A brave pedestrian jay walks across the legendary and very busy Sunset Strip. Behind him a man hangs his arm out of a two-toned 1960 Chevrolet Station Wagon. It has gull-wing fins, cat-eye tail lights and a two-tone paint that coordinates with one of LA’s greatest coffee shops in its first year of business. Ben Frank’s sophisticated yet snappy harvest gold and orange color scheme is way ahead of its time. And that smart and sassy asymmetrical a-frame looks like a relaxed Der Winerschnitzel or House of Pancakes

Among the plantings in the Palos Verdes Stone planters is a tri-tone sign post. Its part rocket, part spear, part paper airplane and part giant toothpick and labeled Ben Frank’s in a friendly font. Is Ben Frank short for Ben Franklin? I always pondered that question as I thoroughly enjoyed Liver and Onions there several Sunday afternoons in a row shortly after I moved to town in 1982.

Today, forty five years later the classic coffee shop structure still stands. But about decade or so ago Ben became Mel when Ben Frank’s quietly closed and morphed into a trendy retro diner called Mel’s Diner. I wonder if they have Liver and Onions on the menu.

Here’s to “59 Chevy’s, Ben Frank’s, orange and harvest gold, Liver and Onions and YOU!

A forward thinking new car owner poses with pride sporting a buttoned-all-the –way-up blouse, shoulder-riding cardigan and lady-like-length full skirt. She is as prim as she is proper; as proper as she is progressive. Few Americans were buying foreign cars in 1958 unless they were sports cars. And this is definitely foreign but it’s not a sports car.

We have Germany to thank for this wee marvel of mid-century modernity.
It’s the all-new 1958 Messerschmitt KR200. KR is short for Kabinenroller. 200 is long for 2 – as in two cylinders. The little two-toned, three wheeler is cuter than it is ugly and uglier than it is cute. If a scooter and a car had a bug-eyed baby this would be it. And that clear Plexiglas bubbletop roof is perfect for getting sun stroke on a scorching hot summer day. Air conditioning is not an option. There is no door that opens. To get in she must reach down to the handle in front of her knee and lift the whole roof and rubber outlined portion of the body up and over. The roof and door are one big heavy piece hinged on the other side. Then crawl in, sit down gingerly and hope she doesn’t slam her finger when it comes crashing down on top of her.

Cousin Itt, on The Addams Family, drove a white one on the show. And of all people Elvis had a red one. But did he ever give one a way?

The last Messerschmitt KR200 was manufactured in 1964. They never caught on with car buyers in the USA unlike its rival the, the all-time darling of all foreign cars, the VW Bug, which was the first foreign car to sell in mass numbers in the US.

Here’s to the Messerschmitt Kabinerollers, the lady who bought one and YOU!

This is one of my all-time favorite slides!

Mary-Charlotte transforms a quaint motel bathroom into a makeshift cocktail bar. The luscious lass, with her striking strawberry blond hair and exquisite peaches-and-cream complexion, smokes a cigarette perched between her perfectly painted lips as she carefully mixes Tequila and Kahlua with a squeeze. I don’t know if she calls her Easter cocktail the Tequla Sunrise, but I do!

This blessed Sunday let Mary-Charlotte be an inspiration to you. Bless your Easter brunch bunch by offering what she does. Be generous with them and, oh, whatever you do, please don’t forget to tell them “it’s Mary-Charlotte’s recipe.”

Speaking of Easter, what happened to Wester, Souther or Norther? Easter is the only holiday with a directional influence and the only holiday that celebrates fertility. Like two of the other most famous days of the year, Halloween and Valentines Day, we celebrate Easter by consuming candy and lots of it.

What Santa is to Christmas the Easter bunny is too Easter. But unlike Santa, who just brings us stuff, eats cookies and leaves, the Easter bunny does more. He brings a multi-color basket overflowing with shredded plastic and candy. And as if that wasn’t enough he then hides the chicken eggs we happily hard boiled and colored the day before so we can hunt them.

Easter is also the biggest day of the year for Peeps. The charming, color-coated marshmallows were first mass-squeezed out of tubes into the shape of fresh born baby chickens in 1954. Sit one on top of your Easter morning coffee or Tequla Sunrise and watch it melt!

Here’s to the Tequla Sunrise, the Easter Bunny, Peeps, Mary-Charlotte and YOU!

This is the moment of ignition. A small, controlled flame is sucked in a post lunch cigarette pursed between the red lips of a space age suburban matron. Her black and white tweed suit is as sensible as it is smart. And that double rose head ornament is as unexpected as it is outstanding.

Those spectacular two-tone gold Lurex diamond drapes could easily be fashioned into a ball gown. They are a stark and glamorous contrast to the wood-grain Formica table top, paper placemat and pink and gray dishes lunch is served on.

Speaking of lunch…isn’t she going to finish her peas and baked potato? She hasn’t even touched that boxy basket of crackers and double wide pat of butter served on a side dish. Should she want to salt, pepper and or sugar anything; no problem, the shakers are full. And she’s got plenty to drink –water, wine and coffee. Oh well, I guess she’d rather smoke her lunch!

Here’s to the Covina Bowl, (its still standing!) double roses, gold lurex and YOU!

Daddy holds up a can of Schlitz beer like the statue of liberty holds the flame. Cheers! Perhaps he’s already had a couple. The lady on the right cheers a little less enthusiastically with a pretty pink paper cup. Her nails and lips are painted red like the redhead on the right smoking a cigarette with one hand and holding a lovely little girl with the other. Little Blondie is looking at grandma who’s looking at the buzz cut little boy held by grandpa who’s the only one staring into outer space and not wearing white. The little boy is picking his nose. Grandma’s initials are embroidered on her breast pocket. The handkerchief in that pocket matches her turquoise earrings. She tweezes her brows. The redhead does not.

