Thanks, in large part, to its proximity to many early film studios – Silver Lake has been home to numerous film stars since at least the 1910s. Not all of those stars were human. There was, for example, Tom Mix’s horse, Old Blue, who is rumored to be buried underneath the parking lot in front … Continue reading Ask Silver Lake — Music Box Steps Day and Silver Lake’s Stair Stars of the Silver Screen
Author: Eric Brightwell
Eric Brightwell is an essayist, rambler, explorer, cartographer, and guerrilla gardener. He lives in Los Angeles, not because he was born here, but because he chose to... for all of the things for which its famous: its verticality, its mass transit, its diversity, its schools, its liminal spaces, its architecture, its wildlife, its museums, its night markets, its cinemas, its theaters, its enclaves, its restaurants, its bars, its libraries, &c
Nobody Drives in LA — A Car Free Los Angeles Podcast
The podcast is finally here! The only podcast about the pressures, perils, and yes, pleasures of car-free and car-lite living in pathologically car-brained Los Angeles. Co-hosts Kyle Rebar and Eric Brightwell chat with guests about their transit journeys and where they are now. I'll post new episodes here with links as we publish them. Follow … Continue reading Nobody Drives in LA — A Car Free Los Angeles Podcast
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No Enclave – Catalan Los Angeles
11 September is the national day of Catalonia, or “La Diada.” Catalonia (Catalan: Catalunya) is a stateless Mediterranean nation split between Spain, where it is an autonomous community, and France, where the borders of its Roussillon region correspond roughly with those of the department of Pyrénées-Orientales. Its capital and most populous city, Barcelona, is the … Continue reading No Enclave – Catalan Los Angeles
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Ask Silver Lake — LAFD Station No. 56
The following article was written for the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council‘s “Ask Silver Lake” series — ‘Ask Silver Lake’ is dedicated to exploring the history and insights of our community. If you have questions or ideas you’d like us to consider, please drop a comment or send them to outreach@silverlakenc.org.’ For the sake of full disclosure, this month's … Continue reading Ask Silver Lake — LAFD Station No. 56
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Conan Needs a Map
If you, like me, are a regular listener to the Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend podcast -- especially the Summer S'mores series -- you have no doubt heard Conan joke, um, more than once, about the vast distances and difficulties he has to overcome in order to get from his Westside home to Sona's in … Continue reading Conan Needs a Map
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The Legend of the Clandestine Order of Illuminated Gentlepersons
A reminder, if needed, that the internet isn't all bad. Two months ago, on the LosAngeles subreddit, user suprunkn0wn asked: "What’s that one spot in L.A. that you missed where it used to be? The new Amoeba is cool, but the most typical L.A. shit is the fact it’s under apartments and that will always … Continue reading The Legend of the Clandestine Order of Illuminated Gentlepersons
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Ask Silver Lake — Silver Lake’s Bungalow Courts
The following article was written for the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council's "Ask Silver Lake" series -- ‘Ask Silver Lake’ is dedicated to exploring the history and insights of our community. If you have questions or ideas you’d like us to consider, please drop a comment or send them to outreach@silverlakenc.org.' Jose in front of 1420 … Continue reading Ask Silver Lake — Silver Lake’s Bungalow Courts
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Ask Silver Lake — The Mattachine Steps and… the Julian Eltinge Steps
What follows is my latest "Ask Silver Lake" for the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council's newsletter (with a few different images). If you have any questions about Silver Lake, leave them in the comments and I'll add them to the list. I'll list the current topic list after the post. ASK SILVER LAKE — THE MATTACHINE … Continue reading Ask Silver Lake — The Mattachine Steps and… the Julian Eltinge Steps
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California Fool’s Gold — Exploring Mentryville
INTRODUCTION The other day I found myself in Santa Clarita with a couple of hours to kill. I Googled "best restaurants in Santa Clarita" -- knowing full well that Google has been a mostly garbage search engine for years -- completely corrupted as it is by paid advertisements and SEO. I'm sure that there are … Continue reading California Fool’s Gold — Exploring Mentryville
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Ask Silver Lake — Sunset Junction, What’s Your Function?
NOTE: a version of this piece was written for the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council’s “Ask Silver Lake” column. ‘Ask Silver Lake’ is dedicated to exploring the history and insights of our community. If you have questions or ideas you’d like us to consider, please drop a comment or send them to outreach@silverlakenc.org.‘ Like most large neighborhoods, Silver Lake is … Continue reading Ask Silver Lake — Sunset Junction, What’s Your Function?
Eric Brightwell 