DOOM CONCLUDED

 The job of taking down our three drought-killed, 60ft. redwood trees took half as long as projected. They truly were dead and therefore quite lightweight according to the arborist's service. The ex-mimosa tree practically broke every branch off in their hands. Below, the redwood mulch. No firewood because redwood is terrible firewood, practically explodes pooof! into dust instead of burning. Based on our experience with the ex-walnut tree that also died in the drought, no purveyors of old, fine hardwoods want to transport same from Southern California, so we didn't even look for takers this time.

 
Left, Gia attempts woodworking of her own; right, Sarahbelle in front of log that shows deadness of outermost tree rings. 

Below, some new flora life after our brief and badly needed rain the day before. At bottom, a void.

A PICTURE OF EMINENT DOOM...

Guest photographer © 2015 Kurt Ingham. A picture of eminent doom: these three 103-year-old redwoods died in the Southern California drought and will be removed starting Saturday. Salts in the soil from lack of rain-cleansing killed them: we could have watered until Gov. Brown personally asked us to stop and it would have made no difference. Climate change and urban heat effect has doomed our landscaping from 103 years ago... 

In answer to FAQ, we're relying on the advice of an experienced arborist who checked these trees two years ago for comparison. He has since attended seminars about the effects of the drought on SoCal trees and told us exactly how the trees died. (You can't tell from the photos, but they are bending over at the top as dead trees do.) We have had a new average of 3" per annum rainfall, and that matches the Sahara Desert. Our Valley savannah previously had between 12"-28" inches rain with droughts only lasting 3 years at most this last century (since the house and its landscaping are a century old.) We have lost LOTS of trees at this point, the 80' Walnut being the biggest, and these 60' Redwoods being second biggest. We are confirmed tree planters and hate doing this, but as previous trees have fallen on top of our cars and 30' branches are dropping off routinely, we don't want anyone hurt.
 

Above, almost dead Mimosa tree

 

I AM INTERVIEWED ON RADIO

 Left, Johnny Ray and Nikki Palomino at the Precious Metal reunion

Oct. 2014;

Iggy and The Stooges live at the Whisky 

A Gogo, Hollywood CA 1973; The Who at the end of their first Tommy tour,  San Diego CA 1970.

Well, well, well... author/radio DJ Nikki Palomino*, seen above with drummer Johnny Ray, coaxed visuals' specialist yours truly into a wholly audio situation, an interview last night on her Monday DAZED online radio show on Whatever68Radio**. Nikki proved a skilled moderator creating equal balance between Markus Cuff and myself. 

Donna Balancia, editor of California Rocker*** helpfully summarized the whole broadcast here, click LINK. I thank you all...

 *LINK  **LINK  ***LINK

TARGA TROPHY SUPERCAR RALLY 2015! TAIL END!

 Why did I encounter at least 40 Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Porsches while driving back from the horse ranch today? It was the Targa Trophy Supercar Rally, with one of its "points undisclosed" (see link at bottom) coming from Lake View Terrace Calif. The packs continued south along the 405 freeway to Orange County where, because of stalled traffic, I was able to document at least this one entry, above, in comparative safety while multi-tasking/photographing/driving my humble Honda Element...

LINK

YOUNG BLOOD! * ANJELICA AND LIZA AND MOI

(fair usage pics, photographers unknown)  

At left, Anjelica Huston and Liza Minelli, courtesy of Heatherton Julye Benecke who observed, "I wouldn't tussle with these two in a dark alley, then and now."  Seeing this great shot permits me to feel like I wasn't such a degenerate teenager after all. 

To wit: photo at right from my prep school yearbook, yours truly and Rich Correll**, future film and television director. Further trivia: I'm wearing, as a mini dress, a shocking pink tunic shirt purchased (with babysitting monies) from Sat Purush, the Indian clothing store in Westwood Village CA featured on the cover of the first Strawberry Alarm Clock LP, click LINK 

Typical universal reaction to Anjelica/Liza photo: "That's like the coolest picture ever!" --J.S. on Facebook.  I should add that Anjelica's underplayed comedic star turn in The Witches based on Roald Dahl's loopy, grim fairy tale and Liza's poignant interpretation of a JonBenet Ramsey-type-mom in Law & Order SVU are my favorite acting roles of these "Daughters of Anarchy..."
 

