Local garden activist Barbara Marinacci and Fourth of July pre-fireworks concert organizer Keith Turner have been selected as the 2010 Golden Sparkplug winners by the Pacific Palisades Community Council. The two will be honored at the Palisadian-Post’s Citizen of the Year dinner, along with ‘Citizen’ Rich Wilken, on Thursday, April 28 at the American Legion Hall on La Cruz.   Presented since 1974, the Sparkplug Award honors Palisades residents who have launched a new idea or project that benefited the community during 2010. The project can be in progress or completed and must have a broad community impact or affect a large group of people.’   Marinacci was recognized for various projects around town, including her leadership role) in restoring the long-neglected Native Plant Garden in Temescal Canyon Park, south of Bowdoin Street.   Keith Turner, a Palisades lawyer and amateur drummer with the local House Band, created and developed the Palisades Rocks the Fourth concert, which officially became an annual event in 2010.   Reservations for the Citizen dinner ($47.50 per person) can be made by sending a check made out to Palisadian-Post Citizen of the Year Banquet, c/o Palisadian-Post, P.O. Box 725, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272.
Tsunami Warning Brings Evacuations But No Wave
In response to the 9.0 earthquake that struck off the northern Japanese coast last Thursday and the ensuing tsunami of undetermined force that was headed for the West Coast, officials in Los Angeles braced for a worst-case scenario. At 3 a.m. Friday, March 11, fire, police and sheriff department authorities met to map a course of action. According to Fire Station 69 Captain Al Gonzalez in Pacific Palisades, they were to suggest to residents living in low-lying areas such as Santa Monica Canyon that they evacuate. ‘The decision was made not to make it mandatory,’ Gonzalez said, as he and his firefighters observed the Palisades Bowl from the Asilomar bluffs (north of Temescal) around 8:30 a.m. ‘I don’t expect much, but we don’t know.’ The uncertainty was evident among the more than 50 people viewing the ocean from that vista point. ‘I would be happy to go home after this,’ said Eliza Krause, a Palisades Bowl resident who had decided to evacuate. ‘It was a rude awakening this morning. I was asleep.’ Another Bowl resident, Karen Galloway, said that when she moved into the mobile home park, she received a booklet from L.A. County warning that she lived in an earthquake zone, a slide area and a tsunami zone. ‘The tsunami warning was the scariest,’ she said. As residents milled on the bluff, a pod of dolphins swam lazily past the jetty at Temescal Canyon and PCH. ‘Do they evacuate the dolphins?’ a resident asked. Coast Guard and LAPD helicopters traversed the coastline. After about an hour of watching waves roll in, without seeing any evidence of a tsunami, residents returned home. Meanwhile, up on the Via de las Olas bluffs above Temescal and PCH, more than 100 spectators peered across Santa Monica Bay towards Malibu, many of them aware of the e-mail alert that went out via Community Council chair Janet Turner at 7:35 a.m, warning that a tsunami (potentially 3 to 5 feet high) was ‘expected to hit Pacific Palisades at 8:39 a.m. However, Tsunami waves are unpredictable.’   Down on the beach, lifeguards said that since beaches weren’t closed they couldn’t order people away from the water, but they were suggesting that they move back. ‘I was hoping to get as close as I could to watch the waves,’ said Palisadian Lily Sakkis, who obeyed the lifeguards, moving from the water’s edge and back to the bike path.
