Just a bunch of waves and surfing at Malibu and Playa Del Rey back in the mid to late 1970's
Showing posts with label Throwbacks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Throwbacks. Show all posts
The Tony Alva Story will be featured at the Other Venice Film Festival on Oct. 5th.
The OVFF is a nonprofit community event dedicated to screening full- length features, short and animated films that embody the spirit, energy and diversity of Venice, California. Filmmakers descended on Venice for two days of film screenings, premieres, sell out crowds, spirited Q&A sessions, panel discussions, local art on display and parties with live music.
The Tony Alva Story
61-years-old Alva, the oldest professional, skateboarder in the world, is considered by many to be the godfather of modern day skateboarding. Alva’s brand of aggression and bravado in the 70’s set the stage for the way skateboarding would be forever defined.
Vans’ The Tony Alva Story chronicles T.A.’s humble beginnings on the streets of Santa Monica to his rise to superstardom as part of the legendary Z-Boys, his inevitable drug-induced implosion and his ultimate rise from the ashes to accept his rightful place as a beacon of hope and inspiration for generations of skateboarders the world over.
Also they will be showing:
Surfing With Sugar
His path to healing came in an unlikely form meeting and rescuing a street dog and future surfing partner Sugar. The two have since become local legends inspiring visitors and locals with their abilities in the waves and their special relationship.His path to healing came in an unlikely form meeting and rescuing a street dog and future surfing partner Sugar. The two have since become local legends inspiring visitors and locals with their abilities in the waves and their special relationship.
Tickets are $15 and available HERE.
Beyond Baroque
681 Venice Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90291
If you had walked along the beach in Venice in the early 1970s, you would have come across the sagging, crumbling, partially incinerated ghost of an old amusement park on a pier. If you’ve watched the skate documentary “Dogtown and Z-Boys,” which shows surfers nimbly riding waves under the gnarled carcasses of roller coasters, you’ve seen much the same thing.
But when it opened in July 1958, more than half a century ago, Pacific Ocean Park — or P.O.P., as it came to be known — was the thing: an amusement park that married Venice Beach’s kitschy seaside carnival culture with the space-age Modern architecture of the late 1950s.
A book by Christopher Merritt and Domenic Priore (with a brief foreword by Beach Boy Brian Wilson) chronicles the fantastical life and spectacular death of this incredible seaside park. “Pacific Ocean Park: The Rise and Fall of Los Angeles’ Space-Age Nautical Pleasure Pier” tells the story of P.O.P. in words, but also lots of pictures — as well as concept drawings, era silk-screen posters, postcards, vintage family snapshots and newspaper articles.
For those of us who grew up in the Southern California of the 1970s and have vague memories of a charred hulk sitting in the waters off the Venice/Santa Monica border, the book will serve as an enlightening ride through the history of Pacific Ocean Park. (Interesting fact: the reason everyone went to party in the seaside ballrooms of Venice in the first half of the 20th century was because the prudes in Los Angeles had practically outlawed public dancing.)
The book covers all of the salient details: the area’s early 20th-century history (Moorish bathhouses, anyone?), its fall into seediness in the 1940s and its reemergence as a destination in the late 1950s, when P.O.P. opened its doors to tens of thousands of visitors and the national media.
The park, which opened in the wake of Disneyland (which debuted in 1955), aimed for clean and wholesome family entertainment. It also embodied the latest in Modern design. In fact, an early rendering was created by the firm of Pereira & Luckman, the corporate architecture firm that gave L.A. so much of its iconic Modern look.
The final design, however, was eventually helmed by Fred Harpman, who had designed portions of Disneyland’s Main Street, and had also put in time at the film studios. (He designed major sequences for the 1956 adventure flick “Around the World in 80 Days.”)
The park, which covered a pier and some of the adjacent land where Venice meets Santa Monica, embodied everything optimistic about the 1950s. There were Googie-esque buildings — including a 60-foot starfish-like structure at the entrance — which combined the nautical with the space age. After the opening, one reporter described it as “a misty dreamland of timelessness, fantasy and never-never.”
And while it seemed then that P.O.P. might be a part of L.A. forever, that was not to be. The costs of creating and maintaining the park were astronomical. The public’s thirst for new attractions meant continual redesigns, and the scenic location, on top of the roaring Pacific, had the salt air eating through all plaster, wood and steel at ridiculous speeds.
