Synthetrix Photos Of The Forgotten

"On The Ground" - New photo gallery at POTF

2012-01-15T16:01:00.000-08:00

Photos by V. Stapf 

ON THE GROUND is all about the often overlooked things that pass under our feet every day. From cement stamps to grates and manhole covers, these photos give us time to notice the small details in these commonplace objects.

NEXT

A new addition to my Huddle collection

2011-10-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

I was thrilled to find this old Huddle coffee cup to add to my collection of dinnerware from the famous Southern California restaurant chain.

Downtown Los Angeles - August 20th, 2011

2011-08-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

I was walking around L.A. LIVE downtown this afternoon, checking out buildings, old and new.T

This old DWP, Station No. 9 building is on Francisco St, just north of the new Ritz Carlton/JW Marriott building. The building was fenced off and silent.

I was admiring the molded detail that adorned this utility relic. Buildings like this have survived due to their civic functionality and duties.

There is a "For Sale" sign on the historic Variety Arts Theater building. I saw the band, Front 242 here as well as many a night dancing at clubs here in the 90s. It's a great old building and I hope it finds a good buyer.

One last photo of the famous Original Pantry Cafe, which first opened in 1924 and is currently owned by former L.A. mayor, Richard Riordan. Originally at 9th & Figueroa, the Cafe moved to this location in 1950 when the state built a freeway ramp at the original location.

Irvine, CA - 1985

2011-08-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

Some old 35mm slides that I took one spring night in 1985 around Irvine, CA.

New photo galleries - Long Beach/Santa Ana/Anaheim 1980

2011-06-15T20:14:00.000-07:00

Three new sets of photos on the website this week. These were all taken in the spring and summer of 1980 using a 1970s Fujica 35mm camera. These are from 35mm slide film.
The first set are shots of Long Beach near the location of the old Pike amusement park.

The second group are photos that I took while a friend was searching for parts at an auto salvage yard in Santa Ana.

The last set are of photos taken at the former John C. Fremont Jr. High School in Anaheim, CA.
The school had been closed when these were taken. It was used for continuation school for a short time before being demolished a few years later. Condos now occupy that land. In one of the images taken from the roof, you can see sine of Anaheim High School.

Wilmington, CA - The Heart Of The Harbor

2011-06-01T17:10:00.000-07:00

I shot this video while riding my bike around the Los Angeles Harbor in Wilmington in 2002.

Anaheim / Disneyland Trivia Question.

2011-05-31T14:53:00.000-07:00

Q: How many balloons did the city of Anaheim release on December 5, 1985 in honor of Walt Disney's birthday and Disneyland's 30th year of operation?

A: One Million!
Check out the photos that I took of this historic event!

"The Springs" Huddle Palm Springs feature

2011-05-16T18:29:00.000-07:00

Check it out!

Mobil Gas Station - Anaheim, CA 1956

2011-04-15T19:49:00.000-07:00

Photo by Julius Shulman.

1984 Olympic Torch Runners - Anaheim, CA

2011-03-31T15:44:00.000-07:00

HERE is a little slideshow of photos that I took when the 1984 Olympic Games torch runners came through Anaheim. The wrestling events that year were held at the Anaheim Convention Center.

PRESERVATION ALERT | La Villa Basque Needs Your Help

2011-02-23T16:39:00.000-08:00

This 1960 gem in the City of Vernon has changed hands and is undergoing renovation. It has stayed in pristine condition for over half a century. The only way to help keep it that way is to help the new owners see what a unique treasure it is.

Learn How You Can Help La Villa Basque

The Dreyfus Winery in Anaheim

2011-02-21T08:28:00.000-08:00

Old Anaheim residents should check out the new feature I added about the old Dreyfus Winery building that was demolished in 1973.

Benjamin Dreyfus & Co. Winery, built in 1885, located southwest of Anaheim near Ball and Manchester, later used as orange juice cannery and torn down in 1973; image shows field of yellow flowers in foreground, with two-story brick winery building in background.
Date: 1971

Vintage Huddle Restaurant Dinnerware

2011-01-21T16:39:00.000-08:00

Over the years in my quest for all things Huddle, I have managed to collect quite a few pieces of original Huddle restaurant dinnerware. It's that heavy durable restaurant style china and even though most of the pieces show a lot of wear, they still look great. I love eating off of these and imagining how many former patrons of that long gone chain ate off these very same dishes.

Dad's 45s

2011-01-14T15:43:00.000-08:00

Greetings friends.
I wanted to do a little cross promotion for another blog that I started last month.
It's called "Dad's 45s" and is just that. A blog featuring the music from my dad's old 45 rpm record collection. If you like 50s R&B and jazz or old rock instrumentals, then you will definitely want to dig this.

Goodwill bins and Willy

2010-12-28T18:12:00.000-08:00

Remember the old Goodwill donation bins that used to be all over So Cal? These and the ones from the DAVs that were bell-shaped were so commonplace when I was a kid, but by the 1980s, there were too many people just taking things out of the bins and many were even vandalized, so I guess they figured it would just be better to have items dropped off or picked up.

Good Willy was the mascot of Goodwill when I was young and his happy face always made me smile whenever I saw him.

Originally created by illustrator Milton Caniff in the 1950s, Good Willy spent much of the mid-20th century promoting Goodwill Industries’ missions throughout the US.

Remember Fotomat?

2010-08-31T17:46:00.000-07:00

Glossy Photos in one day produced by "FotoMates"!

Car Show / Hot Rod Photo Galleries.

2010-03-30T16:23:00.000-07:00

For all the car / hot rod enthusiasts out there. I have added a ton of photos that I have taken at car shows over the years. Check 'em out'!

Chris Mottalini Photos of Pre-Demolition Homes

2010-03-16T15:14:00.000-07:00

Longtime friend and contributor, Vinnie D, sent me a link to THIS interesting story and photos about the demolition of three Paul Rudolph-designed, mid-century modern homes in Connecticut.

Half Moon Motel

2010-03-11T16:27:00.000-08:00

Here is a sign that I had been wanting to photograph for a while and just got around to it recently.

The Half Moon Motel is on Sepulveda in Culver City. There are other great old motel signs in this area as well as a googiesque ice skating rink a little further down the road.

This photo is courtesy of The Los Angeles Conservancy and it's Modern Committee which is hosting a photo contest in celebration of "the Sixties turn 50".

