curators of coastal culture
WARREN SEAMAN 1925-2015
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23155 MARIPOSA DE ORO ST. Tranquil and private Crestron™ one-story Hacienda residence set in a lush tropical landscaped oasis. This completely remodeled 3-bedroom Malibu estate, with a 2-bedroom guesthouse, is the ultimate in warmth, charm & impeccable craftsmanship. The main house offers a large great room w/imported stone fireplace & rich wood French doors that exit to a retreat-style pool/spa area with outdoor fireplace & BBQ Island for entertaining. The gourmet kitchen has a large wood block Island, beautiful cabinetry & chef quality appliances. A well-appointed owner’s suite w/stone fireplace, spa like bath & substantial closet space has double French doors that open to exotic sitting areas w/Zen-style pond. Two additional en-suite bedrooms, cozy media room, tennis court with viewing pavilion, outdoor gym, greenhouse & vegetable & citrus gardens help make this one-of-the most beautiful estates in the guard-gated enclave of Serra Retreat.
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CHRIS CORTAZZO MALIBU’S #1 AGENT 2000-2014 CalBRE# 01190363 29178 Heathercliff Rd. Malibu, CA. 90265 310.589.2472
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Founder, Editor in Chief
CECE S. WOODS Executive Editors
CURATORS OF COASTAL CULTURE
STEVE WOODS LINDA ATKINSON TRACEY ROSS Associate Publishers ADDISON ALTENDORF RON BERKES NICHOLAS BETTS
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Contributing Photographers JEFF HERRERA HANNAH RAY TAYLOR TIM HORTON Interns IZZY CHAVIRA
ISSUE 9, VOLUME 1 APRIL 2015
WARREN SEAMAN 1925-2015
Malibu Farm
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90265 ARE YOU A MALIBU INSIDER?
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MALIBU
LIVING ON
THE EDGE
by Steve Woods
Could new finds save a precious coastal protected viewshed ? Mega rockstar, U2 guitarist known worldwide as “The Edge” ( his real name is David Evans ) - edges closer to building mansions in an environmentally sensitive view shed, but now new found artifacts may shed light on a culturally important Chumash site and threaten the singer’s plans to build his ecofriendly compound. Could ancient Chumash artifacts be swept over The Edge or will the mansion project get the green light? The Chumash Indians inhabited the Southern and Central California coasts as long as 4,000 years ago, and settled in dozens of sites across Malibu. The city adopted it’s cultural preservation ordinance nearly three years ago in an effort to protect remnants of the area’s Native American culture. Malibu’s law directs the city archeologist to survey land where any commercial or residential development is proposed. When artifacts are discovered, pits or trenches are dug to search underground for additional artifacts. In cases of important archeological finds such as burial sites, archeologists excavate the land and remove artifacts, while property owners “cap” the site with dirt before construction or relocate the proposed structures elsewhere on the property. Property owners are required to pay all costs, including the tab for hiring private Native American monitors who--by state law--must be on hand to oversee archeologically sensitive construction sites. The letter below from archaeologist Chester King to the Coastal Commission addresses new finds in a highly visible coastal slope above Sweetwater Canyon owned by The Edge. The Irish musician has been trying to obtain permits for the mansions since 2006. His housing-development plans were rejected in 2011, due to concerns that the construction would disturb the environment and mar an undeveloped piece of the coastline. According to numbers provided by the Coastal Commission Deputy Director Jack Ainsworth, the access road was planned to be more than 6,000 feet long, but in the new proposal it will measure about 2,000 feet, and the houses will take up 4.3 acres, rather than the original 9.2 proposed acres. Mary Wiesbrock, chair of Save Open Spaces (SOS), a Santa Monica Mountains-based nonprofit that advocates conservation of natural scenery has been complaining that the Edge proposal violates the Coastal Act and added “How would the Irish like a rich American to come along and hang a mansion on their most visited attraction, the Cliffs of Moher?”
“How would the Irish like a rich American to come along and hang a mansion on their most visited attraction, the Cliffs of Moher?” - Mary Weisbrock, chair of Save Open Spaces
MALIBU
P AV I N G
by Cece Woods
PARADISE
LEFT: Local residents were “stumped” as they drove by the CalTrans work site while their tree cutting crew removed this giant eucalyptus tree. Residents feared that all of the trees would be coming down prematurely.
You think traffic is as bad as it gets now? With the potential widening of PCH to accommodate yet another shopping destination, our little slice of paradise could become a year round parking lot. The chopping down of a giant tree along Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu Lagoon last week put residents and visitors into a frenzy, and outraged them even more when they discovered the city’s plan to chop the remaining six trees down in order to widen the highway to accommodate more development in the Civic Center. Though, according to Caltrans, that one tree was eradicated because it was dead, the City last Friday released a proposal to chop down the famous row of trees under which many visitors and surfers utilize for free beach parking, located between Civic Center Way and the entrance to Malibu Colony Road. When the Malibu City Council seven years ago approved development of a shopping center, known as La Paz, adjacent to Malibu Library, it required the developer to widen Pacific Coast Highway at the Shell Station on the corner of the highway and Cross Creek Road. The proposed widening includes a right turn lane to handle increased traffic caused by the shopping center. Then, other developers also voiced their desires to use this same turn lane onto Cross Creek Road to handle the traffic influx caused by other developments. The problem, critics say, is that insufficient environmental studies have been conducted on widening Pacific Coast Highway at Malibu Lagoon, an area that is a buffer to an environmentally sensitive habitat area (also known as ESHA). In addition to the road widening into an ESHA buffer, the project includes the loss of trees (including a gigantic, very mature Sycamore tree) and construction of a 4-foot retaining wall abutting a state park, topped by a 40-inch railing. Critics say the road widening would substantially alter regional travel conditions, with alternatives and capacity not studied. Critics also oppose the City’s Environmental Impact Report, for the La Paz project, which states that the loss of the several mature trees along PCH can be mitigated by the developer’s plan to plant 10 one-gallon baby trees on one of the new developments. A detailed request for the City to withdraw the Draft Environmental Impact Report for the widening of Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu Lagoon, and prepare and circulate a new EIR for the entire La Paz Development Agreement Project was submitted to the city last week. UPDATE FROM KBU 97.5: City of Malibu applies brakes on proposed PCH lagoon widening, recommends delay til June on hearing. http://www.kbu.fm
GLASS QUEEN 25019 Pacific Coast Highway Malibu, CA. 90265 310-456-8546 glassqueenmalibu@gmail.com License #868190
RIGHT: Developers have set their sights on removing five more eucalyptus trees and two ancient native and protected sycamore trees to make way for the widening of PCH to accommodate more traffic into the proposed new commercial developments at Cross Creek.
