Local Connection to This Year’s Oscars
Pacific Palisades residents and others connected to the Palisades were in the spotlight at Sunday night’s 78th Academy Awards. Paul Haggis, Steven Spielberg and Amy Adams were all nominated in the top categories. Haggis, who lived in the Palisades until the 1994 earthquake when his home on Corona del Mar was destroyed (he still owns the property), won Oscars for best picture and original screenplay for his film “Crash.” Haggis directed “Crash” in 2003 with the ensemble cast of Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillion, Brendan Fraser, Thandie Newton and Ryan Phillippe. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and received rave reviews. It was released in the United States in 2005 and instantly become a favorite of movie reviewers throughout the United States. Critic Roger Ebert named “Crash” the year’s best film. Haggis left his successful television career in 2000 (“thirtysomething”) and wrote two screenplays back to back, “Million Dollar Baby” and “Crash.” Clint Eastwood read “Million Dollar Baby” and wanted to direct it. It was nominated for seven Oscars and won for best picture, best director, best actress, Hilary Swank, and best supporting actor Morgan Freeman. Haggis wrote “Crash” quickly with his friend Bobby Moresco and it was turned down by major studios. They took it to Bob Yari, a producer starting his own company. It took Yari a year before he agreed to produce it and only under the condition they assemble a name cast. When the script reached another Palisadian, Don Cheadle (fresh off the success of “Hotel Rwanda” for which he was nominated for an Oscar), he agreed to co-star and co-produce, which set the project in motion. Haggis is married to Deborah Rennard who grew up in the Palisades and graduated from Pali High. o o o In August 2000, Amy Adams was a relative unknown in the world of show business. She was cast as Babe McGrath in Theatre Palisades’ production “Crimes of the Heart,” a romantic comedy about a bad hair day in the life of three sisters in rural Mississippi. At the time, Adams was dating fellow TP cast member Oliver Macready, whose character was smitten with hers. The two later broke up, but the role was a significant step on Adams’ path to the red carpet. Adams, now 31, was nominated for best supporting actress for her role as Ashley, the small town mother-to-be in “Junebug” at last Sunday’s Academy Awards. It was Adams’ first Oscar nomination and although she did not win, she won an Independent Spirit Award for best supporting actress at a ceremony on the beach in Santa Monica Saturday night. A regular performer at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatres in Minnesota in her early 20s, Adams landed a part in the 1999 film “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” which was shot in Minneapolis. Kirstie Alley, who co-starred in the movie, recognized Adams’ talent and encouraged her to move to California. Adams took Alley’s advice, relocated to Hollywood, and worked as a guest star on TV shows (including “That ’70s Show,” “Charmed” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”)’all while rehearsing for “Crimes of the Heart.” Looking back, Adams said she credits her early work on stage as a springboard to her success in film. o o o Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg (“Saving Private Ryan” and “Schindler’s List”) directed and produced “Munich,” which was nominated in five categories but did not win an Oscar. The film has been the subject of fierce debate for the questions it raises about racial intolerance and Middle East politics. “Munich,” which has not yet been released in the Arab world, deals with the murder of 11 Israeli athletes by the Palestinian terrorist group Black September during the 1972 Olympics, and the subsequent Israeli response. The Mossad (Israeli intelligence agency) retaliates by deploying a team of five agents in Europe to assassinate those responsible for the attack. At a recent discussion on the film at Pepperdine University, Allan Mayer, managing director and head of the entertainment division for Sitrick & Company, spoke about working with Spielberg on “Munich.” He was Spielberg’s political and media advisor. Mayer said Spielberg was drawn to the story because of the importance of keeping alive the memory of these events and raising questions'”not about Israel’s right to exist but rather the terrible choices that terrorism forces us to make and how we decide.”