L.A. Rave Flyers From The 90s

2010-01-18T21:38:00.000-08:00

I have added this new section to the POTF website that some of you may find interesting.

Camp Snoopy flyer from the summer of '92

A new postcard

2009-10-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

I recently acquired this postcard of the Nixon's Family Restaurant & Bakery which was located in Whittier, CA and later became a Whirly’s Drive-in, which itself went out of business in 1962 or early 1963.

There was also an Anaheim Nixon’s, at Harbor Blvd. and Katella Ave., which was taken over by the Harris chain of Portland OR in 1958 after it was remodeled to include a cocktail lounge.

To learn more about the (in)famous story of the Nixon's chain, check out this blog entry over at Restaurant-ing Through History.

ABC promo campaign 1971

2009-10-07T16:10:00.001-07:00

West St. widening during the Anaheim Resort Area remodeling in 1999

2009-09-28T16:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some stills that are from a tape I shot in 1999 while the Anaheim Resort Area and Disneyland were undergoing major changes.

These show West St near Katella Ave when it was being widened in front of the Eden Roc and Kona Kai motels

Unfortunately these were taken after the old Googie signs were removed. It was on this day that I decided to start looking for images and postcards of the Anaheim I grew up in.

A few years later I started the Photos Of The Forgotten website.

See more photos here.

The San Pedro Drive-In

2009-09-17T14:14:00.000-07:00

Like many, I lament the loss of the American drive-in movie theater. I have great memories of going to drive-ins with my family and friends in the 70s.

Here is photo that I found online of the old San Pedro Drive-In that was once located on Gaffey St, not too far from where I live, although it had already been demolished before I moved to the area.

The architecture of the screen towers was something that always impressed me with their larger-than-life
scale that seemed so imposing in the suburbia of my youth where there were few structures this tall.

The San Pedro Drive-In opened on June 6th, 1949. It, like many others of the era, had a distinctive trademark in a colorful mural emblazoned on the highway side of the steel and plaster screen tower building.

At the top of the graphic illustration of a caballero on horseback waving to approaching ships, the theater name was blocked out in neon-lighted letters. The architect of the San Pedro Drive-In was William Glenn Balch & Louis L. Bryan.

The next two photos, courtesy of Historic Aerials are from 1972 and 2005 and show the drive-in and the public storage buildings that now occupy the location.

There are some great sites online, that document the history of drive-in theaters. Drive-Ins.com is my favorite and a great place for to learn about this piece of the past.

Cinema Treasures is another great site that covers all types of theater buildings and is also highly recommended.

The 1957 Chrysler Windsor

2009-09-02T17:06:00.001-07:00

Here are some more photos of my dad's old car.

In this first shot, the large Chrysler logo lettering is still on the front hood and the car still has the stock grill.

These later photos show the badging removed and the custom grill.

If you look closely at the tip of the hood there is some more pin stripe work painted by my uncle. How about that old yellow and black California license plate?

Tuck and roll upholstery.

Cape Coral Teen Club postcard

2009-08-10T11:06:00.000-07:00

I recently added this postcard of the Cape Coral Teen Club in Florida, to the Postcards Of The Past section of my website. This postcard was postally used and was mailed back in 1971.

I wonder what fun teens had at this rec. center back in those days. There appears to be a snack bar window at one side of the building. Anyone know anything about this place?

Cruise Ready

2009-07-29T12:53:00.000-07:00

Here is a photo of the interior of my dad's 1957 Chrysler Windsor, that he had when I was a young boy. He bought this car used and had it until the early 70s. You rarely see one of these on the road today. I have only seen a few in my lifetime.

My father installed a small turntable that could play 45 rpm records. It was in a drawer, mounted on springs that helped to dampen road vibration. I do remember some skipping, but for the most part, it was just so cool to be able to listen to your own "sounds" while cruising around. I clearly remember dad taking me down to the Pike in Long Beach, right before they closed the Cyclone Racer forever. We had The Mama's & The Papa's song "California Dreamin'" playing as we motored along Ocean St. I was too young and scared to ride the Cyclone, but wished I had later when I realized that it was one of the most classic wooden roller coasters of all time.

The awesome pin stripe work on the dash was of course done by my uncle Fritz.

Kustom tuck and roll upholstery and the trick machined hubcaps that he made were nice touches. He also removed most of the exterior branding and badges for a cleaner appearance.

Here is dad looking sharp.

How I wish I had this car today in the condition of the photo.

R.I.P. Analog Broadcast Television

2009-06-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

For all intents and purposes, analog broadcast television that we all grew up with is gone. The frequencies will be reallocated for other usage and the age of digital broadcast television begins.

Before the age of all night infomercials, television stations used to sign off for the broadcasting day. After a playing of the national anthem, you might see a test pattern like the one above or just some color bars and tone and the picture might just turn to static.

Every station seemed to have it's own distinctive national anthem film.

I absolutely love this KABC-7 sign off from 1982 that features the reading of the John Gillespie Magee, Jr. poem, High Flight, followed by a version of the national anthem played on synthesizers.

My dad's motorcycle

2009-06-08T14:02:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple photos of my dad's old Triumph motorcycle. My uncle Leonard (Fritz) Stapf painted the exquisite pin striping on the gas tank. I think it's a rabbit. I can't remember. I believe my mom made my dad get rid of the bike after they were married. It sure was a beauty!

The Quality Inn - Anaheim, CA

2009-05-26T16:10:00.001-07:00

Here is an old postcard from the 70s of the former Quality Inn in Anaheim. Located at 616 Convention Center Way, at Harbor Blvd, the hotel is now called the Clarion Hotel, Anaheim Resort. My father and I used to walk over to this place when I was a boy to go to coin shows that were held there. Check out the video for my song "WKs. There are parts of it that I filmed there in the early 1980s.

Classic TV Production Company IDs/Logos

2009-01-28T15:32:00.000-08:00

When I was a kid I always, liked the short little IDs that ran at the end of TV shows and showed what production companies were involved with the creation of the show. I understood what these were from a very young age, but strangely enough, there were a lot of kids evidently, who found some of these logos frightening. I first found this out while checking out a webpage devoted to them. Now they are all over YouTube and it's amazing how many people thought the same thing.
The fist and foremost one is the famous 1966 Screen Gems logo. The folks who claim to have been traumatized by this logo call it the "S From Hell". I love this one and remember it fondly at the end of such shows as, The Monkees and Bewitched.

