‘A Community Touchstone’: Historian Eric Dugdale Dies at 74

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

Town historian Eric Dugdale died at the age of 74 on Wednesday, August 27, after a three-month bout of pneumonia.

Dugdale long served on several boards, including almost a decade as president of Pacific Palisades Historical Society and representing the organization at Pacific Palisades Community Council meetings. He was also a member of Topanga Canyon Historical Society.

“If you wanted to know what living in the Palisades was like from the late 1950s forward, Eric was your go-to resource for tales informed by his vivid recollection,” the historical society shared. “He had also done extensive research on the Palisades/Topanga region’s earlier history, including the role of indigenous peoples … no one loved the Palisades more than Eric, whose spirit served as a community touchstone.”

Dugdale was born to Charlotte Hugues (Dugdale) Self and Eric Dugdale, Sr., moving to California in the early 1950s from Vancouver, Canada. He grew up in Topanga Canyon, before the family established roots in the Alphabet Streets in 1971.

Dugdale attended Topanga Elementary School, Taft High School, Pierce College and University of California, Santa Barbara. He worked as a real estate agent in the San Fernando Valley and Marina del Rey for Coldwell Banker.

He is well known for his “talks on the history of the Inceville film studio,” which is now the area where Lake Shrine is located, his family shared. His personal experience with the site began in the early 1950s, when his family joined the Self-Realization Fellowship.

“His father was a builder and, as a boy, Dugdale tagged along when he did some remodeling on a small two-story house, which later became the SRF Sunday school and now houses the SRF museum and gift shop,” read the Palisadian-Post archives. “In 1956, the SRF monthly magazine ran a photo of Dugdale as a 5-year-old, sitting in full lotus position, meditating.”

Dugdale spoke about the Palisades’ history at community events, including a Canyon Charter Elementary School field trip in 2018 and presentation at Pierson Playhouse in 2019.

Dugdale is survived by his sister, Annette (Glenn) Alexakis, president of Pacific Palisades Art Association, and nephews, James Alexakis, president of Temescal Canyon Association and a PPCC board member, and Christopher Alexakis.

“We extend our sympathies to his extended family, all of whom have contributed to the rich fabric of Palisades community life … ” PPCC wrote. “We remember Eric fondly for his ongoing passion for Palisades history, expressed for many years at PPCC meetings at the library, when he often passed out postcards and flyers with unique vintage images of Pacific Palisades.”

A collection of these images were on display during PPCC’s 50th anniversary jubilee, which took place in September 2023 at Simon Meadow.

Dugdale often attended Pacific Palisades Art Association meetings and shows, including those hosted at Palisades Village Green.

“We are grateful for his years of service and extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends,” Councilmember Traci Park said.

There are two memorials being planned. The first will be at Pacific Mariners Yacht Club in Marina del Rey on Sunday, September 14, beginning at 2 p.m. with a second being arranged by the family and Palisades and Topanga historical societies, with the date, time and location to be determined.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to “any of the historical societies he was a member of: Palisades, Venice and Topanga.”