Council Reiterates Support for Police Facility at Park
Aiming to improve a police presence in Pacific Palisades and deter vandalism at the Recreation Center, the Community Council last Thursday reiterated its support for an LAPD facility inside the large gym at the park. Council members agreed with park director Erich Hass and Senior Lead Officer Michael Moore that enclosing a small, unused space off the entrance hallway to the gym and creating a dedicated space for LAPD officers to type up their crime sports and handle other administrative work makes sense. Currently, patrol officers working in the Palisades have to drive to the West Los Angeles station about six miles away to file their reports. Having an unmanned office at the Recreation Center would enable them to work more efficiently while remaining in the Palisades. Speaking to the Council, Hass said that having an LAPD car at the park at various times throughout the day and night would help curb the ongoing acts of vandalism he has witnessed since arriving here in April 2008. ‘The teens [and other vandals] would never know when the police might be showing up, and that would act as a deterrent,’ Hass said. ‘Given the facility’s location right off the lobby of the gym, people could also interact with the police and ask questions’a form of community policing.’ After the meeting, Council member Haldis Toppel, who presented the motion requesting the facility, told the Palisadian-Post: ‘There is consensus on the merits and needs for the implementation of the police facility within LAPD, Recreation and Parks and the community, but the administrative forces have not moved forward within the two involved Departments. Call it red tape. A strong stand by the community to increase police presence in the Palisades is needed to raise priorities on this project within LAPD and Rec and Parks.’ In 2009, Toppel’s husband, Kurt, secured a $6,500 donation from American Legion Post 283 to pay for the project. Glenn Ricard Construction, based in Pacific Palisades, agreed to complete the project for that amount. ‘Rec and Parks requires a letter of agreement with LAPD which includes that LAPD will pick up telephone-line installation and monthly costs, and that the facilities will be returned to Rec and Parks in the event that LAPD vacates the premises,’ Haldis Toppel said.
William Blahd, M.D., Nuclear Medicine Leader and Author
William Blahd, M.D., a leading expert in the field of nuclear medicine and a longtime resident of Rustic Canyon, died on March 6 from complications of polycythemia. Born in 1921 in Cleveland, Ohio, Bill (as he was known by his friends and family) was the son of Dr. Moses Emmett Blahd, a prominent surgeon who studied in Vienna, and Rae Blahd. Bill was known to all as a quiet, modest but most accomplished scientific physician and gentleman. One of the pioneers in his field, he was the editor and contributing author of Nuclear Medicine, the first definitive textbook of nuclear medicine which became an international standard for the field. Interesting in 1972, Bill received his board certification in nuclear medicine by studying his own textbook for what was then the first nuclear medicine board examination for The American Board of Nuclear Medicine. Originally appointed to the Wadsworth’s Hospital staff in 1952, Bill served for 41 years as chief of the Nuclear Medicine Residency and Technology Training program. After his retirement in 1997 he continued to volunteer his time to the department that he loved and lived for until his final days. Chairman of the publications committee for the Society of Nuclear Medicine, Bill published upwards of 250 articles and abstracts in his lifetime. He belonged to 15 professional organizations and received numerous distinguished scientist, lecturer and public-service career awards and achievements. As president of both the Society of Nuclear Medicine and the American Board of Nuclear Medicine, Blahd’s leadership centered on building life-saving diagnostic advances in the use of nuclear medicine technology. His wife, Mitzi Blahd, joined with him in 1977 to revitalize the Education and Research Foundation of the Society of Nuclear Medicine, which raises contributions to fund research projects, scholarships, training and grants to doctors and technologists alike. During his lifetime Blahd’s dream of having nuclear medicine become an important element of medical diagnosis was realized. Bill, who lived in Pacific Palisades since 1948, loved the surrounding nature and beauty of Rustic Canyon. He enjoyed music, fine dining and home-cooked meals, traveling and his wife’s companionship. The Pacific Palisades Fourth of July parade was a major traditional event, with homemade cherry pie ending a perfect day for all. Blahd was predeceased by his sister, Margery Blahd Wile, M.D. He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Mitzi; his three children, Andrea Blake (husband Klaus Rinke), William Blahd, Jr. (wife Liz) and Karen Giffin (husband Philip); five grandchildren, Adam Rinke, Sophie and Tony Blahd, and Willa and Emmett Giffin; step-daughter Susan Ward (Jim Scott) and step-granddaughter Elizabeth Ward. Not to be forgotten is his dear friend Professor Harvey Stromberg. Donations in Bill’s memory may be sent to the Education and Research Foundation. P.O. Box 5877, Bossier City, Louisiana 71171, for which the family would be most grateful.
