Chronicles of Old Los Angeles
Exploring the Devilish History of the City of the Angels
-
-
5.0 • 2 Ratings
-
-
- $9.99
-
- $9.99
Publisher Description
There's more to Los Angeles than lights, camera, action; discover the city yourself with six guided walking/driving tours of LA's historic neighborhoods, illustrated with color photographs and period maps. From the city's early days marked by missionaries, robber barons, orange groves, and oil wells to the invention of the movie camera, Chronicles of Old Los Angeles explains how the Wild West became the Left Coast, and how Alta California became the 31st state. Learn how ethnic waves built Los Angeles—from Native Americans to Spaniards, Latinos, Chinese, Japanese, and all the characters that crowded into California during the Gold Rush—and learn about the gangsters, surfers, architects, and Hollywood pioneers who brought fame to the City of the Angels.
Customer Reviews
You Just Don’t Know LA Like You Think You Do
Perhaps I left Los Angeles a little hastily in 2012, but perhaps I’m just a sucker for history. This book has me dreaming of a long overdue return visit. For sure, I will be visiting more than old friends when I arrive, and for sure I will be wearing a new pair of glasses.
More than a guidebook, this is the LA you didn’t know. Roman neatly backfills the stories we’ve all been professing as denizens, but he paints them with meticulous detail and illuminates the full story of LA. As it turns out I was missing some of the glue, and maybe half the pages in the version I’ve been repeating. It happens. Live in Los Angeles long enough and you get hand-me-down pieces from your more savvy friends. Like the various corners of the town itself, the pieces never quite add up, but we note them, and share them with visiting family. For example, I knew Kennedy was shot at the old hotel on Wilshire… but I didn’t know the story about him getting separated from his guards. I knew Bugsy was shot reading the paper, but one shot blew out his eyeball? (Yeah, there’s a lot of shooting going on.)
This is definitely a worthwhile read for someone planning to visit Los Angeles, but I will be strongly recommending it to my friends who still live in The Bay of Smokes. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Read the book and find out.