MALIBU
CHUMASH DAYS
POW WOW
Very few people in Malibu understand its ancient coastal native culture as well as Brian Tieleman. I asked Brian, who attended Chumash days with his beautiful new daughter, if he would write a paragraph on what he experinced He is tuned into what many of us may miss, have lost or forgot and sometimes words simply cannot convey what we do not know or have forgotten but Brian does. - Steve Woods
By Brian Tieleman “A circle is the shape of the spirits intention,� so the Elders say. The dance, the dancers, move in circles...always in circles. Heels hitting on earthen blanket stirring a sleeping spirit waiting on the prayers waiting on the prayers of the people standing in this circle. The Chumash people shroud themselves in sun bleached red-tailed hawk feathers which carry the memory of different winds full of fields of so much wild sage flower pollen rising. Even the drum and its low base beat takes us back to beginnings, full circle to the heartbeat if our mothers while we were still housed in the water womb. And in the peripheral, out of our eyes corners in second sight, the ancestors, the Ghost dancers occupying the largely unseen, the shapes inside the solids, shuffle in straightbacked two step while fry bread puffs up in hot oil, neon green dream catchers twist in a slight breeze coming in from the kelp forests off shore and moving always in the circle... in the circle.
Photos by Tim Horton, timhortonphoto.com
INTERVIEW
NORMAN LEAR Creator/TV Executive Producer/Film Producer/Writer
“In my ninety plus years I’ve lived a multitude of lives. There was that early life with my parents and relatives; a life as a kid with my blood buddies Herbie Learner and the Schwartz twins; a life in high school zeroing in on the humor in our existence; a life in college cut short by World War II; a life as a crew member in a B-17 bomber flying fifty-two missions over Europe; a life in the world of entertainment, with sublives in television, radio, movies, and music; a life as a political activist; a life in philanthropy; a late-starting life as a spiritual seeker; three lives as a husband, six as a father (with my youngest born forty-eight years after my eldest), and four as a grandfather. In the course of all these lives, I had a front-row seat at the birth of television; wrote, produced, created, or developed more than a hundred shows; had nine on the air at the same time; finished one season with three of the top four, and another with five of the top nine; hosted Saturday Night Live; wrote, directed, produced, executive-produced, or financed more than a dozen major films; before normalization, led an entourage of Hollywood writers and producers on a three-week tour of China; founded several cause-oriented national organizations, including the 300,000-member liberal advocacy group People for the American Way; was told by the New York Times that I changed the face of television; was labeled the “No. 1 enemy of the American family” by Jerry Falwell; was warned by Pat Robertson that my arms were “too short to box with God”; made it onto Richard Nixon’s “Enemies List”; was presented with the National Medal of the Arts by President Clinton; purchased an original copy of the Declaration of Independence and toured it for ten years in all fifty states; was ranked by Entertainment Weekly 40th among the “100 Greatest Entertainers of the Century” (29 spots ahead of the Sex Pistols); ran the Olympic torch in the 2002 Winter Olympics; blew a fortune on a series of bad investments in failing businesses; and reached a point where I was advised that we might even have to sell our home. -Norman Lear (Excerpt from his book Even This I Get To Experience).
On Having the Courage to Pursue All in the Family:
BK: Norman was being given the go ahead from the president of CBS and Fred Silverman…to move forward with 13 episodes of “All in the Family,” (after 2 failed pilot attempts at ABC) exactly at the time he was being offered a 3-picture (film) deal from a huge movie studio. All you wanted, back then…movies were king…and television was a second-class citizen. And everyone in his life was telling him to take the sure thing, the 3-picture deal. Because in television, there’s no guarantees. NL: They were saying “write, produce, and direct Norman!” There were only a couple of others (in the film world doing that), there was Blake Edwards and Woody Allen. They were writing, producing, and directing. “You’ll be able to do that!” everyone said to me. My wife wanted me desperately to do that. BK: Every single person in your life tells you to do something, and your gut tells you, you know what, I’m not going to listen to all these people…How do you go against everybody who tells you that? NL: Because… I had great common sense. They didn’t want me to take a chance. I had common sense enough to know that if this show didn’t work, it was 3 months out of my life. And the people who wanted a 3 picture (movie) contract would still be there…I believed it. It didn’t seem that much of a chance, to me. BK: Carroll O’Connor didn’t believe it though. NL: Well, he didn’t believe it for another reason. He thought the American people would hate it.
BK: I think it’s important to tell the audience about what happened a couple of hours before the first episode aired. NL: We had had obviously a lot of discussion about the script. But we made the show, and the last discussion was about one line
of Archie’s, that simply, from a network standpoint, had to come out. The story for this had to do with: it was a Sunday morning. The Bunkers were at church. Mike and Gloria, the youngsters, had the place alone. They were fixing a brunch—a surprise brunch for the Bunkers anniversary. Mike was aware they had the house alone, which they didn’t have that often. So after they finished with the balloons, and pancakes, and everything was ready, he wanted to get her upstairs. And he did get her upstairs. But as soon as they got up there, the front door opens. The Bunkers come in, they’re fighting because he, Archie, hated the sermon, hated the minister, and walked out early. And they come in and notice the balloons, and the kids, knowing they’re here, come running down the stairs guiltily. Archie assess the situation and he says [disapprovingly] “…11:10 of a Sunday morning.” And they [the network] said that has to come out. “Why does it have to come out?“ “Well it makes very specific….and you know right away what the hell he’s talking about.” “But they’re married! On top of everything else, so what if they know? It makes it specific,” sure, but they’re married.” “You don’t want people imagining that at 8 o’clock in the evening, you know, kids and families.” That went on until I don’t know, a half-hour before the show was to go on the air in New York, which is 3 hours before here of course. That’s when I got a call from Fred Silverman (the VP at CBS), who said the fight was going all the way to the very end. They had the right and the ability to take the line out, and edit it out in New York.
