L.A. History: October Events . . .

. . . that are not Halloween-related.

Like old movies? How about old movies screened on the roof of the Union Rescue Mission?

LAVA--the Los Angeles Visionaries Association--will screen the 1949 film Of Scrap and Steel on the rooftop on Thursday, October 10. It's a 30-minute color film showing life on Skid Row in 1949: "live-action footage of the vibrant street scene that included rescue missions, pawn shops, amusement parlors, bars, restaurants and the ever-patrolling paddy wagon in search of drunkards to haul away to jail or County work crews."

The film was made on a $5,000 budget by Board of Directors of the Union Rescue Mission, and showcases a saved and reformed Arthur Hawkins. Only two actors are in the film--everyone else is a real person on the streets of LA.

The showing is free--but you must register with LAVA and jump through their hoops. (I love LAVA, but they do make you prove your love.)

7 pm on 10/10: Enter through the Mission at 545 S. San Pedro St.

Next, the 8th Annual Archives Bazaar is on Saturday the 12th, and this link will take you to the big poster that tells you all about it.

Over 80 institutions will be at USC showing off their goods: old photos, maps, legal documents, tourist brochures,maybe some diaries and dance cards and all sorts of things from collections as diverse as the Ayn Rand Archives, genealogical societies, the Baseball Reliquary, and dozens of local historical societies.

There'll be an Antiques Roadshow spin-off in which experts will evaluate family heirlooms, and a rooms set up for  speed-dating style presentations of archives--five minutes at each table. Also panels of specialists talking about starting your own collection and others presentations on Craft Brewing (huh? who knew that was historical? I'll drink to that!) (it had to be said), a new documentary on African-American soldiers coming home after WWII, and more.

9 am to 5 pm, Saturday October 12

 USC Campus, Doheny Memorial Library. Free, but parking will cost you.

(USC hosts the webstie LA as Subject, which gives them a vested interest in this yearly celebration of paper-and-ephemera-loving Angelenos.)

Then on the next day--in case you want a Really Full Weekend--there's a lecture derived from the Never Built LA exhibit. Sam Lubell and Greg Goldin, the fellows responsible for the Never Built LA presentation--which is still going strong, through the last weekend of this month--will join John King, "instigator" of a similar Never Built San Francisco exhibit. The three will discuss their shows--how they came to be, and what they tell us about the cities of the future, and more

That's a picture of the original LAX design to the left, btw. We've been enjoying a smaller knock-off for years, but somehow we pulled through.

6 pm, Sunday October 13

The Architecture and Design Museum

6032 Wilshire Blvd. (just east of Fairfax)

Free with a paid admission to the museum, but you can pre-register to ensure your place.

And wait--there's more!

Saturday October 19th--the following weekend--Tongva Park in Santa Monica is the site of a community celebration in honor of the park's grand opening.

Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square will feature music, crafts, storytelling, food trucks, and tours of the park’s diverse horticulture and innovative design elements. Tongva culture will be presented through traditional stories, songs, indigenous dances, and ceremonies.

That's Saturday, 10/19, 11 to 4>

The park is at 1615 Ocean Ave, near City Hall.