Today is St. Joseph's Day, when the swallows return to Capistrano. I hear they now actually nest at the Mission Viejo Mall, but that didn't stop folks from celebrating at the Mission this weekend. In related news, the Mission is now hosting a display of photos of their visitors over the generations. Sounds like a fun exhibit.Jeff Delaney, author of one of the Arcadia books on Newport Beach, is now working on another "Images of America" book about Balboa. Sounds like a worthwhile project.
My honorary big sister, Cynthia Ward, passes along this gem: The overdevelopment of historic neighborhoods for overpriced McMansions means "replacing the priceless with the merely expensive." Perfectly put.
I took six hours off work today and spent them at First American Corp., looking through their photo collection for a personal project. Bob Blankman was most helpful and gracious, and I look forward to working with him again.
Every time I visit First American, I'm impressed with their historical collection and their snazzy corporate headquarters. But most of all, I'm impressed by their people. Everyone you run into is pleasant, professional and actually friendly. You can tell it's still essentially a family-run operation and that the employees like working there. Businesses like theirs are few and far between anymore.
Yesterday was the 40th anniversary of Pirates of the Carribean at Disneyland. Some of the Imagineers who helped create the attraction were there for the shin-dig, including Xavier "X" Atencio, Blaine Gibson, Alice Davis, Harriet Burns and Bob Gurr. Why can't Disney make rides like this anymore?
Don't forget... Tomorrow night is the annual dinner for the Santa Ana Historical Preservation Society.
Hi Chris,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that Barbara's husband is still looking after the photo collection at the First American Title Co. I had just mentioned the collection to my class about a week ago. I told them I didn't know how accessible the collection was since Barbara had passed away.
Thanks for your imbedded sites. I enjoy browsing and following up on your comments with links. Also the links on your side bar are great.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anonymous II.
ReplyDeleteAnd to Anonymous I: Yes, Bob is doing a fine job of continuing Barbara's work at First American. Anyone who wants to do research there can make an appointment for a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. In addition to their unmatched collection of early O.C. photos, they also have other lesser-known resources, such as an extensive set of O.C. directories.