July 2012

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Special Expedition to North University Park

July 26, 2012 in Events by lachs_admin | No comments

We have a special opportunity for an August event!

Friday, August 3, 2012 @ 8 PM (arrive by 7:30, there is only street parking).

RSVP right away to Kay Tornborg at (323)467-0287 or kxiaojie@att.net.

Tickets are $15 (which goes to the Panorama, not LACHS) and the theatre is small-ish. First come, first served. This presenter has some wonderful old equipment and a fascinating show. Refreshments following in the garden.

 

Event Description

Professor Huhtamo’s Daring Adventures illuminated with magic lantern

Place: Velaslavasay Panorama, 1122 W. 24th St., 90007

Date/Time: August 2 and August 3, 2012 at 8:00PM

Admission: $15 ($12 for VPES Members and Children)

By means of a magnificent Victorian biunial magic lantern that once belonged to his great-grandfather, Prof. Huhtamo tells the story of his forefather’s adventurous life. An optical scientist and amateur astronomer, the elder Professor Huhtamo had his share of rare experiences: he climbed the Mont Blanc, observed the transit of venus, and got stuck in ice for an entire winter as a member of a polar expedition.

Prof. Huhtamo will be assisted by his daughter Margareta, an aspiring magic lantern showwoman and talented lantern slide painter, and her husband Olof, an accomplished musician and distinguished sound effects artist.

All in attendance will be furnished with a Frozen Treat, pleasing to both old and young.

Eddy Feldman: The Father of Streetlighting in Los Angeles

July 1, 2012 in Member Highlight by lachs_admin | No comments

[cross-posted with permission from the Los Feliz Ledger]

Feldman and LaBonge

92-year-old Eddy Feldman was recently honored by Los Angeles City Councilmember Tom LaBonge.

By Diane Kanner, Los Feliz Ledger Columnist

Glen Dawson is the quintessential Californian. The Sierra Club was brand new when he joined, the same year photographer Ansel Adams took his portrait. In his younger days, Dawson scaled bald peaks like Mount Whitney. His career as a bookseller was preordained after his father Ernest established a bookshop downtown. Later located on Larchmont Boulevard, Dawson’s was a meeting place of western states antiquarian book collectors and Dawson hung out with bibliophiles like W.W. Robinson, Ward Ritchie and Lawrence Powell.

Dawson’s centennial birthday celebration at the University Club in Pasadena on June 2nd brought together his friends. Among guests was 92-year-old Eddy Feldman, an attorney who lives in Park LaBrea. Nibbling on a Cobb salad before leaving for another engagement, Feldman recounted the story of how Dawson changed his life.

Feldman was Chair of the Board of Municipal Arts Commissioners when Mayor Sam Yorty called him to the Central Library to help create a “friends of the library” support group. Feldman had travelled to Europe where he photographed local streetlights. As a commissioner, he was called upon to evaluate proposals for streetlights, and he was developing an eye in the public works genre.

Feldman offered his photos towards the library effort but found no takers. Dawson was in the room, and he told Feldman he wanted to see the photos. The upshot was the publication of Feldman’s text, “The Art of Street Lighting in Los Angeles” in 1972 by Dawson’s Book Store. Listed for $46 on Amazon.com, copies hold photos of lights throughout the city, including one inspired by the hollyhock flower on the hillside of Barnsdall Park.