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View Full Version : I must visit Venice Beach....



Jbb
11-05-2007, 06:26 PM
Is this filmed at Venice Beach? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTo7BXlqcHs)

RitcheyRch
11-05-2007, 06:36 PM
Yes, thats Venice Beach

Boatcop
11-05-2007, 06:38 PM
Yep. That's Venice Beach. Although about 30 years ago.
My wife's family is from Venice, her Mom, Dad, Grandmother and Grandfather all went to Venice High. Her Dad worked at POP (Pacific Ocean Park), an amusement park on the old Venice Pier.
Her Grandfather was the first Lifeguard in Venice, in the 1910s. He was first a police officer in Venice, and his duties were watching over the folks at the Venice Plunge. A semi enclosed indoor pool, open to the ocean. He just kind of made the transition from cop to lifeguard, and he, and a guy named George Freeth from Santa Monica pretty much started the LA City/County Lifeguard Service.
Venice was pretty cool in the early '70s. Although not a "legal" nude beach, nobody enforced the law against nudity. I was a courier driver for a computer company then, and my route took me to Santa Monica from Manhattan Beach. I always arranged to be in the Venice area at lunchtime, and would take my lunch out onto the Venice Pier.
I had an awesome pair of binoculars back then. :D

Mandelon
11-05-2007, 07:49 PM
We went there lots of weekends as kids in high school and JC. It was a fun time, even in the 80's. :) I ended up in a crowd scene for a music video for The Fat Boys, but I never could find it anywhere. :confused:

Trailer Park Casanova
11-05-2007, 08:46 PM
In my 37.6 year career with the City of Los Angeles often working all over Venice, I always wondered if the Venice canals would ever be restored. They finally have:
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/canalstoday.jpg
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/canals1913.jpg
Venice became a part of the City of Los Angeles a long while back.
Always amazed me how the place remained a shithole so long, while the surrounding areas flourished.
But today it's really changed.
Every home has a historic story, most pre-1960's homes a facinating, unique original story.
I love taking people through there and giving my Venice tour speil.
East Venice areas changed their names a while back because of Venice really fell into hard times.
But now want to change their names back to Venice or Marina Del Rey (LA County).
Famous Venice residents over the years:
Cornball Lawrence Welk
The Lennon Sisters (Welk Discovered them while they were performing at the Elks Lodge on 6th st according to the locals. Many other stories float around, but the locals generally swear by this one.)
Shirley Temple
Jack La Laine
Gangster Mickey Cohen (off'd Bugsy Segal).
Jim Morrison of the Doors, and the Doors.
The Shelby Mustang factory was located in Venice.
Chick Lambert and his dog Storm.
Julia Roberts, Kate Beckinsale and Anjelica Huston, actors Nicolas Cage, Tim Meadows, Robert Hegyes, Michael T. Weiss, and musicians Perry Farrell, Joshua Kadison.
Actor Robert Downey Jr.
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Pro wrestler Hulk Hogan
Carol Burnet
Venice Pier is the most forgotten pleasure pier on the Coasts.
Most remember the nearby Ocean Park Pier as a shithole, but I remember when it was clean and it Pacific Ocean Park rivaled Disneyland.
Last of the great indoor dark ride amusement parks.
But that was short lived, and it fell into decay fast.
It often appears in Late 1950's early 1960's TV shows.
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/aerial1941.jpg
Ocean Park Pier, Venice Pier, Sunset Pier
Venice High School is still a thriving place.
The LADWP sponsors their Science Bowl Team and they give a good account of themselves Nationally every year.

photo chick
11-05-2007, 09:21 PM
Oh how I loved Venice Beach back in the day!!! I even spoke to the Rasta man (1st guy in the video) a few times, he was a local bum who got his face in tons of videos.

