taste of Larchmont, which was created to decrease people begging for money on the Boulevard many years ago, shows how out of touch the letter writer is with the good people of this area.

California’s and specifically Los Angeles’ leaders, like Eric Garcetti, have failed the great people of this city by growing the homeless population exponentially while in office. Sad to say that this is the mayor’s largest accomplishment in eight long years.

For the letter writer who prides herself as a “professional journalist” for a travel publication, I suggest she do a book on where to find the best homeless encampments in the U.S. This may appeal only to the virtue signalers who are fine with watching drug-infected “unhoused people” suffering in the sweltering heat on the streets of Los Angeles like Larchmont Boulevard. This homeless population guidebook could be enjoyed immensely by the writer as she saunters past the homeless on the way to fetch her pumpkin spice frappuccino at Starbucks.

Richard Battaglia, President Windsor Square Hancock

Park Historical Society City Controller election

It was the honor of my life to serve the people of Los Angeles and the State of California over a 20-year public

Larchmont Chronicle

Founded in 1963 by Jane Gilman and. Dawne P. Goodwin.

Publisher and Editor John H. Welborne Managing Editor Suzan Filipek Contributing Editor Jane Gilman Staff Writers Talia Abrahamson Casey Russell Helene Seifer Advertising Director Pam Rudy Advertising Sales including Classifieds Caroline Tracy Art Director Tom Hofer Circulation Manager Nona Sue Friedman Accounting Jill Miyamoto

(Please turn to page 12) Write us at letters@larchmontchronicle.com. Include your name, contact information and where you live. We reserve the right to edit for space and grammar.

‘What are your plans for Halloween?’

That’s the question inquiring photographer Casey Russell asked locals.

“I will probably just hand a bunch of candy out. The Common Elmwood [apartment complex on Norton Avenue] often has events and, if they have one, I’ll participate. Otherwise, I’ll walk around and see the cool costumes and hand out candy.” Boris Mulume Larchmont Village

“I’m actually making polymer clay skulls with exaggerated teeth and Frida Kahlo hair and flowers and I’ll sell them on the Boulevard on Halloween.” Artevisto Larchmont Village

“We are taking our daughter trick-or-treating for the first time! She’ll be dressed as a farmer and will ride in her little wagon.” Patrick, Glenda and Alba Diaz Windsor Village