LAVA presents Cracking the Case: Patrick Tillman / Industry Hills Sheraton
Click the photo to view scenes of Michael I. Kelley’s ballistics workshop at the last LAVA crime lab event.
Blog
LAVA’s 18th Sunday Salon
On the last Sunday of each month, LAVA welcomes interested individuals to gather on the third floor of the historic Clifton’s Cafeteria in Downtown Los Angeles (noon-2pm), for a loosely structured conversational Salon featuring short presentations and opportunities to meet and connect with one another. If you’re interested in joining LAVA as a creative contributor or an attendee, we recommend Salon attendance as an introduction to this growing community. We also recommend the shortbread.
Special program at the August 28 Salon:
• LAVA Visionary Ruthann Friedman wrote the early bubble-pop anthem “Windy” for The Association while crashed out on Crosby’s couch, swung with Zappa’s crew, and she almost got that Jefferson Airplane vocalist slot before bitch goddess Grace slunk in. Ruthann’s 1970 LP Constant Companion is a recording of sublime beauty and abstract folky ruminations which should’ve sent ol’ Joni running to Essra Mohawk and Judee Sill for consolation (and inspiration!) — but sadly recognition was a long time in coming. Friedman’s lone 45, “Carry On (Glittering Dancer)” is another bit of genius, fleshed out by captivating Van Dyke Parks arrangements a la Smile or Song Cycle. At the Sunday Salon, Ruthann will sing reflections of her life growing up in Los Angeles in the fifties and sixties, and let you in on intimate personal stories that have a universal appeal. Accompanied by her own guitar and the bass playing of David Jenkins, she bridges the gap between generations.
• Local artist and historian Al Guerrero is the LAVA Visionary behind the “Richard Ramirez – Night Stalker Walking Tour.” For the Sunday Salon, he will be conducting a short presentation and discussion on this bloody chapter of L.A. crime history. Attendees will experience a chilling narrative of the fear and terror that gripped the Los Angeles area during the fearful, hot summer 1985, during the Night Stalker’s wave of terror. Al will share first-hand accounts and reveal little known facts and gruesome details of the case, including details about the Night Stalker’s haunts in the downtown area surrounding the Salon. Immediately following the Sunday Salon, Al Guerroro’s “Richard Ramirez – Night Stalker Walking Tour” will depart from Clifton’s Cafeteria (This tour is now sold out; limited standby spots may be available on tour day). This event was a complete sell-out last year, so reservations are strongly recommended. Al advises guests as to the graphic nature of some portions of the tour. For further tour information, please visit this link or email nightstalkertourATgmailDOTcom
• Sorry, THE UKULADY’S previously announced appearance has been postponed until the September 25 Sunday Salon.
Clifton’s Cafeteria is at 648 South Broadway, near the corner of 7th Street. There are numerous paid parking lots nearby, and the closest Metro station is Pershing Square. Clifton’s is online at https://www.cliftonscafeteria.com
The Birth of Noir tour
Southern California 1931: Amongst the burgeoning urban sprawl built atop bulldozed orange groves and the bitter realization that you can’t eat the sunshine, recent emigré James M. Cain found a kernel of truth and his voice, which would eventually distill through his novels, ”The Postman Always Rings Twice,” “Mildred Pierce” and “Double Indemnity” and subsequent film adaptations into the unique American genre: Film Noir.
How did this East Coat sophisticate go from managing editor of “The New Yorker” to populist novelist accused of writing dirty books? The tour explores Cain’s L.A. from Hollywood to Glendale and along old Route 66, and includes illuminating visits to Forest Lawn Memorial Park (a Glendale institution and site of the funeral of Mildred Pierce’s “other” daughter, Ray), the Glendale Train Station where the “Double Indemnity” murder plot played out, and the punch line to a Billy Wilder joke so subtle, it’s taken 63 years for anyone to get. The tour will also cover the artisans who transformed Cain’s tales into film, including Billy Wilder, Raymond Chandler, Joan Crawford and Lana Turner, each an important contributor to the Film Noir canon.
LAVA’s Sunday Salon – June 2011, Science Fiction and Fantastical Cities
Special program at the June 26 Salon:
• Special guest Milt Stevens, a long time SF fan who has been a member of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society for a bit over fifty years, will give a presentation on this illustrious southland organization–the world’s oldest science fiction club, which for many years met right here at Clifton’s Cafeteria. Milt will give a brief history of the LASFS and discuss its current activities, with a focus on memorable anecdotes about the writers and fans who have been part of this remarkable entity.