Jr. Women Donate $100,000 to 34 Groups
At a special ceremony held Tuesday evening at the Woman’s Club, the Palisades Junior Women’s Club awarded checks totaling $100,000 to 34 community organizations. All funds were raised through last November’s annual home tour and member donations. The Palisades-Malibu YMCA was the major beneficiary, receiving $25,000 for its upcoming beautification project involving its newly acquired property at the corner of Sunset and Temescal Canyon Road. The second largest gift ($10,000) went to the Palisades Charter Schools Foundation, in addition to $4,000 donated to each of the five local public schools. “Each PPJWC member donates many hours of her time to make the home tour a success,” said club president Gina Vincent. “Our mission of preserving the unique nature of the Palisades is validated by all the businesses and individuals who support the home tour.” This year’s home tour chair Annie Barnes went the extra mile to make the 20th annual home tour the largest yet. “We generally do not focus on exceeding fundraising goals,” Barnes said, “but in the 70th anniversary year of the club, our members, vendors and sponsors all stepped up to help us reach the $100,000 level for the first time.” Since the 1980’s, PPJWC has solicited grant requests from nonprofit organizations in the community to further its goal of preserving the character of life in the Palisades. “The organizations we help range from grassroots groups to long-standing institutions,” said Susan Mazzarella, project selection chairwoman. “In our town, PPJWC is unique in its mission and I think the members recognize that, so they’re eager to give back.” The following organizations have received grants in the amounts noted: Palisades-Malibu YMCA (Sunset and Temescal) ‘ $25,000 Calvary Christian School (soccer field maintenance) ‘ 1,500 AYSO Region 69′(Palisades High field resurfacing) ‘ 5,000 Friends of Film ‘ 2,500 Oom PaPa Band ‘ 500 Pacific Palisades Art Association ‘ 400 Chamber Music Palisades ‘ 250 Palisades Symphony Orchestra ‘ 1,000 Palisades Community Center Committee (Recreation Center) ‘ 5,000’ Pacific Palisades Woman’s Club ‘ 6,000 Fire Station 23 ‘ 2,500 Fire Station 69 ‘ 2,500 Cub Scout Pack 223 ‘ 1,000 Venturing Crew 223 ‘ 750 Boy Scouts of America (Kevin Niles Library on Catalina) ‘ 500 Camp Managers Corps ‘ 1,000 Palisades Graffiti Busters (Palisades Patrol Girls/Temescal Mural) ‘ 250 Palisades Sheriff’s Posse ‘ 250 Palisades Americanism Association, Inc. ‘ 4,000 Chamber of Commerce'(Street Cleaning ‘Chrysalis) ‘ 2,000 Chamber of Commerce (Winter Decorations) ‘ 1,000 Chamber of Commerce (Disaster Preparedness) ‘ 100 Pacific Palisades Historical Society ‘ 750 Nature of Wildworks ‘ 250 Sisters of St. Louis ‘ 250 Palisades Charter Schools Foundation ‘ 10,000 Palisades High School Booster Club ‘ 4,000 PRIDE Booster Club at Paul Revere ‘ 4,000 Palisades Elementary Enrichment Program ‘ 4,000 Friends of Marquez Elementary ‘ 4,000 Canyon Charter School Booster Club ‘ 4,000 Palisades PRIDE for the Marquez Business Block project ‘ 4,250 Palisades Beautiful ‘ 1,000 Pacific Palisades Garden Club ‘ 500
Key Questions Raised About Potrero Lots
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
By LINDA RENAUD and SUE PASCOE At the February Potrero Citizens Advisory Committee meeting, Norman Kulla, senior counsel to Councilman Bill Rosendahl, said city geologists have raised questions about the feasibility of building on some of the lots in Potrero Canyon because of possible “instability.” Is the city’s concern justified, given the double standard that currently exists regarding development of lots around Potrero’s rim? Why are some considered stable enough to build on while others are not? What safety standards are being used? The city says a lot has to be assessed every year for five years before it can be “certified.” Why is there building going on when the 20-year landfill project is not yet complete? What if there are other landslides? Of the 82 lots that border Potrero, 51 are owned by private citizens, 31 by the city. This count doesn’t include the 13 homes on Patterson Place or the homes on nearby Hampden Place that are also on the rim. The city acquired the lots, which were condemned starting in 1964, when the canyon was first found to be unstable because of landslides. While 21 of the city-owned lots are currently vacant, the other 10’located on Alma Real, De Pauw and Earlham’have homes on them which the city leases out. Eventually, all of the city-owned lots will be sold at auction to reimburse General Services for the estimated $30 million it has spent to date on the project. This includes $13 million to acquire the lots and another $17 million to buttress and fill the canyon’plus future costs to complete Phase II and III, which includes the creation of a park and riparian habitat at an estimated cost of $7 to $12 million. Work on the canyon came to a halt more than two years ago when the city lacked the $1.2- million needed at the time to complete Phase II, which is 95 percent complete. To raise the necessary funds, the city approved the sale of two lots on Alma Real, both with houses the city currently leases out. It is not known if the city’s concern regarding “instability” in Potrero will further delay the sale of these two lots, which is still awaiting Coastal Commission approval. Nor is it known if the city’s concern extends to the privately-held lots, most of which have homes on them that