A plan by a real estate development agency to clean up the area around the pier, tearing down old bungalows and other vintage architecture to put up what they considered to be more respectable high rises, tore up many of the roads leading to P.O.P., fatally hindering access. By August 1967, less than a decade after it had opened to so much fanfare, Pacific Ocean Park closed for repairs — and never opened again.
It spent the next eight years rotting and catching fire (mostly from arson) as the cities of Los Angeles and Santa Monica and various state entities fought about who would be responsible for the mess. In the meantime, the site was occupied by the homeless and drug users, as well as a cadre of enterprising surfers who skillfully rode the waves as they broke through the derelict pilings.
In paging through Merritt and Priore’s photo-laden book, it struck me that P.O.P. serves as a pretty terrific way of looking at the ways in which we have embraced, then rejected Modern design. In the 1950s, Modernism, with its focus on industry — and in L.A. specifically, the Space Age — seemed full of promise, the solution for fixing all of society’s ills. By the 1970s, its more brutal aspects had left critics and designers wary of structures that didn’t seem to serve their inhabitants as much as they served as grim symbols of state power or poor planning.
Pacific Ocean Park, in many ways, was a mirror of all that. A funhouse mirror, but a mirror nonetheless. And definitely worth a look.
Check out these products related to this story:
It’s the summer of 1957, and there’s a new face on the California surfer scene, Kathy Kohner. Although small, she is mighty, tackling waves four times her height. But, in order to do so, she needs to get that pesky long board out from the rear window of her family’s Buick…
Looking to make some friends after years abroad, Kathy has gone to the beach with her family in search of some worthy prospects. With long board in tow, a clear choice seems to be a group of guys in search of the perfect wave…surfers. No one is fully accepted into the surfer subculture until they are given a nickname, and after proving herself in the squall, Kathy will eventually be dubbed Gidget by her buddies — a hybrid for girl and midget, due to her diminutive 5'1" stature. Over the summer, during the car rides back to Brentwood from Malibu, Kathy will go on to tell her parents about her new friends, experiences, and, of course, nickname, inspiring her father to write Gidget: The Little Girl with Big Ideas — a book that would become so popular it would eventually evolve into a book series, movie series, TV series, comic book, and documentary. While Kathy will eventually give up surfing, her legend will live on in the form of Gidget — cowabunga!
Photo: Allan Grant
Maui & Sons® Venice Beach has listed a couple vintage surfboards for sale, they want $4,000 for one and $2,000 each for some of the others. Worth it? Check them out:
Maui & Sons®/ Max McDonald Surfboard - $4000
Hand Shaped by Max McDonald out of Dana Point's first surf shop in 1980, the same year Maui & Sons® was born, this surfboard has survived the test of time. It was originally created for Hobie Sports but was instead branded with the iconic Maui & Sons® Cookie Logo, making it 1 in a million; Something that only comes along once in a lifetime.
Dimensions are unlisted on the board, but after measuring, this board stands at 5'10 1/2
This is Number 3 of 23 ever made
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 6'10 x 10 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 12 7/8 x 2 1/4
Production Number: #7406
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 5'10 x 14 1/8 x 19 5/8 x 15 3/8 x 2 3/8
Production Number: #7409
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 5'10 x 14 1/8 x 19 5/8 x 15 1/2 x 2 1/4
Production Number: #7408
Maui & Sons®/ Max McDonald Surfboard - $4000
Hand Shaped by Max McDonald out of Dana Point's first surf shop in 1980, the same year Maui & Sons® was born, this surfboard has survived the test of time. It was originally created for Hobie Sports but was instead branded with the iconic Maui & Sons® Cookie Logo, making it 1 in a million; Something that only comes along once in a lifetime.
Dimensions are unlisted on the board, but after measuring, this board stands at 5'10 1/2
This is Number 3 of 23 ever made
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 6'10 x 10 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 12 7/8 x 2 1/4
Production Number: #7406
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 5'10 x 14 1/8 x 19 5/8 x 15 3/8 x 2 3/8
Production Number: #7409
Kadowaki/ Maui & Sons® Custom Surfboard - $2000
Hand-shaped in 2008 by Don Kadowaki himself, this custom designed surfboard is one of very few ever produced, making it extremely rare. Still as new as the day it was finished, it has been kept pristine as can be.
