By creating a new research institute, Tish Nettleship hopes to keep early California history–and her legendary hacienda–alive.

The garden boasts mature sycamore and palm trees, a towering sequoia, rare plants, a lily pond, even a private chapel. Fountains and unusual decorative tiles abound. But the main attraction at Hacienda Mojica is the house itself, one with a romantic and storied past. “There’s no better place to channel old California,” says local historian Randy Young. Masked behind dense foliage and a distinctive “bleeding” brick wall in Santa Monica Canyon, the Spanish Colonial Revival structure dates back to 1929 when Jose Mojica, a Mexican opera singer dubbed the “Mexican Valentino,” began building his hacienda, inspired by the wish to recreate his family’s ancestral home in Mexico. Architect Merrill W. Baird is credited with the design of the house, but local experts think acclaimed Santa Monica architect John Byers, known for his rich evocations of Spanish Colonial architecture, had a hand in things, with so many handcrafted elements, patios and verandas showcased. The house sits on hallowed ground. The site was once part of the Rancho Boca de Santa Monica, a Mexican land grant given to Francisco Marquez and Ysidro Reyes in 1839. Long before Mojica built his hacienda, the Rancho’s canyon grounds, then wilderness, played host to those seeking a picnic amid sheltering trees and ocean breezes. The hacienda is an especially fitting place to house La Senora Research Institute, a newly formed non-profit dedicated to documenting the history of the Rancho era of early California, particularly as it relates to Rancho Boca de Santa Monica. A lively roster of events relating to the site’s history also is featured, including chamber music concerts, a film series (the original garage was converted into a screening room), special lectures and docent-led garden tours. “It’s fascinating to realize that people who originally resided on this Rancho lived in Spain, Mexico and later California in the space of 30 years without ever having moved,” says Tish Nettleship, the owner of Hacienda Mojica since 1976. In creating the Institute, Nettleship, on a fervent quest to faithfully chronicle the past, works closely with historian and author Ernest Marquez, the great-grandson of the original land grantees. She also recruits interns from UCLA and USC to conduct scholarly research. The preservation of the property is Nettleship’s not-so-hidden agenda behind creating the institute and soliciting support from members, who now number close to 300. “It’s really the ‘Ra Ra’ group I’m trying to establish,” says Nettleship, who intends to give the valuable property to a large public charity, one she has yet to publicly name. “I’m trying to be creative about how to control things from the grave. Should a charity ever want to sell to development, there will be lots of loud voices to protest.” Nettleship’s Santa Monica Canyon neighbors were easily won over by the idea of the foundation setting up shop in the residence, which occupies a triangle at Dryad Road and East Channel. “They clearly don’t want a bunch of McMansions built here,” says Nettleship. “Plus, where would they go swimming?” Nettleship is referring to the longstanding tradition of hosting a neighborhood swim party on the Fourth of July, something she’s done since the 1970s when she moved into the house as a widow with six children. “With all its nooks and crannies, it was a great house to bring up a big family,” she says. The house suffered major damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, requiring Nettleship to tackle major repairs and restoration. During a recent visit, she points out quirky features tied to the original owner, including a step-up area in the dining room. “Of course, it makes perfect sense. Mojica was an opera star who entertained frequently and performed for his guests,” she says. In a surprising unHollywood-like turn, Mojica returned to Mexico in 1936 and later became a Peruvian monk. The house’s next owner was Dr. H. Clifford Loos, who founded the Ross-Loos Medical group, today Kaiser Permanente. His sister was famed screenwriter Anita Loos, best known for “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” Daughter Mary Anita lived in the house for 28 years and was a devoted steward and mentor to Nettleship. “It all started because my flight arrived home early,” says Nettleship of her first chance meeting with Mary Anita Loos. Nettleship, at the time a busy executive running an industrial construction firm, blew in during the last moments of a garden tour she had agreed to let a local group put on. Loos was holding court on the patio with guests, telling tales about the hacienda’s history. “It was only after meeting her that it became ever so urgent to find a way to protect this house and land,” recalls Nettleship. “Prior to that day, my interest in the house and its history had been pretty shallow.” Lyle Wheeler, an award-winning film artistic director, owned the house after the Loos family. Robert Brown, an actor in film and television, sold it to Nettleship. The original wooden entry gates on East Channel Road are inscribed “La Finca de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe,” dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron Saint of Mexico, whose image appears in tiles and other artifacts throughout the house. Nettleship settled on the name “La Senora” for the new foundation to pay homage to all the many women involved in perpetuating the homestead’s historic fabric. She’s on a mission to become the final “La Senora,” the 21st century one who will pass on the house and collections as a center for California history. To learn more about La Senora Research Institute events and how to become a member, contact pnettleship@nettleship.com.

