Martin, I did know about Lebowski, but did not know about Hollywood and Highland. Interesting!

:previous:

I got that info from this article from March:

Hey Man, It's the Best Bowling Alleys in Los Angeles
Let the Good Times Roll
by Discover Los Angeles | Mar 5, 2020


The list includes "Highland Park Bowl: L.A.'s oldest functioning bowling alley, the spectacular Highland Park Bowl (5621 N. Figueroa St., Highland Park) was lovingly restored by 1933 Group and it’s a beauty. Opened in 1927, Highland Park Bowl features the original pin mechanisms, like something out of Hugo, with eight vintage lanes."

.
Although it's a bit blurry, here's another image that shows the Step Inn at Topanga and. .umm. .Roosevelt Highway (or does this pre-date Roosevelt Highway?)


https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...923/1isYvO.jpg
brasstackspress/blogspot

"Clayton Rust's service station at the mouth of the canyon."

.

.
Mystery location.


Whenever I see one of those Redwood car tunnels, or in this case a Redwood 'tree house', I immediately think of northern California
but there's a good possibility this image is from southern California.

"WOMAN at REDWOOD TREE HOUSE ? VENICE BEACH Pier WIRELESS STATION 1910's photo."

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...923/M1mYDW.jpg
LINK

The seller points out that the sign on the white building at left says 'Venice Wireless Station'.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...923/VW2RnC.jpg



Here's a closer look.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...923/pZS0TV.jpg
DETAIL




.

:previous:

I didn't find the Redwood Tree House, but here's the Venice Wireless Station. It's from a book called 'Venice' by Carolyn Elayne Alexander. It was apparently on Abbot Kinney Pier.

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...eWireless1.jpg
books.google.com

:previous:

The Aquarium aka the USC Marine Biological Research Station burned down in 1920 and was not rebuilt.

https://i1.rgstatic.net/publication/...rgepreview.png
https://www.researchgate.net/publica...ern_California

Still looking for something about that redwood tree house, but since we're at Venice Beach and have recently posted photos of giants (tall people), this c. 1929 photo at LAPL is titled "Beauty Contest winner peers up at tall man."

https://66.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m...qq4no1_640.jpgLAPL

While looking for pictures of Venice, I found this drawing:

Photograph of an artist's conception of the "Niagara Barrel" ride for the Venice Pier. "Persons who have read of dare-devils going over Niagara Falls in a barrel and wondered what the impressions and sensations of such a journey could be, will have their curiosity gratified before the summer is over, Harry H. Hargrave, nationally known thrill-device designer and builder, having announced a "Niagara Barrel" ride by the American Amusement Enterprises for the Venice Pier, construction to begin immediately"

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...araBarrel2.jpg
USC Digital Library

Despite the last line, I wasn't sure if this was ever built. Then I came across this piece from 'Popular Mechanics', August 1932.
NB. I've rearranged the original layout to make it more screen-friendly.

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...araBarrel1.jpg
books.google.com

.
Great find, Hoss.... . .and the building appears to match!


https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...923/Y9G0wB.jpg


below:

I thought the 'tower' was part of the wireless station. lol

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/8...922/wHtYXc.jpg

hmm. . .perhaps the bell ringy thingy is wired up thus killing two birds with one stone.



That said - I'm still trying to wrap my head around the spinning water barrel.

I thought it was a giant pineapple.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/3...923/RcpkrV.jpg

Tell me that doesn't look like a pineapple.
.

.

A mystery factory, Los Angeles area, California.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/lepVBi.jpg
eBay




Photographer's stamp on the reverse.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/8...922/7nke0e.jpg


ENLARGED BY EARL V. LEWIS CO.

226 W. 4TH & 305 W. 7TH

1909
https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...923/YABzyC.jpg
LAPL



Frustratingly there isn't a single word written on any of the factory buildings.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/TysU08.jpg
DETAIL

As you can see it's a massive place!


.

This looks like a chemical plant in the Mojave, e.g. Trona. A dry lake bed at the foot of the mountains on the right. Nothing agricultural at all, which probably takes it out of Los Angeles County.

EDIT: looking for old pictures of Trona, I found this one in "Death Valley Region ...a Chronological & Pictorial History" by Kenneth Lengner:

https://i.imgur.com/jN42hIU.jpg

(It was really hard to take a picture of the picture in the book, but I'm pretty sure it's the same place. Check the markings at the top of the 2 chimneys in both pictures, they match.)

