Things Aren’t What They Used To Be
Stories about the Storys
My
apologies to Valley Journal readers for missing the chance to earlier alert
them about two heart-warming old shows that PBS (KCET Los Angeles) re-ran
recently as part of its ever more frequent fund drives.
Several
years ago, Ralph Story, the popular Los Angeles radio-TV gentleman, who retired
to the Santa Ynez Valley with his wife Diana, hosted a two-part mini-series
that explored the Los Angeles of yesteryears. Entitled “Things That Aren’t Here
Anymore” and “More Things that Aren’t Here Anymore,” the series especially
delighted native Angelenos, who had firsthand experiences of life in their city
in the ‘30s, ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s.
But
so many of the rest of us are in some ways connected to Los Angeles and also
found the series fascinating.
What
a trip to view it again! Best of all was seeing Ralph Story in action, hearing
his distinctive mellifluous voice and remembering how lovely it was to have
known him, and how wonderful that the fundraising segments of the KCET
rerun included an interview with Ralph’s widow Diana.
My
colleague Elaine Revelle was born and raised in Los Angeles and after the
Storys retired here she and Ralph always had a lot to chat about. Elaine cherishes
the memory of the memorial services that was held at St. Mark’s in Los Olivos,
where Ralph’s show-business career was highlighted and thanks to Father Stacy’s
diligent research, a special tribute was conducted to commemorate his service
in the Air Force.
Artist
Update
Stopping
into the bookstore after participating in Los Olivos’ Quick Draw art event,
Marilyn Cronk mentioned the PBS program and reminisced about her time working
with Ralph and Diana Story at their art gallery, housed in what is now Patrick’s
Side Street Café.
As
former director of Solvang’s Elverhøj Museum, Marilyn now devotes much of her
time to painting. At the Quick Draw event she not only sold a painting, but one
too big to fit in the buyer’s car. Consequently, Marilyn agreed to personally
deliver it to Arroyo Grande, not far from where she lives in Santa Maria.
In
addition to outsize canvases and a departure from her more abstract works,
Marilyn has found a successful niche commissioning portraits of people’s pets.
“I
am surprised by how much I enjoy it,” she said.
Architectural
Nostalgia
Speaking
of how things used to be, a useful new book “Missions of Southern California” has been issued by Arcadia,
publishers of photo-filled paperback volumes of specific local history, usually
$19.95 (including the locally popular one that Curt Cragg and the Buellton
Historical Society recently produced about their community).
Assembled
by James Osborne from his huge collection of old mission postcards, Arcadia’s
new book includes sections on the Santa Barbara, Santa Inés and La Purisima
missions. It will be especially interesting to local history buffs, tourists
and fourth-graders in California public schools, who take an intense unit of
concentration learning about the missions.
For
more glimpses at how things used to be we invite you to do some nostalgic
browsing among both new and used books.
A
look through “California Bungalows of
the Twenties” by Henry L. Wilson (Dover $12.95) might inspire a person
to build their own bungalow. The book includes 75 house designs.
“L. A. Deco” by Carla Breeze
(Hennessey & Ingalls $27.50) could inspire a drive to Los Angeles for an architectural
tour. This book has an introduction by the late David Gebhard, a renowned
historian of Southern California architecture, who was a long-time resident of
Santa Barbara.
For
fun and a look at some very California sights that still can be seen, sample “Weird California.” It purports to be a
guide to our state’s “local legends and best kept secrets” (Sterling $19.95).