• Back by popular demand, LAVA Visionary Gene Sculatti, outsider artist and pop culture critic (The Catalog of Cool) returns to show off the new “construction” on his newest fantasy cityscape scroll Majestic Boulevard, which has been developed in response to the daffy and inspired suggestions of January Salon attendees. New developments suggested by LAVA Visionaries include: the world HQ of Ian Whitcomb’s ITW Industries and the consulate general of Smokessylvania, submitted by Count Smokula. Gene’s pitch to virtual developers: “Come live the Jet Age California dream when you stake out a virtual half-acre along Majestic Boulevard and plan the commercial development of your dreams. Maybe it’s tiki-themed bowling alley… or a no-tell motel named after your secret crush… or the lone Victorian farmhouse left behind when progress came to town.” Six months in the works, Gene returns to the Sunday Salon to unveil the expanded scroll to the lucky “property owners.” Also on view: Untitled #1, whose theme might be ‘Imagining SoCal.’ This is a 13-inches-by-53-feet job, drawn from 1969-71, and was the last one the artist did before moving to L.A. The inspiration is mostly Southern California, and the work covers all four of Reyner Banham’s ecologies. Bonus: a portion has the experimental “smog coat” the artist devised to make it “more like L.A.” ABOUT GENE SCULATTI’S SCROLLS: Since the age of 9, Sculatti, 63, has created imaginary horizontal cities packed with fascinating details that reflect his evolving obsessions: googie signage, soaring bridges, skyscrapers, suburbs, amusement parks and much more. Join us for a rare opportunity to get close to these beautiful and strange artworks, and to hear the artist discuss his inspirations, working methods, and how the scrolls have stayed with him for more than four decades. To learn more about Gene’s cityscapes, see photos from the March 2010 Sunday Salon exhibit of Gene’s scrolls here, read Gene’s musings here, or view his work-in-progress sketches here.
LAVA Sunday Salon extras: Nathan Marsak on “L.A. Noire”
Architectural historian Nathan Marsak talked about L.A. Noire at the LAVA Sunday Salon, prior to his walking tour (May 29, 2011). See the video here.
LAVA’s Sunday Salon – May 2011, Theosophy and Shipwrecks
Special program at the May 29, 2011 Salon:
• Artist / musician and LAVA Visionary Rich Polysorbate 60 was born five years after the shipwreck of the S.S. Dominator off Palos Verdes. The wreck served as his tree fort and nautical womb. He would hallucinate and dream about fusing as one with it. The Dominator would feed him memories and stories related to those who died on it after it split in half and was scattered among the rocks. Rich will be on hand today to share mementos and clues in the way of a film/poetry presentation with live theremin accompaniment from Paul Wilkins (PWE/Clowns and Fetuses).
• LAVA co-founder Richard Schave hosts a discussion on the history of The United Lodge of Theosophy, a unique Los Angeles institution. The forces that impacted founder Robert Crosbie from his arrival in 1911, and how he and his brethren shaped their spiritual and educational environment over the decades, are a fundamental narrative of the city. Theosophy, like Los Angeles, straddles two kingdoms, the finite and the infinite, imbued with fascinating contradictions: love, wealth, greed, power and release. Victoria Prinz is a member of the ULT, and she’ll take some of these themes as a starting point for this discussion on the extraordinary legacy of the ULT in Los Angeles.
Blog, Food, Free, LAVA Exclusives, Talks
LAVA’s Sunday Salon
On the last Sunday of each month, LAVA welcomes interested individuals to gather on the third floor of the historic Clifton’s Cafeteria in Downtown Los Angeles (noon-2pm), for a loosely structured conversational Salon featuring short presentations and opportunities to meet and connect with one another. If you’re interested in joining LAVA as a creative contributor or an attendee, we recommend Salon attendance as an introduction to this growing community. We also recommend the shortbread.
Special program at the July 31 Salon (additional programs may be added closer to Salon time):
• Preservationist, tile historian and LAVA Visionary Brian Kaiser will give a talk on Artistic Tile in Southern California. The main body of the presentation is a slide tour of the house that Rufus Keeler built for himself in South Gate in 1924. Mr. Keeler was founder, plant manager, and sole ceramist of the Calco (1923-1932) and Malibu potteries (1926-1932). His house is tile from start to finish, and was made from Calco Tile, a pottery that preceded Malibu Tile. Meant to be a showcase for the use of clay products in home construction and decoration, the house still stands as a magnificent example of one of the finest ceramists in all of California during the 1920s and 1930s.