BK: If I remember your book properly, he said “How about this, Norman, we’ll keep the line in, but we’ll air the second episode tonight, and we’ll air this episode next week.” And what did you tell him? NL: “I wont be here tomorrow.” The first episode was geared - that’s why it’s a simple little storyline - to show 360 degrees of Archie. You’ve gotta swallow all of him so there are no surprises later. And that’s why I cared about that first script being the first (episode that aired). BK: But how did you know instinctually? Because you had such opposition…and there’s so many ways to handle opposition. There’s a hundred ways to navigate, but you had decided… You weren’t going to back down. How did you know instinctively in your career at that stage in the game (to do that)? NL: You have to understand. Listen, I knew the script could get along without that line. Easy. But, I thought the point of view that dictated “I must take that out” was silly. Now, you can’t give in to silly. Because if you do, you’re a prisoner of it forever. BK: Was there ever a line where a Standards and Practices guy came to you, ever in your entire career, and said “I don’t give a shit what you say, you can threaten you’re not going to be here tomorrow, that line is coming out right now.” Like you have a line, for instance, Lionel’s engagement, where the episode had the “N” word in it. Now I can’t imagine that the networks was doing handstands to keep that line in. But it was pivotal and really important to the episode, and again, that scene ended so beautifully - and I’m a savant when it comes to remembering this - with Archie and George Jefferson at the bar, of all people, basically saying…that those were the days. There had to be a line where you lost a battle. NL: At the head of program practices, these guys were executives. Smart. Reasonable. They had to take positions they felt because they were working for this colossus. [Laughs] It’s funny. All these colossuses that couldn’t deal with 30 letters or 300 letters out of all those millions of viewers. Thinking of it in that context, it couldn’t be funnier. BK: So if Archie Bunker were influenced by the visions of…your experiences with your parents…was “Maude” the inspiration behind all the crazy relatives coming to your house…is that what is was? NL: Yes…and Carroll O’Connor by the way, I fell in love with his face in a Blake Edwards film “ hat Did You Do in the War Daddy.” He walked in, read 8 lines of the first page of my script, and I said “You’re it.” The good fortune was that I had seen him, but he won the role. I mean, I didn’t do anything, but understand that the way he was reading it, was hilarious. BK: Smaller in physical stature? NL: In physical stature. You know, someone who could beat on him from below. And I knew that Sherman would be perfect. A little peacock of a guy. BK: When you were writing these episodes did you think ahead, or was it how America responded to George Jefferson and the family that you said “OK, this could be it’s own show?” NL: When we had [Isabel Sanford], who lived down the block. And then when Michael announced that his family was moving in down the block, we introduced (her). And then the actor
that played the uncle, and then I thought of George, of Sherman Hemsley. And then we had the family. I recall bringing George Jefferson into “All in the Family,” and the network began to see the family developing. There’s a son, a mother, a father. There’s our show.
INTERVIEW
“MY SHOWS WERE NOT THAT CONTROVERSIAL WITH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. THEY WERE CONTROVERSIAL WITH THE PEOPLE WHO THINK FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.” -Norman Lear
BK: What was the inspiration for Good Times? How did that come about in your mind (as it related to “Sanford and Son”)? Because it almost felt like “Sanford and Son” was to African-American people what “All in the Family” was to white people. NL: Well it was to a point, but …”Sanford and Son” and Redd (Foxx), personally, had an enormous impact. But in terms of the family sense you’re talking about…“Good Times.” And that started because Esther Roll playing Florida on “Maude,” was such an interesting character—the audience enjoyed her so much. We brought John Amos on “Maude” to be her husband a couple of times and the network saw the beginning of a family—this time—a black family. BK: And the Jeffersons. You had Sherman Hemsley come on (one season of “All in the Family,” and he became a guest star—recurring. Did you have the intention of eventually doing a show called “The Jeffersons,” (because of) the way he popped off the screen and he did so well? Did that inspire you to do the show? NL: No. The Jeffersons lived next door. There was another actor out of San Francisco, whose name I can’t remember, who played an uncle. The reason was I needed an authoritative, mature man, so I made him an uncle because I didn’t have in mind the person who could be George Jefferson. And it was in the second year, or maybe towards the end of the first year…that I…was reminded of Sherman Hemsley, whom I had seen in the show, a musical called “Pearly.” And the minute I thought of him in that show, I knew I had George Jefferson. Because I wanted a smaller guy than Archie. BK: And after “Sanford and Son,” (was sold to NBC) they (CBS) weren’t going to let anything go again. NL: [Laughs] No. And they didn’t. I have to say, about “Sanford and Son,” (my partner) Bud and I fell in love with Redd Fox in Las Vegas. We brought him in…sold it to NBC…under the roof of CBS. Past that, I had nothing to do with “Sanford and Son.” People have to know how California is; there’s one side of the hill, and another. NBC was on one side of the hill, CBS was on the other. All my activity was in the three shows [at CBS], then a fourth, and a fifth.
BK: I’ll tell you why it’s obvious that you had nothing to do with “Sanford and Son” after it left the lot and went over the hill (to NBC). Because “Sanford and Son” was all comedy, all the
time.
NL: Yes. BK: And your other shows were comedy, dramedy, drama. I listened to your book on tape, and I listened to the story you told about Carroll O’Connor and the famous (“All in the Family”) show in the elevator. Basically the entire episode took place in an elevator, with an African-American white-collar businessman, a Latino couple with a woman about to give birth, and Archie. And the fights that you had with Carroll O’Connor because he didn’t believe it would be made and how the comedy and the drama…and I remember…and I’m going cry here probably, because, at the end of this episode, because you can’t show a birth, all this back and forth, and all this tension, and racial [issues] happening, and Archie just seeing the birth of a child. And the birth of the child was just shown on this man’s (Archie’s) face, who for three or four days, with lawyers, and agents, and not showing up, saying “I’m not going to do this…this will never work.” And in the end, [Carroll O’Connor] put down his guard; he believed in you, (and) you made him feel safe. You have to make a man feel safe enough to go into an elevator for 22 minutes and 30 seconds of a show, and deliver that kind of performance…and it was one of the greatest shows in the history of television in my mind—all taking place in a six-by-eight foot box. They [“Sanford and Son”] never did that. That’s how you can tell your stamp, (and) although was [there] in the beginning, it was not there in the end. NL: I loved the way you told that, I was so tired of my voice, I love yours. BK: What advice do you have for the young executive or young person who wants to be in this business on the writing and creative side…and the artist, the comedian, and (or) the actor to get to the point or the level that some of the stars of your shows got to? NL: The actor and the comedian…I would say you have an agent…but don’t sit around for waiting for your agents phone call. Get off your asses and go to where there are publications that tell you everything that’s going on in this business…who’se shooting what…and get where you have to go…if you know there’s a role you might be right for…get there and make sure people know you’re alive and you want it. Know that you can go to the same desk 100 times…you’ve got to forget that you might be (perceived as) a pain in the ass. You won’t be, because if you are doing it right, somebody’s going to take notice, but you have to do things that someone will take notice of. BK: And the executive, the writer, the person on the other side (of the camera)? NL: Go with your gut. George S. Kaufman—no one ever gave better advice to a writer—he said… “Write!” I would add to that…”with your gut.” Go with your gut! BARRY KATZ is a theatrical comedy manager and tv/film producer who lives in Malibu. His podcast, INDUSTRY STANDARD, takes you behind the curtain of the entertainment industry with a new episode every week, featuring inspirational interviews with some of the most powerful people in Hollywood. At the date of this article, the podcasts that Katz has appeared on have been downloaded over 3 million times. (You can reach Barry at barrykatz.com or on Twitter @barrykatz)
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FEATURE
WARREN
SEAMAN
OCEAN GOING 1925-2015
On the beach at the Malibu Yacht Club, which was just east of the Malibu Pier, about where Nobu is now. Photo courtesy the Seaman family.
