By
OCInSite Site Admin
on January 19, 2012 5:58 PM
By Aleta Walther
Polo is fast, physical and furious. It’s a sport of noblemen and the social elite, fancy hats and sometimes spats. It has been played on elephants, horses, camels, bicycles and motorcycles. Polo has attained worldwide acceptance and acclaim, and is played regularly and religiously in Britain, Argentina, Dubai, India, Kenya and ... Orange County.
Amid the equestrian estates and multimillion- dollar homes of gated Coto de Caza, there are many who pursue a polo ball, including Dennis Geiler, the Orange County Polo Club’s president and staunchest supporter for 25 years.
Geiler and his wife, Joanne, own Newport Beach-based Polo Properties, which operates 14 self-storage facilities throughout SoCal. Their daughter, Shelley Allen, lives in Corona del Mar and shares her father’s passion for polo. Together, the family owns 12 polo ponies.
Although often referred to as the “king of sports,” Geiler says that at his club, polo is played only by “average folks” who get a rush from the speed, excitement and camaraderie of the sport. “The important thing about this club is that it is not the polo illusion,” says Geiler, 69, who has been playing polo for more than a quarter century. “We are all just regular people who have regular jobs, but who spend our leisure time playing polo.”
Club member Daniel Lak, an Irvine trial attorney by day and songwriter and musician by night, echoes Geiler’s sentiments, saying, “This club is like family. The environment is incredibly positive and even though we may compete against each other, we are friends first, always encouraging and supporting each other.”
Hockey on Horseback
A team sport, polo is often referred to as hockey on horseback because of the fast action that takes place while riders maneuver their steeds to block shots while hustling for scoring position.
Polo is traditionally played with two four-man teams over a grass field the size of nine football fields. The OC Polo Club, however, plays arena polo, which consists of two teams of three players confined to a 300- by-150-foot arena. Not as fast and feverish as grass polo, arena polo involves more maneuvering, jostling and shorter plays at lower speeds due to space limitations. It is, however, more accommodating than grass polo because it can be played indoors or outdoors, day or night, and pretty much year round in Southern California.
“We play arena polo in Orange County because it is too costly to have enough land for grass polo,” Geiler says. “Grass polo fields need time to recover after play, so a club needs at least three or four polo fields. To get that much land in Orange County is impossible.”
Sanctioned by the United States Polo Association (USPA) and a member of its Pacific Coast Circuit, the Club hosts a tournament on the first Friday of each month at the Coto Valley Equestrian Center, where the public is invited to attend for free. Spectators are encouraged to bring their own picnic fare or purchase a dinner on site. Other club activities include polo lessons, scrimmages, polo trips and after-practice barbecues. Each year, a contingent of club members travels to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to attend polo camp and watch the Argentina Open.
“We have such a blast,” says Bo Karp, who rides a custom-made saddle that allows him to play polo despite the loss of his right leg below the knee. “There is no pretentiousness, no drama. We are all good friends who play polo, trail ride and even go camping together.”
A former Newport Beach resident who now lives in Santiago Canyon, Karp says the club exists today because of Geiler’s passion for the horse sport. “If it wasn’t for Denny, none of this would be here for us to enjoy,” he adds, watching his wife Chris, 59, swing the mallet and whoosh the ball during a club scrimmage.
Polo in O.C. dates back to the 1930s, when ranchers and residents played on the grassy fields of Garden Grove. The first arena polo club opened in Anaheim in 1980 as the Winston Polo Club; it later moved to Huntington Beach and assumed the name Playa Grande Polo Club. It moved once again in 2005, to the El Toro Marine Base in Irvine, and changed its name to reflect its countywide appeal. The club, however, was homeless following the closing of the base’s equestrian center in 2007. Heavily invested in the sport, Geiler made it a personal quest to find a new home for the club within Orange County. It took more than three years to find and acquire the Coto de Caza property, but the club opened its new arena in 2010. In appreciation, club members named it Dennis Geiler Arena.
Horse and Rider
Cowboy, film star and humorist Will Rogers once said, “The Western cowboy has taken polo out of the Eastern drawing rooms and into the bunkhouse.” Such is the case with the OC Polo Club. Rather than kings, princes and elitists, the club’s members consist of lawyers, mortgage brokers, commodities traders, business owners and students sporting ball caps and cowboy hats. In fact, the 6’3”, silver-haired Geiler is prone to wearing a cowboy hat and knee-high cowboy boots around the polo grounds. On the sidelines, more cold beer is guzzled than Champagne sipped.
Although the club hosts multiple practices and games throughout the week, none of its members are professional polo players, so there is little prize money to support their hobby of attacking a little white ball with a bamboo mallet. The members play for trophies and prestige.