• LAVA Visionaries Maja D’Aoust, Librarian at the Philosophical Research Society and host of the July 30 Esotouric bus adventure Maja’s Mysteries: Rapture & Release, and Rev. Paul Nugent of The Aetherius Society will host a joint presentation / conversation on the history of Los Angeles as a magnetic spiritual center: a place where people of all faiths and backgrounds have come to seek enlightenment since the turn of the last century. Maja will introduce us to some of the major esoteric groups and thinkers that have made Los Angeles their home, revealing the shared aims beneath a seemingly disparate collection of seekers. These will include The Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.), Manly P. Hall and his Philosophical Research Society and The Theosophy Society, to name a few. Then Paul will give a brief history of The Aetherius Society, the spiritual organization which was brought to Los Angeles by Yoga Master and extraterrestrial contactee Dr. George King in 1959, as part of his mission to help humanity raise itself from universal suffering and ignorance. Dr. King’s initial communication with the Cosmic Master Aetherius occurred in 1954, spurring Dr. King on to found the Society in England the following year (he ran it until his death in 1997; Paul Nugent was a personal assistant to Dr. King and is a current Director of the organization’s American headquarters). Part of the work of The Aetherius Society is predicated on Prayer, and the mental direction of positive energy towards the world’s trouble spots in a manifestation of the concept that consciousness can impact objective reality. The presentation will provide an overview of the Southland’s fascinating spiritual history and ongoing role in the development of new religious thought and action.
Clifton’s Cafeteria is at 648 South Broadway, near the corner of 7th Street. There are numerous paid parking lots nearby, and the closest Metro station is Pershing Square. Clifton’s is online at https://www.cliftonscafeteria.com
Blog, Food, Free, LAVA Exclusives, Talks
LAVA’s Sunday Salon (note new location – this month only)
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! This month only: due to unforeseen circumstances, the LAVA Sunday Salon will not be held at Clifton’s Cafeteria, which is closed. Instead we will gather on the third floor of the Los Angeles Athletic Club, which is just two blocks west of Clifton’s, on the north-east corner of 7th and Olive Streets. For walking directions from Clifton’s Cafeteria, click here. When you enter the Athletic Club, inform the person at the desk that you are there as a guest of club member Richard Schave attending the LAVA event. They will sign you in, and send you up to the third floor. It will be possible to order light meals of sandwiches in the 8th floor snack bar, however, please note that service will be slower than at Clifton’s, and that arriving early and ordering promptly will be very helpful. We recommend parking under Pershing Square at Fifth and Olive. If you order food, the Athletic Club will validate for their parking lot.
ABOUT THE SUNDAY SALON: On the last Sunday of each month, LAVA welcomes interested individuals to gather on the third floor of the historic Clifton’s Cafeteria in Downtown Los Angeles (noon-2pm), for a loosely structured conversational Salon featuring short presentations and opportunities to meet and connect with one another. If you’re interested in joining LAVA as a creative contributor or an attendee, we recommend Salon attendance as an introduction to this growing community. We also recommend the shortbread.
Special program at the June 26 Salon (additional programs may be added closer to Salon time):
• Special guest Milt Stevens, a long time SF fan who has been a member of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society for a bit over fifty years, will give a presentation on this illustrious southland organization–the world’s oldest science fiction club, which for many years met right here at Clifton’s Cafeteria. Milt will give a brief history of the LASFS and discuss its current activities, with a focus on memorable anecdotes about the writers and fans who have been part of this remarkable entity.
• Back by popular demand, LAVA Visionary Gene Sculatti, outsider artist and pop culture critic (The Catalog of Cool) returns to show off the new “construction” on his newest fantasy cityscape scroll Majestic Boulevard, which has been developed in response to the daffy and inspired suggestions of January Salon attendees. New developments suggested by LAVA Visionaries include: the world HQ of Ian Whitcomb’s ITW Industries and the consulate general of Smokessylvania, submitted by Count Smokula. Gene’s pitch to virtual developers: “Come live the Jet Age California dream when you stake out a virtual half-acre along Majestic Boulevard and plan the commercial development of your dreams. Maybe it’s tiki-themed bowling alley… or a no-tell motel named after your secret crush… or the lone Victorian farmhouse left behind when progress came to town.” Six months in the works, Gene returns to the Sunday Salon to unveil the expanded scroll to the lucky “property owners.” Also on view: Untitled #1, whose theme might be ‘Imagining SoCal.’ This is a 13-inches-by-53-feet job, drawn from 1969-71, and was the last one the artist did before moving to L.A. The inspiration is mostly Southern California, and the work covers all four of Reyner Banham’s ecologies. Bonus: a portion has the experimental “smog coat” the artist devised to make it “more like L.A.” ABOUT GENE SCULATTI’S SCROLLS: Since the age of 9, Sculatti, 63, has created imaginary horizontal cities packed with fascinating details that reflect his evolving obsessions: googie signage, soaring bridges, skyscrapers, suburbs, amusement parks and much more. Join us for a rare opportunity to get close to these beautiful and strange artworks, and to hear the artist discuss his inspirations, working methods, and how the scrolls have stayed with him for more than four decades. To learn more about Gene’s cityscapes, see photos from the March 2010 Sunday Salon exhibit of Gene’s scrolls here, read Gene’s musings here, or view his work-in-progress sketches here.
Clifton’s Cafeteria is at 648 South Broadway, near the corner of 7th Street. There are numerous paid parking lots nearby, and the closest Metro station is Pershing Square. Clifton’s is online at https://www.cliftonscafeteria.com