By Ben Marcus In the narration for The Endless Summer, Bruce Brown mentions sailing Malibu Outriggers and there is a quick shot of a bunch of funny-looking catamarans flying around in the northwest winds. The Malibu Outrigger was a derivation of a Hawaiian sailing outrigger that could be sailed by more than one person, but was single-handedly designed and built by Warren Seaman. The Gods got it right when they named this guy, because from his first raft made of hot water heaters in Atlantic City when he was 12, to his pioneering work with multihulls in the 40s and 50s, to his innovation of the Malibu Outrigger – Warren Seaman was all about small and big ships, on the water – and the free and easy life he lived, through the Golden Years of Los Angeles and Malibu – after the war and the second half of the 20th Century. Warren Seaman passed March 3 at the age of 89. He will be missed by friends and family, but it’s hard to feel too bad for a man who lived a life of adventure and innovation, and was one of those happy few to live in Los Angeles and Malibu after World War II and into the 1950s – in what Miki Dora called “The Golden Age” of southern California life. The Malibu Outrigger was a sporty little day sailer, according to Diego Sandiego on the Duckworks.com website: Like many Marines, Warren Seaman had been stationed on Maui during the war, and later when he saw a sailing outrigger under the Malibu pier, he thought he could do a little better. At nearly 19’ x 11’, with 190 square feet of sail they became the most popular of beach outriggers built at the Malibu Yacht Club, a club located on the beach, and in those days populated with carpenters, plumbers, movie extras, and not a celebrity in sight. An egalitarian bunch looking for a cheap thrill from their backyard boats launched through the surf, and still faster to Catalina Island than big shots from the marinas. Phil Edwards, Mike Eaton and a lot of famous sailors and surfers learned their ocean skills sailing Malibu Outriggers and in fact it was Warren Seaman who helped beget the most popular and famous multi-hull of all time. In 1968, Seaman was at the Outrigger Yacht Club in Hawaii when he saw a little 14-foot catamaran that had been carved from foam by a guy named Hobie Alter, who claimed he had copied the asymmetric shape from designs by Rudy Choy, Alfred Kumalae and Warren Seaman. According to Warren Seaman: “Hobie asked, ‘Do you think I should put a centerboard on it?’ and I said, ‘It’s super as it is. You’ve got the rudders, which kick up on the beach and in the surf line, and if you have a centerboard on it, that will be more work to sail and it will cost more. Hobie said, ‘Oh thank you, thank you.’” But there’s more to Warren Seaman than the Malibu Outrigger and the Hobie Cat. His charmed life began in Philadelphia, where he was born to his mother Mary who was 43 when she had him. The family moved to Atlantic City, where Warren worked at a boatyard, and improvised a raft out of two water heaters. He would ride the tide a mile or two down the channel, and then ride it back in – using a broom pole and cement sack to catch the afternoon wind. His nickname was Robinson Crusoe. His family moved across country and wound up in Playa del Rey, at the end of the LAX runway, on Rindge Avenue – if you are looking for a Malibu connection. Seaman found lots of adventure in the salt marshes of Ballona Creek, and used the school woodshop to build a “sneak box” - a small craft based on New Jersey clammers: “The salt marshes around Ballona Creek were very similar to what I had grown up with in New Jersey,” Seaman was quoted in the hangtag for Malibu Shirts. “I bugged that poor woodshop teacher to help me with this thing, and it got bigger and bigger and I think I got him scolded in the end, because once the thing was built we had to take it out through the window of the Culver City Grammar School. The boat started at eight feet and ended up around 12 feet by the time I put the foredeck and back end. I could row it, and I took a two-by-four and screwed a rail track on it and used it for a mast, with a drop cloth for a sail. I sailed it from Santa Monica Pier to Ocean Park and Ballona Creek, and then I’d take the stick down and go into Ballona Creek… I could get the boat in and out of (there) when there wasn’t big surf, and then I just left it there. Other kids threw rocks at it, and, at some point, someone stole it, because I went down to get my boat and it wasn’t there.” When World War II broke out Warren was only 15, but he joined as soon as he could. Ironically, the Navy wouldn’t take him. He had a cool last name but didn’t have a high school diploma, so he joined the Marine Corps, and that took him around the world to Hawai’i, Guam, and China.
FEATURE After the war, Seaman settled in Venice, where he worked as a carpenter and raised his two sons, Roy and Gary, with wife Larene. Like Warren, a lot of servicemen had learned to surf and sail during the war, and the ocean life in Los Angeles boomed after World War II. Seaman was still sailing and tried surfing at Malibu, at first on a crummy plywood “kook box” and then moving up to modern balsa boards from Dale Velzy and Joe Quigg. Gordon Quigg, son of Joe, remembered: “Joe Quigg took Warren Seaman on his first catamaran ride on the 20-foot cat that Joe made in Aggie’s mom’s back yard on Hartzell Street in the Palisades in 1950. Joe also made Warren several boards in ‘51, ‘52, and ‘53. Joe had started a cat in that back yard, but it was taking a long time. Matt Kivlin whipped out a 16’ sailing outrigger which was simply made from several sheets of plywood, fashioned after the outriggers that some guys had brought back from the south Pacific after the war, which became the inspiration for the Malibu Outrigger. He and Joe and Aggie built them and started the Malibu Yacht Club. They also started and ran the Malibu Surf Club, through 1950, ‘51, ‘52, and ‘53. Warren and his wife took over the MYC as Joe and Aggie moved to Hawaii in ‘53, and Matt became busy in architectural school, at which point the Malibu scene started its change from the originals to waves of characters and the rest is history.” Seaman was one of the original members of the Malibu Yacht Club, which described the Malibu Outrigger as “18’ 9” long, with 11’ 8” beam and 4’ 5” draft with daggerboard down, and 5” draft with daggerboard up. The main sail has an area of 192 square feet. The hull is made of wood and the spars are wood.” The Malibu Yacht Club was an amalgamation of the old Malibu Yacht Club from Paradise Cove and Joe Quigg and Matt Kivlin’s Catamaran Club. The Malibu Yacht Club was located east of the Malibu Pier, where the Pier View Café was and where Nobu is now.
Warren Seaman was one of the core gang of sailors, and around 1955, he donated the plans for that boat – which came to be known as a “Malibu Outrigger” – to the Malibu Yacht Club. “To join the Malibu Yacht Club, you had to own a yacht or be in the process of building one,” Seaman was quoted in the Malibu Shirts hangtag. “Some of the old timers were afraid we would become a beach club with tennis courts and volleyball and all that, so it was a requirement that you had to be at least building a boat when you signed on, and had to have that boat completed to become a full member.” Seaman’s boat-building activities weren’t reserved for small outriggers or Malibu. In 1955, Seaman fell in with Hawaiians Rudy Choy, Alfred Kumalae and Woody Brown, three pioneers of multi-hull yachts – which at the time were the fastest sailing boats in the world. When Seaman met the men, their hair was still standing up from making a Hawaii to Los Angeles crossing of nine days on the 40’ Waikiki Surf. That’s 3000 miles plus in nine days, sailing before the wind. That is fast. The Waikiki Surf wasn’t allowed in the annual Trans-Pac race back to Honolulu, but Duke Kahanamoku was the official pit crew and all in all, those boat guys made a name for themselves and these ultra-fast multi-hulls they were producing. Cappy Sheeley is a Hawaiian resident who explained this photo: “The catamaran is Jim Arness’s “Sea Smoke” built by Rudy Choy, Alfred Kumalae and Warren. I was surfing at Ala Moana that day when they finished, when this picture was taken. After the finish when they got to the entrance of the Ala Wai channel, Rolf Arness jumped off the boat with his surfboard and joined us for about an hour. Meanwhile the crew was at the dock celebrating the crossing. Can’t remember if they broke the record or just missed it.”