So what is the attraction of polo? According to Geiler, Lak and Karp, it is the adrenaline rush, the hard-charging play of the game, the formidable courage of the horses, the obsession to win. “It’s the feeling of being one with your horse; the trust between you and your horse, you and your teammates,” says Geiler, who was hooked after one polo lesson, which he received as a birthday present from his wife. “If you and your horse are not in sync, you are not going to get to the ball. In polo, 75 percent of the game is the horse and 25 percent is the rider. ”
Arena polo is ideal for the beginner polo player who usually feels more secure playing in a confined arena where the action is slower and the horses are more easily controlled. The club offers an introductory polo lesson for $125, which includes all of the essential equipment.
Following a classroom introduction, students mount up and knock the ball around the arena. Rather than buy a horse, some members lease a horse from the club for about $400 a month, which includes feed, care, exercise and tack. Many of the club’s members had never been on a horse prior to their first polo lesson. Today, some own multiple horses, and a passel of tack and horse trailers.
Now that the polo club has secured a permanent home here, Geiler is optimistic that the sport has a bright future in Orange County. “Now that we have such a great location, more and more people are learning about us, more are taking lessons and more are coming to watch the events,” says Geiler, who expects to play for at least another 10 years. “We have many spectators that have come out multiple times and are now bringing friends to watch us play.”
By
OCInSite Site Admin
on January 05, 2012 11:56 AM
San Francisco has its annual Polar Plunge, where hoards of hot-blooded swimmers brave the frigid waters to raise money for the Special Olympics. Several cities in Western Europe and South America celebrate Carnivale, a giant pre-Lent street masquerade. Gloucestershire residents go nuts for the annual Cheese Rolling Festival, where hundreds of turophiles risk their limbs and lives in a downhill race for a chunk of cheese. And then there are the bizarre Bastille Day celebrations across the U.S., to the joie de Francophiles all around (three-legged race in French maids costumes, anyone?).
What have you seen in other cities that you’d like to see in Newport Beach? Whether it’s a fun festival or something more civic-minded, like green roofs or trolleys, no idea is too far-fetched. Hit us with your wildest ideas and more practical plans for Newport Beach by e-mailing .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), and you might just see it happen—or at least talked about on the pages of an upcoming issue of Newport Beach Magazine.
By
Ashley Breeding
on December 01, 2011 12:56 PM
Have you ever attended the Brooks Street Surf Classic, hung out at the Saloon or wandered into a local art gallery and wondered, “Who is that fine specimen of a man, and is he single?” Let Laguna Beach Magazine answer that question for you. This spring, we will reveal Laguna’s 15 most eligible bachelors.
To make sure we don’t leave any key players out, nominate yourself, your friends, neighbors or coworkers (please, no bad ex-boyfriends). Everyone living or working in LB is eligible.
Please send the nominee’s name, a photo, his contact information, and a brief statement why you think he deserves to be featured to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) by Jan. 15, 2012.
By
OCinSite
on November 08, 2011 1:16 PM
Photography by Mike Moir
In 1980 Surfer magazine called the short stretch of sand and surf between the 52nd and 56th street jetties “The Hottest 100 Yards.” Known as Echo Beach, it’s where brash young men like Danny Kwock, John Gothard, Preston Murray and Jeff Parker brought creativity, color and bold expression (think pink wetsuits and polka dot boards!) to what by the late ’70s had become a bland, black-and-white surfing world. Echo Beach wasn’t just a place, it was an attitude that would influence fashion, media, design and pop culture and lead to the creation of companies like Volcom and Stussy and the evolution of Quiksilver into a mega brand. Photographer Mike Moir captured the scene, and was part of it as well. His images are at the heart of The Eighties at Echo Beach, a new book written by Jamie Brisick and Joel Patterson about now-legendary Newport Beach break.
The Eighties at Echo Beach, by Michael Moir and Jamie Brisick
Mike Estrada
Rob Colby, Greg Ryan, Nicolai Glazer and Ryan Simmons at a 1987 Quiksilver party
Kelly Slater, age 10
Preston Murray, Jeff Parker and Danny Kwock
The early days of Team Volcom
Richard Wolcott in 1984
54th Street, 1978
By
Bruce Porter
on September 17, 2011 7:00 AM
The most highly anticipated plug-in hybrid vehicle of 2011 won’t be unveiled by Mercedes, Porsche or Lexus. Auto enthusiasts around the world are champing at the bit for a chance to throttle the Fisker Karma EVer, which has been pulling into showrooms across the country this summer.
“Suddenly it doesn’t matter what political opinion or party you’re a part of,” Henrik Fisker says from his company’s headquarters in Irvine. “Everybody can agree on one thing: It’s great to have a car that uses less fuel and pollutes less.”
The Karma, which starts at $95,500, runs primarily on electric motors. A turbocharged four-cylinder gas engine made by General Motors is used to recharge the car’s lithium-ion battery when it begins to run low. For most commuters, who travel less than 50 miles per day, there is no need for the gas engine. But for longer trips, the Karma has a range of more than 250 miles between charges, with mileage of somewhere around 100 miles to the gallon. The entire car was engineered specifically to be eco-friendly: The interior wood trim originates from trees recovered in forest fires, and the optional solar roof panels help power the battery and air conditioner.
