:previous: I didn't expect anyone to figure out the address of that flood pic I posted. Nice comparison views G_W.

Has anyone heard of the Meadvin Oil Co? (sign on top of the gas station)


http://imageshack.us/a/img41/7325/aagasmeadvinoilco.jpg
found on ebay

Notice the wonderful homes in the background.





below: detail

http://imageshack.us/a/img440/3897/a...dvinoilco1.jpg

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Take a look at this bungalow court on the 1200 block of Sunset Blvd.


http://imageshack.us/a/img23/954/aab...locksunset.jpg
google street view

Can't you see a gumshoe climbing those steps.





Here's an aerial showing it's extremely narrow lot.

http://imageshack.us/a/img804/954/aa...locksunset.jpg
google aerial

http://imageshack.us/a/img687/1899/a...alldrawing.jpg
http://www.historichollywood.biz/dra...city-hall2.htm







I found these amazing interiors of Los Angeles City Hall at the Library of Congress.


below: The beautiful 3rd Floor Rotunda. That 'festoon' of drapery is really unique.

http://imageshack.us/a/img535/2613/aa3rdfloor2.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/





below: Another view of the 3rd Floor Rotunda.

http://imageshack.us/a/img687/7559/a...undalibcon.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/






below: The 3rd Floor Elevator Lobby with its stunning ceiling.
It's too bad about the plastic trash receptacles with the garbage bags hanging out.

http://imageshack.us/a/img337/8144/a...vatorlobby.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/





below: Session room of the Board of Public Works.

http://imageshack.us/a/img225/4305/a...sionroomof.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/




below: The City Council Chambers.
Is this where they filmed the 'goats' scene in Chintown?

http://imageshack.us/a/img846/7812/a...ycouncilch.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/





below: The Mayor's Office.

http://imageshack.us/a/img801/4122/ssuite.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/






below: Exquisite columns on the 3rd floor....behind the columns is another view of the 3rd floor elevator lobby.

http://imageshack.us/a/img545/4405/aa3rdf2.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/





below: The intricate ceiling design of the 27th floor reception room.

http://imageshack.us/a/img12/4265/aa...towerrecep.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/

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I found this on .jalopyjournal.com

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_8qEDwfHWKL0/S3...0/LA30s184.jpg
Notice the sculpture right out front of the station.

Visiting the Observation Deck at Los Angeles City Hall
 

e_r, great gas station and City Hall photos, thanks!

The observation deck atop City Hall is open to public visitors at no charge on weekdays, and is well worth seeing. The building itself is a gem, and from the top you'll have stunning 360 degree views of DTLA and the L.A. area.

Here's the drill:

Bring a picture ID and enter City Hall by the Main Street entrance. Tell the guard that you want to visit the observation deck. They'll give you a visitor's pass.

Take the main elevator to the 22nd floor. Then take the next elevator to the 26th floor, or just take the stairs.

Enjoy!

More fun with seals at the Venice Pier-1924
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2706/4...c8814c66_o.jpg
1924-Seal on Pier by ozfan22, on Flickr

:previous: Fun stuff kanhawk.



Now that is a great find Graybeard!
I need to go back and review all my old photos of the Ritchfield gas stations to see if there were more of these Frolich 'sculptures'.

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Found recently on ebay....notice the tanks of the 102 Brewery.

http://imageshack.us/a/img252/2952/aabrewery102.jpg
ebay



Below is an earlier view of the same area....note the same brewery tanks (minus the painted on 102)



Another intriguing structure is the building on the left with the four tall chimneys. Is it a 'powerhouse' for one of the industries?

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Very interesting BifRayRock!
I agree that there must have been multiple copies of Frolich's 'Modern Speed'.

Here is an interesting documentary from KCET (1988) on corruption in 1930s Los Angeles.
It's narrated by Richard Widmark and is posted in three separate segments.

note: The graphics are abysmal, especially in the montage sequence in part one, other than that
it's fairly well done with many interesting facts.

click on the link below ea. photo.

