L.a. Meekly

This summer. There's only one podcast dedicated entirely to talking about action movies that took place in Los Angeles. And if there is more than one, ignore the rest. This month we're covering a few of the classic L.A. action movies from the Terminator to Speed delving into filming locations and what role the city plays in them (if any).  

Put the needle on the record for our second edition of The Meekly Music Box. This month we are highlighting Tres Souls! Rooted deeply in trio romantico/Bolero music, Tres Souls brings a modern twist to a deeply romantic, traditional Mexican style of music. Check them out on Instagram @tressouls to hear more from them.

Summer is in full swing so sit back, crack open an ice cold iPhone and an even colder soda to hear all about the stories of a few local sodas and soda related buildings. We've got a lineup that'll make your mouth water: Orange Bang (16:21), the Coca-Cola Building (39:49), Hansen's (52:55), Galco's (1:15:04) and the Shirley Temple (1:35:28).

Welcome, followers, to the inaugural episode of the Meekly Music Box! In this brand new segment to the show you love and follow we will be highlighting local musicians by playing a couple of their songs and telling you about their story and connection to Los Angeles. This month's featured musician is Jessica Fichot! The child of a Chinese mother and French father, Jessica blends the styles of French chanson, Shanghai jazz, gypsy swing and international folk into something that is uniquely her that embodies the spirit of L.A. perfectly. Today you'll be hearing her songs "La Spectatrice" and "Daydream." You can find her at facebook.com/jessicafichotmusic or youtube.com/jessicafichotmusic. Also on Instagram @jessicafichotmusic and check out her upcoming shows at jessicasongs.com/shows

In honor of Pride month we are digging deep into a handful of LGBTQ trailblazers from right here in town. We've got the legendary Mattachine Society (14:43), the complicated Virginia Prince (45:32), the valiant Morris Kight and the Gay Liberation Front (1:20:09) and the unstoppable Troy Perry and the Metropolitan Community Church(1:35:21). This episode brought to you by Smile Brilliant. Use promo code LAMEEKLY to get 30% off today.

To kick off Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month, it's time to celebrate a few people and organizations from Los Angeles that made their mark on the city and the world. We'll cover architect Helen Liu Fong (16:22), Gidra magazine (30:31) and Anna May Wong (57:07).

If you haven't already read "Stealing Home: Los Angeles, the Dodgers and the Lives Caught In Between" by Eric Nusbaum then you're about to want to after hearing our interview with the author himself. The book covers the political intrigue and social injustice involved in the razing of the Chavez Ravine communities on the path towards the construction of Dodger Stadium. We'll cover the book, the author's process and the time he watched Daniel sneak french fries into Staples Center in his pocket. This episode is brought to you by Podcorn. If you have a podcast and want help monetizing check out podcorn.com for more information.

Soak in some culture this month while we cover a few of Los Angeles' greatest contributions to the world of art. We'll cover Mike Mollett and the L.A. Mudpeople (16:58), Frank Romero (33:11) and Sister Corita Kent (1:00:45).

For this very special bonus we have a very special interview with Max Miller of "Tasting History." Today Max gives us a rundown on his show, his time being the voice of Iago for Disney and the history of tamales in Los Angeles. If you want to check out Max's episode of his own show about tamales you can watch it right here and we highly recommend you do:

Stop where you're driving right now and look at the street sign. Ever wonder why it's named that? Well get back in your car and buckle up for this month's episode where we delve into the names of a few of the streets around town. We'll cover Chevy Chase Drive (18:56), Sepulveda Boulevard (28:32), James M. Wood Boulevard (44:23), Rosecrans Avenue (56:26), General Thaddeus Kosciuszko Way (1:16:02) and Roscoe Boulevard (1:25:32). This episode is sponsored by Podcorn! Get started finding ads for your own podcast today at Podcorn.com!

It's been a year since COVID first showed up on our turf and we've been pining for the old days when museums weren't just places we pined for so this month we're going to give the histories of three that we miss in particular. We've got the Natural History Museum (23:01), the Southwest Museum (1:07:45) and the Autry (1:44:48). We want to thank Podcorn for sponsoring this episode! Get started finding ads for your own podcast at podcorn.com today!

Covid has hit the city hard and since the government has abandoned us maybe we can at least try to save a few historic businesses that are at risk of going away for good. In this month's episode we'll give you the jam packed history of just a handful of these places. We'll cover the El Segundo Old Town Music Hall (18:11), the Pacific Dining Car (44:27), the Bob Baker Marionette Theater (1:04:01) and Vroman's Bookstore (1:46:45). Happy New Year!

It's the most punderful time of the year, indeed. This December we're back at it with some more creepy/haunted stories for you from around the city. This year we cover the Monster of Elizabeth Lake (34:42), the Bat Man of Echo Park (53:27), the dark secret of a J.M. Barrie (1:14:28), the Mummy of the Pike (1:24:49) and the curse of Rudolph Valentino's Ring (1:38:59).

We asked you, dear listener, what annoyed you most in Los Angeles and after we got past the snarky remarks putting us down we have our answers. This month we go off the cuff to air the grievances we and our listeners have with the city from what parts of town are considered suburbs to parking in Century City.

Happy Cancelled Halloween! This month we learned how many p's are in the word "disappearances" to bring you this decidedly un-spooky episode on some of the biggest unsolved mysteries in Los Angeles history. We'll cover Jean Spangler (22:24), Gertrude Tompkins Silver (42:16), Jonathan Aujay (1:10:59) and the Salomon family (1:26:59).

Regular episode of L.A. Meekly this is not! Your beloved Greg has made a special recording on the history of displacement in Los Angeles for the Glendale Public Library's lead up to a virtual author discussion with Eric Nusbaum author of "Stealing Home: Los Angeles, the Dodgers and the Live Caught in Between" and we wanted to share it with you. Be sure to tune in to the discussion! Details inside. Produced with support from Glendale Arts & Culture Commission

Fade in on a sleepy pueblo street. This month we are diving into the early, lawless party days of the Sunset Strip and a few of its biggest night clubs. We'll cover the creation of Sunset Boulevard itself (22:49), the Trocadero (36:18), Ciro's (1:01:50) and Mocambo (1:25:48).

I'll get it out of the way early and invite you to get your kicks right now. Take a cruise down LA's stretch of route 66 with us as long as you're in a completely different car with a mask on and nowhere near us. We'll cover the convoluted history of the road itself in LA (29:12), the Fair Oaks Pharmacy (38:59), the Aztec Hotel (51:22), the Formosa Cafe (1:12:59), the Rialto Theater (1:29:18) and, of course, Chicken Boy (1:45:26).

Listeners sick of our voices rejoice: an entire episode made up of you the listener!  We reached out to all of you who took part in the Black Lives Matter protests to send in recordings of your experiences and you came through.  What you're about to hear are a few different stories from the streets of the marches from the people who were there.  We want to again thank everyone who helped out and also everyone who has been out there making their voices heard.  We're proud of you.

Another month of 2020, another episode of L.A. Meekly.  In viewing what has been going on in our city the past month and looking towards the future we decided to take a look back at two parallels from the city's past: the 1965 Watts Uprising (21:09) and the 1992 Riots following the beating of Rodney King (1:04:31).  ATTENTION! We mention in this episode we will be including recordings from people who attended the protests this past month.  We got more than expected so we will be releasing that as it's own dedicated episode TOMORROW.