June Hendrix, 84; Silversmith, Technical Illustrator at UCLA
June O. Hendrix, a 42-year resident of Pacific Palisades, died peacefully at home, surrounded by her family, on February 23. She was 84. Born June Opanchyk in Birmingham, Alabama, on February 28, 1926, June was proud of her Russian heritage. Her father came to this country before World War I, and earned his citizenship for combat service with the U.S. Army in that conflict. June and her husband, Charles, were married in Knoxville, Tennessee, in June 1946. Both were employed in nearby Oak Ridge, one of the primary laboratories of the Manhattan Project, which produced the first nuclear weapons. After a honeymoon in Havana, the couple returned to Oak Ridge, setting up housekeeping in a one-room efficiency apartment. Early in 1947, they moved to the Boston area, where Charles took a job with the Polaroid Corporation. In 1949, they left Boston for an extended camping trip through the Eastern United States and Canada, traveling in an old ‘woody’ station wagon they named ‘Archy.’ Running out of money in St. Louis, the settled there for a time and then, in 1952, accepted positions at the Naval Ordinance Test Station in China Lake, California. June loved the desert life at China Lake, where all of her three children were born. As they grew, she instilled in them her strong sense of integrity and honesty as well as her love of nature and the outdoors. Following Charles’ work, the family moved to Glendora in 1961. Summers there were usually hot and smoggy, and June would often load up the station wagon with as many of her children and their friends as the car would hold, taking them to cooler environments in the mountains or at the beach. In 1969, the family moved to a house on Bienveneda in Pacific Palisades. After raising her family, June began working as a secretary/technical illustrator for Nobel Prize-winner Donald Cram in the chemistry department at UCLA. She illustrated his many technical papers, including two books and his Nobel lecture. At first she used pen and ink, but later taught herself computer graphics to speed up the process. June also loved her role as ‘second mom’ to the many graduate students and post-docs who made up Dr. Cram’s research group. She followed their careers and was inordinately proud when any of them achieved success and recognition. After retirement in 1993, June took up silversmithing, making silver settings for semi-precious stones that were cut and polished by her son, Michael, a professional lapidarist. She also loved gardening and traveling, often just simply roaming about the countryside with family members. June was preceded in death by her sister, Wanda Sweers of Alexandra, Virginia. She is survived by her husband of 64 years, Charles; son Michael and daughter-in-law Linda Diaz of San Antonio, New Mexico; son Philip of Oakland; and daughter Lisa Hendrix of Van Nuys. Plans for a memorial service are pending.
Dewey Logue, Nurseryman, Noted Landscape Designer
Longtime Southern California resident Dewey Oliver Logue passed away February 17 at his home in Ojai, surrounded by loved ones. Dewey was born March 29, 1934 in Drake’s Creek, Arkansas to Rose Anna and Elliot Oliver Logue. He married Betty Jewell Claypool on December 24, 1952. He joined the army in 1954, and served his country while stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany. After he left service in 1957, he owned and operated service stations until 1964, when he moved his family to California. The Logues lived on Albright Street in Pacific Palisades for about a year before moving to Malibu. Dewey’s oldest brother, Ray, owned Palisades Garden Supply on La Cruz (and was Citizen of the Year in 1974). Dewey worked there for many years after also founding Point Dume Wholesale Nursery in 1966. He became a highly regarded nurseryman and landscape designer with a clientele that included everyone from next-door neighbors to former President Ronald Reagan. Through integrity and hard work he achieved the American dream. Retiring at the age of 51, Dewey was soon sought out by one of his former celebrity clients, Larry Hagman. With a nearly unlimited budget, he created a sprawling 26-acre garden paradise in the hills above Ojai that became known as “Heaven.” His work was featured in a 1994 edition of ‘In Style’ magazine. Over the years, Dewey was a member of The Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Malibu Chamber of Commerce, American Legion Post 283 and the Ojai Liars Club, his daily donut-and-coffee buddies. His greatest passion was spending time with family and friends. He also enjoyed travel, fishing and TV westerns. An avid collector of ‘useful stuff,’ he was a garage sale enthusiast. Dewey is survived by Betty, his wife of 58 years; his children Paul (wife Erlinda) Logue, Kathy (husband Leo), Debra Warnacutt, Robin Logue and Christopher (wife Janice), and Jennifer Nail (husband Bradley). He is also survived by six grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; a brother, Kenneth; and a sister, Ruth Beard. Services were held February 26 in Ventura.