photo chick
11-05-2007, 09:23 PM
In my 37.6 year career with the City of Los Angeles often working all over Venice, I always wondered if the Venice canals would ever be restored. They finally have:
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/canalstoday.jpg
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/canals1913.jpg
\
Venice became a part of the City of Los Angeles a long while back.
Always amazed me how the place remained a shithole so long, while the surrounding areas flouished.
But today it's really changed.
Every home has a historic story, most pre-1960's homes a facinating, unique original story.
I love taking people through there and giving my Venice tour speil.
Famous Venice residents over the years:
Cornball Lawrence Welk
The Lennon Sisters (Welk Discovered them while they were performing at the Elks Lodge on 6th st)
Shirley Temple
Jack La Lane
Gangster Mickey Cohen (off'd Bugsy Segal).
Jim Morrison of the Doors, and the Doors.
The Shelby Mustang factory was located in Venice.
Venice Pier is the most forgotten pleasure pier on the Coasts.
Most remember the nearby Ocean Park Pier as a shithole, but I remember when it was clean and it Pacific Ocean Park rivaled Disneyland.
Last of the great indoor dark ride amusement parks.
But that was short lived, and it fell into decay fast.
It often appears in Late 1950's early 1960's TV shows.
http://www.westland.net/venice/images/aerial1941.jpg
Ocean Park Pier, Venice Pier, Sunset Pier
Venice High School is still a thriving place.
The LADWP sponsors their Science Bowl Team and they give a good account of themselves Nationally every year.
What do you do for the city, can I ask?

Trailer Park Casanova
11-05-2007, 09:36 PM
What do you do for the city, can I ask?
HVAC and Elect generation. Did you roller skate there?
If ya drive along the streets closest to the beach, notice the homes are built on stilts. Ya gotta look close, but most are.
They simply look like two storys today,, but actually the lower out-of-code living areas were no permit bootlegged in after flood control finally took over.
The (called "10 year" by the locals) storm tides used to come in as far as 4th street, before the piers were demolished and the beaches widened.
Those same (ten year) Pacific storms would continue on over the desert, and the Las Vegas Casinos flash flooded too.
People forget that, but it did happen. That's why the new mega-casinos are built up higher off LV Blvd, and the downtown casinos are better protected by the Freemont Street Experience structure and storm diversion system below it.
Seal Beach, a few miles down the coast from Venice, still gets get their streets flooded by those ten year storm tides.

Boatcop
11-06-2007, 05:30 AM
A few more Venice residents......
Victor Mature (My MIL called him Victor Manure)
Jack Webb (Dragnet)
My Cousin dated The Lennon's nephew, Tony Lennon. Which led to a child, Carrie Lennon, which she had at 16. We all went to the Lennon home one Christmas Eve. calling it a "home" is an understatement. More like a mansion. They had the Christmas tree in one large room. When you opened the door, you couldn't even walk in the room, because there were presents sloped from the doorway, nearly up to the ceiling on the other side of the room. The only part of the Christmas you could see was the star at the very top. Lot's of kids in that family.

Faceaz
11-06-2007, 05:50 AM
That's the old school Venice, it was an incredible place about 15 years ago. I went back about 2 years ago - alot has changed. It's all hood rats & gang members hanging out on the corners harassing the girls as they walk by. It gives you a really unsafe fealling now.

Jbb
11-06-2007, 05:55 AM
That's the old school Venice, it was an incredible place about 15 years ago. I went back about 2 years ago - alot has changed. It's all hood rats & gang members hanging out on the corners harassing the girls as they walk by. It gives you a really unsafe fealling now.
Is it not a valuable area as an attraction ?....Why doesn't the town ...and authorities ..exterminate the gang members...and make money off the area as a safe place to visit?