In collaboration with Maui & Sons®, Don has created yet another beautiful piece of art using bright, Air-brushed colors that pop out, revealing intricate detail and craftsmanship.
Dimensions: 5'10 x 14 1/8 x 19 5/8 x 15 1/2 x 2 1/4
Production Number: #7408
Here's some info from the Venice Institute of Contemporary Art about their upcoming event:
The Venice Institute of Contemporary Art and Venice Heritage Museum present ‘A History of Venice’, a People/Place/Art/Word/Sound Exhibition opening September 3 at Beyond Baroque in Venice, CA, and continuing through September 30. The lobby and mezzanine galleries will showcase installations that highlight the diverse and influential histories of Venice through the lens of its inhabitants -- from the indigenous Tongva population, to Abbot Kinney and his wild fantasy come true to create a playground for the Los Angeles elite, to the artists, activists, and renegades who have made their home in Venice and their mark over generations. The displays, interpreted by a diverse array of guest curators, honor a sampling of the many groups that have contributed to the cultural depth of this immensely influential beachside community. In particular, the exhibition seeks to center the Venetians whose influence may be known to insiders but whose legacies are at risk of being forgotten during this time of rapid cultural change.
An accompanying suite of special live evenings of storytelling, media, and performance will kick off on September 5th with a night of behind-the-scenes storytelling about Venice’s complex and fascinating history, told by local residents themselves as well as devoted historians. On September 14th, the official Opening Reception for the exhibition will be held from 2-6 pm. Following, an evening talk will feature Tosh Berman sharing excerpts from his new book about his father , influential Venice artist, Wallace Berman, and readings of works by Venice scribes such as one-time resident, Ray Bradbury , and beloved poet, Wanda Coleman, with other special guests to be announced.
A film night will take place on September 19th, which will feature rare archives from the gritty surf and skate culture of Dogtown’s second generation in the 1980s. Films by the youth of Venice Arts will be shown, as well as a selection from noted archivist, Tom Sewell, among other shorts. The final gathering on September 29th will open with an indigenous ceremony and blessing to provide good luck and wishes for the continued cultural evolution of the city of Venice and its residents. The evening will conclude with a variety show in the evening, featuring performances by the many wonderful and talented characters of Venice, both past and present (...who knows, Abbot Kinney himself might appear!). All in all, the program promises to be a moving and entertaining, not-to-be-missed celebration of the cultural legacies of Venice, a city so many lay claim to and yet still defies definition.
“Venice was... (and still is) a last stop-off at the edge of America ...oceans and outlaws. Its setting is a perfect balance for poetry. Beauty and danger. Agony and rapture.” -Philomene Long
Public viewing hours: Friday 4:00-10:00 pm, Saturday 3:00-10:00 pm, Sunday 2:00-7:00 pm. Exhibition on view from September 3rd-30th.
A Night of Storytelling - Thursday, September 5, 8:00-10:00 pm
Opening Reception - Saturday, September 14, 2:00-6:00 pm
A Night of Literature and Art - Saturday, September 14, 8:00-10:00 pm
A Night of Film - Thursday, September 19, 8:00-10:00 pm
Closing Ceremony & Variety Show - Sunday, September 29, 2:00-6:00 pm
Beyond Baroque
681 Venice Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90291
Get nore info and tickets for tyhe special events at: ahistoryofvenice.linktree
How One Surf Shop Brought Surfing Culture to Unexpected Places
O’Neill's video series, “Surf Shop Chronicles”, celebrates America’s most iconic surf shops.
Val Surf is one such shop, having first opened in 1962 in an unexpected place: the San Fernando Valley. Founder Bill Richards got the idea to open an inland surf shop from shuttling his then-teenage son Mark from their home in North Hollywood to Malibu’s classic peelers. Mark couldn’t be the only inland surfer, of course, and Bill seized the opportunity to open a surf shop far from the beach. Fast forward to present and Val Surf boasts five locations throughout the Los Angeles area and continues bringing the stoke well beyond the coast.