Choy was an engineer who moved to the mainland to work for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He had access to materials that were classified at the time, and they went into making yachts that were faster, lighter, stronger. Choy and Seaman teamed up to make a thoroughly modern 24-foot catamaran: “We rented a chicken coop right down the street from my house in Venice, and turned it into a workshop,” Seaman said. “Some of the engineers from Douglas (Aircraft) would come by on their lunch breaks and check out this new ‘high-tech’ boat. They said we were crazy, that we wouldn’t be able to make the fiberglass bond with the foam. What they didn’t know is we were using this new epoxy resin that was still kind of top secret. Douglas was using it to make all moveable parts like ailerons on their planes, but these engineers were in a different division.”
Seaman was part of a four-man crew that finished 11th place in a yacht race to Acapulco. After that, Choy built the 44-foot Aikane and his boats were in constant demand from wealthy, speed-demon yachtsmen around the world: “Before too long,” Seaman said. “we were operating out of an office in Newport Beach and a boatyard in Venice, building two catamarans a year, from 46 to 58 feet, under the C/S/K banner, which stood for Choy/Seaman/Kumalae.” C/S/K were busy through the 1960s, building yachts non-stop, competing in races and commuting back and forth to Hawaii, either by yacht or by plane. Through all that time, the Malibu Yacht Club and the Malibu Outrigger prospered and flourished, getting noticed by Bruce Brown in The Endless Summer and elsewhere.
LIFESTYLE It was 1968 when Seaman chatted with Hobie Alter at the Outrigger Yacht Club, and clued the young, eager Californian into how to apply a centerboard to his 14 foot catamaran. The popularity of the Malibu Outrigger began to fade into the 1970s - usurped by the Hobie Cat. Warren Seaman was done with C/S/K by 1970 and moved to Topanga, while his son Roy moved into Latigo where he and his family have been long-time residents. Roy inherited his father’s passion for the ocean and yachts and multi-hulls. If you saw the 1999 film THE THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR, that was Roy Seaman dumping that high-tech catamaran, standing in and going over for Pierce Brosnan. The Seaman name has become synonymous with ocean adventure around Malibu. Mike Bright remembered: “After I got by the Dora and Tube Steak persona that Malibu beach took on, the name ‘Seaman’ kept reoccurring. He became a legend as an ocean man.” I ran into Roy Seaman one day at Latigo. He was poling a small barge out to anchor. It had a center console and a small motor: “the perfect dive platform.” I thought this was the best diving invention for local reefs I had yet seen. I don’t think he made it for commercial purposes. That family loved the ocean. Janis Barberi lived in Malibu from 1959 to 1983 and describes herself as “the real deal, quintessential, fourth-generation California girl thru and thru! Free Spirit would also be accurate, if used in the right context.” Janis remembers the Seaman family fondly:
ABOVE: Warren Seaman on a Malibu Outrigger with a lovely friend who puts the “lass” in “ballast.” Photo courtesy Seaman family.
“I met Warren thru Roy, and I knew Roy very well from the time I was 15 years old. I sailed with him many, many times locally and back and forth from Latigo to Catalina. The very first time I ever sailed on a catamaran or any sail boat for that matter was on Warren’s 40’ custom racing Cat he kept anchored off Latigo Shores. A truly impressive catamaran! Warren and his wife took Roy and I on it to Catalina on a chaperoned trip. What a thrill! I was hooked! We also went on a race on the same Cat with his father which Warren won, sorry but can’t remember which race or where it was. The win was not official as his Cat was so fast the other single hull sail boats didn’t have a chance and at the time there wasn’t a class for it. To this day the Catamaran is my favorite boat thanks to Warren and his son. I learned how to a sail a Cat all by myself in Hawaii just from spending so much time sailing with Roy and from the confidence he instilled. On one trip coming back from Catalina on Roy’s 19’ Nacra, we hit really rough and choppy seas late in the day: High waves and very high winds that made the waves even bigger. With Roy’s instruction I stayed out on the trapeze and kept it balanced. Although it was super scary for me at first, I ended up having one of the most memorable sailing adventures and the most fun ever! I have never forgotten how wonderful those days were... I learned a lot about sailing from being around his dad and mostly from sailing with Roy. My favorite place was to be out on the trapeze with Roy at the helm. I never worried when sailing with him and felt privileged to have been able to go sailing with such masters of the sea! We also tandem surfed together. I also remember Roy swimming out to the 40 foot cat during a huge storm one winter. He was such a powerful swimmer and it was getting dark with really huge storm waves. He swam quite far out to move it “by himself”…I was always amazed with his waterman skills….”
Warren Seaman in 1953 Labor Day Race
On March 14, over a hundred friends and family met at the home of Roy and Babette Seaman in Latigo to remember Warren Seaman. They met next door to the house Warren built in 1964 and is still owned by the family. According to Babette Seaman, Barry Choy – the son of Rudy Choy – came from Hawaii to honor Warren: “It meant a lot to us that he came and I know it would have meant a lot to Warren as well. He paid tribute to Warren by explaining his significance in catamaran design and evolution. He also told a story about Warren sailing in Massachusetts in front of the Kennedy compound. JFK came out and somehow Warren took him for a ride. I don’t know what boat he was on at the time but it’s a good story.” The celebration included a paddle out where some of Warren’s ashes were given back to the sea – the place where he was so comfortable, and sailed so fast. With information from the Malibu Shirts shirt tag for Warren Seaman.
Roy Seaman learning water skills with Warren at the Santa Monica Pier, circa 1947. Photo courtesy Seaman family.
M
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MOTHER’S DAY Mother’s Day is around the
Make Mother’s Day a day at the beach with the original “roundie” beach towel, new from Australia.
corner and Bu Beach House has just the perfect gift! Visit them at the newly renovated Trancas Country Mart.
In stock now: Malibu local and proprietress of the uber popular Malibu Farm Helene Henderson’s Malibu Farm Cookbook.
KAI FRAGRANCE is a sexy, intoxicating blend of gardenia mingled with white exotics.
Fresh water pearl bracelets with a vintage button clasp. A unique gift idea for mom.
UNIQUE GIFTS COASTAL INSPIRED FURNISHINGS CUSTOM BEDDING, ONE-OF-A-KIND VINTAGE PIECES EXQUISITE TABLE TOP AND SO MUCH MORE...
30745 PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY BUILDING R, SUITE 3 MALIBU, CA. 90265 310-457-5600
Any mom will surely be inspired with design and coffee table books. Check out the selection at Bu Beach House.
