For the Dec. 21, 1937, premiere of "Snow White" at the Carthay Circle Theatre, Walt Disney created a "Dwarf Village" on the strip of median of today's McCarthy Vista south of Wilshire. It had working water wheels, hobbit houses, costumed dwarfs -- early hints of the park to come.

In 1971, the LA Dept. of Airports still had high hopes that an international airport would be built in Palmdale. This promo is like something out of The Simpsons. Left to right, you have busy LAX, then Ontario, then regional Van Nuys, then bare-ass tumbleweed desert in Palmdale.

Tujunga was the last big holdout to join LA in 1932. On April 11 (1 pm) at its Bolton Hall, I'll share some of the crazier annexation war-stories between LA and towns like Venice, Sawtelle (which LA took by force), and Barnes City (which had circus monkeys on its voting rolls).

Opened in 1970, the "X Theater" (originally "Adam & Eve Twin") at 5959 Hollywood Blvd. used to display a massive red "X" on its roof, lasting thru the '80s. When the "X" sign was torn down, lore has it that John Doe from the band X rescued it from scrap and kept it for himself.

In the 1930s, Harry Chandler's LA Times ran regular columns on eugenics. The Human Betterment Foundation (backed by Chandler) included PSAs like this one. By showing a clipped vine from infecting a tree, it endorsed forced vasectomies to stop impure bloodlines from undesirables.

GEO-QUIZ Answer: The LAX Theme Building. Y'all earned an Easy A on this Monday! Gold stars all around. 👏

GEO-QUIZ: This old pic reminds me of the tripods from "War of the Worlds." But it was actually the start of construction of a future LA landmark. Any guesses...?

16 yrs old: Me & a bud take the NBC tour in Burbank. We're the ONLY LA folks there, we befriend an NBC page, he arranges for us to visit the Tonight Show stage. We stand on Johnny's monologue star, sit in his desk chair, meet him backstage, watch the show. Greatest. Day. Ever.

Imagine continuing on the 2 Fwy north of Glendale & reaching Antelope Valley in 20 minutes. A tunnel route for cars AND rail under the San Gabriels was proposed in the '60s but woulda cost $10 billion (in today's $'s). It was also billed as an escape route if the Russians attacked.

Music lovers: Wanna do a fun, unique LA tour? Sign up for the Laurel Canyon Hippie Hiking Tour, led by a husband/wife team. It's a 3-hour trek past iconic Laurel Cyn homes, hearing the stories behind '60s/'70s rock royalty. I had a blast, learned a lot! laurelcanyontours.com

In the olden days before selfies, autographs were the thing. My first ones, in the mid-'70s... -Art Clokey, creator of "Gumby," at a Century City mall event. -John Wooden, UCLA coaching legend, in the stands at Pauley Pavilion. Any dorksters recall their first autographs?

I still miss "Sweet!" at Hollywood & Highland. You could design your own custom-made chocolate bar. You chose your type of chocolate & dressed it with any of their 50 ingredients (caramel, Krispies, hazelnuts, even Cheetos). Ready in 10 mins., then took my fresh bar into a flick!

When Universal opened CityWalk in 1993, it was revolutionary... praised for its isolation, away from crime-infested LA streets "where people can enjoy urbanity in safety." The model is obselete, but The Grove, et al, are residues of private "public" spaces, just more accessible.

In 1963, kidnapper Barry Keenan used the hilltop bar of the now-Luxe Hotel at Sunset/405 as a lookout to make sure Frank Sinatra dropped off a $240K ransom on Sepulveda. Frank Jr. was then let out at Mulholland Bridge, where he made it to mom Nancy Sinatra Sr's. house in Bel-Air.

In the 1960s and '70s, Dodger Stadium regularly hosted "Valley Day" games to tap into the growing San Fern. Valley. Up to 8,000 Valleyites would attend, often finding deals in the LA Times, Valley edition. This quaint ad from 1968 offers up 2 Field (Club) seats for only $3.50!

In 1989 there was buzz behind creating a "Bicycle Freeway" in Westwood that even Mayor Bradley endorsed. It proposed 17-foot-high elevated "veloways" crossing Wilshire & the 405 into Brentwood & Sawtelle. Cost: $7 million. LADOT said it would infringe on street/fwy improvements.