Trailer Park Casanova
11-06-2007, 06:01 AM
And,, Jimmy Lennon Sr, the ring announcer for the Olympic.
Hanoi Jane
---------------
That Christmas sounds fantastic BC. Nothing like pulling out all the stops at the Holidays.
Were the Lennons already wealthy pre-Welk days like the Osmonds were?
--------------------
The Lennon sisters father was murdered at the parking lot entrance to the Venice Golf center, now of course, called the Marina Del Rey range.
http://www.maebrussell.com/1960s%20Terror/Lennon%20Father%20Killed.jpg
Contrary to rumor, the killer was identified, and was found dead 2 weeks later according to the LA Times.
-------------
We know a really old Fossil named Jerry.
He owned a Venice Jewish deli & bar near the beach for 40 years.
He was known for his free holiday dinners for the locals.
He taught me how to run a big charity style kitchen, and old school methods of prepairing food that tasted good. "No frozen yellow food like you find everyplace today" he always reminds me.
His deli was demolished when the City of LA decided they wanted Urban Renewal and demolished 506 buildings, 2 blocks deep along what is now the boardwalk. Urban renewal LA style never works, it makes areas worse.
So, he moved to Thousand Oaks Calif. & retired and is totally involved in childrens charities.
He's a teriffic story teller, with a dynamic voice and character.
Thhee best authority on Venice I've found, and knows something about every building, landmark, and spot in the town.
In keeping with his Venice deli tradition, he throws a huge, FREE Thanksgiving dinner & free open bar in Thousand Oaks for friends and fellow charity workers. Usually about 300 people.
If the kids are off on other adventures, I hit his Tday dinner, and I always bring up Venice.
And the really cool Venice stories flow.

maxwedge
11-06-2007, 06:11 AM
That's the old school Venice, it was an incredible place about 15 years ago. I went back about 2 years ago - alot has changed. It's all hood rats & gang members hanging out on the corners harassing the girls as they walk by. It gives you a really unsafe fealling now.
That's really sad. First time I ever saw the Pacific ocean was at venice beach about 15years ago. Thought the place was crazy, but totally loved it. I remember there was some guy rollerblading around wearing robes and playing heavy metal licks on an electric guitar through a portable amp, WTF?.:D

Trailer Park Casanova
11-06-2007, 06:30 AM
That's the old school Venice, it was an incredible place about 15 years ago. I went back about 2 years ago - alot has changed. It's all hood rats & gang members hanging out on the corners harassing the girls as they walk by. It gives you a really unsafe fealling now.
It's that way now around any LA gathering place.
That's really sad. First time I ever saw the Pacific ocean was at venice beach about 15years ago. Thought the place was crazy, but totally loved it. I remember there was some guy rollerblading around wearing robes and playing heavy metal licks on an electric guitar through a portable amp, WTF?.:D
Venice is a Surfing Beach today.
Not a spectacular one, but surfing is there none-the-less.
We made "Belly boards" in HS industrial specialities shop and ran the waves.
These boards today are now known as Boogie Boards.
Amazing that the new surfboards allow the kids to surf any size wave.
Some forget, there is an ocean out there.

photo chick
11-06-2007, 06:42 AM
HVAC and Elect generation. Did you roller skate there?
Yep we sure did. My best friend's sister would drive us all the way down there on the weekends. She'd shop for bathing suits, they had the best prices, and flirt with the surfers and weightlifters and we'd go roller skating
We know a really old Fossil named Jerry.
He owned a Venice Jewish deli & bar near the beach for 40 years.
He was known for his free holiday dinners for the locals.
He taught me how to run a big charity style kitchen, and old school methods of prepairing food that tasted good. "No frozen yellow food like you find everyplace today" he always reminds me.
His deli was demolished when the City of LA decided they wanted Urban Renewal and demolished 506 buildings, 2 blocks deep along what is now the boardwalk. Urban renewal LA style never works, it makes areas worse.
So, he moved to Thousand Oaks Calif. & retired and is totally involved in childrens charities.
He's a teriffic story teller, with a dynamic voice and character.
Thhee best authority on Venice I've found, and knows something about every building, landmark, and spot in the town.
In keeping with his Venice deli tradition, he throws a huge, FREE Thanksgiving dinner & free open bar in Thousand Oaks for friends and fellow charity workers. Usually about 300 people.
If the kids are off on other adventures, I hit his Tday dinner, and I always bring up Venice.
And the really cool Venice stories flow.
Is this the same Jerry of Jerry's Deli on Ventura Blvd? I miss that place, the best deli food!!!
That's really sad. First time I ever saw the Pacific ocean was at venice beach about 15years ago. Thought the place was crazy, but totally loved it. I remember there was some guy rollerblading around wearing robes and playing heavy metal licks on an electric guitar through a portable amp, WTF?.:D
That's the guy in the opening of Jbb's video!!! I can't remember his name, been trying all night..