Another Screen Gems logo that fascinated me was the one that is know as the "Dancing Sticks" logo. This one is from 1964. There was also a black & white version. I liked the abstract nature of this one with it's colorful dots.

Next up, we have the logo for Rankin Bass Productions. This one was shown at the end of holiday specials like Frosty The Snowman and Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer. This one always gave me a warm feeling after watching those childhood Christmas shows.

Nice huh? Now in all fairness, there were a few logos that had music with a bit more of a frightening tone to them. One such ID is this 1969, Paramount Television logo. It's shrieking sound seems like something from a horror movie. You may remember this one from the end of The Brady Bunch episodes.

This next one from Viacom is sometimes called the "V Of Doom". The crescendoing tympani roll really accentuates the zooming effect.

Viacom also used this logo in the early 70s. This one is sometimes called the "Pinball Logo".

One of the cool things I like about some of these old logos was the early usage of synthesizers in them. Who can forget this great PBS logo?

I will end this post with a great old TV Guide commercial from 1978 that has a cool synthesizer arpeggiation in it.

Vintage Public Service Announcements on TV.

2008-12-26T10:45:00.000-08:00

After reading a comment by a visitor to this blog, I decided to post a few links to some great old PSAs (Public Service Announcements), that I remember seeing on TV as a kid.
The first is my all-time favorite, "Like Father, Like Son". Think about it.

Here are a couple 70s clips from our old friend, Smokey The Bear.

..and his pal, Woodsy Owl.

Since 1942, the Ad Council has been creating memorable PSAs like this haunting classic, featuring the late, Iron Eyes Cody.

The serious and often stern tone of the narration in these, really drove the point home and I wish they had more like this on television these days.

Matchbooks From Anaheim

2008-12-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

I have just added a new section to the 'Photos of the Forgotten' website. It's 'Matchbooks From Anaheim' and features, you guessed it, images of old Anaheim businesses matchbook covers. I have tons of matchbooks, but decided to limit this section to my home town of Anaheim, CA. Many if not most of the businesses shown in these pages are no longer with us and it's fun to see the addresses of where they were located. I also like seeing the old phone number word prefixes that they stopped using about 40 years ago.

When my family first moved to Anaheim in '72, I went around to all the local motels and collected matches from many of them. Many of the desk clerks were not wanting me to take them as you can imagine these days if a young boy came in asking for matches, but most were obliging. I had them in a bag in my closet for a time, but were lost over the years. These are all images from items I acquired in recent years. You don't see matches used as commonly these days as a promotional item. Although there are a few that are rear strike packs from the 80s, these are mostly old front strike books from the 60s & 70s.

The jazzy retro music is from an album called 'Music For TV Dinners: The Sixties' which I highly recommend.
Enjoy!

R.I.P. Bettie

2008-12-11T19:48:00.000-08:00

1950s pinup Bettie Page dies at 85
Thursday, December 11, 2008

LOS ANGELES -- Bettie Page, a 1950s pinup model who helped set the stage for the 1960s sexual revolution, has died. She was 85.

Her agent Mark Roesler says Page died Thursday night at a Los Angeles hospital after suffering a heart attack nine days ago. He says she never regained consciousness.

Page attracted national attention with magazine photographs of her sensuous figure in bikinis and see-through lingerie that quickly were tacked up on walls across the country. Her photos included a centerfold in the January 1955 issue of then-fledgling Playboy magazine, as well as controversial sadomasochistic poses.

Roesler says Page had been hospitalized for three weeks with pneumonia and was about to be released when she had the heart attack on Dec. 2.

Classic Holiday TV Commercials

2008-12-07T10:30:00.000-08:00

Season's greetings everyone. Here are some great old commercials from the good old days that many of you will remember from Christmas seasons past.

Just about every kid that grew up in the 70s remembers clinking their glasses together to this holiday classic.

The Norelco Santa commercials were a great example of stop-motion animation. I wish they would bring these back with a new CGI version for today's viewers. Here are two examples of this holiday favorite. The first one is from the 60s and the second one from the 70s.

Here is the Christmas version of Coca Cola's timeless "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing" campaign from the 1970s.

I remember this 1975 McDonald's commercial well.

Miller Lite ran it's "Tastes Great-Less Filling" campaign featuring sports celebrities for many years. Here is a special holiday version they did back in the 70s. It features, Dick Butkus, John Madden & several other old sports stars, many of whom are no longer with us.

Alka Seltzer ran this holiday promotional spot back in 1977

Happy Holidays!

Flushing Meadows-Corona Park

2008-10-08T16:58:00.000-07:00

Recently, I posted about my trip to Coney Island while visiting New York City. In this post I want to share with you a little movie clip I shot of the derelict New York State Pavilion in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, located in the borough of Queens.
Being fascinated with modern ruins, I became obsessed with this incredible relic left over from the 1964-65 World's Fair after learning about it in the mid-90s. I even had a dream about being up on the top observation tower in it's ruined state some years ago and knew that one day I would have to visit it in person.
I finally made my first trip to New York City in September, 2008 and visited the site on my third day there. You can also see more photos I took of the Pavilion and the world famous Unisphere on the Photos Of The Forgotten website.

Postcards From Anaheim video now on YouTube.

2008-10-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

I put together this little video for YouTube. It's a slideshow of Anaheim motel postcards with a few other cards thrown in of other Anaheim area landmarks like the Convention Center. The music in the clip is a song from my 4th album, The Blue Moon Room, called "Roundtrip". I hope you'll enjoy it.

Synthetrix Visits Coney Island

2008-09-22T11:57:00.001-07:00

One week after Astroland's closure on September 7, 2008, I visited Coney Island, NYC. Here is a video I took while riding the world famous Wonder Wheel. You can see all the photos I took in the Coney Island feature on the POTF website.

Coney Island's Astroland closes for good it seems.

2008-09-08T18:39:00.000-07:00

It would have to happen, just days before my first trip to New York City. Coney's Island's Astroland which opened in 1962 is closing down. I will still be visiting the place to take some pics and have a hot dog at Nathan's. Fortunately this does not effect the Wonder Wheel and Cyclone roller coaster, so I will ride both of those as well. I will do a Coney Island feature when I get back.