O’Neill's video series, “Surf Shop Chronicles”, celebrates America’s most iconic surf shops.
Val Surf is one such shop, having first opened in 1962 in an unexpected place: the San Fernando Valley. Founder Bill Richards got the idea to open an inland surf shop from shuttling his then-teenage son Mark from their home in North Hollywood to Malibu’s classic peelers. Mark couldn’t be the only inland surfer, of course, and Bill seized the opportunity to open a surf shop far from the beach. Fast forward to present and Val Surf boasts five locations throughout the Los Angeles area and continues bringing the stoke well beyond the coast.
Innocnts is taking pre-orders for this Dora Lives t-shirt. They will only be available on their website for a few days, so if you want one, act now.
Vans presents BLACK RAINBOWS, a 10-day immersive experience in Venice Beach, California that transports fans back to 1976 to celebrate the energetic time period and place that Vans’ first skateboarding shoe was born.
In 1976, Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta worked with the Vans family and created a shoe designed specifically designed for skateboarding. What they did next with that shoe set off a cultural explosion that sent shockwaves around the globe. Vans will commemorate the history and origins of the Era in the neighborhood between Santa Monica and Venice Beach known as Dogtown where these events took shape.
BLACK RAINBOWS is aimed at reinforcing Vans' brand promise of enabling creative expression through action sports, art, music and street culture. Vans has partnered with Dogtown legend Jeff Ho, famed owner of the Zephyr Surf Shop and Jim Muir, original Z-Boy and skate Hall of Fame inductee, to bring forward an authentic depiction of the birth of a cultural icon; the Era. BLACK RAINBOWS’ interactive programming and highlights will include Vans skate demos, panel discussions with Vans Designers and skate legends, art and music workshops, film screenings and will culminate with live musical performances.
EVENT SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, AUGUST 9
TALES OF THE ERA | 6 PM - 8 PM
History lesson with the original Z-Boys team
SOLD OUT
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES + FURY | 8 PM - 11 PM
Live music
SATURDAY, AUGUST 10
LA PUNK THEN AND NOW | 7 PM - 8 PM
Live discussion panel
Click Here to RSVP
X + THE PARANOYDS | 8 PM - 11 PM
Live music
SUNDAY, AUGUST 11
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
FROM SOCAL TO SPACE - CHARACTER ILLUSTRATION W/ ROBIN EISENBERG | 4 PM - 5 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
JUXTAPOZ PRESENTS: SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SHAPED - ART OF A NEW SOCAL ERA | 7 PM - 8 PM
Art Workshop
Click Here to RSVP
DOGTOWN AND Z-BOYS | 8 PM - 11 PM
Film Screening
SOLD OUT
MONDAY, AUGUST 12
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
PEDAL TALK: THE ART OF EFFECTS w Randy Randall | 6 PM - 7 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
Decline of Western Civilization | 7 PM - 10 PM
Film Screening
Click Here to RSVP
TUESDAY, AUGUST 13
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
USELESS WOODEN KNOWLEDGE | 4 PM - 5 PM
Skate Trivia Night
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
USELESS WOODEN KNOWLEDGE | 6 PM - 7 PM
Skate Trivia Night
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
THE TONY ALVA STORY | 7 PM - 10 PM
Film Screening
SOLD OUT
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
FROM SOCAL TO SPACE - CHARACTER ILLUSTRATION W/ ROBIN EISENBERG | 4 PM - 5 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
FROM SOCAL TO SPACE - CHARACTER ILLUSTRATION W/ ROBIN EISENBERG | 6 PM - 7 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
LORDS OF DOGTOWN | 7 PM - 10 PM
Film Screening
SOLD OUT
THURSDAY, AUGUST 15
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
THE ART OF PUNK FLYERS w Bryan Ray Turcotte | 4 PM - 5 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
THE ART OF PUNK FLYERS w Bryan Ray Turcotte | 6 PM - 7 PM
Art Workshop
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
Decline of Western Civilization | 7 PM - 10 PM
Film Screening
Click Here to RSVP
FRIDAY, AUGUST 16
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
USELESS WOODEN KNOWLEDGE | 4 PM - 5 PM
Skate Trivia Night
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
USELESS WOODEN KNOWLEDGE | 6 PM - 7 PM
Skate Trivia Night
RSVP NOT REQUIRED. First Come, First Served until we hit capacity. Entry to other events not guaranteed.
