Sundays are fun for random day trips with stops at vintage diners. Halfway House Cafe on Sierra Hwy opened as a trading post halfway between LA & Antelope Valley. Waitresses still call you "hon" as they serve up tasty burgers, tuna melts, etc. It's also appeared in tons of films.

1970s memory in Beverly Hills: the smell of fresh Wonder Bread from Continental Baking Co. perfuming the air. Loaves were loaded onto freight trains (the old tracks b/w Little & Big Santa Monica Blvds.). The factory was demo'd in 1984 for office development along Civic Center Dr.

Besides his proposal to access water from the Columbia River, in 1992 Kenneth Hahn and then-Alaska governor Wally Hickel wanted to run a 1,400-mile undersea pipeline from Alaskan rivers to Calif. (and ultimately L.A.). Estimated to cost up to $110 billion, Congress rejected it.

My cat has good taste... an uncanny knack for only paying attention to the TV screen when an iconic movie is playing.

Starting in 1964, the LA area was the Western hub for the American Nazi Party. Its first HQ was at 823 Colorado St. in Glendale. In 1972, 1,000 protestors stormed its new HQ in El Monte. The Nazis left SoCal in '76 after more protests, legal battles & a homicide on its property.

Just took an immersive journey thru 4 floors of the old St. Vincent hospital, which houses a pop-up where 70 artists have converted 80 hospital rooms to a range of work with emotional themes (fear, anger... think of those "pain charts" in rooms). Tix at "Hospital of Emotions"!

Mona Murray was the CHP's first female motorcycle officer, starting in Nov. 1980. A media circus covered her first day on the job on LA's crazed freeways. Her CHP career lasted 38 years. She eventually rose thru the ranks to become a Deputy Commissioner, retiring in 2015.

For decades Love's BBQ sign graced the 101 in Calabasas. Then Lovi's Deli took over, repurposing Love's sign by changing one letter, like Vons/Jons, etc. I scoffed and never went. Until today. OMG what a great deli. And the owners are actually the Lovi family. Color me contrite.

RIP Randolph Mantooth. I was a HUGE fan of "Emergency!" Then in 2002, our neighbor at our 1st house, in Hollywoodland, was... Randy! I dogsat his dog Dodger, he helped me landscape, and we hosted him & his wife Kristen on BBQ nights. A true mensch, even kinder than "John Gage."

The climax of "The Graduate" was shot at La Verne United Methodist Church (3205 D St.). Unchanged today but for this movie magic... The outdoor staircase that Ben climbs to the balcony to scream "Elaine!!!" was a prop removed after shooting. IRL, it's accessed by inner-stairs.

This is the 10th Anniversary of Joe Davis as the Dodgers' primary voice. In 2012, as Vin hinted about retirement, I wrote a piece imploring the team's new owners to hire a young unknown who could forge his own path like Vin did. I'd say it worked out! patch.com/california/e...

Hiking along Steckel Park in Santa Paula, I came across an aviary. This salty fella came over to greet me. Being cussed at by a parrot was a bucket list item I never knew I needed until now.

I love the lines & shading of this 1968 contour proposal of the Santa Monica Mtns. Never-built: "Upgrading" Topanga Cyn & Mulholland to 60 mph parkways. And a sprawling UCLA Research Park. Meanwhile, Mission Cyn Landfill is now Mountaingate, the tony enclave built on an old dump.

GEO-QUIZ ANSWER: Y'all are too smart. Yes, the building glimpsed from Hwy 150 in Santa Paula is Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel at St. Thomas Aquinas College. Same architect as University of Notre Dame, with the dome representing Rome, the bell tower, California's Missions.

GEO-QUIZ: Where in the name of SoCal is this hidden Spanish Baroque-style church?

In the late '50s, Millard Sheets was commissioned to design the Pomona Mall -- one of the first pedestrian-only malls in the US -- to revive its downtown. By 1977, after many vacancies, much of the area was returned to cars, though Sheets' mosaics & sculptures are still around.

In 1990, LA County Supv. Kenneth Hahn seriously called for diverting water from Washington's Columbia River to counter droughts. The river's 90 billion daily gallons dumped into the ocean was "wasteful and sinful." Wash. officials countered the same about LA's swimming pools.

Settled in to watch the Dodger game around 9 pm last night on Apple TV. Not knowing the score, the plan was to cue it up from the BEGINNING. But on Apple's home page, it said "Padres 7, Dodgers 1, 8th inning." 😠 Apple is clueless about how true fans consume their team's games.

Spied this little coyote resting on a lawn in Los Feliz and had to fight off an innate urge to give him scritches behind his ears.

Ever wonder why there's such a huge gap between the north- and southbound lanes on the 101 Fwy around Vermont Ave.? In the 1950s, Caltrans split the lanes to accommodate a 4-level interchange to link to the never-built Beverly Hills Fwy, which would've extended to the Glendale Fwy.

I know Hollywood & Highland is still a cluster, but... what exactly did the geniuses behind "Ovation" gain by tearing down the Babylonian-set replica of "Intolerance," which at least screamed Hollywood? I actually took visitors there. Now it might as well be a mall in Costa Mesa.

With David Hockney's passing, I'm reminded of a post I made a few years ago. I still submit that I would've loved to see his interpretation of the jagged, colorful landscape of Lincoln Blvd. between Santa Monica and Venice in the 1970s as a piece of artwork.

The Dodgers have a history of shortstops blowing perfect games, all in June! 🤨 1980: Bill Russell error. Reuss throws no-hitter, no walks. 2014: Hanley Ramirez error. Kershaw throws no-hitter, no walks. Today: Mookie Betts error. Yamamoto gives up 1st hit in 9th, pulled.

How have I never noticed until today that Vroman's in Pasadena has an Author Walk of Fame? (Maybe because it's to the left of the entrance.) Lisa See was the first author to memorialize their handprints in 2014.

The Ford Theatre is the unsung little cousin to the Hollywood Bowl... 1,200 cozy seats in a hillside. Built for the Pilgrimage Play in 1920, it was rebuilt after a '29 fire. Seeing X there in 1990, friends with no tickets experienced the show from the hiking trail to the east.

One reason I love LA is being able to walk -- and sit -- in the company of luminary ghosts. At a recent Dan Tana's visit, we sat in the "Joni Mitchell" booth. The booth next to it graces the photo of Art Garfunkel's "Breakaway" (1975). Helena Kallianiotes (Five Easy Pieces) is the gal with the cig.

This Spinal Tap pic at Sherman Oaks' old Moby Disc in 1983 hits hard. Loved this place. In 1984, I was listening to an LP at the front counter and, 2 feet from me, witnessed an armed robber holding up the store. I spoke to cops after. Dude was robbing record stores along Ventura!

GEO-QUIZ Answer: Many folks pinned the area where this is: The huge hedge is part of the "Great Wall of Bezos" -- nickname for the 20-foot privacy hedge that lines Jeff Bezos' estate on Angelo Drive. Reports are that he simply pays hefty monthly fines to Beverly Hills to maintain its height.

UNREMARKABLE POSTCARD SERIES, No. 113. Sunland, Calif. 1960s. *Shopping Bag market became Vons

This 2016 NPS map shows the ranges of then-known mountain lions in LA/Ventura Counties. Red circle on right was P-22's tiny domain. Elongated blue is Verdugo Mtns., where pumas also range. Santa Monica is at the bottom. Its recent puma was relocated to the westerly Santa Monica Mtns.