Although its practicality is admirable, the Karma bears little resemblance to first-generation hybrids like the boxy Toyota Prius. Instead, its elegant bodywork is matched by its thrilling acceleration and agile handling characteristics. Drop your foot on the accelerator, and the Karma jumps from zero to 60 in just 5.9 seconds.
The Karma’s chic, muscular lines and powerful performance owe more to the tradition of high-end BMWs and Aston Martins than to mass-market Japanese imports, which will be no surprise to those familiar with Fisker’s credentials. As perhaps the leading automobile designer in the world, he was the driving force behind BMW’s Z8 roadster, the model featured in the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough. Later, while working for Ford, he updated Aston Martin’s vaunted DB9 and V8 Vantage.
Fisker shocked his colleagues when he walked away from one of the most coveted jobs in the auto industry. “When you go through certain things in your life, you hit a certain success—more than I expected. I almost felt like I’d reached the ceiling in the corporate environment,” the 47-year-old Danish-born CEO says in explaining his decision to team up with Bernhard Koehler to start a new luxury car company.
In 2003, Fisker Coachbuild was formed with the intention of designing innovative new bodies on existing platforms, which Fisker refers to as “something of a lost art.” The company made two hand-built supercars: the Taramonto, which used the base architecture of the Mercedes-Benz SL; and the Latigo CS, which used the power plants of the BMW 6-series.
“The big moment came when I saw Leonardo DiCaprio driving to the Oscars in a Toyota Prius,” Fisker recalls. “Here’s a guy who could drive any car in the world, and he’s driving a Toyota Prius. I think the major point of that was the statement he wanted to make—that he cares, and wants to show it (DiCaprio was recently spotted in Hollywood driving the Karma). And I felt, there’s got to be a lot of people out there who care, but would also like a cool car.”
“So I thought there was going to be a huge market, and coincidentally I met a person from Quantum Technologies,” he continues. This chance meeting came about when Fisker’s wife, Patricia, was in Newport Beach buying a new Land Rover. There, she met the wife of Alan Niedzwiecki, the CEO of Quantum. “Alan and I had lunch together at an Italian restaurant near South Coast Plaza, right after Christmas in 2007, and we just talked cars,” Fisker says. “He showed me a military vehicle that had a [Q-Drive] propulsion system, so we took the idea of that system and designed a car around it.”
Still, there must have been some apprehension as to the wisdom of launching a new car company, Fisker Automotive, in the midst of the country’s worst recession in decades. Auto manufacturers, especially in Detroit, were reeling. General Motors was on the verge of bankruptcy, and eventually required a government bailout to keep solvent. Iconic brands like Pontiac, Saturn, Mercury and Hummer had been discontinued. How would Fisker Automotive avoid the same pitfalls that befell Bricklin and Delorean?
“We did a bit of research to figure out why they failed and, of course, there are many reasons, but one of the major ones was that, especially in Delorean’s case, he started building a factory before he had a product,” Fisker explains. “When you’ve been in the car industry, you know one of the biggest, most difficult things is the assembly of the vehicle. We decided to outsource our first car because we didn’t want to spend $100 million on a factory with a 15,000 volume.”
Fisker Automotive contracted Valmet, the Finnish manufacturer that currently builds Porsche Box sters, to assemble the Karma. So far more than 3,000 cars have been preordered, which bodes well for their production goals. But Fisker has more ambitious plans for his next production model, another electric car tentatively called the Nina. Fisker hopes to sell 100,000 of these less expensive sport sedans.
Investors have been eager to get involved. Fisker Automotive has secured more than $500 million in private funding, and another half-billion in a loan from the federal government that comes with the stipulation that it is spent domestically. In a brilliant stroke of luck, or perhaps masterful planning, Fisker was able to buy a plant in Delaware in 2009 at a bargain-basement price. “We ended up buying a factory from General Motors, which probably would have cost us a half-billion to make,” Fisker says with a sly grin. “We bought it for $20 million—so that’s unheard of in the history of cars.” When the plant is ready, Fisker Automotive intends to build the Ninas there and continue production of the Karmas.
“We are going to stay in Orange County,” Fisker says, “but we are moving into a bigger building, 156,000 square feet in Anaheim, because we need a place with 800 parking spaces. Yeah, we’re American—but we’re a California car company.”
After leaving Aston Martin in 2003, when his frequent trips to England tailed off, Fisker and his family decided to settle down in Newport Beach. “I’ve always liked the ocean,” he says. “Living in Denmark, you’re one hour from the ocean—even if you live in the middle of the country. When I got over here I knew that we wanted to live by the beach.”
After some debate between Newport and Laguna Beach, Fisker and wife Patricia chose the former, pleased with the discovery of a “reasonably big house” for their two kids and two dogs. “My [Brazilian-born] wife is from Switzerland, and Newport is clean like Switzerland,” Fisker says. Their son, Mark, 19, now studies at Purdue University, and daughter, Natasha, 16, goes to CdM High School. The Fiskers are weekly regulars at Wildfish in Newport, and also like to head south to Sapphire in Laguna Beach.