COLLABORATIONS THROUGH THE ERA - INSIGHTS INTO DESIGN | 7 PM - 8 PM
Panel Discussions
Click Here to RSVP
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
TALES OF THE ERA | 6 PM - 8 PM
History lesson with the original Z-Boys team
SOLD OUT
MIKAL CRONIN + SHANNON LAY | 8 PM - 11 PM
Live music
SUNDAY, AUGUST 18
WAFFLE BRUNCH AND OPEN HOUSE | 1 PM - 4 PM
When Bill “Chief” Richards saw how much surfing meant to his son, Mark “Wally” Richards, he made everything possible to support his passion. So when Wally came up with an idea to open a surf shop, Chief went all in! The Val Surf guys go on the L8nightwithChoccy Surf Podcast and talk about the shop's history.
"Val Surf is THE FIRST SKATESHOP IN THE WORLD!? They were the first to make and sell their own skateboards!" This is one of many things you can learn about about them on this podcast. Listen to the podcast below:
Bay Street Boards is celebrating their 5th Anniversary this week.
They are thanking everyone by having some huge sales through the month of June. Up to 50% selected items.
Bay Street Boards
🌴☀️Santa Monica ☀️🌴
Surf & Skate Shop
3216 Santa Monica Blvd
310.310.2485
Mon-Fri 10a-8p Sat 10a-7p Sun 10a-5p
They are thanking everyone by having some huge sales through the month of June. Up to 50% selected items.
🌴☀️Santa Monica ☀️🌴
Surf & Skate Shop
3216 Santa Monica Blvd
310.310.2485
Mon-Fri 10a-8p Sat 10a-7p Sun 10a-5p
In the late 1930s, Santa Monica teenager Don James roamed the California coastline with a band of friends and their 90-pound wooden surfboards. They slept in lifeguard huts and lived off of abalone scooped from the ocean, and avocados and oranges pilfered from nearby farms. They did it all in the name of surfing, which had recently landed in their home state.
James had seen Tom Blake’s surf photographs in National Geographic, and at the age of 16, he began taking his own with his dad’s Kodak Brownie—the first camera marketed and accessible to non-professionals. The black-and-white photos he made in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s show his friends riding waves in tandem and replenishing themselves after a long day in the water by catching lobsters, strumming on ukuleles, and lounging under palms.
He became one of the first to chronicle the culture developing around surfing as it spread south from Malibu to Santa Monica and San Onofre. By the 1960s, when the sport broke into the mainstream, James remained one of its most celebrated documentarians. Surfer Magazine tapped James and younger photographers like Ron Stoner to shoot the exploding California surf community. He updated his craft as the technology changed, too, eventually capturing teeming surf contests and crowded beaches in color.
During the post Gidget era his talents appeared in commercials and on posters, Don James has been described as "The Premier Photographer of Surfing".
Don's beloved best-seller book is finally back in print, Surfing San Onofre to Point Dume: 1936-1942 , tells the story of the heady and innocent years of Santa Monica's nascent surf scene just prior to America's entry into World War II. Beautifully designed, this intimate, album-sized collection of photographs, printed in rich duotones and evocative color, captures the optimism and experimentation, the styles, the flirtatiousness and the freedoms taken--all from an insider's point of view. They were made by the young Don James, a teenager who documented the scene with his father's old Kodak folding camera when he wasn't up on a longboard himself. Out in the surf, down on the sand, aboard somebody's boat, dancing around a campfire, back-flipping off the lifeguard stand, collecting lobster, drinking at the bar and generally wearing as little as possible, here are the regulars of the southern California beach scene, un-self-conscious and perpetually glamorous, alongside loving portraits of the beach and the ocean themselves.