Jbb
11-06-2007, 06:44 AM
been trying all night..
:p

racecar.hotshoe
11-06-2007, 06:52 AM
You and Brown have already been there..:D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KL3mHPmNKRE

Trailer Park Casanova
11-06-2007, 07:10 AM
Nahh, Jerry ran a successful fish and chips place in TO, then sold it & retired.
He now puts his kitchen skills & bartending tallents toward raising money for poor mothers that live in rural areas that need FIRST CLASS physical and speach therapy for their children.
He's raised millions for this charity it's said over the past 75 years.
He still makes an unbelievable cole slaw and potato salad that spoils anyone that tastes it.
I wish I could Fed Ex it to you guys somehow.
Just killer taste.
Venice has always been known for great food.
Kings Hawaiian bakery still runs a restaurant there, as is the Pioneer Bread Bolangeret cafe.
The Meatless Messhall was a on-the-beach beach landmark until it got run off the sand over some shady land dealings with local corrupt interests.

Sleeper CP
11-06-2007, 07:42 AM
"Old School" Gap Band;) I just need a little George Clinton "Paraliament" and my day will be complete:D
Sleeeper CP
Big Inch Ford Lover

Sherpa
11-06-2007, 07:59 AM
my best freind grew up in Santa Monica, and in the late seventies we would
drive down to Santa Monica, and hang out at Venice beach, santa monica,
etc... roller skating, checking out girls, and just having fun.... I was working
at a skating rink then, and speed skating as well. I figured I skated at least
5 hours every day back then.....
ahh, the music brings it all back... very cool............
thanks for sharing,
--Sherpa

Jbb
11-06-2007, 08:02 AM
"Old School" Gap Band;) I just need a little George Clinton "Paraliament" and my day will be complete:D
Sleeeper CP
Big Inch Ford Lover
..................All Aboard!.....:D

ULTRA26 # 1
11-06-2007, 08:03 AM
Nahh, Jerry ran a successful fish and chips place in TO, then sold it & retired.
He now puts his kitchen skills & bartending tallents toward raising money for poor mothers that live in rural areas that need FIRST CLASS physical and speach therapy for their children.
He's raised millions for this charity it's said over the past 75 years.
He still makes an unbelievable cole slaw and potato salad that spoils anyone that tastes it.
I wish I could Fed Ex it to you guys somehow.
Just killer taste.
Venice has always been know for great food.
Kings Hawaiian bakery still runs a restaurant there, as is the Pioneer Bread Bolangeret cafe.
The Meatless Messhall was a on-the-beach beach landmark until it got run off the sand over some shady land dealings with local corrupt interests.
The Pioneer Bread Bolangeret cafe. In the mid 70's we lived on 4th and Raymond, due East of where POP once stood. Nothing better then a bowl of clam chowder and fresh hot sourdough from the Bolangeret.

Trailer Park Casanova
11-06-2007, 08:52 AM
My brother was a LAPD footbeat on the beach when the Brady Bunch TV show was in it's first season.
It's where he really learned to subdue suspects. He was always in a throw with punks. Ass kickin fights every day.
He & his partner Stew busted the dad of the Brady Bunch TV show (Robert Reed stage name) AKA John Robert Rietz, Jr., puffing on some guys rope, on a blanket on the beach in front of kids and families.
Some kids reported that they saw a "weinie wagger",, and they came across Reed.
That kinda bust was a BFD back then, but the DA (Watnick) was far more corrupt back then too. The studios weren't above "cooperating" with the DA.
Reed dodged a bullet and the press never got ahold of that info.