Aerial Time Machine

2008-08-18T10:28:00.000-07:00

Greetings all. I thought I would take a moment to give a plug to an interesting website called Historic Aerials. They have a huge online database of aerial photographs that you can use to view a particular spot on the map in different times. Here is an example where I am viewing the intersection of Sepulveda and Vermont around Harbor City. The first image is from 1972, the second one is 1980 and the last one is from 2004. I am trying to find out what the circus tent-like building is that once occupied the space where a Carl's Jr. now sits. You can see it clearly in the lower right of the first and second images. It's an interesting window into the past and some locations have photos going back to the 1940s. Check it out. It's fun.

Nubel Theater - Bellflower, CA

2008-08-14T11:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple images of the former Nubel Theater in Bellfower, CA. Located at 16705-16711 Bellflower Boulevard, Bellflower, CA 90706 United States (map)
This classic deco-styled theatre opened in 1929 as the NuBell Theatre and was designed by architect, F.E. Woodruff. It had a full stage with fly gallery and an orchestra pit, dressing rooms for vaudeville which at the time was presented along with motion pictures. It was later renamed the Bellflower. Ownership changed several times during its venue as a movie theatre and ws closed in 1977 due to compitition from the Multiplexes. New seating was installed in 1960 on both the main floor and balcony. A new fire wall was installed to close the proscenium opening and a new wide screen was installed along with waterfall curtains.
The Calvary Church purchased the theatre in 1986. They cleaned the theatre up inside and out. They installed a new brick veneer on the exterior walls and changed the lettering on the vertical to HOSANA.

Odyssey Restaurant - Anaheim, CA

2008-07-22T12:03:00.001-07:00

ODYSSEY RESTAURANT/COFFEE SHOP/COCKTAIL LOUNGE
Once located at 1490 So. Anaheim Blvd. This restaurant was closed and boarded up back in the mid 80s, but later reopened in different guises. I am not sure, but I think the building is no longer there. There used to be a Pacific Stereo/Federated Group store behind this restaurant back in the 70s.

Bel Air Inn, Restaurant, Lounge & Jade Center -Rawlins, Wyoming

2008-07-07T11:13:00.000-07:00

At the height of it's popularity, Googie or Populuxe architecture could be found in motels throughout the U.S., even in remote locations like Rawlins, Wyoming. This postcard is of The Bel Air Inn. The arced, vaulted roofs of the restaurant and jade center are mimicked in the towering signage that stands in front of the inn. Maybe some reader can tell us if this place is still standing and in business.

The Princess Motel

2008-06-23T09:47:00.001-07:00

The Princess Motel was located at 1769 West St. near Katella. One of many such places that touted that they were "Across The Street From Disneyland". Across the street from the back of Disneyland's old parking lot is more like it. There was a Shell gas station at the corner and the old Lamplighter Motel was just north of the Princess. This motel had a great neon sign before the Anaheim Resort makeover banished most Googie signage from the area around Disneyland. One of the things I remember most about the Princess Motel was the Gottlieb, MIBS, pinball machine that was back near the pool. A "wedge head" design machine from 1969. I love pinball and there were an abundance of machines at the motels around Disneyland back then. It was one of the cool things about growing up in this neighborhood.

The Ghost Signs of Wonderland Plaza

2008-06-19T13:29:00.000-07:00

Wonderland Plaza is located on Katella Ave at Walnut in the city of Anaheim.

At one time the wall that these signs are painted on faced the westbound traffic of Katella and listed the various businesses that the plaza housed. They were probably painted in the early 60s. When Stovall later built their Space Age motel next to the plaza, it obscured the signs almost completely and they were never painted over although time has worn much of the paint away and some fool tagger hit it up recently.

Out of all the businesses that are listed only the liquor store and Marri's Pizza are still there and neither are the original owners. Many of these stores were already gone when we moved to Anaheim in 1972. Does anyone remember the Wood & Ink shop that was next to the laundromat?

I wanted to capture these before they disappeared forever. As of this date, they are still there, but are fading fast.

On to the pictures.

70's Toy Commercials

2008-05-27T13:54:00.001-07:00

Here are some great 70s toy commercials that I came across on YouTube. Flashbacks a plenty!

Jet Inn Motel - Los Angeles, CA

2008-05-08T12:56:00.000-07:00

This postcard shows the Jet Inn Motel, located at 4542 West Slauson Ave. in Los Angeles. The card depicts a fabulous mid-century modern motel building, it's pool and a shot of the lobby as it looked back when the place was shiny and new.
The photos that follow show the same place, some decades of decay later.
I originally took these pictures in the fall of 2002 while also photographing the former Wich Stand location turned Simply Wholesome next door.
Click on any of the photos for larger views.

Considering the age and location, this place does not look too bad. The vegetation around the building has grown considerably and now blocks the view of the lobby. I did not go around it to see what the lobby looked like. I doubt that it looks as cheerful as our postcard view.

One of the places that was the most need of repair at the time I took these, was the pool area. It had been drained and a chain-link fence with nylon mesh had been put up around it to keep out the curious skateboarder no doubt.

A rusty section of disused staircase leads to a high concrete-block wall that separates the motel from Simply Wholesome's parking lot.

The old sign still looks great in the twilight of the fading day.

Color TV, by RCA no less, is still being touted as the greatest thing since sliced bread in this classic signage seen at motels around the U.S.

Coca Cola Building - Los Angeles, CA

2008-05-01T12:14:00.003-07:00

I took this photograph of the famous L.A. Coca Cola Building, back in 1984.

Strongly reminiscent of an early 20th century ocean liner, this was indeed the intended effect of architect Robert V. Derrah. Consolidating five ordinary-looking industrial buildings, Derrah created a single structure with soothing streamlined forms, complete with hatch covers and portholes, and crowned by a flying bridge. There are also two giant replicas of Coke bottles flanking the building, which was once the company's headquarters. The interior of the building is not open to the public, but the exterior certainly warrants a visit.
(wcities.com)

Tiki Apartments - Anaheim, CA

2008-04-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

I can't begin to tell you how thrilled I was to find and acquire this particular postcard. It was one of those things where you see the image and it is immediately familiar and alien at the same time.
What I was seeing was an apartment building that was near the neighborhood I grew up in. I have been collecting postcards of Googie architecture and particularly Anaheim motel subjects for a little over 5 years now and I have seen most of what's out there, but every once in a while there is something that is rare and special in a personal way. There are a lot of old motel cards out there as there were large runs on these cards that were given away at the front desk of the establishment. I doubt that there was more than one small run of these done in the early 60s, judging from the car and other details. The lot to the left is empty in the postcard, but another apartment building went up there shortly after. The Space Age does not seem to be there, but the back of the Anaheim Travelodge is clearly visible. The original Disneyland Hotel can be seen on the right side of the horizon.

