Psst... how'd you like to explore the historic Hotel Cecil—and celebrate Richard's birthday?

Gentle reader...

We bet you could use a little diversion right now.

Next Thursday, why not celebrate Richard's birthday by attending a special meeting of the Cultural Heritage Commission, including site visits to two potential Downtown landmarks: the Hotel Cecil and Catalina Swimwear?

Then on December 18, we hope you can join us for the (free with RSVP) Esotouric holiday party at Lummis House in Highland Park.

Our LAVA Sunday Salon and walking tours are on hiatus until January, but we've posted video from September's events. The Ukulady made marvelous mirthful music and the tour was of lost jails.

We're back on the bus this Saturday with Eastside Babylon, a twisted crime tour that ends with a hopeful historic preservation success story to wipe the psychic cobwebs away. Join us, do!

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RECENTLY TOURED

This big banana at Trader Joe's just asked if Richard is the guy who gives the Charles Bukowski bus tour. Made our Hallowe'en night!

LAVA'S FORENSIC SCIENCE SEMINAR - SUN. 12/11 & 1/22

Four times a year, we gather in the teaching crime labs of Cal State Los Angeles under the direction of Professor Donald Johnson to explore the history and future of American forensic science. On December 11, 2016 join us for The Spider-Man Bandit & The Artificial Human Head: Breakthroughs in Crime Scene Investigation. Track a fearless cat burglar/killer through the decades, as his 1970s-era crimes are exposed when the cold case unit tests old DNA. Then learn about new research in blunt force injury, with a chance to perform a hands-on assault on a head built for breaking. Your $36.50 ticket benefits graduate level Criminalistics research. For more info, click here. Then on January 22, 2017, arson detective Ed Nordskog shares his most fascinating recent case, The Hollywood Fire Devil. Click here to reserve.

RECOMMENDED LISTENING

Newly reissued, with liner notes by our own Kim Cooper, is the rare stereophonic mix of Venetian bandleader Mantovani's Christmas Carols (1958). The "beautiful music" genre never sounded so lush or so thrilling on an album which has delighted its fans and their children and grandchildren for more than fifty years.

COMING SOON

EASTSIDE BABYLON - SAT. 11/12... Go East, young ghoul, to Boyle Heights, where the Night Stalker was captured and to Evergreen, L.A.'s oldest cemetery. To East L.A., where a deranged radio shop employee made mince meat of his boss and bride--and you can get your hair done in a building shaped like a giant tamale. To Commerce, where one small neighborhood's myriad crimes will shock and surprise. To Montebello, for a horrifying case of child murder. That's Eastside Babylon, our most unhinged crime bus tour. (Buy tickets here.)

CHARLES BUKOWSKI'S L.A. - SAT. 11/19... Come explore Charles Bukowski's lost Los Angeles and the fascinating contradictions that make this great local writer such a hoot to explore. Haunts of a Dirty Old Man is a raucous day out celebrating liquor, ladies, pimps and poets. The tour includes a visit to Buk's DeLongpre bungalow, where you'll see the Cultural-Historic Monument sign that we helped to get approved, and a mid-tour provisions stop at Pink Elephant Liquor. New: souvenir Bukowski's L.A. booklet available. (Buy tickets here.)

SPECIAL EVENT: RICHARD'S BIRTHDAY BUS TOUR - SAT. 11/26...Join us for a full day exploring the the history, landscape and built environment of Long Beach and the South Bay. From Terminal Island to Art Deco landmarks, a giant coffee pot to hidden tiki icons, carnival cuties to delicious birthday cake, it's bound to be a blast. (Learn more about this one-time-only tour, or reserve your spot, here.)

PASADENA CONFIDENTIAL - SAT. 12/3... The Crown City masquerades as a calm and refined retreat, where well-bred ladies glide around their perfect bungalows and everyone knows what fork to use first. But don't be fooled by appearances. Dip into the confidentialfiles of old Pasadena and meet assassins and oddballs, kidnappers and slashers, black magicians and all manner of maniac in a delightful little tour you won't find recommended by the better class of people. (Buy tickets here.)

HOTEL HORRORS & MAIN STREET VICE - SAT. 12/10... Through the 1940s, downtown was the true city center, a lively, densely populated, exciting and sometimes dangerous place. But while many of the historic buildings remain, their human context has been lost. This downtown double feature tour is meant to bring alive the old ghosts and memories that cling to the streets and structures of the historic core, and is especially recommended for downtown residents curious about their neighborhood's neglected history. (Buy tickets here.)

Additional upcoming tours: The Real Black Dahlia (1/7), Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles (1/14), The Birth of Noir (1/21), The Lowdown on Downtown (1/28), South L.A. Road Trip (2/5), Special Event: Two Days in South LA: The 1974 SLA Shootout (2/11), Boyle Heights & The San Gabriel Valley (2/18) and Weird West Adams (2/25).

OUR HISTORIC L.A. PODCAST

Episode #115, Hollywood Book Culture & Downtown’s Chimney Swifts, we talk about the golden age of bookshops with film historian Bob Birchard, then visit the Ornithology section of the Natural History Museum for an insider's look at Vaux' swifts, tiny travelers who nest in landmarks. Click here to tune in. New: find stories on the map!

AND FINALLY, LINKS

From the Esotouric blog: we document the unfortunate demolition of the Hartwell Motor Company Building (1917-2016)

A mayor’s son, killed in France, receives a belated WWI hero’s honor in historic Pershing Square.

A JPL space age timeline starts with our favorite black magician and rocketeer, Jack Parsons (featured on next month's Pasadena Confidential tour).

Richard talks about bringing Angels Flight back into service and why the little railway matters on the latest episode of The Hidden History of Los Angeles podcast.

Los Angeles politicians subvert zoning codes to help donors profit. Industry and citizens pay the price.

Nobody who cared noticed that Boyle Heights’ finest modernist building was facing demolition until it was too late.

Was the Southland’s deadliest quake triggered by (oily) human hands?

If the city won’t do its job, citizens should just adopt Elysian Park. Guerrilla tree surgery, anyone?

Backwards voting leaves nearly-landmarked Lytton Savings on the ledge.

The inspiration for Philip Marlowe? That's a pretty big allegedly. But Raymond Chandler studies are full of surprises.

The long-awaited return of The Penguin, trading drills for malted milk.

"What happens when a bunch of nerds lose their friend?” Keep an eye out for Nancy.

A deep dive for typewriter geeks.

See Vaux Swifts coming in to roost at dusk in historic Skid Row. (Facebook video; Instagram) And tune in to our podcast to learn about their fascinating life cycle here.

Is National Register recognition next for our Blood & Dumplings tour picnic spot?

Tiny trains of olden days on view in El Sereno. 2015 pix; 2016 open house dates announced.

The sad state of the Mulholland Fountain. (We think she should flow year-round with fresh squeezed orange juice!)

A decade after dozens of poor folks were evicted by the slumlord owners, the glazed brick Morrison Hotel gets new life.

yrs,
Kim and Richard
Esotouric