The library at Paul Revere Charter Middle School is, surprisingly, the newest hangout for students. Cindi Murphy, who taught eighth grade English last year, transferred into the librarian’s position this fall, bringing energy and ideas that have resonated with students. Although the library was renovated two years ago, it lacked programs for the students and, according to Murphy, ‘was a mausoleum. Kids were afraid to come in.’ Over the summer, she orchestrated a group of parent and student volunteers who cleaned and moved furniture. The result is a large room made cozy with three ‘read and relax’ lounge areas, an instructional area and a media center. ‘We’re in the middle of a collection development project because we don’t have enough reading materials for our kids,’ Murphy said. LAUSD recommends that a middle school library have 18 books per student; Revere’s library has six books per child, and about a third of the collection is outdated, especially the science books. ‘We don’t have enough of the popular fiction series and culturally relevant material,’ Murphy said. ‘Our theory is that when a student is comfortable with pleasure reading, they learn to like to read and then they feel more comfortable cracking a textbook.’ In order to gain a ‘so-so’ collection, it will cost $35,000 a year for five years and $75,000 a year to build a premium collection. Unfortunately, Murphy’s entire budget is only $8,000 a year. Seeking funding is difficult because Revere’s academic performance index is over 800 (one of the few middle schools in LAUSD to achieve that goal). ‘It’s hard to get grants because our scores are too high,’ Murphy said. ‘We don’t get Title 1 money (federal) and many of the grants have restrictions based on the number students in the free lunch program.’ Most of Revere’s budget from LAUSD goes towards academic programs, with art, music, physical education and the library rarely receiving adequate funding. Murphy hopes to start a fundraising campaign in January to acquire more texts. Money donations are preferred, she said, because the incoming books need to be library ready, with a bar code and catalogue record. Since September, Murphy has launched three new programs, and established a 40-member student advisory board that meets every day, working on technology, student and community outreach, public relations, as well as an information flyer and a monthly newsletter. Every other Wednesday, Murphy invites professionals to give career talks in the library during lunch hour. ‘We videotape it and it will be part of a podcast series when the library Web site is up and running,’ she said. A parent group is currently working on the Web site. Murphy invited illustrators Max Espinosa and Rubin Gerard to speak to students in the library and make themselves available to different classes at the school on a monthly basis. She has also started a monthly visiting author series that has included Victoria Foyt, who wrote ‘The Virtual Life of Lexi Diamond.’ In the works is a college-talk series that would highlight a different college every month. ‘We want kids to start thinking about college, now,’ Murphy said. Given the welcoming environment, student-organized clubs have begun meeting in the library during the lunch hour. The clubs include origami, band and Manga, a group interested in comics published in Japan. ‘We’re trying to reach at-risk groups by offering a variety of options’the clubs, the visiting speakers–to get students into the library,’ Murphy said. When she’s not starting innovative programs at Revere, Murphy is working on her master’s degree in library science. She received a B.A. in English from UCLA and already has a library/media credential. In her spare time she loves to read, of course, but also enjoys cooking and gardening. Her husband of 16 years, Scott, is also a middle school teacher, at John Burroughs near Hollywood. ‘We live together and we play together, but we don’t have to work together,’ Murphy said, laughing. The couple, who have no children, love to visit Manhattan where they catch plays, enjoy the different restaurants and walk all over the city. But right now the library is Cindi’s total focus. ‘There’s a lot to do here,’ she said.

