A Little Lost Raymond Chandler Found Marks the Middle of Noirvember & Gift Certificate Holiday Sale

Gentle reader...

Literary archives are funny. If you don't make a habit of doing research in special collections libraries, you can be forgiven for thinking of them as tidy affairs, everything in its place, each document cross-referenced and sleeved in Mylar.

Some of them are like that, certainly. But the reality is often much messier and more mysterious. When a person's papers come to a library, in a state as neat or as chaotic as their creator's mind, they're measured in linear feet of acid-free banker's boxes.

And then, too often, nothing happens. If the institution isn't very rich or the writer very famous, it can take years, even decades, before a graduate student or librarian goes through each box and creates a finding aid, a loose searchable map to what goes where. And then it may be quite some time more before a researcher comes to call (if they ever do).

And even with a published finding aid, there can be surprises, gems that went unnoticed in the sorting. One of these hit the headlines yesterday: a "new" short story by Raymond Chandler, on the bitter theme of doctors who value payment over the preservation of human life.

The tale was ferreted out by Andrew Gulli, who has previouly found and published lost work by John Steinbeck, Scott Fitzgerald, Tennessee Williams and other marquee scribes. We can imagine the thrill he felt on discovering something unknown among Chandler's Oxford papers, since Kim found the previous "new" Chandler manuscript, the comic operetta The Princess and the Pedlar, at the Library of Congress. It's a small club, the successful archive miners, and dare we say an obsessed one.

If you want to read Raymond Chandler's story "It's All Right—He Only Died," pick up the newest issue of Gulli's The Strand Magazine. And to tour the writer's beloved Los Angeles, join us on the Chandler bus on January 13.

We're rolling this Saturday with Charles Bukowski's L.A, a tour about hard drinking, the torments of love, historic preservation and the civil service. Join us, do!

SUPPORT OUR WORK

If you enjoy all we do to celebrate and preserve Los Angeles history and would like to say thank you, please consider putting a little something into our digital tip jar. You can also click here before shopping on Amazon. Your contributions are never obligatory, but always appreciated.

RECENTLY TOURED

Virgin of the flowers, Evergreen Cemetery.

LAVA'S FORENSIC SCIENCE SEMINAR - SUN. 3/4

Four times a year, we gather in the teaching crime labs of Cal State L.A. to explore the history and future of American forensic science. On March 4, 2018, join us for Wrongful Convictions: Investigatory Case Studies from the California Innocence Project. Your $36.50 ticket benefits graduate level Criminalistics research.

GIVE THE GIFT OF... US!

The holidays are upon us, and with them the obligation to come up with something agreeable for all kinds of people. We'd like to make gift shopping easy on you, with the gentle suggestion that an Esotouric gift certificate is always the right size and color. The recipient can chose from something naughty or nice from our wide range of bus adventures, and you'll save on our regular ticket prices when you buy three or more before 12/24. For more info or to reserve, click here.

COMING SOON

CHARLES BUKOWSKI'S L.A. - SAT. 11/18... 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 - IN SEARCH OF IMPERIAL CALIFORNIA - SAT. 11/25... Join us for a full day exploring the the history, landscape and built environment of Irvine, Lake Forest, Norwalk and Downey. From ancient eucalyptus groves to historic psychiatric institutions to the mid-century master plans of William Pereira (this portion led by architect and historian Alan Hess) to delicious birthday cake, it's bound to be an illuminating bus adventure. (Learn more about this one-time-only tour, or reserve your spot, here.)

PASADENA CONFIDENTIAL - SAT. 12/2... 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 confidential files 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. 12/9... 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.)

THE REAL BLACK DAHLIA - SAT. 1/6... Our traditional first tour of the year, which falls on or near the anniversary of Beth Short's kidnapping. Join us on this iconic, unsolved Los Angeles murder mystery tour, from the throbbing boulevards of a postwar Downtown to the quiet suburban avenue where horror came calling. After multiple revisions, this is less a true crime tour than a social history of 1940s Hollywood female culture, mass media and madness, and we welcome you to join us for the ride. This tour usually sells out, so don't wait to reserve. (Buy tickets here.)

RAYMOND CHANDLER'S LOS ANGELES - SAT. 1/13... Follow in the young writer's footsteps near his downtown oil company offices to sites from The Lady in the Lake and The Little Sister, meet several real inspirations for the Philip Marlowe character and get the skinny on Chandler's secret comic operetta that we discovered in the Library of Congress nearly a century after it was written. Plus a stop at Scoops for noirish gelato creations and a visit to Larry Edmunds Bookshop. (Buy tickets here.)

Additional upcoming tours: The Birth of Noir (1/20), The Lowdown on Downtown (1/27), Special Event: Two Days in South LA: The 1974 SLA Shootout (2/10), Weird West Adams (2/17), Boyle Heights & Monterey Park (2/24).

OUR HISTORIC L.A. PODCAST

In Episode #122: Bunker Hill & The French Village: Two Lost Los Angeles Neighborhoods Taken By Eminent Domain, two stories of families torn from the places they loved, and the memories that survive. Plus another Pereira in Peril, Ports O' Call shopkeepers & more. Click here to tune in. New: find stories on the map!

AND FINALLY, LINKS

The preservation of well designed, familiar spaces supports mental health and human happiness. #ThisPlaceMatters indeed!

It's troubling that the Whittier Conservancy is making financial deals with developer Brookfield to demolish historic resources at the landmark Nelles reform school.

A Soldier from the 1st Battalion, 160th Infantry "Blackjacks" California Army National Guard pays respects to the 7th California Infantry monument at Pershing Square, 11/11.

Once upon a time in Downtown Los Angeles…

Concerns about editorial direction, accuracy for the recently sold L.A. Weekly.

Cinefamily's tenancy is just a blip in the 75-year history of the Silent Movie Theater, and we hope this Los Angeles landmark isn't dark for long.

Canadian developer Onni Group, who seek to demolish William Pereira's L.A. Times building, accused of operating a condo building as an illegal hotel. They did the same thing in Vancouver, with a building of the same name!

Paul Greenstein illuminates Los Angeles with his latest sign restoration, Jensen's Recreation Center. We were on the roof for his recent Hotel Californian relighting, too.

Scenes from the free LAVA tour of Bob Hope Patriotic Hall with muralist Kent Twitchell.

A profile of Orange County's much needed preservation org.

yrs,
Kim and Richard
Esotouric