* headline inspired by the great Coasters' song by Jerry Lieber, Mike Stoller and Doc Pomus...
** writing nice things about people on public forum department: Although he dated Harold Lloyd's grandaughter Sue at time, Richard and I were good friends because we shared the same taste in music and films. He was a talented singer and guitarist with wicked musical impressions of all sorts of popstars. He played guitar in Beaver and The Trappers (Jerry [the Beaver] Mathers' band) "Happiness Is" 45 single release after the two graduated from their "Leave It To Beaver" stint. He also hosted movie-showing parties (way pre-video/dvd/streaming era, kiddies) and excursions to go shoot imaginative student-film-type dramas and comedies even before he was a film student. His ringleadership of same provided a whole lot of fun in those days. His late brother Charlie also was a director, on one aoccasion at a production filmed at our house no less, see LINK 

GUY WEBSTER PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK WINS WELL-DESERVED AWARD

↑ Above photo © Guy Webster. All Rights Reserved. The Rolling Stones at the Franklin Canyon Reservoir in Beverly Hills, Calif. for the High Tides and Green Grass compilation album cover session, 1965.  Used with permission.

Big Shots: the Photography of Guy Webster, Rock Legends and Hollywood Icons, written by Harvey Kubernik and Kenneth Kubernik, foreword by Brian Wilson has just won the prestigious IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award for Excellence, Art & Photography division.

The Independent Book Publishers Association accolades are regarded as amongst the highest national honors for indie publishers. Big Shots won over a field of upscale photography books on such diverse subjects of The White House and San Francisco's famed Haight-Ashbury district. Webster's book lavishly features his portraits of rock music and acting stars from the 1960s on to the present, with thoughtful annotation by the Kubernik brothers for context.

More photos of Guy Webster and Harvey Kubernik at their Big Shots book signing in Venice, Calif. earlier this year: click LINK .  Harvey is a longtime friend and colleague of your humble photojournalist, someone with whom I've worked on many fascinating projects over the years...

↓Big Shots book cover            photo by me, author Harvey Kubernik interviewing Rolling Stone Bill Wyman↓

ANOTHER PLEASANT VALLEY SUNDAY 4.19.15

 ←"Wait for me!"        ↓Happy happy joy joy

↓Guest photographer © 2015 Kurt Ingham. Ian documents dog confab; all at rest with Sherry and yours truly; simulated daguerreotypes of Diego the Borzoi and Gia

 

SAY IT IN "BROKEN ENGLISH..."

Netflix rental The Baader Meinhof Complex: this film left us speechless until we HAD to talk about it. The good: best historical drama ever on the 1960s/70s, everything down to the last extra almost out of scene is perfect, the casting spot on, the look, authentic. It brought back tons of memories of our own university years and all the student anti-Vietnam war demonstrations we both saw; the bad: what is showed-- the birth of modern terrorism via true believer fanatics morphing into their purported enemies, becoming immoral murderers. If you want to understand Evil but can't identify with today's illiterate desert nomads and third world, enraged urban boys raised on pure hatred and misogyny, watch the degeneration of these educated young European men and women from valid protesters into full time killers.

video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IVKAAsqcrI

EASTER BUNNIES 4.5.15

    Guest photographer © 2015 Kurt Ingham. Easter Bunnies spotted by alert canines 4.5.15

COULD ZELDA HAVE BEEN SAVED...?

 I believe she unquestionably missed her true calling in life as an illustrator, since her entire oeuvre is as eye-catching and lively as these examples. There's a Gaugin-esque surety in her wack perspective as well. Instead, post-Southern Belledom she dilettanted around writing dense novels and dancing the ballet a bit too late in the game to have developed proper musculature. Non-competition with her husband F. Scott could have saved her life (she died in an insane asylum fire, locked in.) Two works by Zelda Fitzgerald, The Lobster Quadrille and The Circus.

Despite acknowledging universal consensus that alcoholism led to both Scott's and Zelda's separate demises, I do wonder about the non-competition issue, since (according to the three Zelda biographies I read) this was considered her main malady by the psychiatric experts of that era, even more so than her extreme behavior in acting out. They wanted her to be content as a homebody and satellite of her husband. In contrast, many male writers of that era were proud of their wives' talents and published works.