Tthe most awesome thing about this card is the view of the Wonder Bowl's original multicolor schemed ball sign, before they went to an all aqua/blue color on the sign in the early 70s. You can see both the large sign and the smaller one that was at the back entrance of the bowling alley. Also visible, are some yellow ball globes with "Wonder Bowl" lettering.

As soon as I got this I knew I would have to go and do a "now" shot for the blog. Everyone loves then and nows. Anyway, I was unfortunately unable to get the exact same angle of the shot because it would require me to be on the roof of the apartments directly across the street. I got up as high as I could on the stairs to the second floor. The two-toned paint scheme is no longer, but the building is unchanged for the most part. Block wall screens adorn many of the apartments on this street and this one is still intact.

What has changed is that there are no longer any happy days by the poolside since it was filled in some years ago.
There is also the addition of the hideous black wrought iron that there is far too much of in Southern California these days.

The Moongate Motel

2008-04-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

Now this is some Googie wackiness! This image of the Moongate Motel in Hallandale, Florida is from a promotional postcard touting the Curteichcolor® color postcard company's work. That is about all I know as there was no address for the motel on the card. Anyone know anything about this place?

"Anaheim Vacationland" book

2008-03-27T11:29:00.000-07:00

Greetings all!
I want to take a few moments to tell you about an amazing new book, put together by David Oneal.

Anaheim Vacationland website

David has spent over 20 years researching Disney
history, and has produced over 100 DVD
documentaries on theme parks, with an emphasis
on Disneyland. If you are a Disney geek, then you
have probably been to the Extinct Attractions Club
website, which he also founded.

David took hundreds of hours of video and still
images from 1984 to today and has worked with
the Anaheim historical society to secure earlier
images of the Anaheim area, in addition he has
collected interviews with Disney legends, to create
this unique book about Anaheim and Disneyland.
I was glad to be a part of it by contributing images
from my postcard collection.

The book also features the work of famed artist
MATEO, who has created numerous original paintings
as a tribute to Vacationland.

David lived in many of the motels that are covered
in the book, and his personal story is insightful
and inspiring. His work with the Anaheim Community
Services Department is commendable.

A lot of time and effort went into this colorful
and fascinating book. 244 pages of history,
memories, and images. The book is a large format
(8.5in x 11.5in) and is printed in full color.
Check it out.

The Gay 90's Saloon

2008-03-24T11:42:00.000-07:00

The Gay 90's "A Saloon Created For The Carriage Trade". So reads the copy on the back of this postcard for the famous Gay 90's Saloon that was once at 157 North La Cienega on Restaurant Row in Beverly Hills.
"Professors of the Piano • Beauteous Genteel Feminine Cupbearers • Gleaming Fire Pole • Amazing Hanging Oil Paintings • Luxurious, Salubrious, Pulchritudinous. Home of the Biggest Drink in the West." the card goes on to say. I love the fancy doorman/valet that would await you as you pulled up in your '59 Cadillac.
This establishment was created by Paul Cummins of Huddle Restaurant fame. A big thanks to Heather David, who sent me this card. Be sure to check out her Silicon Valley Modern website. It's really well done.

Arizona Googie

2008-03-10T11:37:00.001-07:00

I added a couple new postcards to the collection this week.
Like California, Arizona had it's share of great old Googie and mid-century modern architecture.

Here we have a postcard that advertised Helsing's Restaurant in Phoenix. The card says that it was located on the famous Central Avenue, in the heart of Phoenix. I checked the
View Larger Map">Google Map and they had a street view which lead me to believe that it's no longer there. In any case this was classic coffee shop modern, possibly designed by Armet & Davis from the look of it.

Before there was a Stovall's Space Age in Anaheim, there was Stovall's Space Age Lodge in Gila Bend, AZ

Elements of design such as the geodesic dome by the pool, use of aluminum for rails and fences and the epoxy resin ornament-trimmed exteriors and room interiors would later be echoed at the fantastic motels that Al Stovall built in Anaheim surrounding Disneyland during the 1960s - 1970s. You have got to love that flying saucer sign.

The plate folded rooflines are great, especially on the old restaurant building.

The good news is that this place is still in business and although the rooms have changed, there seems to be much of the old Space Age theme still intact.

Paul Masson Champagne Cellars, Saratoga, CA

2008-03-04T10:56:00.000-08:00

"Good Wine Makes Good Friends" Paul Masson. That's what the tagline says on the back of this unique postcard from the 1960s.
The image of this fabulous Googie-esque building caught my attention while searching for new postcards. "What could this building be?", I wondered. The card states that this is the Paul Masson Champagne Cellars, located in Saratoga, CA, which is near San Jose and Cupertino, the home of Apple Computers in California's "Silicon Valley".
In the foreground you'll see their "champagne" fountain, reflecting pool, Reception Rotunda and spiral ramp leading into the winery. I would be interested to know if this building still stands and if so, it's condition.
I had an additional, pleasant surprise when I looked at the publishing credit and saw that the photographer was none other than Ansel Adams.

2 new (old) postcards added to the site.

2008-02-14T16:14:00.000-08:00

I have added a couple postcards to the Postcards Of The Past section of my website. They are of the Dunes Motel in Anaheim in the 1960s and a Hody's Restaurant/North Hollywood card that is from the late 1950s.
See these and all the other great old postcards at
http://207.45.186.130/~vstapf/apc/potp.html

Hong Kong and The Year of the Rat.

2008-02-13T01:06:00.000-08:00

I recently returned from a trip to Hong Kong. I have been there several times and I always find interesting things to photograph while I am there.