5811 ROUND MEADOW HIDDEN HILLS 91302
Exquisite Southern French Estate nestled in the exclusive gated /private community of Hidden Hills on appx. 1.5 lushly landscaped acres. Boasting 10,180 square feet this 6 bedroom 10 bath home offers the utmost in handcrafted quality & design with walnut floors, elegant marble/stone finishes, with custom steel windows & doors. Perfect for grand or casual living, this timeless home offers a grand entry; formal living with fireplace & dining room; large family room with fireplace; European- style gourmet kitchen; elegant owners suite with fireplace, walls of glass, private balcony and spa bath; projection media room; walnut paneled library; 3,500 bottle wine cellar; mirrored gym; 6 car garages and so much more. The resort-style manicured grounds, with Medicistyle flowing fountain is graced with pool & spa, patio with hand crafted pizza oven, BBQ island, planting beds, children’s play area, rose garden and exotic fruit orchard. Also included are two guest homes (1,300 and 1,200 square feet each) with two car garages.”
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MALIBU Weight loss starts in the mind. Become lighter, let go of what doesn’t serve us, put the baggage down, along with all the excuses of why we can’t. You can’t complain about your inability to lose weight while eating a candy bar or cupcake! Now, if all you do is eat a candy bar or cupcake in a day, you will lose weight, that’s science (caloric intake), but you will likely be more susceptible to health issues, and goodness knows what else. Eating should be something we do mindfully to fortify and infuse our cells. Yes, we can count calories and lose weight, but healthy eating is about treating yourself well… not punishing or strictly adhering to a diet theory. Honor your body with primary foods that feed your soul as well as your body and mind. A friend told me about a spa she was at for a few days that cost a small fortune... It’s time to “trick” our brains into living our lives with a spa mentality, throughout every day, into everything we do. Dieting is all well and good but the trouble with it is, and always has been, once the diet ends we tend to revert to our old habits. This is a proven theory!
Trick your brain and
COUNT your CARBS By Diana Nicholson
The human brain is the most complex object in the universe. It tends to work in mysterious ways. It’s the brain that ultimately determines whether we should or should not eat. Interestingly, there are a few things you can do to “trick” your brain into thinking that it has eaten more food. Use a smaller plate for one! If I had to pick one diet over another, my choice would be to focus on restricting and counting carbohydrate calories. When you limit carbs in your diet (which have 4 calories per gram), you will eat fewer total calories overall. You’ll be eating more foods that signal your body that you are full and satisfied. The key is to feel satisfied after a meal. There are three main types of carbohydrates: Starches (also known as complex carbohydrates) Sugars Fiber You’ll also hear terms like naturally occurring sugar, added sugar, low-calorie sweeteners, sugar alcohols, reduced-calorie sweeteners, processed grains, enriched grains, complex carbohydrates, sweets, refined grains and whole grains. Knowing what kind and how much carbohydrate to eat can be confusing! On the nutrition label, the term “total carbohydrate” includes all three types of carbohydrates. This is the number you should pay attention to if you are carbohydrate counting.
Be aware of added sugars such as fruit canned in heavy syrup or sugar added to make a cookie or pie.
For good health, adults need to try to eat 25 to 30 grams of fiber each day. Most Americans do not consume nearly enough fiber in their diet, so while it is wise to aim for this goal, any increase in fiber in your diet can be beneficial. Most of us only get about half of what is recommended. Fiber contributes to digestive health, helps to keep you regular, and helps to make you feel full and satisfied after eating. Additional health benefits of a diet high in fiber — such as a reduction in cholesterol levels — have been suggested by some so may be an additional benefit. It is best to get your fiber from food rather than taking a supplement. In addition to the fiber, these foods have a wealth of nutrition, containing many important vitamins and minerals. In fact, they may contain nutrients that haven’t even been discovered yet! A helpful tool is a calorie counting app for your phone. If your goal is to lose weight, then eating healthy and counting carb calories will certainly assist you in that endeavor. Check out calorie counting apps such as “HealthWatch360” GenBen Lifesciences For more information go to www.malibubeachpilates.com
For increased fiber, think black beans, kidney beans, pintos, chick peas (garbanzos), white beans, and lentils.
PAULA MARCHETTI
HAIR Paula Marchetti H A I R delivers fresh new beauty trends that resonate the Malibu lifestyle 3900 Cross Creek Rd. (inside the Beauty Collection ) Malibu, CA. 90265 310-317-4247 A full service salon, specializing in corrective color and styling
MALIBU
The Partners Trust Charitable Fund, a 501(c)3 charitable organization, is raising funds for a local causes including L.A. Family Housing, Para Los Niños, and Concern Foundation. In addition to the donations that the Partners Trust Associates contribute from every transaction, the team raises funds through a series of charity rides in partnership with SoulCycle. The next ride is May 3rd at the Malibu studio located in the Malibu Country Mart. The community is invited to donate, join and spend 45 minutes sweating and cheering for a good cause. You will leave inspired and exhilarated!
COUNTDOWN to
Starts MAY 1st at Casa Escobar Malibu!
CINCO DE MAYO
Cinco De Mayo celebrations start May 1st with Casa Escobar’s countdown to one of their biggest events of the year. ABOVE: Casa Escobar has new artisan cocktail recipes that taste amazing with or without alcohol. Try the Canyon Cooler with jalapenos, mint and lime and Pelegrino.
Enjoy drink specials and food specials including $1.50 STREET TACOS ( served all five days! ) and TABLESIDE GUACAMOLE where you can customize with your favorite seasonings and additions like cilantro, onion, pomegranate and sunflower seeds. Sponsors for the CINCO DE MAYO COUNTDOWN at CASA ESCOBAR include: PATRON, KARMA TEQUILA, DON JULIO, CORONA, DOS EQUIS, MODELO and TECATE just to name a few! Good food and great views are waiting for you at Casa Escobar across from the Malibu Pier. - 22969 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, CA. 90265 310-456-1999
Casamigos Tequila owned by Malibu local Rande Gerber is one of the sponsors of the Cinco De Mayo festivities at Casa Escobar.
Food specials like $1.50 street tacos ( above ) are served all five days for the Cinco De Mayo Countdown starting May 1st.
Casa Escobar “Serving authentic Mexican cuisine since 1946”
22969 Pacific Coast Hwy Malibu, CA 90265 310.456.1999
HAPPY HOUR Mon. - Fri. 3-7 p.m.
