Check another one from the bucket list. We made it to the famous Santa Monica Pier.Carousels have been popular seaside park attractions for many years. This is one over 100 years old. Originally built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, a company famous for crafting incredibly detailed carousels, the Santa Monica Pier Carousel features 44 hand-carved horses, 2 sleighs, 1 rabbit, and 1 goat lit up by 1100 electric lights. Festive band music makes riders feel like they’ve been transported to another time.This is the west terminus for Route 66, the historic highway built in the 1920s as the main highway between Chicago and Los Angeles. Interstate highways made Route 66 obsolete in the 1960s, but the highway still has nostalgic charm all along the route, with many cool retro sites to see. We were here early Monday morning, so Pacific Park was not open yet, but you can still see the rides and the Pacific Wheel.The Pacific WheelLooking back toward Santa Monica.The fishing pierSanta MonicaSanta Monica BeachBeautiful morning sky and the Pacific OceanFishing off the pierSanta Monica palm tree lined street
We spent Sunday afternoon walking the entire Hollywood Walk of Fame. The stars are given for five categories: Radio, Motion Pictures, Recording, Television and Live Performance.Not much explanation for most of the stars here.Our 40th President Ronald Reagan was a movie star in the 1940s and 1950s before he turned to politics and won election as Governor of California, and later, President of the United States.Our 45th president Donald Trump has been in the public eye since the 1980s. He also had one of the most successful reality shows in TV history with The Apprentice. He was elected president in 2016 and had one of the most productive terms in history.Gene Autry is the only person who has been honored with a star in all five categories.Bob Hope was named Hollywood’s Citizen of the Century.MJ’s favoriteMy favoritePerry MasonTCL Chinese Theater, formerly Grauman’s Chinese Theater, site of many movie premieres through the years. It is also known for it sidewalk of footprints and signatures. This was a much bigger deal back in the 1940s-1950s and 1960s than now.Jack Benny 1941Red Skelton 1942Jimmy Stewart 1948John Wayne 1950. This was the subject of one of the more famous episodes of “I Love Lucy.”Marilyn Monroe 1953Photo of Marilyn Monroe signing the slab in the previous picture above.Jack Nicholson 1974John Travolta 1980The Star Trek cast 1991The famous Capitol Records buildingLooking up at the front of Capitol RecordsThe famous intersection Hollywood & VineHollywood Hard Rock CafeLooking down Hollywood BoulevardThe Roosevelt Hotel hosted the very first Academy Awards ceremony in 1929.El Capitan Theater has also hosted many movie premieres.People are lined up outside The Pantages Theater to see the re-launch of The Lion King Broadway production.We had dinner at Musso & Frank Grill, the oldest restaurant in Hollywood.The Original Fettucine Alfredo: Silent film stars Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford were frequent guests at Musso’s. While on their honeymoon in Rome, they dined at Alfredo’s restaurant and after tasting the Fettucine Alfredo, they begged Alfredo for the recipe. He declined them. The next night the newlyweds again dined at Alfredo’s and presented a golden fork and spoon to Alfredo. This time they got the recipe and brought it back to Hollywood. They asked Musso’s chef, Jean Rue, to make the dish. He often prepared it specially for the famous couple, but the dish was never added to the menu. We now proudly serve the ORIGINAL Fettucine Alfredo as prepared for Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford.Cheesecake
Reality LA Church.Reality LA Church meets at Bernstein High School in West LA. The auditorium was packed with students from USC and UCLA! We were heartened to see so many young people worshiping and praising God!
This school was also the site where the show Glee was filmed.Glee was filmed here.We had Sunday lunch at Miceli’s, Hollywood’s oldest Italian Restaurant, from 1949.Miceli’s was frequented by all of the old stars back in the day.Spinach Lasagna, Chicken Marsala and Spaghetti & Meatballs.Genuine old timey look.Chianti bottles hanging in the ceiling.
A lifelong dream, fulfilled! I am at a UCLA game at Pauley Pavilion! Thank you Mallory!!John Wooden statue.Basketball pyramidNational championship bannersUCLA wins!
