1 Comment
Oct 26, 2021Liked by Eric Kraft

In Topical Guide 113 there is a video of Chet Baker singing “Imagination.” In the video, a car is shown driving along Pacific Coast Highway at the base of Palisades Park in Santa Monica. The car then drives a little further up the coast by the Villa De Leon, a now abandoned mansion overlooking the Pacific Ocean near the Getty Villa Museum (a spectacular collection of ancient art and architecture).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_de_Leon

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Villa+De+Leon/@34.0424192,-118.5663132,20.75z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2a3ef39353b7b:0xa2cb23305a291cf3!8m2!3d34.0423219!4d-118.5663484 –this picture is exactly the view from the video

This mansion sits directly above the location of Thelma Todd’s Sidewalk Café, which is now an office building with a beautiful ocean view. She was found mysteriously dead in a nearby house.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelma_Todd

Just a bit of sordid L.A. history, a la Raymond Chandler or James Ellroy’s “L.A. Confidential.”

Expand full comment