2809 Agoura Rd, Westlake Village, CA 91361 805.777.7747
Photo: teddymcdonald.com
LIFESTYLE
THE
BOSTON
MARATHON O N E
Y E A R
L AT E R
7 steps to living an abundant life. And it’s not about money or things. By Ted Mc Donald My friend sent me a Facebook message reading, “Happy Anniversary!” I wasn’t sure what he meant, then I looked at the photo in the message. It was me, crossing the finish line at the Boston Marathon, one year ago. On April 20th thousands of runners did the same. It’s the pinnacle of marathons. It’s one of the few races you have to qualify for, which means you have to train hard and run fast. Most people will never run the Boston Marathon, it will be some weird thing that “those crazy runners” do. Well, I’m one of those crazy runners. And I’ll tell you, that particular event was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I set my goal to run the Boston Marathon about 10-12 years ago and simply never got around to it. Then the bombing happened in 2013 and I vowed to train, qualify and run, in honor of those who were hurt and killed. I wanted to run to show support for a sport that is so dear to my heart. I trained, I qualified and I ran! It was an incredible experience that words cannot explain. To be in the midst of 36,000 runners and over a million spectators all standing up for freedom is something I will never forget. And to have one of my dearest friends and my wife supporting me along the way made it so much sweeter. But now what? Where do I go from there? When you find something you love, you want to do it more and more. I’ve learned that a lot of us lack things that we love. I encourage you to search. Search high and low! Life is made up of experiences and if you are too busy trying to make money, gain power and buy things, you’re bound to continue filling an empty hole that will not give back what you put in. Start setting experiential goals. When you set a goal that is a physical event, for instance, you have to train for it. It doesn’t have to be a running race, it can be a century ride or a hike to the top of Kilimanjaro. If that’s too big, then something smaller and closer to home. A 5k, a 10k, or an active vacation with the family are great places to start. Your imagination is your limit. That’s what I want you to do. Think of something super cool that will be a challenge. Something that you’ll have to train for. Rowing, cycling, hiking, running, triathlon, paddling, or anything else you can think of. Find a race or a ride. I’m not saying you need to be competitive, I’m saying you have to participate. Find something the whole family can participate in. Life is flying by and if we don’t jump in the mud now it’s going to be too late! Life isn’t perfect, but when you’re willing to live it to the fullest you’ll get the most out of it. It will have it’s ups and downs, but if you’re challenging yourself and you’re willing to look inside to examine your life, you will continue to be rewarded by your efforts.
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LIFESTYLE CROSS CREEK FARM
PONY
CAMP
Cross Creek Farm offers pony camp throughout the summer, weekly from Tuesday through Friday. In addition to lessons on horseback, students will learn a variety of horse care skills, and will establish a connection to the horses outside of time in the saddle. Activities each day will vary, and campers will enjoy games, arts and crafts, and observing various equine professionals such as veterinarians and blacksmiths. Students are encouraged to participate with grooming, feeding, and caring for the horses and learning the importance of human’s roles in a well-balanced horse. No previous riding experience is necessary, we offer camp to riders ages 4-15. Contact: crosscreekmalibu@gmail.com 310.650.7146
CROSS CREEK FARM Malibu, California
H U N T E R S, J U M P E R S, E Q U I T A T I O N, P O N I E S
LESSON HORSE PROGRAM Welcoming riders of all ages and abilities We have a quality selection of horses and ponies for sale or lease. Lesley Bulechek (310) 909-3883 Diane Dufau (310) 650-7146 Karli Postel (805) 496-6057 3661 Cross Creek Rd. Malibu, CA. 90265
PETS
CANINE CONVERSATIONS THE
ALPHA
By Robert Cabral
ROLE
One of the greatest mistakes we make as humans is to place our “ways” upon our dogs. Humans and canines see things quite differently. Mainly, canines strive for pack structure and seek out an alpha leader. This is different than we see it as humans, so I ask you to open your mind. Humans see a dominant role, or a leader as something oppressive or totalitarian. Dogs however see this as a sense of security. When dogs have a leader they understand this leader’s job and respect it. It is rarely challenged once properly established and there is a great deal of comfort and security that the dog gets from having this firmly established in his life and in his pack. If you are looking to provide a sense of stability and security to your dog, there are several things you should establish right away. Remember, a dog’s training can, and should take effect immediately. We do not slowly change a situation for a dog. If the new rule says, No furniture.. It is immediate. We do not let them on the sofa for a ½ hour and then ask them to leave. New rules are put into place immediately and are not worked in gradually. Let’s start with this, if you are establishing yourself as your dog’s leader, EVERYTHING belongs to you and YOU share it with your dog. This includes, food, toys, time, affection, furniture, etc. Allowing your dog to see that you are the leader will allow him to see himself as a lower ranking member of the pack that needs to be protected and he will look to his leader for guidance. One thing I like to use to teach structure is “I eat first.” That means I eat, and when I am done, my dog eats. I put his food down, walk away and allow him to eat. Leaders Lead.. SIMPLE… I use the leadership role as a method of teaching my dog what is right and wrong. I believe that when a dog has a solid grasp on the concept of leadership, we can have a fun and harmonious life together. The key thing to remember in getting your dog to see you as a leader is less emotion. As tempted as you are to cuddle and kiss your dog, you are not doing him any favors by doing this during this phase of training, at the end it’s great, but being firm with your dog during the command phase will give more value to your praise at the end. Your dog will have some challenges when you are constantly cuddling and kissing him. This is not to say that a new dog gets no affection, rather he gets affection for things he has done. Affection is a form of reward that I use with my dogs every single day. Giving a dog constant affection and never providing or demanding structure oftentimes will develop a strong dog that will protect you and probably make stupid choices in keeping other people and dogs away from you. YOU will become your dog’s property and HE will make decisions on how to protect and keep you. These are decisions that will lead to his demise: Dogs that attack people, or other dogs are taken away from their owners and are killed. Once your dog gets to this level of dominance chances are you will lack the ability to deliver the proper level of correction necessary to regain control. So, it is better that you start the program out right and follow this advice to get your dog in line right from the beginning. Being indifferent to a dog is the single best thing you can do to building a strong bond with him. This is advice I give in my article on bringing a new dog home. It is pertinent to understand if you want a scared dog to come around. Trying to hug a dog that is scared is a recipe for disaster. Forcing a dog to be near you is also not recommended. Dogs form deep bonds, but it takes them time to trust. Dogs observe and then decide. See what it is that your dog is seeing, and see it through your dog’s eyes. For more information go to blackbeltdogtraining.com
ENVIRONMENT
INVASION of the
SEA LION PUPS:
Getting into Hot Water
By David Stansfield
They’re turning up in droves, hundreds and hundreds of them every week, not only on Malibu beaches, but all up and down the southern California coast, from San Diego to San Francisco, where roughly 1,800 stranded sea lion pups have been found through the first two-and-a-half months of 2015, way above the 100 or so that usually appear during this period in most years. Some of these animals weigh as little as twenty-five pounds, a third of their normal weight at this age, which averages ten months. “They’re leaving with a very low tank of gas and when they get over here, they’re showing up on the beach basically starving to death,” says Justin Viezbicke, a coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s California Stranding Network.“It’s clear these sea lions are trying to tell us something. Their very presence here in such great numbers at this time of year is sounding an alarm up and down the coast… it signals something complex happening in our ocean… sea lions are very sensitive to their environment… alerting us to major changes in the ocean…” say other marine experts.“What’s scary is that we don’t know when this will end,” says Dr. Shawn Johnson, Director of Veterinary Science at The Marine Mammal Center. “This could be the new normal –a changed environment that we’re dealing with now.”