Hong Kong is an amazing place. It's a modern city that is steeped in centuries old traditions. It is a place where east meets west and everywhere in between. Hong Kong was a British crown colony for almost 100 years, so it's not unusual to see streets and parks named after former British royalty. They also drive on the left side of the road there, like they do in England and Japan. All legit taxis in Hong Kong are these red and silver Toyota Crown Comfort sedans. There are also green and blue in some districts, but are not seen as often.

The Hong Kong skyline is in my opinion the most spectacular in the world, especially at night.

The building on the left in the next photo changes colors dramatically every several seconds and is very beautiful at night. I also like the blue and green hues of the Standard Chartered Bank building. The creative use of lighting on these large buildings is really something to see.

The Wan Chai Market (traditional Chinese: 灣仔街市) was constructed in 1937. It is located at 264 Queen's Road East and Stone Nullah Lane in Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island. It is a Grade III Historic Building.

Its architectural style is influenced by Streamline Moderne (also known as Streamlined Moderne or Art Moderne) architecture, a popular style of building of the 1930s. It is often erroneously referred to as a Bauhaus-style building.

This block of 10 apartment buildings in Aberdeen on the south side of Hong Kong Island stands deserted. It's former residents long gone as the site awaits demolition and redevelopment of the land. These brooding hulks which were built in the 1960s are empty, silent and a bit spooky.

How about this scary looking industrial building?

While it's hard to say if anyone will miss these sad structures when they are gone, there has been an effort to preserve some of the old historic colonial structures, like The Star Ferry Terminal.

To learn more about Hong Kong, check out the Wikipedia entry.

The Glass House Restaurant

2008-01-25T12:00:00.000-08:00

Although I have never been to Oklahoma, I would like to some day. My trip would have to include a visit to The Glass House Restaurant in Vinita. Originally built in 1957 by Conoco Oil, the restaurant is now the world's largest McDonalds. The building also has an Oklahoma welcome center and a gift shop.

The love / hate world of the Eichler Home

2008-01-20T23:10:00.000-08:00

These days, they are some of the most over-hyped homes of the mid-century modern era, poorly insulated, prone to major headaches when you have to repair the in-slab plumbing radiant heating system and don't forget the roof leaks. At the same time they are also some of the most beautiful homes of their era that revolutionized how we lived in the modern age, bringing the outdoors, indoors with expansive walls of glass and enclosed atriums that also gave us a sense a privacy.
There was a time when you could pick these homes up for a song and sadly many of the people who bought them in the decades that followed their original construction, horribly mangled their architectural merits in ways that I will not mention here, but drive through any of these tracts and you will see what I mean. In the last 15 years or so, the interest in these homes has increased greatly and in some ways it's a good thing, as the love / hate world of Eichler homes has led to more of the people who enjoy these homes for what they are, buying them up and fixing up sensitively and often times restoring them to their original condition. The downside is that the prices being asked for these homes can be higher than other, homes in the same area that are not so architecturally significant.
I still love Eichlers and mid-century modern style in general, but I am also a practical person who probably would not want to deal with their quirks.
I explored one of the tracts in San Jose, CA while on a weekend trip up from L.A. and found that the amount of houses that still looked like they did back in their day was higher than the neighborhoods I have seen here in Southern California.
This is one of the most popular pages on my website. It seems everyone wants to see Eichler homes online, so here is that slide show for your enjoyment. Check out the other photos I have taken of modern and contemporary styled homes in California on the site as well.
You can learn more about the famous homebuilder Eichler and the architects who designed these fabulous pads of the space-age at The Eichler Network.

Inn Of Tomorrow / Space Age Bus

2008-01-10T12:31:00.001-08:00

This is a postcard I had been trying to obtain for the last few years, when I first saw it on an ebay auction. This wacky bus once shuttled happy tourists to Disneyland and back to their futuristic rooms at one of the Stovall's space-themed motels surrounding the park. When my parents moved to Anaheim in the spring of '72, this bus was out of commission and for a short time was parked in rear area of one of the motels. I finally acquired this used postcard. The person writes on the back about how fabulous the Inn Of Tomorrow is (was).

Modern Riverside

2008-01-03T10:40:00.000-08:00

I wanted to take a moment to give a plug to a new website & blog called "Modern Riverside". It's run by a gal named Tanya Rathbun Sorrell and it's got a whole mess of photos that document surviving modern architecture in the Inland Empire. Take a peek and tell 'em Synthetrix sent ya.

The Site:
www.modernriverside.com

The Blog:
www.modernriverside.com/wordpress

CBS Television City in Los Angeles.

2007-11-24T14:35:00.001-08:00

CBS Television City is a television studio located at 7800 Beverly Boulevard, in Los Angeles. It is one of two CBS studios in the area—the other is CBS Studio Center, located in the Studio City section of the San Fernando Valley, which houses additional production facilities and the network's Los Angeles local television operations. Opened in 1952, the studio facility was built to handle the larger production needs for the network, having outgrown the cramped Columbia Square.
The modern architecture at CBS Television City was the work of William Pereira. By the time of his death in 1985, Pereira had over 400 projects to his name. Among the structures he designed throughout Southern California were the CBS Television City, the Los Angeles County Art Museum, and the original Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim. William Pereira and Charles Luckman, along with Paul Williams and Welton Becket also engineered the distinctive "Theme Building" at LAX. Out of his immense body of work, three have really stood out in the public mind: the master-planned cities of Irvine and Newport Beach, and the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco.

The Long Beach Pike

2007-11-02T18:37:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite photographs that I took of the famed Long Beach Pike Amusement Park in the spring of 1980. It was shortly before I graduated from high school and my dad, brother and I took a drive down there to take some pictures. The park had recently been closed down and it was all but deserted. The building with the cone-shaped roof with the cupola at the top of it was the Looff's Lite-A-Line. This roof was the only thing that was saved from the original Pike buildings and has sat in a vacant lot on the land where The Pike entertainment center now stands for several years.

The word came down this week from the city's Historic Preservation Officer Jan Ostashay. The Looff’s Lite-a-Line roof will be outta here by the end of 2007. They still say that the cupola at the very top will be used for a kiosk–one dedicated to historic preservation–at Pacific Avenue and Ocean Boulevard.
You can see the other photos we took that day at
http://207.45.186.130/~vstapf/pike01.html

Eden Roc Motel, Anaheim, CA - Then & Now

2007-10-18T13:25:00.000-07:00

Here we have a couple then and now views of the famous Eden Roc Motel, (now the Parkside Inn & Suites) on West St. in Anaheim, CA. The fantastic signage from the old days is long gone, but this motel still has some Googie touches left like the upswept roof lines that greet you as you enter the parking areas from the street. There are some bits of flagcrete and an old iron gate with a Chinese double happiness design, now hidden from view by overgrown foliage that looked good with the former white, red & black paint scheme that has since been replaced by cream and green hues.