:previous:


The mountains from Trona ... and those in the picture.


https://i.imgur.com/gDJqtpv.jpg


:tup: Lorendoc

^^^
Bingo. Trona plant, not too far from Muroc (now Edwards) Air Force Base. Trona. Isn't that where the mule teams used to deposit their borax loads from Death Valley area, or was that something different? Boraxo soap, 20 Mule Team Borax. Famous 1950s western TV show. Wasn't Ronald Reagan the host, or was that something with GE? My memory is not what it once was.:koko:

If you are a real old timer you remember "Slim" Barnard, who used to host a popular travel show on L.A. KTLA & KCOP in early glorious color in the mid-late 1960s. It was called the "Happy Wanderers". Slim had a distinctive laugh. I remember one episode where he visited the borax plant.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Happy_Wanderers

https://findagrave.com/memorial/1145...carter-barnard

Slim cohosted the show with his wfe Henrietta, who lived to be 99

https://findagrave.com/memorial/1047...a-lena-barnard

I also believe the late travel host Huell Howser also visited the Trona borax plant on an episode of his "California Gold" show. Maybe someone can find the link. He also talked about the 20 mule teams.

Huell also did a show celebrating "The Happy Wanderers" and visited an aged Henrietta Barnard. Slim had already passed. This is a good 25 minute episode to watch--it has the distinctive Slim laugh and the Happy Wandrers theme song & lots of vintage stuff. Here it is, worth 25 minutes of your time:

https://kcet.org/shows/visiting-with...appy-wanderers

For those of us who like to wander in the desert at night in the dark(aka landscape astrophotographers), just south of Trona is Trona Pinnacles.

:slob:

[QUOTE=CaliNative;8915857]^^^
Bingo. Trona plant, not too far from Muroc (now Edwards) Air Force Base. Trona. Isn't that where the mule teams used to deposit their borax loads from Death Valley area, or was that something different? Boraxo soap, 20 Mule Team Borax. Famous 1950s western TV show. Wasn't Ronald Reagan the host, or was that something with GE? My memory is not what it once was.:koko:

I also believe the late travel host Huell Howser also visited the Trona borax plant on an episode of his "California Gold" show. Maybe someone can find the link. He also talked about the 20 mule teams.
***
You're thinking of the town of Boron near Edwards Air Force Base where Huell Howser visited. Trona is northeast from China Lake Naval Station, many, many miles northward from Edwards.

Chavez Ravine, on this day (May 8th), 1961.

https://i.imgur.com/vqDJuhn.jpg

https://www.latimes.com/visuals/phot...328-story.html

.
Great detective work, Lorendoc and Noir Noir!



I believe Trona, at the time the photograph was taken, was just beginning as a 'company town'. (officially established in 1913)

Here is a detail of the right side of the mystery photograph found on eBay.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/IbiWQJ.jpg
complete photo Here


Here's some info:

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...923/Qw0B1v.jpg
ummm





Here's an example of one of the company 'trade tokens'.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...922/zEqs61.jpghttps://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/6...924/yePYHs.jpg
worthpoint


The "A P & C CORP." stands for the American Potash Company.


I'm a bit confused about the coin and A P & C. so I'll include worthpoint's description as well.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/tczk4G.jpg
.
worthpoint

It mentions the American Potash Co. opening in 1941 but I believe the coins are much older than 1941. (for example note the ornate curlicue in the center of the coin in the left pic)

What do you make of it? :shrug:




SIDENOTE:....I'll bet if you were to go to the area today with a metal detector you'd get a BAZILLION hits.

.

[QUOTE=corriganville;8916162]Trona is a mineral, not just the name of a town. I drove through the area back in the late1970s....its very desolate. We did rife target practice on an open lot in town.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ona-417601.jpg
wiki file of trona mineral.

Trona is a rare mineral from the mineral class " carbonates and nitrates " (formerly carbonates, nitrates and borates , and relatives ).

Trona still has its own railroad, the Trona Railway. Long gone is the Epsom Salts Railroad, a monorail built by a Los Angeles florist named Thomas H. Wright in 1924, which ran across the South end of Searles Lake:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epsom_Salts_Monorail

If you're interested in the technology, Wright's patents are US1454804A, US1523335A, US1459386A, and US1454807A. Google will bring them right up.

And let's see if Noirishers can find his florist shop, or the offices of his lawyers (Hazard and Miller).

Cheers,

Earl

:previous:


The picture that e_r posted may have come about because of Thomas H. Wright and his interests up around Trona.


His florist store -

https://i.imgur.com/dPN9XuD.jpg
rescarta.lapl.org


The store next door -

https://i.imgur.com/SjE56hG.jpg
rescarta.lapl.org


I wonder did he hire Earl to go up to Trona and take the picture or just get one he already had enlarged in his store?

https://i.imgur.com/oF1Q3Tn.jpg
Ebay

:shrug:

You just blew my mind.

