Aprilbaby's California Life

The San Fernando Valley: TV Land

Living in the Valley is like stepping into TV Land.  Here, you never know who you might run into from the world of retro television. 

I grew up watching shows like Lost in Space, Brady Bunch, Happy Days and Family Affair, to name a few.  The shows' characters entered my living room through that little rabbit-eared box.  I watched these people sitting around family dinner tables and lost on strange planets; I watched them getting into all kinds of situations that were resolved in just minutes.   

Each time I've bumped into one of these actors from the shows I watched as a kid, it's sort of an odd experience. 

Here are my TV Land moments:

June Lockhart, mother on Lost in Space.  She walked into my office and said, "Hello," in a sing-songy familiar voice. "I'm June Lockhart.  May I use your phone?"

I loved Lost in Space.  There was so much to like:  The robot, the assorted goofy aliens, the antics of that annoying Dr. Smith and his sissified whining...but, oh!  I had a huge crush on Billy Mumy. That red hair.  Those freckles.  That smile.  Wow!...I tuned in every chance I got, completely lost in space.

Mark Goddard, Don West from Lost in Space, convinced me when I was young, stupid and new to LA to join some new-agey EST-like group called Summit.  He told me it would be great for acting.  I left after the first day.  Thanks, Major West!

Scott Baio, Chachi from Happy Days.  He was Christmas shopping beside me at Sharper Image. 

Marion Ross, mom on Happy Days. Bumped into Mrs. C at an ATM machine.

Henry Winkler, the Fonz on Happy Days.  But I didn't see him in the Valley.  It was at the UCLA book festival.

Now that I think of it, I seem to be a Happy Days magnet!  Back in the eighties, at the Hard Rock Cafe, I sat next to Ted Mcginley.   And around 1985, I was an extra in a movie Anson Williams directed.

And then there was my Jump the Shark moment.  Way back around 1977, I was body surfing at Paradise Cove in Malibu as Happy Days filmed some of the scenes from that show where Fonzie jumped over a shark.  That episode gave birth to the phrase "Jump the Shark."   

Johnny Whitaker, Jody on Family Affair.  We both reached for the same blueberry muffin at the Vons Bakery.  The minute I saw his red hair and smiling dimpled face (older but still very recognizable), I smiled back.  I think he let me have the muffin.

Kirk Cameron, from Growing Pains.  I was too old to watch this show, but I recognized him.  Again, at an ATM machine.

Robbie Rist, Cousin Oliver from the Brady Bunch.  We almost had jury duty together, but he got out of it.  I have a kid, help run a business and had only one car working.  Robbie Rist gets out of jury duty at the Van Nuys court, but I don't.  He told the judge, "I have acting obligations."  The lawyer I sat next to elbowed me and whispered "Bullshit" in my ear.

Phillip McKeon, Tommy from Alice.  He came to a party my roommate and I threw when we lived in Studio City. 

Marcia Wallace, Carol from the Bob Newhart Show.  That was one of my favorite shows.  So I was thrilled to meet Marcia at the UCLA Festival of Books.  What a nice woman!  Oops...that wasn't a Valley TV Land moment. Oh, well.

David Carradine, the guy from Kung-Fu.  I guess I should mention him, since he sometimes played (I can't remember what instrument) in a band for our neighborhood block party.  I just get a little queazy when I think of that show.  My friend's brother watched it and would try to karate kick me in the head.

Anyway, that's why I think living in the Valley is like switching the channel to the TV Land station and climbing right in.  You just never know who you might bump into while running errands.

Wait A Minute...What Went Wrong Here?

At one point this weekend I shook my head and wondered, how is it that my daughter's going to chat with Johnny Depp and I'm here sitting at home?

Saturday night, my husband and I planned on seeing jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell at the Catalina Bar and Grill in Hollywood...that is, until my daughter's social life interfered. 

I took my daughter, and her friend, to the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards that afternoon at 2:00 p.m., and planned to pick them up when the show was through; I figured that would be about three hours.  Before getting out of the car, my daughter turned to me and said casually, "Well, it could be later because we want to go the after-party." I laughed... "Yeah, right!" because she wasn't invited to the Nickelodeon party.  So I didn't worry that her event would interfere with my plans for that evening.

Two hours later, my daughter called me.  "Guess what! We're sitting behind Randy, Simon and Paula from American Idol.  Gotta go!"  She called again, "Ben Stiller just sat next to us.  Oops! Gotta go!"  Then again - "I'm five feet from Johnny Depp.  He just got slimed.  I'm going to go say hi to him..." So I screamed into the phone receiver "Tell him your mom loves (she hung up) him...!"  The final time she called, I'm thinking, Good.  They're done.  Now I can go pick them up.  But no.  She called to tell me she was at the after-party standing next to Jamie Foxx.  "Did you know Paula Abdul is really short?  You should see all the free food and the gift bags they gave us!"

Well, being the self-sacrificing parents door mats we are - we ended up staying home and missed seeing Kenny Burrell.  I figured how many times does a kid get to watch Johnny Depp get slimed and stand next to Jamie Foxx, while stuffing her face with free cookies?   Normally, I would not have been pleased.  But, honestly, we were sort of in the mood just to hang around at home anyway.

The Star Wars photo below was taken during the after-party.  My daughter is on the left, her friend is on the right.  Now, if she just uses the same determination all through her life that she used to get into the party - she'll get far.  May the force be with her! 

Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel

I've been watching a "reality" show on the Style Network called "Hot Spot:The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel," where viewers get to follow the renovation of the Roosevelt Hotel.  On last night's show, the people involved in the renovation were patting themselves on the back for a job well done.  Cut to: reality - the place is not yet finished.

I went to check out the updated hotel this afternoon hoping to have a drink by the pool, but the bar wasn't even opened; not a bottle nor a glass could I see - only a generous amount of wood dust sprinkled about.

Even without my poolside cocktail, the Roosevelt remains an elegant oasis since the renovators were required to preserve the Roosevelt's historic features; for that, we historic landmark lovers can let out a sigh of relief. 
(photo on left, looking through Roosevelt's front door to Hollywood Bl.)

Entering the sedately lit and opulent Spanish Colonial lobby after leaving the blare of noise and light on Hollywood boulevard, is always, for me, like stepping back into Greta Garbo's era, while the pool area is so light and mid-century modern sleek - I could imagine Marilyn Monroe slink by leaving a trail of Channel No. 5. in her wake.

Walking through the  Roosevelt, I'm happy to see it remains an elegant haven amidst glittering sidewalk-stars and imbedded handprints.  I just expected that it would be fully completed, as that Style Network show made it seem.  But as many things in Hollywood, not everything is quite   as it appears on screen - and that's just reality.

(The pool photos show David Hockney's 1980's mural on the bottom of the pool.)

(The two photos above are of the lobby's ceiling, originally painted by A.T. Heinsbergen, and then restored by Heinsbergen's son.)