The towering neon sign that once stood at this place was truly spectacular. There were blue neon sparkles that adorned the face of the sign. They flickered alternately creating a sense of movement. On the lower part of this sign was a marquis where editable lettering heralded discount room rates. As kids, my friends in the neighborhood and I would change the letters around to say things that we thought were funny at the time.

"Postcards From Anaheim" book is now available!

2007-09-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

In celebration of the "Photos Of The Forgotten" website's 5th anniversary, I have put together this book of vintage Anaheim motel postcards. It's 96 pages of the Googie glory that once surrounded the Disneyland theme park. Available now through the blurb.com bookstore in either hard or soft cover editions at http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/96560/
Great for your coffee table. I hope you'll enjoy it.
- Synthetrix

Postcards From...

Vintage Views From ...

By Presented by Synt...

Book Preview

The Inn Of Tomorrow Topiary Garden. - Then and Now

2007-09-27T18:00:00.000-07:00

This is a postcard of the once glorious topiary garden at the Stovall's Inn Of Tomorrow, which was located at the corner of West St. & Katella Ave in Anaheim.
I say "the once glorious" because although the motel is still there in it's remodeled condition, the topiary garden is showing it's age. This photo shows how it looked in the early 70s when these trees were in their prime. There were all sorts of animals and Disney characters hand-sculpted by the landscapers that once worked for the Stovalls. There are still a few of these topiary marvels around the grounds, but they are looking pretty rough compared to how they looked back in the day.
There are some other things to note in this postcard. The view is looking north down West St. towards Katella. You can clearly see the signs of the three gas stations that once occupied this intersection. From the center-right you'll see Shell and then Gulf and Phillips 66. You can also make out the great sign for the Princess Motel next to the Shell sign. You can see that there were painted wood signs that identified some of the scenes and I believe there was a Kodak logo on some of the signs. You'll also notice that in this image the Inn Of Tomorrow is a two-story structure. The third story was added later in the early 80s. You gotta love the clothes the models are wearing. Dig those go-go boots!
If you were standing in this exact spot today you would see that the pool area is much larger as it was expanded in the later years of the Inn Of Tomorrow. The dome by the original pool is still there, but painted an icky brown color.

UPDATE 9/24/07

So, I was visiting my parents yesterday and walked over to take a few shots of how this place looks today. The topiary garden is smaller, since they expanded the pool area many years ago, but it is still there. Here is a shot taken from about the same angle as the 70s postcard for comparison. I have also included a couple additional shots of the topiary animals themselves. These are the same plants and shapes that have always been there, but many of them have been removed and most need a good trimming.

Abandoned White Front store - Anaheim, CA, 1981

2007-09-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

Here is an excerpt from a super 8 film that I made when I was a teenager living in Anaheim. It was filmed at an Abandoned White Front store that had been already been closed for several years when this was made. I was accompanied by a couple friends and we gained access to the building by a place on the roof where a large air conditioning unit had fallen through the weakened roofing and left a huge hole. The place was a wreck inside and had also become a home for transients in the area. Some isolated parts of the store were nearly pitch black and required flashlights to see where we were going. Most of the retail floor area had decent light that came in from the floor-to-ceiling windows that were part of the store's front entranceway. I think we checked this place out a couple times before losing interest in it. Some months later, the place would burn in a mysterious fire and be leveled. There are townhomes on the land today.

Here are a couple photos that I found on the net of what White Front stores looked like in their day.

Pann's Coffee Shop - Armet & Davis -1958

2007-08-29T14:11:00.000-07:00

Check out the full gallery of Pann's images now.

Wanderlust Motel - September, 1982

2007-08-28T12:12:00.000-07:00

Here is a short clip that was transfered from Super 8 film shot in September, 1982. The scenes were filmed at the Wanderlust Motel in Anaheim as it sat vacant, waiting for demolition. The motel was largely unsecured and I filmed these scenes one afternoon with some friends and my trusty Bell & Howell Super 8 camera. There are some glimpses of the Alice In Wonderland characters painted on some of the motel room walls that I mentioned in my previous post about this place. The music you hear is "The Plateaux Of Mirror", by Brian Eno & Harold Budd, from the album AMBIENT 2: The Plateaux Of Mirror.

Katella Ave @ West St. - Spring 1980

2007-08-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

The year is 1980 and I took this photo which looks west down Katella Ave. on my way home one evening. In the photo we have the Inn Of Tomorrow, followed by the Skyview Motel and Alamo Motor Lodge. Then you can make out the old green & white sign with the orange ball on top which is for the Anaheim Travelodge. After that would be the former Carl's Charbroiler Restaurant in it's Sundowners Restaurant era. The last two signs are of The Space Age and finally the Wonderland Plaza. The view from this spot is very different these days. I may have to take a current pic to show the difference next time I am visiting the parents.

Carl's Charbroiler Restaurant. Anaheim, CA

2007-08-13T16:59:00.000-07:00

If you live on the west coast or the southwest then you probably have eaten at or at least seen a Carl's Jr.
Their headquarters is in my home town of Anaheim and at one time there were two Carl's Charbroiler Restaurants. These were not the usual fast food places that Carl's Jr. of today are. These were sit-down restaurants with menus and waitresses. One was located in front of their headquarters building and the other was located near my parents house at the corner of Casa Vista and Katella Ave. The building is still there, but it has gone through several changes since Carl or whoever decided to close them down. It was Sundowners, Millies and then finally Denny's which it still is to this day. It's right next door to the former Stovall's Space Age. The Wonderbowl was directly across the street.
I used to stop by there on my way home from school and grab a star-shaped sucker or spinning top toy that they used to keep at the register counter for the good little boys and girls. My family ate there after church a few times. The Famous Star hamburger was sold here and it was huge, but you could get things like fried chicken or steak and eggs which were not sold at the regular Carl's Jr.
It seemed like Carl's had a lot more class back then. Their ultra-sloppy commercials of the last several years are a turn off for me personally and it's a rare occasion that I eat there or any other fast food joint these days for that matter.
If you grew up in Orange County in the 70s like me then you may also remember Carl's short-lived Mexican food restaurant experiment, Taco De Carlos. These were only around for a few years that I can remember and although I loved their machaca burritos, they just could not compete with Del Taco and the rapidly rising Taco Bell chain.
Carl Karcher got his start with a small hot dog stand in Los Angeles back in 1941 and grew quite an empire from those humble beginnings. Carl Karcher Enterprises aquired the Hardees chain in 1997 and their logo now features the Carl's Jr. "Happy Star"