"It was a balmy Sunday and the news about the Japanese attack upon Pearl Harbor was coming in over the radio. We were paying $60 a month for rent, which was split three ways, and life was good. Suddenly everything had changed. We all knew we were going off to war." For the half-decade preceding World War II, photographer Don James and his cronies lived in the balmy Eden of the southern California coastline, surfing from San Onofre north to Point Dume. "Surfing is life all the rest is details," someone once philosophized. In Don James's six-year diary of life in paradise, surfing is indeed life, but the beauty is in the details. James's sun-drenched remembrance of a paradise lost introduces us to a cast of golden children that Bruce Weber might well envy, and leaves us with at least one mystery: What ever became of Jack Power? According to Surfing San Onofre to Point Dume , "One day he walked down the beach and was never seen nor heard of again." Where did Jack Power go? Into the sunset, no doubt. Where the details hide.
A stretch of Santa Monica Beach that was once a gathering place for black Angelenos could find a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
That's the goal of black heritage activists who are gearing up for their next step in the drive to designate the 55-acre site near the end of Pico Boulevard once derogatorily known as “The Inkwell.”
By Jorge Casuso
From left: Grace Williams, Albert Williams, Mary Mingleton, Willie Williams (no relation) in the segregated section of Santa Monica beach known as the Ink Well ca. 1926 (Shades of L.A. Collection, Los Angeles Public Library)
A stretch of Santa Monica Beach that was once a gathering place for black Angelenos could find a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
That's the goal of black heritage activists who are gearing up for their next step in the drive to designate the 55-acre site near the end of Pico Boulevard once derogatorily known as “The Inkwell.”
On May 8, California’s State Historical Resources Commission will review the nomination at its quarterly meeting in Palm Springs, activists said.
The Bay Street Beach Historic District, according to a draft of the National Register application, is "a rare example of an African American seaside recreation and leisure site as well as a community cultural focusing point."
Alison R. Jefferson, a prominent black historian who is co-sponsoring the application, said the designation makes "the history of the African American experience in the region more visible."
She is urging supporters to help by writing letters backing the nomination that are due on Tuesday, April 23. For instructions click here .
The designation -- which "aligns with the goals" of the California Coastal Commission’s landmark environmental justice policy adopted in March -- provides "a little more symbolic equity and social justice for all," Jefferson said,
The nomination's co-sponsor, Sea of Clouds, a nonprofit that focuses on preserving coastal places, says "The Inkwell" represents a part of the Jim Crow era that should not be forgotten.
“As much as beach recreation and sport are indelible parts of California’s identity, so too must be its history of exclusion in these public spaces," said Michael Blum, the organization's executive director.
"A National Register listing will work in service of the personal stories, remembrances, and connections to the Bay Street beach area, as it sits within a changing city, coastline, and climate.”
The Bay Street Beach Historic District became an extension of Santa Monica's black community and a destination for blacks living in Los Angeles shortly after the turn of the 20th Century.
The "period of significance" begins in 1908 when the Phillips Chapel Colored Methodist Episcopal Church building was purchased from the Santa Monica School District and relocated to the corner of Fourth and Bay Streets, according to the application.
The church became "an anchor for local African American spiritual and community life," the application said.
Soon, the beach just four blocks away became a haven for black beachgoers, who "faced exclusion, harassment, even violence" in other coastal areas.
The period ends in 1965 with the passage of the federal Voting Rights Act (VRA), which along with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ended "an era of de jure discrimination and segregation," the application said.
If the Bay Street Beach Historic District makes it on to the National Register, it would join an estimated 8 percent of the 93,000 properties and 1.4 million individual resources that represent women and minorities
The designation would help to better represent "the breadth of the American story," Jefferson said.
A stretch of Santa Monica Beach that was once a gathering place for black Angelenos could find a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
That's the goal of black heritage activists who are gearing up for their next step in the drive to designate the 55-acre site near the end of Pico Boulevard once derogatorily known as “The Inkwell.”
On May 8, California’s State Historical Resources Commission will review the nomination at its quarterly meeting in Palm Springs, activists said.
The Bay Street Beach Historic District, according to a draft of the National Register application, is "a rare example of an African American seaside recreation and leisure site as well as a community cultural focusing point."
Alison R. Jefferson, a prominent black historian who is co-sponsoring the application, said the designation makes "the history of the African American experience in the region more visible."
She is urging supporters to help by writing letters backing the nomination that are due on Tuesday, April 23. For instructions click here .