[QUOTE=corriganville;8916162]^^^
Trona and Boron are easily confused, at least by me. The quakes a year or two ago were centered near Trona & Ridgecrest of course. Wasn't "Poncho" Barnes' fly-in-ranch and club near Boron? According to Wolfe in "The Right Stuff", lots of single young women would drive up to Poncho's place to bag a Muroc test pilot. The place burned down back in the '50s. I wonder if any relics are left of Poncho's place?

[QUOTE=CityBoyDoug;8916340]True. Minerals formed during the evaporation of the lakes that once dotted the Mohave and Great Basin during the ice age. Evaporite minerals. Nitrates, chlorides, carbonates etc. Death Valley once had a huge lake (Lake Manly) as big as Delaware. That would have been a sight. Mono Lake is the last big one left in CA, and of course the Great Salt Lake, a remnant of giant Lake Bonneville. Nevada has a few still there, Pyramid Lake & Walker Lake. Lithium salts and rare earth minerals are now sought by mining companies in these dried up lake basins. Tesla couldn't exist without lithium batteries.

Here's a 1934 aerial of the Trona site. The photo posted by e_r would have been taken from somewhere in the lower left corner. The white squares just right of center appear to be the original houses on Magnolia Avenue and Panamint Avenue - most/all of them are still there. What's missing in this picture is the current main town of Trona to the north of the white houses. It didn't exist in 1934.

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...4/LATrona1.jpg
mil.library.ucsb.edu

One of my newest works "Google Aerial Lake At Trona Screen Capture #3" is going into the next Sotheby's modern art auction with a reserve of $12M.


https://i.imgur.com/EQR2PDK.jpg


:rolleyes:

.
Very interesting 1934 aerial, Hoss. ...I'm still trying to make heads or tails out of your map, Noir Noir. Does your equisite color palette represent different minerals?


Here's a fine look at the Trona Service Station.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/94dUYa.jpg
eBay

Do you think the gas station operated with company tokens?


I appreciate the information on the [past and present] salt lakes, CaliNative. :)
.

.
I don't want to beat a dead horse here. . .
https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/2474/YFVPzl.gif


. . .but there is something in the original eBay photograph that has my curiosity meter pinging.



What, pray-tell, do you think is kept in this little shed?

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/8...924/WSON5G.jpg
DETAIL


As you can see, whatever - is in the shed - is on little rails . . and, if you look closely, the shed roof slants slightly to the left.

Do you think it leads to something underground . . . like a mini-me mine. :shrug:


.

I was unable to discover the medium of your newest artwork. I'm sure your $12,000,000 [reserve] work will be snapped up in a few minutes of bidding by one of our NLA members. What a bargain.!!!

The Salton Sea gets no respect, I tell ya.

It's part of Searles Lake near Trona as it appears on Google Maps. Chemicals, archaebacteria, and algae account for the different colors -

palomar.edu


When you zoom right in on Searles Lake on the aerial, there's all kinds of weird features and shapes. Hours of fun for all the family. :D


https://i.imgur.com/QxovbLn.jpg
Google Maps - Searles Lake


The medium is archaebacteria ... mixed with sweat and tears. :)

But Mono Lake doesn't have two feature films...

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/...82,268_AL_.jpg https://pthumb.lisimg.com/78437/180full.jpg ...and a documentary: https://s3.dualstack.eu-west-1.amazo...jpg?1569680423 :tup:

The railroad/transit buffs can correct me, but I believe it's a shed for a handcar that can be brought out to inspect the rails.

:previous:
You are, no doubt, correct, Jungmann. A handcar -the obvious answer- never crossed my mind.


one minute later:

hmmm. . .but the rails from the shack to the main railroad track appear to be a narrower gage. ( if so, the handcar wouldn't fit on the wider rails)

*continues to beat horse*

.

.

I believe the three camel statues in this snapshot might be the faux-camels in the eBay photograph I posted a couple of days ago.


.....A 'mystery' location. Los Angeles, California 1920s

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...922/LK5Ajk.jpg

..........................................................................................................................Does this area look familiar to anyone?


Go HERE to see the eBay photo again.


Whaddya think?

A handcar (also known as a pump trolley, pump car, jigger, Kalamazoo, velocipede, or draisine) is a railroad car powered by its passengers, or by people pushing the car from behind. It is mostly used as a maintenance of way or mining car, but it was also used for passenger service in some cases. A typical design consists of an arm, called the walking beam, that pivots, seesaw-like, on a base, which the passengers alternately push down and pull up to move the car.

http://www.railroadhandcar.com/rent/handcar_north_1.jpg
Handcar club.