By Request...The Wanderlust Motel

2007-08-08T00:23:00.000-07:00

Here we have a postcard for the long-gone Wanderlust Motel in Anaheim, CA. This motel was located roughly on the land where Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel now stands. This motel was torn down to build this hotel which was originally called The Emerald before Disney acquired it.
The year is 1981 or 1982, I am not quite sure of the date at this point, but the Wanderlust had been closed down and was awaiting demolition. Like many such buildings in the area, it was a place of exploration for my friends and I. The place was completely unguarded and unlocked. I guess back in those days they figured, "why lock up what just going to get torn down soon anyway". These days they put security on almost any derelict site like this in the city. Anyway we went from room to room checking out the place and found that at some point in the motel's history, an artist was hired to paint scenes from some of the stories that Disney had set to animation. There were several rooms that had paintings from the Alice In Wonderland story on the walls. They did not actually look like Disney's versions of the characters, but rather more like the original Lewis Carrol book illustrations. They were a bit rough and even a bit scary. I am sure some young guests of this place had nightmares in these rooms inspired by the freaky wall murals. There was one room that had tons of door keys scattered around the place. We went back a few times, and I even shot some super 8 film of some of the rooms. I may have to put up some frame grabs of those in a future post. So one night, we decide to bring a case of beer up to one of the rooms that overlooked the now drained swimming pool. After a couple hours of drinking, we went down into the lobby and began to trash the place, literally tearing cabinets off the wall and smashing glass. One of my friends who tended to get out of control when he drank started punching pieces of an already broken window glass out. I told him to be careful or he was going to cut himself. Sure enough, he sliced the top of his middle finger something fierce and blood started pouring out of the wound. Right about the same time we hear sirens in the distance and assume they are coming our way, so we take off. My friend is running down West St. towards Katella and is waving his hand at cars that pass by and is splattering blood on them. I actually caught a glimpse of some tourists waving back, smiling, not realizing what was going on. I catch up to my friend at the Shell station that used to be at the intersection and see blood drops all over the sidewalk where he is talking to some attendant at the station. I urge him to go with me back to my parents house. Right about that time I see the police pulling into the abandoned Wanderlust and we beat a hasty retreat and I got his finger all bangaged up and got him back home. I can't remember if he ended up getting stitches or not. For weeks afterwards, I would laugh as I passed by the location and could still see his blood on the sidewalk and signs along the way between the Shell station and the motel. It was torn down a few weeks after that and the Emerald Hotel went up in it's place. If you look to the middle-right in the postcard, you will see five palm trees. Those small buildings below them on the horizon are some of the old original garden apartment rooms at the Disneyland Hotel.
Well, that's enough story time for now.
Sweet dreams.

Old Liquor Store Signs

2007-07-06T17:15:00.000-07:00

I have always loved neon signs and growing up I saw a lot of great examples of neon in the local liquor store signs. These days the cost of repairing expensive neon signage has resulted in many having the neon part removed or replaced with backlit plastics signs.
Is there are great old neon liquor store in your neighborhood? If so, why not send me a snapshot of it. Day or night is fine, but they always look their best when illuminated.
You can email them to me at synthetrix@yahoo.com and I'll add them to this gallery.

OLD LIQUOR STORE SIGNS GALLERY

The legendary INN OF TOMORROW!

2007-06-20T19:15:00.001-07:00

When my family first moved to Anaheim in the spring of 1972, I was the proverbial kid in the candy store with all the new sights and sounds of the Disneyland area surrounding my house. Practically next-door to us was Al Stovall's Inn Of Tomorrow. This was the flagship of his space-themed motels that surrounded Disneyland. Located at the corner of West St. & Katella Ave., it featured a fantastic topiary garden and this awesome lobby which pretty much looked like this when we moved to Anaheim. I even played that wild looking video game that you see in the lower left of the image. This game pre-dated PONG and featured black & white graphics that were made up of small white dots. It cost a quarter which was a bit more than most pinball games of the day which you could play for a dime. The cabinet was made of fiberglass and had a groovy blue sparkle finish. The game itself was very difficult to figure out and I only played it a couple times before losing interest after the novelty wore off. It would be another 6 years or so before games like Space Invaders, Asteroids & Galaxian would give us a hint at the shape of arcade fun to come. This inn is still in business under a new name and there are still many of the old topiary animal trees around the property. The "Moon Dome" restrooms at the pool are still there, but the space age theme and white paint are gone along with all the cool epoxy decorative trim elements that once made this place so distinctive. If you look around though, you can still find some traces of the old place in a few areas. The Space Age is the only other one of Al Stovall's space-themed motels that is still standing. It's a block west on Katella and is now called Pavillions. The Cosmic Age, Galaxy & Apollo Inn were all demolished when Disney added the California Adventure and updated the Anaheim Resort area.

Downtown Las Vegas At Night -5/12/07

2007-06-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

The Strip does not really have much in the way of classic neon these days, save for The Flamingo and a few other places. Head downtown at night to see places like Binions and The 4 Queens. Here are some pics I took last month while visiting there.

Abandoned Cafe In The California Desert

2007-06-20T11:07:00.000-07:00

My brother and I spotted this place on our way out to Vegas last month and were determined to check it out on the way back.
Now you, can check it out HERE.

The new "Photos Of The Forgotten" feed!

2007-06-20T10:55:00.000-07:00

I decided to use blogger to keep fans of the POTF site easily informed of new content added to the site. It has grown so much that it can difficult to see what is new. Hopefully this will be of help. Thanks to all the people who have taken the time out to write to me and tell me how Photos Of The Forgotten has touched the nostalgia bone in their body. I'll probably be throwing some anecdotes in here as well that may not be on the site, so that's another good reason to do the RSS feed. Stay tuned!