Fisker loves classic automobiles that compete at the prestigious Concours d’Elegance at Pebble Beach, like the Maserati Merak and the Lamborghini Espada. “Part of my inspiration for the Karma was to look at these beautiful old cars, the ones that really get your heart pounding, and see what it was that made us fall in love with cars,” he says. “And to try to bring that to the Karma, using modern technology.”
By
Ashley Breeding
on September 08, 2011 9:19 AM
It’s time to break out those Balenciaga handbags and Chanel coin purses: Fashion’s Night Out returns to South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island for the third year in a row on Sept. 8, celebrating the hip global event with in-store fashion shows, luxury beauty bars and delectable dining opportunities. Get fall fashion tips and celebrity style secrets, learn insider techniques from hairstylists and makeup artists, and enter for a chance to score gift cards and gourmet giveaways. South Coast Plaza will roll out the red carpet at 6 p.m., when guests can pose for photos before visiting more than 100 stores and boutiques, including Bloomingdale’s, Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent for runway shows, designer showcases and makeovers (or make-unders). A kickoff celebration will begin at 5 p.m. at Fashion Island, where celebrity stylist Melis Kuris, who has dressed A-listers like Anna Paquin, Joss Stone and Helen Mirren, will share her favorite fall fashion tips. Throughout the evening, shoppers will also enjoy sweet treats across the Island at participating stores including Neiman Marcus, American Rag Cie and Anthropologie. Guests who make a purchase might win a custom F.I. tote. Launched in New York City in 2009 to encourage consumer spending during the economic downturn, the event, sponsored by Vogue and the Council of Fashion Designers of America, has expanded to 16 countries and occurs over a span of eight days.
By
Ashley Breeding
on September 06, 2011 3:30 PM
Photos by Jody Tiongco
Since its major boom in tourism in the late 1800s, Catalina Island has become a haven of relaxation for Californians, much the same as The Hamptons or Cape Cod is for New Yorkers looking to escape the Big Apple. Just a short ferry (or privately owned boat or helicopter) ride away, it remains the perfect place to slip away for a weekend of fun in the sun with activities like snorkeling and kayaking, or to simply bask in the rays with a brew and a book. Lately though, the island is giving vacationers even more reason to climb out of their lounge chairs and explore its beautiful topography with the development of nifty new ways to intimately encounter its 76 square miles of rugged canyons and coastline. A swanky new restaurant, rockin’ music series and festive galas in Avalon have also seen the greatest resurgence in nightlife since the post-WWII era. “Catalina hasn’t had this dramatic of a change in decades,” says Brad Wilson, chief marketing officer of the Santa Catalina Island Company (SCIC). “It’s much more lively now, with better activities and dining, and opportunities to get into the interior of the island and experience—from the top of the mountain to the bottom of the sea—what makes Catalina so unique.”
Nights in Shining Arbor
Summer saw the launch of Catalina as a hip new music venue with concert performances by some of the mainland’s most talented, including SoCal reggae rock band The Dirty Heads, as well as the Pacific Festival, which Wilson describes as “Catalina’s own little Coachella.” On Thursday and Friday nights through September, the Country Club hosts Catalina Live, a dinner concert series in collaboration with L.A.’s Koffeehouse and Steamers Jazz in Fullerton, where an array of up-and-coming singer-songwriters and jazz musicians perform in the club’s ambient outside courtyard. The grand center staircase acts as an impromptu stage, and the surrounding patio is good for dancing (or moshing). Most artists offer an opportunity to purchase their albums during the show, and we think you’ll want to. If you’ve tuned into prime-time television or seen a film in the last few years, chances are you’ve already heard most of these folks’ music. Names like Tyrone Wells, who’s leased his lyrics to hit shows like Grey’s Anatomy and The Vampire Diaries; acoustic folk-pop performer Caroline Brooks; and well-known American Latin Jazz artist Louie Cruz Beltran are a few to grace audiences so far this summer. September will see appearances by “Jazzipino” artist Charmaine Clamor and jazz drummer Jeff Hamilton, who is best known for his work with artists like Ray Brown and Ella Fitzgerald, and will perform with his own trio. Held the first three weekends in October in the historic Casino Ballroom, the 25th annual JazzTrax Festival showcases 30 of the most talented smooth jazz artists, like Warren Hill and Spyro Gyra. And later that month, the island will swing back into the era of big band music at its first-ever Masquerade Ball, where Frank Capp and the Juggernauts will have folks jitterbugging to old-time tunes that were popular in the Ballroom back in the day. Visitors can also step back in time with the new behind-the-scenes Casino Tour, which travels behind the musty curtain and into the dressing areas, projection rooms and deep history of the old “gathering place.” You can almost hear the trombones and saxophones, and feel the presence of the theatrical spirits that linger there.