Just a lot of up and down, up and down.....good exercise but tedious. I prefer a seat in the Club car.

I always referred to them as a go-devil, a term I might have picked up from Bing Crosby.

.
Here's a snapshot taken in Long Beach circa.1937

It shows sailors from the USS Northampton visiting an apartment building called Bonzer Court. (or perhaps they're staying there)

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/8...922/Juosrj.jpg
ebay

It's a fairly nice looking place. The attractive entrance arch has "Bonzer Court" painted on it. (without the apostrophe 's, as it's written in the photo album)





Here's a closer look.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...923/6DYXag.jpg

I'm still looking for the address.



LINK (the seller mistakenly spells Bonzer, Bonser)


The seller adds this:

"Vintage 1936-39 photo I just removed from William Bartlett Kitchin US Navy Sailor Photo Album. He enlisted Dec 17, 1935 - Discharged Oct 16, 1939.
At Discharge he was a Gunners Mate 2nd Class. (He was re-inducted during WWII.)

He served on the USS Northampton which was based at Pearl Harbor during much of his time aboard.

Almost all had info written in album or on the back. If anything written on back I will have a pic of back in the listing."

(there was nothing written on the back of this particular photograph)

.

https://i.imgur.com/gHaxxAA.jpg
lbpl.contentdm.oclc.org



https://i.imgur.com/pJL4yrg.jpg
GSV

.
Thanks Noir Noir.

Here's another one from the same photo album.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/0trpwL.jpg
ebay



This one has writing on the back.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1...924/bUvRQT.jpg

Good luck!
...........................:superwhip


.

RoseMary DeCamp was with 20 Mule Team Borax
 

I remember that it was the wholesome R. De Camp being the host of this series on telly and as spokesperson for the laundry soap commercials.

As you know I'm sure, the Salton Sea was an artificial creation of a breach on a dike along the flooding Colorado River about 1905(?). But I agree, the SS gets no respect. It should be a destination resort again like it was in the 1950s. Now it is just a smelly sump filled with ag runoff and is too salty for fish. Maybe they should drill a pipe to the Pacific or Gulf of CA (if Mexico agrees) and pump in fresh sea water. Near the sea, on the east side, is a huge informal RV campground called "Slab City" where mostly retired people camp for free. Kind of like a low rent "Burning Man" festival I'm told. It probably empties out during the hot summer. Anybody visited the place and have any stories?

I never watched that show, dang. Used to watch Bonanza a lot (everybody liked "Hoss" best & Hop Sing was always mad at him) and Wagon Train sometimes. Wagon Train never got to where they were going, Oregon I guess. They were forever out on the desert and plains training. But the real can't miss show back then was "The Twilight Zone". Rod Serling always had a lit cigarette. On one of the episodes set in the future they said L.A. was the largest (most populous) city in the world. Didn't quite get there. The 1950s/60s growth rates really slowed down.

Victor Sen Yung played Hop Sing. I have his cookbook. Sen Yung was No. 2 son in 25 Charlie Chan movies, had a degree in economics and did graduate work at USC and UCLA, and was a Captain in Military Intelligence in WWII.

And his cookbook taught me to scrub rice before you cook it.

Cheers,

Earl

That's true for the current incarnation of the Salton Sea, there have been lakes there many times throughout history like many of the other dry lakes in the western deserts.

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-SM4kjPn-M.jpg
The Slab City Welcome Kiosk.

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-4pdSwCW-M.jpg
This is incorrect, if you ended up at Slab City, you're LOST!

I visited the Salton Sea(Bombay Beach, Salvation Mountain and Slab City) in early February.

[

Agreed but one could go lower...try a sad sidewalk tent in downtown Los Angeles or San Francisco....:(:(:(

Camels
 

There is a Shrine emblem hanging in the trees, must be same Camels.To me it looks like the area around the Colosseum.

I was referring more to a geographical sense of lost.

I found this image last week while we were finding filming locations around S Serrano Avenue. This is the 1962 Villa Serrano at 351 S Serrano. It's from a book called 'Los Angeles 1976' by Bevan Davies.

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...laSerrano1.jpg
www.vincentborrelli.com

Here's a recent view showing how the trees have grown.

https://i809.photobucket.com/albums/...laSerrano2.jpg
GSV

Sorry Bill, I forgot that downtown LA cannot confer a geographical sense of the lost. So irresponsible of me.....:shrug::shrug::shrug:

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vPDwz5uA8...2C%2B1956.jpeg
Richard1956file

Little Richard had a home in Los Angeles but said he felt lost in LA. He lived in the Lafayette Square area.