What’s going on? Why are these pups in such dire straits?
The short answer is, because they got into hot water. Or to put it more technically: because of the “blob,” as Washington state climatologist Nick Bond termed the mass of unusually warm water that moved into the North Pacific suddenly last summer, and then down the coast all the way to Baja, heating up the ocean to such an extent that its temperature climbed to a subtropical mid-60 degrees this March, a good ten degrees above normal for this time of year. So what? you may ask. Why don’t the little sea lion pups just bask in this lovely warm water we’ve all been enjoying so much ourselves every weekend? And the short answer to that is because they have nothing to eat. Let’s climb down a few links of the food chain to see why. The main diet of sea lions consists of sardines, anchovies and mackerel, and in turn the main diet of these fish consists of plankton, Greek for “wanderers,” because these tiny organisms drift about in the ocean. Thanks to the blob, our local versions of these almost microscopic creatures, who were never designed to survive in what have now become subtropical waters, have been forced to wander farther and farther north up the coast to cool off. Pursued of course by schools of ravenous sardines, anchovies and mackerel. So why didn’t the sea lions follow them in their turn? The answer to this lies in the thirteen nurseries or “rookeries” at the Channel Islands off Santa Barbara and the Coastal Islands off Baja California. This is where Southern Californian mother sea lions nurse their babies every spring and summer. Except for last May and June when the blob was already wrecking such havoc with water temperatures and tying such knots in the food chain that the mother’s milk didn’t contain enough nutrients for their young to survive on. This obliged the mothers to leave their pups alone Catch 22 time: the more these emaciated sea lion pups struggled to move north in pursuit of an ever diminishing supply of sardines and anchovies and mackerel, the weaker they became, until by the time the first three months of this year came around it was all they could do to swim to the nearest beach and collapse on the sand. So what do you do when you come across one of these little sea creatures on your local beach? Here’s a slightly modified seven-step answer from the NOAA’s Marine Mammal Center:
SEVEN STEPS TO HELP A STRANDED SEA LION PUP
1. Do not touch it or try to feed it. (Apart from anything else, bear in mind that marine mammals are protected animals and it is a federal offense for a member of the public to touch or feed one, and you could face a stiff fine.) Also, do not throw a blanket over the pup or pour water on it. Sea lion pups are wild animals that are easily stressed by humans, and they can bite (with ten times greater force than a pit bull in the case of adults), infecting humans with a variety of parasites, bacteria, viruses and fungi. 2. Do not return the animal to the water. Under normal circumstances, sea lion pups temporarily “haul-out” on land to rest while their mothers are feeding at sea. 3. Observe the pup from a distance of at least 50 feet. Keep other people, children and dogs as far away as possible. 4. Note physical characteristics such as size, hair color and presence of external earflaps. This helps us determine the species and what rescue equipment and volunteers are needed. 5. Note the animal’s condition. Is it weak and underweight? Are there any open wounds? 6. Note whether the animal has any I.D. tags or markings. 7. Determine the exact location of the animal in order to provide accurate directions.
FACTS ABOUT SEA LIONS:
-Numbers: 300,000 off the coast of Southern California -Life span: 20-30 years -Height & weight o Newborn pups 2.5 feet, 13-20 lbs o Adult females 6.5 feet long, 200-400 lbs o Adult males 8 feet long, 600-800 lbs -Swimming speed: up to 25 miles per hour -Predators: killer whales, sharks & humans
RIGHT: Recued sea lion pups rest in a holding pen at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, in Laguna Beach, California
Here are the numbers you can call, response hotlines are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week: Malibu City Limits: California Wildlife Center 310-458-9453 or LA County: Marine Animal Rescue 800-399-4253
RIGHT: Sea lion pup at The Marine Mammal Center.
Orange County Register, March 17,2015
ENVIRONMENT
PACIFIC COAST SARDINE POPULATIONS DECIMATED FOR REASONS UNKNOWN By Peter Fimrite and Kelly House
West Coast commercial sardine fishing for the 2015-16 season, which regularly occurs between July 1st and the following June 30th, has been banned by Federal regulators. The decision was made yesterday by a vote of the Pacific Fishery Management Council. According to scientists, the abundance forecast for the season was far below the 150,000 metric ton required threshold. Though there are several theories as to why — from unrealistic previous estimates to changing oceanic conditions to overfishing — the population appears decimated. On this coast, sardines have seen a 91 percent decline in number since 1997. “While this is a sad day for all those dependent on a healthy sardine fishery, it is actually a good thing that this Council is addressing the problem directly, something you don’t always see across the nation or certainly, internationally,” said member Frank Lockhart of National Marine Fisheries Service. “We know boats will be tied up, but the goal here is to return this to a productive fishery,” member David Crabbe said. As a result of the crashing sardine population, record numbers of starving sea lions have recently been washing up on beaches in California because there aren’t enough sardines and anchovies for pups to eat. Fisheries scientists estimate that 70 percent of sea lion pups will die this year due to a lack of food. Brown pelicans, too, have suffered from mass reproductive failures and are turning up sick and dead in California and Oregon. A 2010 study by theCalifornia Department of Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Geological Survey and other scientific organizations found that many of the starving and emaciated pelicans are eating worms and other prey inconsistent with their normal diet of anchovies and sardines. Strange diseases have also been proliferating in the sea. Large numbers of sea lions have recently been found convulsing with seizures caused by a neurotoxin found in algae blooms or red tides. The blooms suddenly proliferate for unknown reasons, cover large areas and infuse shellfish, mussels, anchovies, sardines and other filter feeders with toxins that are then consumed by sea lions. The number of epileptic sea lions has been growing for at least a decade, according to researchers. As the Council writes, “Sardine productivity is generally linked to ocean temperatures, but it’s not a perfect relationship. For example, temperatures in the Southern California Bight have risen in the past two years, but we haven’t seen an increase in young sardines as expected.” Sardines typically spawn in warmer waters, with cold water decreasing their numbers. The once-thriving sardine industry crashed in the 1940s, before modern fisheries management that sets harvest quotas and tries to prevent overfishing. Since it revived in the 1990s, most of the West Coast catch is exported to Asia and Europe, where some is canned, and the rest goes for bait. Although sardine populations are known to boom and bust, the species’ downward spiral in spite of favorable water conditions has ocean-watchers worried there’s more to this collapse than cyclical population trends. “There are a lot of weird things happening out there, and we’re not quite sure why they aren’t responding the way they should,” said Kevin Hill, a NOAA Fisheries biologist who worked on the population assessment. Nobody knows how long it will take the small, silver, schooling forage fish to rebound enough for commercial fishing to resume. Meanwhile, marine conservation group Oceana is asking the council to make its sardine shutdown immediate instead of allowing fishermen to finish out the current quota.
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