The emergence of fine dining on the island has also catered to the resurgence of bustling nightlife since the early days of big band and theater performances. “The new Avalon Grille and Catalina Live concert series at the Catalina Country Club have become main attractions,” says Michele Bestudik, a lifelong resident of Catalina who is also a sightseeing and film liaison for SCIC. “They’ve really brought in a young, lively crowd.”
Located bayside at the foot of the pier, Avalon Grille offers flavorful cuisine, a bevy of cocktails and stellar people-watching in a Tommy Bahama-type atmosphere. New Executive Chef Paul Hancock, who brings to the Grille his farm-to-table fare with a French twist, serves up specials like herb-crusted halibut, a surf n turf burger and vegan-friendly grilled vegetables, using sustainable, organic ingredients whenever possible. Pair one of these fancy dishes with one of more than 120 wines offered, or one of the restaurant’s signature cocktails like the pear mojito, caipirinha (French kiss) or One Hundred Dollar Margarita, made with top-shelf Don Julio tequila (the nearly 1-liter bottle is down to its last milliliter, so it must be popular).
Into the Wild
With its balmy weather and water temperature usually ranging between a pleasant 64-73 degrees, summertime—which sees about 70,000 visitors each year—is the perfect season to enjoy the great outdoors on the island. “The Zip Line Eco Tour at Descanso Beach Club was the first of five initiatives we rolled out last year,” Wilson says. Open to the public year-round, the Zip Line allows adventure enthusiasts to take in Catalina’s flora and fauna while zipping down three quarters of a mile over five lines, with resting spots in between. Traveling at a speed of close to 45 miles per hour and 300 feet above the ground, it’s the perfect way to peer into the depths of the canyon and get an adrenaline rush. Assisted by docents along the way, zip liners are also treated to a brief presentation about Catalina’s history and wild life at each stop.
Those who wish to plunge into the depths of the ocean and mingle with marine life during the warmer months can try the Sea Trek Undersea Adventure. With the help of a 60-pound, specially engineered underwater helmet, anyone can trek along the ocean floor through the giant kelp forest while admiring the hundreds of sea species that live there. Some visitors have even been known to spot an octopus or lobsters ensconced in the rocks. For a bird’s-eye view of the expansive mainland or a peek inside Catalina’s lesser-known spots, climb aboard one of two new open-air biodiesel-powered H1 Hummers. “A Hummer is not something you would associate with the poster child for gas consumption,” Wilson says, “but sustainability is a big focus here on the island.” Fueled by recycled vegetable oil from local restaurants, the H1s offer two eco-tours of Catalina’s countryside: The East End Tour takes 12 tourists at a time through five miles of rugged terrain and eucalyptus trees to a summit of spectacular views; traveling 1,600 feet above sea level, the Cape Canyon Tour winds through roads less traveled to visit the island’s more interior parts, including the new vineyards and Middle Ranch Canyon, home to the American bald eagle and Catalina’s Island fox. Explorers who prefer to venture on foot can try out the new 37.2-mile Trans-Catalina Trail, which stretches from one side of the island to the other and offers camping along the way. “This is a cool activity that many people will continue to enjoy in the off season,” Wilson says. If you choose to go this route, you might want to warm up on Descanso’s new rock-climbing wall. The 32-foot tower with auto belay offers eight separate climbing routes, from easiest to most difficult. And for those who really want to go the distance, paddle on over the last weekend in September for the Standup Paddleboard Festival, where local SUP companies will give demonstrations, test new products, and hold races and other SUP activities. “Catalina will also host the first SUP Industry Awards that same weekend,” Wilson says. “We’re honored to have the first event of its kind here; it should be a lot of fun.”
Adventure-seekers, socialites and entertainment junkies alike have a sea of new reasons to visit—or revisit—Santa Catalina. With an array of activities in Avalon, it might just be the new hip district. And much like former Hamptonites who began sailing to the Cape to escape the social scene that invaded the once peaceful villages and hamlets of Long Island, Californians who seek a more mellow vacation experience can find just that in the quaint town of Two Harbors at the other side of Catalina.
By
OCinSite
on September 03, 2011 8:00 AM
By Jim Washburn
Photos courtesy of OC Archives and “Newport Beach Centennial” by Chris Trela
It may finally have been the end of an era this past May when the Newport Beach City Council passed a “Loud and Unruly Gathering” law, allowing police to levy hefty fines of up to $3,000 for unruly, drunken, loud, urinating behavior at parties in the city. The fines, which start at $500, can be given, at police discretion, not just to each individual lout, but to the party sites’ renters, landlords and practically even the utility providing the electricity. Since the law is none too exact on what the threshold for a violation is, it is expected to have a chilling effect on the city’s party scene, where people may become hesitant to risk any activity livelier than double-dipping in the fondue pot.