A large, leafy, multi-level, floral arrangement dominates the tablescape. It is inspired like no other flower arrangement I’ve ever seen yet does not diminish the presence of the capped carafe, fresh veggies, covered aluminum pot, two jars of whole peaches and another can of Schlitz Beer sitting in front of an open box of Ritz Crackers.

I’ve always seriously loved Ritz Crackers. They’ve got the flaky-fatty-flavorful thing going on like no other cracker I’ve ever cracked. The saltier-than-sweet scalloped-edge taste treat sensations with seven little peep holes in it has been an Americana classic since they were first introduced in 1935. And I’m devastated to have to say it, but I will, I’ve never had that legendary Ritz Cracker concoction, mock apple pie. Have you?

Here’s to cheers, wear-white picnic parties, Ritz Crackers and YOU!

The Tomorrowland of Las Vegas is served sandwiched between a water colored sky, parking lot packed with sparkling jewels, knee-high hedge and the Las Vegas Strip where a lonely, low line, ‘53 Ford heads south out of town. By any space age standards the Stardust is deliciously out-of-this-world. Whether it’s architecture as signage or signage as architecture it’s the first example of a land-of-the-giants-scale light show the strip has ever seen. An enormous ½ globe surrounded by a ring of chasing lights is the centerpiece but the strip-side Saturn shaped marquee is the crowning touch. The futuristic font, so stylishly spelling out STARDUST three times, in small, medium and large, is the standard by which all space age fonts are to be measured.

Tomorrowland isn’t the only flavor served up at the Stardust. There is also some Adventurland in mix. An Easter Island Tiki, barely visible in front of the orange stripe on the left, marks the main entrance of a sweet and sour side dish, the Aku Aku, a Polynesian Restaurant extravaganza of the highest order. And speaking of Adventurland let us not forget that Siegfried and Roy, the world’s most famous tiger tamers, were first introduced in Las Vegas on the Stardust stage.

When the mega motel-casino combo opened on June 2, 1958, it was the world’s largest resort and the first in Las Vegas to welcome the masses. By November, 2006 when the doors closed forever it had faded into near oblivion among the bountiful buffet of Las Vegas Strip Casino Resorts.

Early Tuesday morning March 13, 2007, the Stardust really was Stardust – a big, rolling, choking cloud of it. I was there reporting the implosion story for National Public Radio.

Here’s to the Stardust and YOU!

“We have so many things to thank the Stardust for. In 1958 when it opened, it was the world’s largest resort hotel. It was also the first hotel resort in Las Vegas to invite the masses with 1,000 rooms starting at $5 a day.”

Listen here to Charles bidding farewell to this Las Vegas icon.

Macaroni and Cheese colored cabs standout against a wall of glass and sparkling signage soaring off a slab-sided, sign board-of-a-building into a humid sky. Heading right is a ‘54 Chevy; heading left, a ‘52 Plymouth. The glass is a mirror for the resort across the street. The eye-catching, electrified font is part modern, part old world. If the Fried Chicken is as inspired as the sign it’s out if this world! There is one hour free parking in the rear.

The other night I went to a fried chicken dinner party. Midway through the absolutely delicious feast, I over heard a fellow guest at the table say “On the way from Amsterdam to London I got a really bad charlie horse in my calf, it felt like I had been shot in the ankle and I collapsed to the ground in pain.

I responded, “Oh my gawd, you’re kidding. What a coincidence. The exact same thing happened to me. I was on my way from Disneyland to the Kodak Theater. I got a really bad charlie horse in my calf, it felt like I had been shot in the ankle and I collapsed to the ground in pain.

Everyone at the table was like “what?…what happened to you guys? We both explained.

About that time the hostess said to the lady sitting next to me “Is you husband on his way?”

She said “Oh, he’ll be here in an hour.” Sure enough an hour later he limps in moaning and groaning and plops down.

Everyone asked “what happened to you?”

He said “About an hour ago I was on my way from Griffith Park to this party and I got a really bad charlie horse in my calf. It felt like I had been shot in the ankle and I collapsed to the ground in pain.”

Everyone roared laughing.

Here to Pikin’ Chicken, charlie horses and YOU!

A young Camellia Queen-with-attitude is perched on her gold foil-wrapped throne centered on a pull cart glorified with camellias. She and her lavender clad court of one are just sitting there. The parade has come to a halt. The royal pull cart is powered by a trio of bobby socked brownies standing side by side in near military precision. Their fearless Girl Scout leader-chaperone is uniformed with a regulation hat and white buttoned up and bow tied blouse over a smart straight skirt. Her double strapped, chunk heeled, open-toed sling backs with side vents stand out quite nicely against asphalt. She doesn’t know it but her slip is showing. The sparse crowd of sidewalk sitters looks onward.

Darn it, we just missed the 63rd annual Temple City Camellia Festival Parade. It happened just last weekend. Oh well, maybe next year! Think: a very miniature scale rose parade with camellias and kids. The highlight of the festival is the parade of charming children riding on camellia decorated floats and the young king and queen. The youngest queen, crowned in 1950, was just eight months old.

Temple City is one of the many sparkling jewels in Los Angeles’ crown of space age suburban cities. Oddly, there is no Temple in Temple City. But there is an abundance of Camellias. The city mothers made sure of that. In 1944 the lovely ladies of the Temple City Woman’s Club held a contest to choose an official city flower and slogan. Camellias became the flower and “Home of Camellias” became the slogan. Later that year they held the first Camellia Festival Parade. Great idea ladies, thank you!

Here’s to Them, Camellias, Festivals, Queens with attitude and YOU!