L.a. Meekly

Summer is here and it's nothing like any of us expected. In this very summer vacation style loose episode we'll be covering what summer in LA means to us and a few of our favorite traditions we like to take part in under better circumstances. DISCLAIMER: This episode was recorded well before the current situation in the city unfolded which makes our laments sound even more trivial. More important history is in the making but if you need something light just to help you fall asleep at night, this is for you. Stay safe everybody.

Hold onto your wallets; this month we're covering some of the city's most notorious con artists.  We'll be talking about the town of Girard (19:52), the Bling Ring (35:13), the Julian Pete Scandal (1:09:52), Michael Romanoff (1:30:03) and the Billionaire Boys Club (1:53:22).

Pack a lunch or just catch what you eat out of the always fresh L.A. River as we sit down with author Paul Haddad to discuss his book "10,000 Steps A Day in LA."  We'll cover some of the best walks in the city and how great his book is at being a jumping off point to explore new parts of the city.  (Never fear: this episode was recorded pre-quarantine)

Stuck in the house all day and night?  Scared to go outside and would rather get lost safely in a book?  If this unique situation applies to you and you alone then this is the episode for you.  This month we cover a few of LA's prized local pulp writers.  Travel to Mars with Edgar Rice Burroughs (14:57), travel to Mars with Leigh Brackett (53:37), travel to Mars with Ray Bradbury (1:20:49) and travel to only LA with Raymond Chandler (1:51:01).

Strap down your porcelain butts and get ready for "the big one." Our episode on earthquakes. Relive the horror and aftermath of Longbeach '33 (16:42), Sylmar '71 (36:43) and Northridge '94 (47:46).

Now that the '20s are roaring forward, we thought we'd take a look back on the previous decade to reflect on the buildings and businesses we lost during the 2010s.  Relive the memories that are too soon to relive from places like the Buggy Whip, the LA Sports Arena and Meltdown Comics.

Put the needle on the podcast and ring in a whole new decade with a whole new episode on your favorite local record stores.  We've got the granddaddy Wallichs Music City (:17), the young punk Rockaway Records (:41), the scrappy Tower Records (:55) and the mighty Amoeba (1:06).

Crack open the eggnog and fry up the latkes because it's time to get creepy and haunted.  This year we tackle the Queen Mary in all her luxury lining, world war serving, ghost pool glory.  Both the straight history (:14) and the ghouls (1:08).

You asked for it so we asked it right back.  This month we tackle two listener submitted questions: What do you like most about Angelenos? and What should someone not from here be aware of to make their stay as agreeable as possible?  Listen to our bumbling answers and the much better answers of you, the listener, who submitted your own takes.  You know who you are.  And those of you who didn't?  Consider yourselves uninvited from LA Meekly Thanksgiving.

Pack your sack lunches for the nicest museum you've ever visited inside a cemetery: the Forest Lawn Museum.  We talk with the museum's curator James Fishburne about the museum's role in shaping the art scene of Los Angeles, pigeon photography and the biggest painting of Jesus you've ever seen.

Halloween is here and what better way to spend it than with your two favorite grave robbers?  To get you in the...spirit...of the season we'll be covering the stories of a few of the biggest graveyards in the city: Valhalla Memorial Park (:14), Hollywood Forever (:32) and Forest Lawn (1:03).

Pack a picnic for this one as we sit down with Executive Director of the L.A. Philharmonic Gail Samuel (Yes, you read that correct) to talk about everything Hollywood Bowl related from decrepit band shells to Cab Calloway.

Ever wondered where you put that old screwdriver you can't find? How about your mint condition copy of Action Comics #1? Or that old Hope Diamond you used to have lying around? Check the junk drawer! L.A. Meekly's got one too filled with topics that didn't quite fit anywhere else so from that drawer we submit to you: the Spike Jones grocery story of La Crescenta (:13), inspiration for Indiana Jones Antonia Futterer (:28), the roller derby Thunderbirds (:49) and the Alphabet Bomber (1:06).

School may be back in session today but it's already time for a field trip.  Join us on our trip to La Plaza de Cultura y Artes as we discuss the museum's mission and importance as the keeper of the history of the early days of this city with Associate Curator Mariah Berlanga-Shevchuk and Assistant Curator Esperanza Sanchez.  

What's that sound?  The Entertainer by Scott Joplin?  That must mean it's the podcast truck with its barely regulated freezer full of treats!  This month we go into the stories of everyone but Greg's favorite summer treats: ice cream.  We'll dive deep into the history of Fosters Freeze (:14), Baskin-Robbins (:25), Fosselman's (:47) and, of course, Thrifty (:59).

1969. June 22 Judy Garland dies. July 14 Easy Rider comes out. August 9 Sharon Tate is murdered. Summer of love this was not. This month we're going to look at the downfall of the old Hollywood studio system by way of the rise and fall of Judy Garland (:16) and the birth of the New Hollywood movement through the story of Roger Corman (1:09).

Put on your weekend finest and zip on over to listen to the story of the zoot.  Join us as we trace one of the saddest, most disappointing low points in Los Angeles history from the murder and unfair trial at Sleepy Lagoon (:15) to the brutal and just as unfair Zoot Suit Riots (:57).  Get ready to be ashamed of your city.

Wax on your podcast device but don't wax it off because it's time for a field trip with Madame Tussaud's Hollywood's very own Helen Larimore.  Join us as she discusses the laborious and somewhat disturbing process of creating each wax model and the even more disturbing experience of having to walk through the empty exhibits at the end of the night.

Strap on your sturdiest hiking boots and sit on the couch and listen to our newest episode on a couple of the city's forests! We'll be covering the exploitation and criminal population of the Angeles National Forest (:12) and the Hollywood glory of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (1:04).

Activate your spellcheck because we are at the harder-than-you-think to-spell Coliseum!  We are joined by the hilarious comedian/Los Angeles history connoisseur Carl Tart as we discuss this place's meaning to himself and to the city at large.