http://imageshack.us/a/img204/1042/aadocukcet1988.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIbFz...feature=relmfu





http://imageshack.us/a/img862/4630/aadocukcet1988a.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSizY...feature=relmfu





http://imageshack.us/a/img85/7613/aadocukcet1988b.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ppopg...feature=relmfu

http://jpg3.lapl.org/pics22/00060641.jpghttp://jpg3.lapl.org/pics22/00060640.jpg

There are at least four ways to spell Finn's surname--apparently Forest Lawn, where he's buried, spells it "Frolick".... Anyway, Frolich/Froelich/Frohlich/Frolick added more than his remains to the cemetery. Besides his sculptures for Richfield, there was his Tower of Legends at Forest Lawn, which disguised a water tower and lasted from 1924 into the '40s (Finn himself expired in 1947). It is shown above at two Easter sunrise services, the second while still under construction (I love the futuristic spherical pods servings as forms or carving shelters over two of the monument's sculptures).

http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/5...s1937color.jpg

The tower is now the site of the Great Hall of the Crucifixion and Resurrection. The lower scultpure, "The Mystery of Life," still stands--it was done by Ernesto Gazzeri.


As for the Richfield advertising sculptures, some still exist (or at least copies of the originals, or pieces inspired by them):

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-l...2520AM.bmp.jpghttps://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-O...2520AM.bmp.jpg


And here is some random info from Primarily Petroliana:

"The story of the Richfield Beacon Stations and Towers represent an important aspect of the early history of the Richfield Company. Richfield was established in 1915 by the merger of two small oil companies in Los Angeles, CA. They entered a competitive marketplace that was dominated by the “Big 4” of the oil industry, Standard, Shell, Associated and Union.

One of the ways that they chose to compete was to develop a more powerful gasoline. They were able to develop a gasoline with an octane rating of 75 which at that time was quite high.. To promote this more powerful gasoline they offered it to race car drivers around the LA area and by 1921 they were supplying their products for the racers at the Indianapolis 500. From 1921 to 1932 cars using Richfield gasoline took the top five places at Indy, which spawned there phrase, “Gasoline of Power”. To celebrate this success a statue was commissioned in 1926 and created by sculptor Finn Haakon Frolich. This large statue featured a dirt track racer sliding through a turn and was used as a monument at various Richfield stations to commemorate their racing successes. A scaled version of this same statue was used on top of the pumps at the Beacon stations, along with a sculpture of an airplane in flight, which symbolized Richfield’s role in aviation fuel."

"[The original sculptures were] made from a plaster of paris type material, finished it a high luster, faux marble finsish. There were 2 sizes of these, the smaller faux marble ones that were placed at the stations, and then the large bronze ones which were put along the highways to signal an upcoming station. The large ones were so massive that the entire foundry operation was moved from town to town, and the monuments cast as close to the permanent locations as possible, so that the huge monuments didn't have to be moved very far."


Top two pics: LAPL; third from top: FL Books; fourth and fifth: Primarily Petroliana.

Flooding like that could not be good for plaster of paris advertising sculptures!

Flood of 1938, Intersection of Los Angeles Street and Broadway, Anaheim:http://content.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/...897/hi-res.jpg

Same flood, nice dirigible watching over the pumps:
http://content.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/...44r/hi-res.jpg

Watch out for "Bea and Louise" at Richfield Station ca. '39 - likely in Kern County
http://content.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/kt996nd55s/d3e5423 Photos from http://content.cdlib.org

http://www.jacklondons.net/photos3/finn10398.jpg
As e_r and others have mentioned, the prolific Finn Frolich was also a pal of, and sculptor of, images of Jack London, and his house at 5152 La Vista Court is often referred to, even by the LAPL, as having once been lived in by the writer. The full story of "London as Angeleno--was he or wasn't he?"--was recently and brilliantly tackled by the crack research team (Dee, Dora, Nellie and Steve) over at Paradise Leased.

Pic: The World of Jack London

South end of Bunker Hill in 1978
 

I've spent too many hours examining the fantastic photos everybody has posted here. Now, I want to try to post some stuff you may not have seen. If I goof up, I hope someone will politely tell me what I did wrong and the best way to do it better in the future.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i_RMj-J-9g...Hill002-01.jpg

I shot this photo from an LAPD helicopter in 1978. The One Bunker Hill Building (originally the Edison Building) is at 5th and Grand. Next to it is the Engstrum Apartments. Next door and behind the Engstrum is the parking garage with a footbridge to the old Edison Building. I'd like to share some others. I'll do that in another post if this one works out OK.

The photographer is me, Don Ray. You can see all of the images I posted with this one at my blog at http://www.donrayadventures.blogspot...w-amazing.html