What has happened, Newport? There was once a time when Newport Beach was the skanky party queen of the coast; when to neighboring O.C. burgs it must have seemed like the entire town was a loud and unruly gathering. For the better part of a century, it was the place to go when you were looking to let your hair down and drink yourself into a fuzzy did-your-dock-hit-my-boat level of insouciance.
Newport’s allure as a party town stretches back at least to the 1920s. We can probably thank Henry Huntington. The tycoon had a knack for buying up cheap property in remote areas of Southern California and then making a killing after he’d made the areas not so remote by running light rail tracks to them.
That’s what he and partners did in Newport, and a Pacific Electric Red Car line followed 1905. The tracks were extended down the Balboa Peninsula the following year. Along with being a boon to the real estate market, it opened the sleepy beach town to tourism.
The Redline brings early tourists to Balboa
The Red Cars rode practically to the door of the Balboa Pavilion. Built in 1906 specifically to draw leisure-oriented folks to the then nearly unoccupied peninsula, it did its job well. The Pavilion—which still looks much as it did then—became a destination for both sport fishermen and to those fishing for the opposite sex at evening dances. In its 1930s heyday, it hosted the Benny Goodman orchestra and other big bands.
Its success was overshadowed by that of the Rendezvous Ballroom. Today, there is nothing but a historical placard top mark where the sprawling 4,000-capacity dancehall stood between Washington and Palm streets, but for decades it entirely lived up to its name, becoming ground zero for a good time in O.C.
Built in 1928, the Rendezvous had a 12,000-square-foot dance floor, and had no trouble filling it. The national magazine Look dubbed the Rendezvous “the Queen of Swing,” and most of the top big bands played there, including those of Goodman, Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw, Harry James and Gene Krupa. In 1941, Stan Kenton began a long association with the venue (which culminated in him owning the place for a while in the 1950s). It’s not every peninsula that has its own dance: The exuberant Balboa, which is still popular with swing dancers worldwide, originated at the Rendezvous.
Howard Rumsey, who was Kenton’s bass player before becoming a legendary concert promoter, told Jazz Times magazine, “If you weren’t in Balboa during Bal Week, you weren’t living.”
He’s referring to the spring break tradition that took root in the 1930s. Most of the big band dances and other activity in Newport took place during the summer. It became a ghost town for much of the rest of the year. The exception was Easter week, when a summer’s worth of action would be jammed into one beer-laden mating dance of a week. It’s curious that Easter, which was adapted from pagan fertility rites, became the time for a revelry named Bal Week, so similar to the ancient Egyptian fertility god Baal.
College kids, high school kids and anyone else aspiring to ever get laid in their lives made the Balboa peninsula their destination. Once school was out, youths from O.C., L.A. and points beyond all converged on Balboa, via the Red Car (until it was discontinued in 1940) or in jalopies that so filled every street that emergency vehicles had trouble maneuvering through them.
Those vehicles were sometimes needed. Though Bal Week was surprisingly peaceful by modern standards, you don’t get that crush of people, alcohol and the sexes trying to impress each other without brawls, lifeguard tower topplings and would-be daredevils with broken pates to contend with.
The week was an annual madhouse, where every rental bungalow would be crammed with dozens of extra guests, while the human overflow slept on porches, in garages or carports and on the beach.
Bal Week was a mixed blessing, but a mix that worked for Newport. There weren’t that many year-round residents to be inconvenienced by the throngs, and the tax revenue from suntan oil sales alone probably more than made up for the cost to city services. What if zinc oxide wasn’t your thing? There was plenty of swankier action to be had in Newport as well. Several movies stars sojourned, lived or had boats here, including Errol Flynn, Humphrey Bogart, Ray Milland, Richard Boone and longtime resident John Wayne. It was far from Hollywood’s tattle-rag photographers, and a nice place to settle in for some serious drinking.
Overlooking the Back Bay, the Castaways Club offered a darkened Vegas lounge atmosphere perfect for secret assignations and shady deals. At Balboa Island’s White’s Pub, rooms upstairs were available for hourly rental, in case you happened to notice the place was crawling with hookers. For a time, a well-heeled whorehouse also operated upstairs at CdM’s classy Hurley Bell, where the Five Crowns now resides.
For those with simpler tastes, the peninsula’s Bamboo Room offered jazz combos, while the Beach Roamer had an indoor fire pit to warm the nights. The Arches, then and now, was a fine watering hole and restaurant.
As tastes changed, a new scene grew up in Newport. O.C.’s first bohemian beatnik coffee house, Café Frankenstein, opened in Laguna Beach in 1958. A café employee, Sid Soffer, started his own place, Sid’s Blue Beet, and in 1959 moved it from Laguna to the peninsula. Everyone from Mississippi bluesman Son House to jazzman Art Pepper (who was busted for heroin outside the club) to future Monkee Peter Tork played at Sid’s.
Soffer had his own particular way about things, like tossing customers out if they asked for salt for his beef stroganoff. He was also frequently at war with city officials, who claimed he was bringing an undesirable element into town, by which they seemed to mean the black blues and jazz musicians he featured.