The designation -- which "aligns with the goals" of the California Coastal Commission’s landmark environmental justice policy adopted in March -- provides "a little more symbolic equity and social justice for all," Jefferson said,
The nomination's co-sponsor, Sea of Clouds, a nonprofit that focuses on preserving coastal places, says "The Inkwell" represents a part of the Jim Crow era that should not be forgotten.
“As much as beach recreation and sport are indelible parts of California’s identity, so too must be its history of exclusion in these public spaces," said Michael Blum, the organization's executive director.
"A National Register listing will work in service of the personal stories, remembrances, and connections to the Bay Street beach area, as it sits within a changing city, coastline, and climate.”
The Bay Street Beach Historic District became an extension of Santa Monica's black community and a destination for blacks living in Los Angeles shortly after the turn of the 20th Century.
The "period of significance" begins in 1908 when the Phillips Chapel Colored Methodist Episcopal Church building was purchased from the Santa Monica School District and relocated to the corner of Fourth and Bay Streets, according to the application.
The church became "an anchor for local African American spiritual and community life," the application said.
Soon, the beach just four blocks away became a haven for black beachgoers, who "faced exclusion, harassment, even violence" in other coastal areas.
The period ends in 1965 with the passage of the federal Voting Rights Act (VRA), which along with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ended "an era of de jure discrimination and segregation," the application said.
If the Bay Street Beach Historic District makes it on to the National Register, it would join an estimated 8 percent of the 93,000 properties and 1.4 million individual resources that represent women and minorities
The designation would help to better represent "the breadth of the American story," Jefferson said.
The Malibu surfer who Sean Penn based his "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" character on has no idea he was the inspiration for Jeff Spicoli.
Boardriders Malibu and Vintage Surfboard Collector Club are hosting the Topanga Surf Swap. Mark your calendars on February 9 - 7am to 2 pm, for some epic vibes! Whether your looking to buy, sell or trade, there will be boards and gear for everyone!
18820 Pacific Coast Hwy
Malibu, Ca 80265
310 - 359 - 8274
Check out photos from the last event: Topanga Vintage Surf Swap
Venice Beach Photographer Josh "Bagel" Klassman will be one of the featured artists at the next Midnite Bazaar.
Bagel will be showing off pieces from his huge collection of photos he took as a surfer/skater growing up in Venice:
Some of his works will also be for sale at his booth.
Venice, CA is tiny beach town that has had a HUGE impact on underground youth culture. This place has given the world some unreal illustrators, and one of them goes by the name of RIC CLAYTON or RxCx for short. He is a true OG Suicidal Boy and the band’s go-to artist for most of their early flyers. Seeing the rad shit Ric drew for each show was just as important as the line up. He was a genius at turning their lyrics into illustrations that still resonate with youth culture today.
A new book has just been released about Ric and his art: Welcome to Venice RxCx , available now on Amazon
The new book Welcome to Venice RxCx published by Kill Your Idols gives you an in-depth look into Ric’s influence on SoCal underground culture. Straight up, he is one of the most influential punk artists to come out of the 80’s.
Another thing that really made him stand out from other illustrators of the day were the button down shirts that he drew on. If you were a Venice/Mar Vista/Santa Monica local who was down with Suicidal Tendencies, you would get in touch with Ric, hit him with $15 or maybe less – I’m not sure – come back in a week or so, and he would hand you a one of a kind Suicidal shirt (this was before silk screening shirts became the norm). For some people, seeing a bunch of dudes rocking these shirts with blue bandanas struck fear in their hearts. These shirts become famous because they were featured on the cover of Suicidal Tendencies’ debut album. The new book features a rad photo essay of RxC’s hand drawn button down shirts, compiled by the man himself.
His black and white illustrations for thrash punk band Suicidal Tendencies are instantly recognizable around the world. Clayton was in the mix just as punk and metal cross-pollinated in the early 80s, but he also stood at the crossroads of the Dogtown skating scene and cholo culture in Los Angeles. Impossibly, Clayton embodied and portrayed all of these movements simultaneously in his artwork. In Welcome to Venice you'll enjoy a generous serving of this riveting artist's output, including fliers and album artwork for Venice bands such as Neighborhood Watch, Excel, Against, Beowlf, No Mercy and naturally, Suicidal Tendencies.
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