At only 1 sq. mile, Santa Barbara Island is the tiniest Channel Island. On clear days it's a speck on the horizon, visible even from Hollywood Hills. Sadly, public transport there stopped 10 yrs ago due to a damaged dock. I was able to visit it just before that, shot 100s of pix.

After the St. Francis Dam failure killed 450 in 1928, LA considered stripping William Mulholland's name off his "Drive" and tearing down Mulholland Dam/Lake Hollywood. But by 1939, LAUSD kids were steeped in his life during Mulholland Week and his Memorial Fountain opened a year later.

On Sept. 11, 1915 in L.A., Estelle Lawton Lindsey became the first female mayor of any large American city. Though it only lasted a day (Mayor Sebastian & the City Council prez were out of town), delegates from Mexico cancelled an LA meeting upon learning a woman was "in charge."

UNREMARKABLE POSTCARD SERIES, No. 106. Torrance, Calif. 1960. Looking down Sartori Ave. from Marcelina Ave.

On this Valentine's, let us remember '70s sleaze along the 7700 block of Santa Monica Blvd. Near the Pussycat Theatre was the Academy of Satisfaction peep show. Also, the Institute of Oral Love. Lured inside, gullible men found only "women talking dirty to them," no action.

Disney's Tom Sawyer Island & the changing of eras since debuting in '56: -Cabin torched, settler dead with Indian-shot arrow -'70s: Arrow removed. River pirates killed him -'80s: Dead cuz he was a moonshiner -'90s: No body, fire put out -'16: Razed for Star Wars + Pirate's Lair

Fun follow-up: ABC originally called the show "The San Pedro Bums." Worried viewers might get the wrong idea, some suits said, "um..." They then inserted the word "Beach" and changed the title backdrop from the Vincent Thomas Bridge to a beach (which looks not to be from Pedro).

After "Three's Company" was a smash, ABC and producer Aaron Spelling premiered a show of 20s singles living the high life in... San Pedro (?). Despite Charlie's Angels showing up in the Dec. 1977 pilot & tons of promos, the series was a flop, pulled after 10 episodes.

Saw this post that nicely summarizes name origins in Greater LA.... although the verdict is still out on Hollywood from all my book research. There could be a whole documentary on its origin, with multiple theories that include the toyon ("hollyberry") bushes in the hills.

100 years ago this month, a new word entered dictionaries: smog A portmanteau between "smoke" and "fog," the Weather Bureau used it to describe conditions in the Midwest. Smog wasn't invoked in LA much till the '40s. But even in the '20s "smoke & fog" was a common phrase here.

A gray wolf was spotted in LA County for the first time in 100 years yesterday. Clearly a big deal. But on my morning walk thru Los Feliz, this "little wolf" (aka coyote) is giving off "hold my beer" vibes.

10,000 Steps too much for the day? Try these series of 5,000-step walks I wrote for LAist. They also cover Greater LA -- from Oxnard to San Bernardino, Burbank to Anaheim. Routes are flat, easy to walk, include lunch options, and are mostly dog-friendly. laist.com/news/los-ang...

It's not just your imagination... much of California truly is a unique place. Our Mediterranean Climate represents only 3% of the world's land mass, yet contains 16% of plant species. Also, note one common ground of Med climates -- all are conducive to producing wine. 🍷

UNREMARKABLE POSTCARD SERIES, No. 108. Lynwood, CA. 1960s. Actually, remarkable. Building on the left (est. 1925) was cited by Ripley's as the "Narrowest Bldg in the World," only 5 feet wide due to a feud with a property owner. It became a normal building by 1960, since razed.

The elevated pedways (pedestrian walkways) in DTLA in the blocks around Figueroa & Flower were meant to be upgraded to moving sidewalks (a la LAX) as this 1959 photo awesomely shows. Still waiting. Is that George Jetson's workplace in the background?

From my pseudo-cultural anthropologist point of view, I can pinpoint the "jump the shark" moments when SoCal theme parks lost their soul by scrapping popular rides: Magic Mountain: Log Jammer Knott's Berry Farm: Haunted Shack Disneyland: Adventure Thru Inner Space What say you?

Marina del Rey belies its roots as a pro-growth County enterprise from the '50s/'60s. All was geared for housing and vehicular access (early plans for the 90 Fwy had it reaching the docks). But it's possible to get 10,000 steps there (map from my book) with a little imagination!