Old Newport might be described as genteelly racist. They didn’t mind if you were black; they just wanted you to be black somewhere else. It was the unwritten Newport police policy back then to give persons of color a free ride to the city limits.
Not long after Sid’s opened, it was joined by another folk hangout, the Prison of Socrates, where the likes of Tim Morgon, Steve Gillette and Steve Martin got their start. A far bigger noise was right around the corner. In the late 1950s, country music aspirant Dick Dale got a job playing in a peninsula ice cream parlor. Dale caught the surfing bug, and soon found a way to replicate the sensation of shooting the curl on his guitar.
When he started playing the Rendezvous in 1961, the old dame began drawing the sort of crowds it had in the big band days, except they were doing the surfer stomp while Dale’s Fender Strat, Showman amplifier and reverb unit created more racket than any big band ever could.
He and other surf and rock bands became the staple diet at the Rendezvous, kicking Bal Week into a whole new gear. An LA Times article on Bal Week unearthed a tongue-in-cheek but apt 1960s classified ad: “Easter Week: 3-bedroom party house with view, patio and fireplace. Only two house rules: no opium smoking in elevators and guests must bury their own dead.”
Along with the music getting amped up, the crowds got rowdier. In 1965 police made a record 1,000 arrests during the week. There’s a hard-to-find photo book of Bal Week 1966—shot and written by Newport Beach cop Jerry Nikas—that chiefly shows kids having a lighthearted good time, but that was also the year the police really began clamping down, working 12-hour shifts and making 347 arrests in just the first three days.
The trend from that point on was for the city to keep kids from cutting loose, or from even getting onto the peninsula during Bal Week. 1966 was also the year the Rendezvous burned to the ground. It had done so once before, in the 1930s, but this time locals were opposed to it being rebuilt. Coincidentally, the last group to play at the ballroom was called the Cindermen.
Hippiedom never got much of a foothold in Newport. There was the Groove Company “underground” record store on the peninsula, and the neighboring Bird Without a Cage bookstore and Marxist reading room, neither of which were exactly welcomed into the Chamber of Commerce. The short-lived Bacchus nightclub on Mariner’s Mile featured heavy rock bands, and an East L.A. R&B outfit whose singer was a young Edward James Olmos.
J.J. Mack, the mainstay at the Lucky Lion, was more typical Newport fare, singing Johnny Rivers-style rock that allowed patrons to feel mildly hip while they drank their highballs. In the coked-out 1970s a new scene developed near John Wayne Airport, which became known as the Devil’s Triangle for the way partiers would lose themselves in the three main nightspots there: Blackbeard’s, Harry’s New York Bar & Grill and El Torito.
By the early ‘80s the coastal venues were reinvigorated by the hard-driving country of the Phantom Herd (featuring the late Chris Gaffney), piano-pumping rocker Greg Topper and three remarkable blues blasters: the James Harman Band, the Mighty Flyers and the Hollywood Fats Band. After these acts closed the clubs at 2 a.m., the parties would often move on to bayfront homes or yachts, and lots of people were arriving home after their newspapers did.
Bal Week struggled on, and in 1987 there was even a melee near the Fun Zone involving a crowd of 700, after a woman in a convertible flashed her personal fun zone at the street revelers. (This is apparently such an ingrained behavior—Huntington Beach’s 1986 Labor Day riot was sparked by a similar display of flesh—that it’s a wonder babies don’t riot at the sight of nipples.)
Will the town that once jumped to the sounds of Benny Goodman, and jumped higher to Dick Dale’s surf beat, and jumped through windows to the James Harman Band, ever regain its youthful bounce? Or will those halcyon days only become a fond memory shared around the fondue pot?
By
Hayley Toler
on August 31, 2011 1:18 PM
Richard Marx performing to crowds on the Festival stage.
In celebration of the culminating weekend at the Festival of Arts, a medley of celebrities and local patrons alike swarmed the grounds to ride the last summer wave of support for our local art community.
“I haven’t been here in a long time, and my wife and I are supporters of the arts,” said Dorian Harewood, who starred in “Gothika” and “Full Metal Jacket”, about his attendance to the festival and Pageant of the Masters.
Robert David Hall of “Crime Scene Investigation” recently bought a house in North Laguna, and expressed his nostalgia for his former days living by the ocean breeze.
Robert David Hall from CSI and recent Lagunan.
“I love all of Laguna; it has changed but it still has all of the flavor that I remember. I like to go down to Heisler Park and have my coffee and read; it’s amazing,” said Hall on the red carpet in front of the festival arches.
Brenda Strong from “Desperate Housewives” appeared on the red carpet flaunting a mixture of high-end pieces with a contemporary flair.
“The Pageant of the Masters is something I saw 20 years ago and it was such an extraordinary experience. I have a 16-and-a-half-year-old son, Zack Henri, and I wanted him to be able to see this because he’s entering a phase in his education where arts and art history are starting to have more impact,” Strong said.