PPBA Pancake Breakfast Is A Heartwarming Success
Luckily, the big secret of this year’s PPBA Pancake Breakfast didn’t get out. Hundreds of Palisadians headed to the Field of Dreams on Saturday morning to eat pancakes and revel in the opening of the Pacific Palisades Baseball Association season. It marked the 60th year of the breakfast and everyone was treated to a number of warm moments. None was more special than the ceremonial First Pitch duties, which were kept hush-hush leading up to the event. Kids ran up to PPBA commissioner Bob Benton in the moments before the pitch, asking who it would be, but to no avail. Eventually, Benton summoned longtime umpire Dirk Robinson to take the mound for the big pitch, though it was unbeknownst to Robinson. He came to Saturday’s breakfast only expecting to take a moment to thank everyone in the community for their support following his diabetes attack last summer, when $8,000 was raised in an hour and Palisadian Dr. Richard Johnson was enlisted to help treat him. After showing a big ‘Get Well Dirk’ poster and a note from PPBA players he received while in the hospital, Robinson got the chance to give thanks. ’You kids gave me the strength to do what I needed to do to get back here,’ he said. ‘I’m truly blessed. Thank you for making me feel like family ‘ I love you all.’ Then, Benton broke the news to Robinson, who happily proceeded to throw a strong pitch over the left side of the plate. ’There were a few teary cheeks,’ Benton said afterwards. ‘We’ve had some neat people throw the first pitch, but this was a first for us. It was probably the most touching open ceremony I’ve ever been a part of. And most people I talked to agreed.’ Robinson said he was ‘blown away’ after receiving the honor. ’I told Bob I wanted to say something and let the kids know how they helped me on my road to recovery,’ he told the Palisadian-Post. ‘I’ve been there on opening day and seen Ray Liotta, Maria Shriver and Chris O’Donnell throw the first pitch, and I’m thinking how I want to speak fast to make way for whoever was going to throw. ’It was fabulous ‘ Bob got me with that one,’ he said, laughing. Though there wasn’t much time to let the moment sink in’after hugging a number of players, Robinson hustled over to ump the Dodgers-Phillies Pinto game and kept going until the final Pony game of the night ended at about 8 p.m.’during his breaks, players steadily approached him, hoping for a high-five or handshake from the day’s celebrity. He couldn’t have been happier to oblige the kids that motivated him as he battled back. ’They inspired me to push myself,’ Robinson said of the outpouring of support he got while in the hospital. ‘If they can rally behind me like that, I thought, ‘You can get out there and at least try. ’I wanted to let them know how instrumental and powerful they were just by caring. I appreciate them giving me a group hug, that’s how it felt. They opened their arms for me like family.’ The breakfast was also a special occasion for another umpire: Reverend James West. Now living in Georgia, West hadn’t umped a PPBA game since 2001, but decided to fly back to join the ceremonies and reprise his duties as National Anthem singer. ’For 15 years, I looked forward to three-and-a-half months,’ West said of the PPBA season. ‘It’s powerful. And for the time I’ve been gone, I’ve always just kept looking forward to coming back. Getting to sing was just icing on the cake. ’It brings back memories. But it’s not just about baseball, it’s about all the amazing people involved here. And it’s about touching lives.’
OT Loss Ends Pali Girls Season, 63-58
Following a first-round win at home over Keppel in the state playoffs, Palisades head coach Torino Johnson told his girls basketball team they would be underdogs in the next round, playing at second-seeded Buena High School. And last Friday, the seventh-seed Dolphins were seconds away from pulling the upset’but in the end, fell just short. Following an 18-7 third quarter in Pali’s favor, the Dolphins led, 42-37. Buena chipped away at that difference but in the game’s waning seconds, Pali still led, 54-53. With eight seconds left, Buena’s Keani Albanez was fouled and sent to the free throw line. She made the first to the tie game’but missed the second. The Dolphins turned the ball over on the ensuing possession, followed by a Buena turnover to send the game to overtime. In the extra period, the Bulldogs’ home crowd came alive, trying to push Buena to a victory. Pali scored just four points in overtime and ultimately fell, 63-58. ’We had ’em,’ Johnson said. ‘Our inexperience showed a little down the stretch, but I’m proud of my girls. And I know we’ll be back.’ For the Dolphins (25-10), junior Asia Smith led the way with 24 points and 14 rebounds and junior Skai Thompson added 11 points and five rebounds, while junior co-captain Ashlie Bruner and senior Kseniya Shevchuk each scored eight. For Buena (26-7), Albanez, a Gonzaga commit, led the game with 29 points, but Johnson made it clear that Bruner’who finished with a game-high 12 assists’was still the best player on the floor ’She was setting the table,’ Johnson said. ‘They had no answers for her.’ Though the Dolphins will have to deal with the loss of two important starters in Shevchuk and co-captain center Nicole Flyer, Johnson is ready to go for 2011-12. ’This game helped us grow,’ he said. ‘I’m very excited for next year. We’re gonna be back ‘ and other teams are going to be terrified of us.’