The library at Palisades Charter High School came back to life in September, after being closed for more than a year. New librarian Andrea King has spent the past several months (as well as the summertime) revamping and upgrading the facility, with the help of student volunteers and faculty members. Last school year, because of a shortage of space, the library was used as a classroom and students could not check out materials. Furthermore, there was no librarian and much of the library’s collection was damaged and outdated. ‘The students are just waiting to get in every day,’ King said when school started. ‘Teachers are so excited. They can’t wait to get their kids in here doing research and checking out fiction books and just getting back in the habit of using the library.’ King began the overhaul by removing one-third of the library’s collection. She eliminated outdated and damaged books, as well as books that had never before been checked out, despite being on the shelves for many years. ‘There are also good books here,’ King said. ‘There were good books on the shelves; they were just hidden away.’ So far King has spent a little more than $15,000 of the $50,000 allocated to the library by the school’s governing board to purchase about 1,000 new books. She ordered a variety of texts, including modern fiction that will appeal to teenagers, classics and perhaps most importantly, books that teachers believe will complement what they are teaching in class. With the help of student volunteers, King also rearranged the library, making materials and study space more accessible. ‘The library wouldn’t look the way it does today without those kids,’ said King, who previously worked at Emerson Middle School in Westwood. ‘I’m really excited because it’s a lot better organized, cleaner and more open,’ junior Fiona Hannigan said in September, after helping out over the summer. ‘Mrs. King is the sweetest person, and she wants to make the library a hub, like the study center.’ Forty laptop computers are also now available in the library that students can use with the newly installed wireless Internet. However, they cannot be checked out by students outside of class time until the security system, which has been ordered and paid for, is installed. ‘The laptops are amazing,’ said junior Diva Joshi, ‘and now kids can go to the library so there’s more room in the study center for tutoring.’ A new automation system was also installed, allowing for library records to be updated and possibly be made available online through the school’s Web site. This fall, King has been busy setting up the fiction section and ‘putting in authors that they may like.’ She also ordered new, smaller worktables that allow flexibility for students working in small groups. Textbooks used in various courses have also been made available for the first time in the library for students who forget them at home, but still wish to work on homework while at school. King also ordered beanbag chairs that have been placed around the library so students can work or read comfortably on the floor. And soon, thanks to a donation by Rose Gilbert, the library will undergo further remodeling with the installation new tables and chairs as well as a new circulation desk. King now offers a research skills class at the library that teaches students different ways to do research in and out of the library, good study habits and note-taking skills and other important tasks such as creating bibliographies. After receiving her B.A. in history from UCLA and a master’s degree in American studies from Pepperdine, King obtained teaching credentials for English and history as well as her library media services credential from Cal State Long Beach. Before coming to Palisades High, she spent 17 years at Emerson, 14 as a teacher and three as a librarian. She lives in Westchester with her husband, Robert Rowe King (an AP teacher at Pali), and her four-year-old twin boys.

With skate-stops installed on benches and rails and ‘No Skating’ signs posted throughout Pacific Palisades, Paliskates has become almost the last refuge for the persecuted Palisadian skateboarder. The store, located on Swarthmore, recently held a skateboard and logo design contest and Palisadian Harry Keenan, a 14-year-old freshman at Palisades Charter High School, won with his design of the evolution of skateboarders. Palisadian Olivia Faze, a 14-year-old freshman at Windward School, won the logo design contest. Currently, 50 skateboards with Harry’s design and Olivia’s logo are being manufactured by Sugar Skateboards, and will soon be available for sale at Paliskates, and when those boards sell out, the store will host another design contest. While shopping at Paliskates, Harry and his friends were given blank papers, shaped like skateboards, and informed of contest rules. Although they had three weeks to complete their design, Harry got to work as soon as he arrived home. His design features his version of the evolution of skateboarders. It starts off with a chimp, then a gorilla, moves through early man, up to modern man, before devolving into a chimp on a skateboard. ‘I kind of had the idea in my head before the contest,’ Harry said. ‘I was thinking that it was a cool thing, so when I got the [the blank skateboard] it just kind of came.’ Olivia was also informed of the contest while shopping. ‘I also made a skateboard design, but I felt more satisfied with my logo drawing,’ she said. ‘I just sat down and knew that something like graffiti letters would look great on a deck. Plus, the colors seem pretty suitable.’ Skateboarding originated in California sometime during the 1950s and coincided with the popularization of surfing. Initially, skateboards were rudimentarily homemade with wooden planks (decks) attached to roller-skate wheels (trucks). Skaters emulated surfing moves, hence skateboarding’s original name, ‘sidewalk surfing.’ In the 1960s, skateboarding became more mainstream as manufacturers began building skateboards that resembled small surfboards on wheels. In 1965 the international skateboarding championship was broadcast on national television for the first time. In the early 1970s skateboarding again began to rise in popularity, in part due to Frank Nasworthy’s development of the polyurethane wheel. Traction, performance and maneuverability increased. In 1976, the modern skateboard came into use, and modern skating began to develop. During the 1976 drought in California, many swimming pools were empty and became a breeding ground for a new style of skateboarding’vert skating. Twenty years later, though skateboarding has undergone certain generational changes, some 12.5-million people are skateboarding around the world, using much of the technology and style developed over the past several decades in Southern California. Harry Keenan began skating several years ago. ‘I used to play basketball and football, which kept me busy with practice, but then I took a break from school activities,’ he said. ‘Since I didn’t have anything to do after school, I just started skating. It came out of boredom, and then I got good.’ Now he spends much of his free time skateboarding around the Palisades with his friends. Harry, who generally does street skating because it’s free, skates at local schools, Paul Revere, PaliHi, Palisades Elementary and SamoHi. He also skates on sidewalks and in parking lots around town, on the ‘slick bricks’ on Bowdoin and on the outdoor basketball courts at the Recreation Center. Sometimes though, he heads up to Malibu to skate at Papa Jack’s Skate Park. ‘They let you in for free, so it’s pretty cool,’ he said, pointing out that a skate park used to be set up every Sunday at the Rec Center, but isn’t anymore. Skating around town, Harry occasionally runs into those opposed to skateboarding. In many places, skate stops, which are attached on rails and benches, have been installed to prevent skaters from performing grinding tricks, which can damage public property. Also, business and property owners are generally opposed to skaters using their property for stunts, something Harry wishes could be compromised on. ‘If you walk into a store with a skateboard with Krew pants on, people automatically assume, ‘Oh he’s bad or something,” Harry said. ‘If they could only see it from our perspective, but they automatically assume the worst. They don’t compromise at all.’ Olivia Faze, who has been skating a little longer than Harry, hasn’t run into much anti-skating sentiment around the Palisades. ‘Believe it or not, I have been [skating] since I was six years old. I’m not really a ‘hard-core skater’ so I don’t run into anti-skateboarding views in the Palisades,’ she said. ‘But I do believe that skateboarding isn’t a crime.’ The skateboard design/logo contest allowed Harry and Olivia to marry two of their favorite hobbies: skateboarding and art. ‘Art is a huge hobby of mine and when I have free time I like to sit in my room and draw any random things that come to mind,’ Olivia said. ‘I’ve gotten more into art since the start of my studio art class at my school.’ She draws inspiration from tattoo art, like Sailor Jerry and Ed Hardy designs, as well as from shows like ‘L.A. Ink’ and ‘Miami Ink.’ Apart from art and skating, Olivia is also involved in soccer and boxing. Harry has been taking classes at the Brentwood Art Center for a couple of years. He began with cartoon classes and has now moved onto more serious fundamentals and figure drawing. ‘Besides skating, I just draw a lot,’ he said. ‘I just like a red and black Sharpie and that’s pretty much it.’ Harry, a former basketball and football player, plans to run track this spring at PaliHi. In the rest of his spare time, he and his friends create and post videos on YouTube (www.youtube.com/wangypong). Soon skateboards designed by Harry Keenan with logo by Oliva Faze will be available for sale at Paliskates. Although both will receive a free skateboard as part of winning the contest, Harry plans on getting two extra ones, so he’ll have three’two to skate with and one to hang on his wall. If he’s allowed to enter again, Harry plans on designing another board. It was great how Paliskates had this contest,’ Olivia said, ‘and that I was able to take part in it.’

