Back to Catalina, Pt. 4

Welcome back to my Catalina Island series; as you head towards the Casino/Theatre, you pass these really cool tiles. This particular one depicts the Casino:

I LOVE the colors of these Catalina Tiles! Created by Catalina Classic Tile, they are a signature of the Island.

The Catalina Casino opened on May 29, 1929. Its Art Deco/Mediterranean design was by Sumner Spaulding (designer of the famed Harold Lloyd estate, Greenacres) and Walter Weber. The casino's movie theater was the first to be designed specifically for films with sound. It received the Honor Award from the California Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, as “one of the outstanding architectural accomplishments.”

Although available for tours, the movie theatre has ceased to function due to low attendance.

It was closed during my visit, so the only interior shot I got was this one through the glass doors:

These interior shots were from 2004 when I saw a movie there:

Back to the present, and some incredible vintage light fixtures!

The tile in the entry:

One more installment left in my Catalina series!

See more Catalina photos at my main website.

Back to Catalina, Pt. 3

As I approached the Avalon Casino for the first time in sixteen years, a bit of a fog had descended on the Island. No problem here; I like to shoot in all kinds of weather! You might recognize the Catalina Island Yacht Club shown below from the classic film “Chinatown” (1974) with Jack Nicholson:

On this trip, I ventured further down the way to see the Descanso Beach Club:

As I was nosing around, I discovered this abandoned stone staircase behind the club.

While it was a little rough hiking up the hill to the top, the almost sunset views were worth it:

Afterwards, another hike towards the Chimes Tower provided more fantabulous views, including this one of the Casino from above:

In 1925, William Wrigley Jr. and his wife Ada purchased the Westminster chimes from Chicago’s J.C. Deagan Company and had them installed in this tower that was built for their use:

While there, a documentary about the chimes was being filmed, so I couldn't get inside.

Nearby is the Zane Grey Pueblo Hotel:

In 1926, American West author Zane Grey built a home on the hillside overlooking the Avalon Bay. After his death in 1939,  his pueblo was converted into a hotel. The South Building of the property houses rooms from the original estate. Until the next post, I’ll leave you at the Casino:

See more Catalina/Avalon Island photos at my main website.

Back to Catalina, Pt. 2

There was more hiking on day two; captured this little panorama as we circled around to the other side of the Island for some great ocean views. No bison were spotted on this trip; just this sign.

This particular hiking trail spilled out into the Wrigley Botanical Gardens. How the heck did I miss this on my first trip? 

The Wrigley Memorial honors William Wrigley Jr., best known as the founder of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, largest manufacturer of chewing gum in the world. He also loved Catalina, bringing numerous improvements to it including public utilities, new steamships, a hotel, the Casino building, and extensive plantings of trees, shrubs and flowers. Wrigley was interred for a short time here but is now buried in Glendale. The original dedication plaque remains:

The memorial structure itself was incredible with its design and tile from the Catalina Pottery plant. It was built in 1933-34 by the Chicago architecture firm Bennett, Parsons and Frost. The firm also designed Chicago's Buckingham Fountain.

Later in the afternoon, the fog rolled in for a bit. Needless to say that didn’t hamper my picture taking.

Stay tuned for Part 3 as venture to the Casino. See more Catalina photos at my main website.

Back to Catalina, Pt. 1

My first trip to Catalina Island was back in June 2004 and I was still using a film camera! I had a decent time, but I remember being fairly bored before even the first day was over. My initial impression was beautiful...but not all that much to do. The photo above shows where we spent most of our Catalina visit back in 2004.

When my workout group talked about spending a weekend there, I decided what the heck…update and improve my photos and get out of town for a bit. Next thing I knew we were boarding the ferry at Long Beach and on our way! It wasn’t long before the Avalon Theatre and Casino were in view:

Once settled at our lodging, we began exploring the island with a good long hike. What views!

The weather was better than it had been in 2004; and I was much more enthused about the hike in 2020 than I was on my first trip. I am holding the souvenir bandana in my hand that our bus tour gave us; today, it serves as one of the rotation bandanas I use as a face mask. Who knew it would be useful to me some 17 years later?

Back to the present: it was also a goal of mine to explore new things that I’d missed on my first trip, and lo and behold there were plenty, including Bird Park:

While it wasn’t open for exploring the interior, there was plenty to poke around and see on the outside:

LOVE the Catalina tile that decorated the structure:

The Metropole Hotel (where I stayed on my first visit) was still in operation:

A night time view of the Casino (taken while we got ice cream):

Turns out you CAN go back…and improve a previous experience. More to come!

See more Catalina Island photos at my main website.

2020: A Year in Review, Pt. 2

Be careful about what you wish for…it just might happen. I was talking about country music with my friend Jansen one day and brought up Patsy Cline, who he had very little knowledge of. Not surprisingly, the song “Walking After Midnight” was discussed, and I said it would be fun to do a country-themed shoot…after midnight. A few nights later, he called and asked if I wanted to make that happen, and the next thing I knew, we were shooting the photo above. I love stuff like that, especially when it’s impromptu.

Even though I’ve been back in San Diego for over twenty years now, there are still places I had yet to explore, like the Quince Street wooden trestle bridge (built in 1905) and nearby hiking trails. 2020 is when it finally happened! Such a cool location!

A trip back to Palm Springs meant I got to stay at one of my favorite places again, The Movie Colony Hotel:

I had a photo shoot in Las Vegas; because I was not crazy about flying, I decided to drive it for the first time and finally see Calico Ghost Town along the way. DEFINITELY worth it!

While in Vegas, I made it back out to Red Rock Canyon:

Vegas itself kinda sucked; even RuPaul’s Werk Room was closed…due to COVID, of course. That became the catch phrase of the year. Anything that no longer worked like it should...just add “due to COVID” afterwards.

On the way back, I stopped at the Barstow Train Station, which was once a Fred Harvey Restaurant back in the day. I had to get a selfie in front of one of the vintage Santa Fe cars; if only it had said “Atchison and Topeka,” too!

What’s the best part of traveling? Coming home to Willis!

Another San Diego first was getting out to see the Desert View Tower and its incredible “collection” of rock paintings:

My workout group rented an Airbnb in Catalina; we made friends as soon as we got off the ferry as we sipped a few beverages by the water.

Don’t be shocked, but I managed to shoot a few photos while there. It was nice to return to the Island after my first trip sixteen years ago.

In December, I finally made it back to the Chateau Marmont after having been away for over a year.

Willis was glad to be back, too.

I was especially pleased to get back into painting again, and very grateful for the commission which provided that opportunity to be creative.

Last one for this post shows Willis sporting his Christmas bowtie (thanks Melissa, aka “The Colonel”).

I can’t really complain too much about 2020. It was actually nice not to be on a plane as much as I typically am; it forced me to stay home and get some work done around the house. I also was blessed to be able to spend more time with Willis, which always brings me joy. It doesn’t look like things will be changing any time soon,  so I’ll just continue to make the best of what life has given me, which has been pretty good so far.

See more Daveland photos at my main website.