Young Palisadians Take Tennis Circuit by Storm
There’s been no shortage of tennis success stories coming out of the Pacific Palisades’ youth ranks over the last few weeks. In early February, 10-year-old Chloe Bendetti won the Eighth Annual Ramada Junior Open Tournament in Claremont. After a first-round bye, she won each of her three matches in straight sets, including a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Amanda Tabanera in the final. The win came at a great time for Chloe: she’ll temporarily trade in her racket for a baseball bat as she plays in the PPBA this season. At the 66th Annual Fullerton Junior Tennis Tournament’where 1,175 players participated in one of California’s biggest tournaments’a contingent from the Palisades enjoyed more success. In the Boys’ 12 Doubles, Palisadian Ben Goldberg (a seventh grader at Paul Revere) and his doubles partner Connor Rapp won 8-6 in the finals to capture the championship trophy. The third-seeded team, Goldberg and Rapp defeated the top two seeds en route to the title. And the win was particularly sweet for Goldberg, considering he broke his wrist last fall and had the cast removed only four months ago. In addition, Palisadian Robbie Bellamy (who also is a top singles player for PaliHi) captured the Boys’ 16 Doubles title playing alongside his doubles partner, Gage Brymer of Irvine. The duo beat the top-seeded pairing of Garcia-Kim 8-4 to take home the title (their 3rd straight tournament win) and run their tournament record together to 14-0 overall. Bellamy also won the Boys’ 16 Singles title at the USTA Regional Tournament in Las Vegas (a National tournament with players from across the country) in January.
Getty: Expertly Saving Antiquities
Lying peacefully on cotton rollers, the little Roman bronze figure of Eros is undergoing an exploratory operation with Getty conservators, as skilled as surgeons, examining its internal and external constitution. The little fellow has survived centuries of service, and while the statue remains amazingly intact with all its limbs and head, the surface shows the passage of time. Associate Conservator Jeff Maish is analyzing the patina, color and texture, and even unusual corrosion’all things that reveal its history. The statue, probably from the first century, is a piece from the Barbara and Lawrence Fleishman collection which had been on display at the Getty Center until the Villa reopened in 2006 and all the antiquities were relocated. That transfer offered an opportunity for this in-depth technical study. Initially the piece had been identified as Dionysus, based on its wreath, Maish says, but the wreath turned out to be a sycamore wreath, not grape leaves, so the conservators began to reattribute it as an Eros figure. Their conclusion was further confirmed when they found bits of lead on its back which may have secured little wings. ’This was probably used as garden sculpture,’ Maish says, adding ‘they often held little trays to serve guests when the villa’s hosts were entertaining. There is a wall painting in Naples that depicts a figure such as this in a garden setting, which has the same dark patina.’ These days, conservation techniques are technically advanced, and conservators are highly skilled in the science and history of materials and methods, but the philosophy about restoring objects is pronouncedly conservative. Museumgoers may wish to see the bronze as it might have looked at manufacture, but conservators keep a hands-off approach. At one time, restorers, in order to make object more realistic and credible to public viewers, would have supplied missing pieces’a missing arm or head’or steam-cleaned a sculpture in order to remove algae, lichens or accumulated surface dirt. ’You have to be careful to figure out to what degree you want to intervene,’ says Jerry Podany, conservator of antiquities at the Getty Museum. ‘Our philosophy is a much less invasive treatment than before, and with more careful study. And most important, all treatment must be undoable.’ The Villa conservation unit has nine experts dedicated to antiquities, while the Getty Center conservators concentrate on the decorative arts, paintings and photography. ‘The department can work on parallel paths,’ Podany says. ‘We can work on a small piece of Etruscan gold jewelry or a large, life-size monumental sculpture. There is communication, so problems are discussed, as well as the creative solutions that come out of studying these works of art. It helps keep the balance between looking at these things as archeological artifacts and works of art. The bronze Eros will remain in the laboratory for several months. So, right now the best example of a complete, seamless conservation effort that clearly demonstrates the Getty’s approach to restoration is the Apollo Saettante, now on display at the Villa. This project is collaboration with Italian colleagues at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale in Naples as part of the cultural exchange agreement made in 2007 between the Italian Ministry of Culture and the Getty Museum. The Apollo arrived in Los Angeles on loan for study and conservation in 2009, along with the Statue of an Ephebe as a Lampbearer, which is also on view at the Villa. Using archival research, X-ray, ultraviolet photography and endoscopic examination, investigators discovered not only how Apollo was made in antiquity, but also the methods used to restore it in the 19th century. The statue, originally located in the Temple of Apollo in Pompeii, was buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79. The bulk of the figure was unearthed in 1817 and a year later veteran soldiers hunting a fox near the ancient city walls stumbled across the foot and part of the groin that had been missing. ’There was a rich tradition of bronzes in Naples that were unearthed in the excavations in 1817,’ explains David Saunders, assistant curator of antiquities, who is working with Erik Risser, assistant conservator on the project. ‘King Ferdinand I of Naples had returned from exile and wanted to display this piece along with other great bronzes. The Apollo was one of the first major bronzes discovered at Pompeii and reassembled for display at the Real Museo Borbonico in Naples.’ Again, Getty conservators were sensitive to the integrity of the original lost wax method of manufacture as well as to the methods used to restore Apollo in the 19th century. ‘Anything we do has repercussions with the intent to identify the issues that will be damaging to the object,’ Risser explains. The investigators try to preserve what they call the cycle of the piece: the ancient world, the burial and then the historical (re-discovery and restoration) period. ‘The end product informed us to what had been done,’ he says. Risser and his colleagues decided to honor the later restoration by preserving the Apollo’s matte black surface patina, which is not how the ancient surface would have looked. Using X-ray, they were able to analyze the statue’s interior structural supports without cutting into the figure. When the Apollo arrived in Los Angeles, conservators also requested Apollo’s twin sister Diana’the pair that had originally faced one another in the Temple of Apollo. She proved to be a useful companion piece because, while intact from head and torso, she was missing an arm, which allowed conservators to view inside the hollow arm and analyze the thickness of the bronze. Her eyes, too, were original, manufactured of glass and bone. The conservation work at the Getty encompasses important academic scholarship as well as hands-on restoration. As the piece is examined, questions arise, such as casting techniques, the content of bronze and what restoration techniques had been used in the past. The current exhibition gives viewers a visual context for the statue by displaying a map of Pompeii that shows where the statue was discovered, as well a large-scale photograph of the Temple of Apollo that indicates where the sister/brother statues were standing. Engravings on display in the gallery also show the restored statue of Apollo from 1825 and 1879. The Getty’s conservation work focuses primarily on the museum’s own collections, which are in fairly good condition. ‘Our major goal for our collection is maintaining a proper preservation environment’humidity, temperature, light, earthquake mitigation and crowd control,’ Podany says. But the Getty also collaborates with other institutions and countries, particularly those with a rich archeological history. ’Source countries have such a wealth of this material, but often times they lack the resources to protect them,’ Podany continues. ‘Expertise and time play a role in what the Getty can provide. We can provide the treatment of those objects that allows them to be brought out of the storeroom. We can show options, methodological approaches and perhaps convince them that there is a better way. But we don’t come in as experts and tell them what they should be doing. These are their objects, they dominate what happens. But [for a time] we get to display these wonderful objects in return.’