Unlike Drysdale's Dugout, Tommy Lasorda's Ribs and Pasta (his "two favorite foods") was not a success. The Health Dept. nailed his South Pas eatery only a year after its 1987 debut due to rats in the kitchen that peed on plates. This & 2 other locales permanently closed by 1990.

Don Drysdale's Dugout in Van Nuys was co-owned by the Van Nuys-born Dodger pitcher from 1962 to 1982, near Barone's. With decor like bat-door handles and baseball mugs, it was also a nightcap spot for players post-game... that is, if they weren't at Lasorda's in South Pas.

In its heyday, LA Weekly had "Best Of" lists in which readers regularly voted the Vemont Cyn Tennis Courts as the No. 1 free courts in the city. Though they now have fees, you still can't beat the upper courts tucked into the hillside, with Court 12 my "Field of Dreams" court.

Imagine driving down the Miracle Mile in 1967 and seeing this in your rearview mirror... Fear not, it's just sculptor Howard Ball in a VW towing one of his fiberglass mammoths to be installed at the La Brea Tar Pits.

In 1963 Caltrans outlined their vision for a massive interchange near today's Pepperdine. This is a northeast view of what would've been Whitnall-Malibu Fwy (thru today's Malibu Canyon) meeting Pacific Coast Fwy (a converted PCH). Public outcry stopped further progress of both.

Back in the dinosaur days (late '70s-mid-'80s), this was how we watched cable TV. A clunky remote, which my dad ALWAYS called "the clicker," connected to the box on the TV with a cord that we all tripped over. You'd toggle a switch UP to watch channels 1-15, then DOWN for 16-30.

UNREMARKABLE POSTCARD SERIES, No. 105. Granada Hills, Calif. 1940s. Chatsworth St., looking east from Yarmouth Ave.

If you've never experienced historic Bolton Hall in Tujunga, here's your chance on April 11 (Sat.) at 1 pm... I'll also be there dorking out on old LA for a book event. Fun fact: Tujunga was the last sizable town in LA County to merge with LA in 1932.

UPDATE: Fossil Ridge Trail (thru gates of Mulholland Estates): SM Mtns Conservancy cleared a trailhead but 99% still inaccessible due to 30 yrs of non-maintenance 'til more done. Accessing ridge tough, but I did it. Goal is to find slate with fish imprints. Found a deer hoof. 😐

Just watched Blade Runner with an in-sync live orchestra at the Dolby Theatre. Yeah, that didn't suck. You know what will? Watching any epic movie now without one!

In 1948, Robert Mitchum was busted for smoking pot at a Laurel Cyn house dubbed a "reefer resort" by cops. He served 50 days for felony possession. "My career is over," he lamented. But fans rallied and it burnished his anti-hero bona fides, with a career lasting 49 more years.

Happiness is... a steaming pile of mulch? Griffith Park has a newish mulch station where you can grab as much green waste as you want, this one more conveniently located in the northwest corner of the LA Zoo parking lot.

Hands down, my favorite restaurant exterior as a kid was The Fish Shanty on La Cienega's Restaurant Row. My dad wasn't into kitschy eateries, so we never got to enter the whale's mouth. After college, I was determined to go... but they closed in '88. Anyone here ever dine there?

More unpublished 1950 LIFE photos of Marilyn Monroe at Fern Dell in Griffith Park, uncovered in 2009. I know she's only reading screenplays here, but with reading for pleasure dropping 40% in the last 20 years, tell me these couldn't make for a revamped "Reading is Sexy" PSA.

In 1950, Ed Clark shot a photo spread of Marilyn Monroe for LIFE. The location: Fern Dell in Griffith Park. She was still a relative unknown at 24, so LIFE scrapped the pix from that day of shooting. The negatives were rediscovered in 2009 and only then were they published.

The entry to Bel-Air at Bellagio/Sunset is the same since it opened in the 1920s, though owner Alphonzo Bell included gates & guards for years. Homes had "whites only" deeds, common to that era. Bell had another decree: "Not one acre of my land is to be sold to actors or Jews."

The Signal Hill Speed Run, which lasted from 1975 to 1978, was the world's first downhill skateboard contest and an influence on the later X Games. SI covered it by its last year, when 5,000 lined the streets. Many came to see gnarly crashes. (Pix by filmmakers Horelick/Carnoy.)