So often television, movies and plays pose the unfortunate quality of complete predictability. As soon as a plot line begins to develop, any mildly intelligent viewer can foresee the final outcome. Perhaps this is based on people’s desire to feel good–to know that no matter what happens in the beginning or the middle, all the loose ends will be tied up neatly with a bow at the conclusion of the production. Fortunately, though, there is ‘The History Boys,’ a smart, engaging and very funny play by Alan Bennett, now playing through December 9 at the Ahmanson Theatre. It not only refrained from insulting my intelligence, but actually made me wish I were smarter’perhaps I would have picked up on a few more historical and literary references. This 2006 Tony Award-winner for best play follows a group of British high school boys in the north of England on their quest for admission to either Oxford or Cambridge. Throughout the play, they prepare for entrance examinations and interviews under the tutelage of two teachers, whose styles could not be more different. Varying themes including coming of age, homosexuality and pederastry kept me interested, continuously prompting the thought of, ‘Wow, I totally did not see that coming.’ The acting in this production could not have been better. I am still unsure which actors were actually British, if any, because accents were delivered close to flawlessly throughout the play. Standouts included Seth Numrich, as Dakin, a sort of teacher’s pet whom all the boys looked up to, particularly Posner (Alex Brightman), whose crush on Dakin was no secret. Charlotte Cornwell was amazing as the only featured female, Mrs. Lintott. Serious, yet hilarious, Cornwell brought dry humor to a new level. Dakin Matthews was also great, as Hector, the older, possibly wiser, teacher who believed in education for the sake of knowledge, rather than for passing tests. Constantly quoting classic literary works, historical facts, and even speaking an entire scene in French (along with the boys), Matthews was quite enthralling. Apart from the acting, the most interesting aspect of the play was the simple set design. Walls set on criss-crossing tracks moved between scenes, allowing for quick transitions between classroom, teacher’s lounge, hallway and office settings. Between scenes, as walls were crossing, a video screen featuring quick black-and-white montages not only distracted the audience from the brief set changes, but reminded everyone that it was the 1980s, with decade-appropriate music. And speaking of music, the boys in the play are not only good actors, but very musically talented as well. Brightman sings wonderfully throughout the play, and at one point, all the boys sing together as well as any angelic boys choir. ‘The History Boys’ plays through December 9 at the Ahmanson Theatre at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand St., downtown. For tickets call (213) 628-2772 or visit www.CenterTheatreGroup.org.

Pacific Palisades author Jonathan Edelman, who has an extensive background in television and screenwriting, switched to play writing in the late 1990s. His first play, ‘Moonpuppies,’ was produced at the Odyssey Theater and his second full-length play, ‘Screwballs,’ is now running through December 15. Billed as a zany post-modern take-off of classic screwball comedies, it lives up to the description–some of the time. The setting for ‘Screwballs’ is the Casa Milagro, an inn near the Aqua Caliente National Forest, which is owned by divorc’e Abby (Martha Gehman). The inn appears to be in financial jeopardy, although the audience is never clear why. Abby has an adult son and a fianc’ about whom she appears to be ambivalent. Abby’s ex, Guy (Scott Weintraub) and his best friend show up at the inn after a river-rafting expedition they led has gone awry. He bets his best friend that he’ll be able to win back his ex. Abby isn’t buying it, so he purloins a love potion created by the Native American bartender Frankie Lamebull (Kyle Heffner). The love potion is really a ‘soul’ changing medicine and Guy ends up in Abby’s body and vice versa. Mom and daughter changing body in ‘Freaky Friday’ produced hilarious results based on age difference. Gender switches provides even more opportunity for humor. Abby goes with the all-male group to rescue the river rafters who were left trapped. Guy stays with the idea he’ll seduce the man who will help Abby financially save the inn. Dressed in heels, a black-sequined long dress with spaghetti straps and a slit, Guy does his best to be everything a woman should: seductive, sexy and feminine. Unfortunately for him, the potion has reversed itself and he is simply a man in drag, hitting on a financier. Weintraub as Guy is hysterical, and the second act is the reason to see this play. Comedies need a clear, simple set-up, but unfortunately the first act is muddled. We need to know why the Casa Milagro is in financial trouble and we need a clearer understanding of why Abby still has the ‘hots’ for her ex. Edelman who also directs, has assembled a talented cast. Dr. Sandra (Amy Tolsky) and Dr. Jeff (Michael Caldwell) are appropriately irritating and smug as two guests staying at the inn. The third guest, their daughter Kimberly (Jessica Goldapple), plays the sex kitten to a tee. Providing just the right amount of craziness with believability is Kyle Heffner as Frankie Lamebull. In any romantic comedy, the audience needs to feel the romantic chemistry between the leads. In this case, there aren’t enough sparks.. Reviewing a new play is always exciting, and this play certainly has the bones, especially the second act, to be madcap and humorous. The direction is good and the cast mostly exceptional, one only wishes that Edelman would have tightened the first act to achieve the laugh-out loud comedy that happens in the second. ‘Screwballs’ runs Thursday, Friday and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 7 p.m. at the Odyssey in West Los Angeles at 2055 S. Sepulveda. For ticket information contact (310) 477-2055.