Cheryl Hines of Curb Your Enthusiasm with Festival of Art President Fred Sattler.
Greg Grunberg from the hit television show “Heroes” stated, “Anybody that expresses themselves creatively is a hero of mine. You can’t help but look at a piece of art, and you don’t have to go too deep to ask what inspired the artwork. Art is as important as reading to me.”
“I’m here today because I love the arts. I absolutely think it’s important to expose children to the arts. As a nanny for more than 20 years, it was very important to me to introduce children to the culture of the arts, and certainly different mediums, like theater sculpture,” said Jo Frost, who is known from her television show as “Super Nanny.”
Marcia Gay Harden and daughter Eulala Grace Scheel, who stars in “Whip It.”
Richard Marx also performed on the festival stage with a string quartet to the open-air tables, packed with arts patrons who were reveling in the final performances of the Festival. From 1987 to 1990, Marx became the first male solo artist in history to have his first seven singles reach the top five on Billboard’s singles chart, including “Hold On to the Nights,” “Satisfied” and “Right Here Waiting.”
The raffle winner of the Acura ZDX was Arick Gale of Dana Point whose daughter, Jaimie, 6, is in the re-creation of “The Meeting of Oberon and Titania” in the Pageant of the Masters.
Richard Karn of “Home Improvement” and “Family Feud” with wife Tudi Roche.
Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Oscar© winning actress, Marcia Gay Harden, Camryn Manheim (Ghost Whisperer), Alfre Woodard (Memphis Beat), Sam Hennings (Memphis Beat), CCH Pounder (Avatar), Vanessa Branch (Pirates of the Carribean Movies), Dorian Harewood (Boomtown), Richard Karn (Home Improvement), Gregory Itzin (The Mentalist, 24), Marion Ross (Happy Days) and LeVar Burton (Star Trek) also walked the red carpet and spent the evening enjoying the Pageant of the Masters, festival art exhibits, and the general flair of the Laguna beach art world.
Vanessa Branch of “Pirates of the Carribean” movies and “Orbit” campaigns.
For general information on the festival of Arts or Pageant of the Masters, call 949-494-1145 or visit the website at www.LagunaFestivalofArts.org. The event is located at 650 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California. Proceeds support the arts and art education in and about Laguna Beach.
Photos Courtesy of Hayley Toler.
By
Hayley Toler
on August 18, 2011 4:44 PM
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The Pet Rescue Center invites the community to show support for homeless dogs and cats by attending its Providing Shelter Benefit Oct. 7 at Seven-Degrees. The center, located in Mission Viejo, was founded by Laguna Beach locals Dr. Matthew Wheaton and his wife Blythe, who serves as Executive Director. In addition to taking in homeless cats and dogs for rehabilitation and rehoming, The Pet Rescue Center also offers programs ranging from youth education to behavior training, distinguishing itself from a municipal animal shelter in the range of programs and medical services it offers.
The ticket price has recently been reduced to $100, which will help the center achieve their mission of saving the lives of dogs and cats at risk of euthanasia through education, spay/neuter and rescue programs. Held at Seven-Degrees, The Pet Rescue Center’s blowout benefit of the year will be an optimistic night of cocktail celebration filled with appetizers, desserts, drinks and live music.
The Pet Rescue Center combats euthanizing of unwanted pets through their rescue and relinquishment programs, which provides temporary shelter for pets that can no longer be taken care of by their families.
“Sometimes loving pet owners have to downsize their homes due to economic circumstances and because of a lack of resources, or they move to an area where they can’t take their dog with them. What do they do with their dog?” asks Blythe Wheaton, co-founder and executive director.
The relinquishment program dogs and cats are only10 percent of the center’s population. “If we admit every single dog or cat, we would take over 40 animals a day rather than the 40 a month that we care for in total,” Wheaton explains.
Not only does The Pet Rescue Center network with other vets, shelters, rescue groups and the communities throughout all of California to rescue dogs and cats from situations that would result in euthanasia, but it provides for all the medical needs of the rescued animals. In addition, their community outreach program provides educational materials to the community, including children pre-K to grade six, and they feature an “Ask the Doctor” opportunity at various events.
With activities ranging from doggie meet and greet to a caricature artist, the Oct. 7 animal affair is sure to not only be barrels of barking fun, but an opportunity to support humane adoption systems. During the event, a silent auction will raise additional money for the center. Prizes include an eight-hour yacht day trip, private backstage viewing of “How I Met your Mother” and a stay in a Mexican villa.
“Our mission – to reduce unnecessary euthanasia of dogs and cats – aims to curb this issue through education, rescue, medical and social rehabilitation and rehoming,” Blythe explains. “If you love dogs and cats, supporting us is a rewarding way to see great things happen.”
The Pet Rescue Center is seeking monitory sponsors for the event. If you would like to learn more about The Pet Rescue Center, please visit www.thepetrescuecenter.org. If you’re interested in becoming a sponsor or attending the event, please visit www.providingshelter.org.
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