are occupied, as well as where new homes are being built’with the approval of both the city and the Coastal Commission. According to a 1990 city plot map, Friends Street has five private homes that flank the city’s 10 vacant lots, one of which was constructed in the last five years. Construction on another home is expected to begin in a few months. “The city has been helpful,” said Robert Klein, who with his wife JoAnn bought a lot on Friends from a private owner. “There have been no hold-ups, but the design process has taken a long time.” Using a local architect and building contractor, the Kleins have gone through the city planning and zoning, as well as complying with the Coastal Commission’s recommendations that the city has adopted for new construction. Klein said it took three years to reach the construction phase. Part of the reason for the delay were changes in the design, which the couple made after consulting with neighbors concerned about their views. Klein noted that many residents on the west side of Friends Street moved in when the lots across the street were vacant, and are not pleased about new homes being built on the canyon side of the street. From Friends, the street curves into Lombard, which has four privately owned houses on the canyon rim. Lombard weaves into Earlham, where there are three vacant privately owned lots. Public records show that a coastal development permit was issued May 19, 2005, to Westside Homes to develop three single-family dwellings on those lots. At press time there was no confirmation of the start date for construction. There are also two homes on Earlham facing Potrero’one owned by the city, the other by a private party. On De Pauw, there are 11 vacant city lots, as well as a city-owned house at 15237. At 15245 is a new private residence, located next to one of the vacant city lots. Continuing north there is another newly constructed private house, separated by a vacant private lot and a new house at 15257. Moving north there is another vacant city lot and then another city-owned house at 15265. On Alma Real, 27 houses line the canyon. The two owned by the city (615 and 623) are 10 houses down from the lower tennis courts at the Recreation Center. A new house was recently constructed at 644, which is just one lot removed from 623. Numerous new houses have been built in the 400 block of Alma Real. According to Alice Gong, project manager for Parks and Recreation, before the city can submit a permit amendment application to the Coastal Commission for the sale of the two Alma Real lots, it must produce a certificate saying that the lots have been stabilized. The J. Byer Group, the geo-technical people hired by the city for Phase II, may have the certifications, but the city still owes the company $27,000. The J. Byer Group had no comment for the Palisadian-Post. The Coastal Commission, an independent, quasi-judicial state agency established by voter initiative in 1972 (Proposition 20), become involved in Potrero Canyon in 1976. The commission oversees the coastal zone which varies in width from several hundred feet in highly urbanized areas up to five miles in certain rural areas. Curiously, not all of Potrero Canyon is under Coastal Commission jurisdiction. According to Al Padilla, Coastal Commission Program Analyst, the northern boundary along Alma Real is El Cerco Place, which means four of the houses on the canyon closest to the lower tennis courts are not included. Off the Swarthmore side of the canyon, Carthage street is the dividing line, which means that none of the houses along Patterson Place and about half of the homes on Hampden Place are also not included. When the Commission originally approved the Potrero project, it placed restrictions on the sale of the city-owned lots until all three phases were complete. While the amendment to allow for the sale of the two Alma Real lots is expected to be approved by the commission to finish Phase II, how the “certification” issue will be resolved is not known at this time.
Baseball Splits First Two Games
The Palisades High varsity baseball team scored four runs in the first inning of its season opener en route to an 11-2 victory over Glendale last Saturday. Austin Jones, Tim Sunderland and Garrett Champion each had three hits while Johnny Bromberg allowed two hits and no runs in five innings to earn the victory. On Monday, Palisades traveled to Cleveland and lost, 7-0, as Justin Kaid pitched a complete game two-hitter for the Cavaliers. Cleveland got back-to-back home runs in the fifth inning, the first of which was a grand slam. Palisades played a make-up game against Sherman Oaks Notre Dame on Wednesday (result unavailable at press time) and continues play in the Southern California Invitational on Saturday.
PPBA Begins New Season
The Palisades Pony Baseball Association’s 52nd season kicked off its 2006 season the last week of February as newly organized teams took to the Palisades Recreation Center’s Field of Dreams complex. A record 380 boys tried out, 30 more than last year. During the tryouts in January, the boys were asked to field grounders, catch fly balls and demonstrate their hitting. Exactly 320 players were drafted onto eight different teams in three different divisions. This year for the first time since PPBA was started the names of two of the teams, the Braves and Indian teams were dropped and the Cubs and Yankees have been added. “We did it because we have so many people from Chicago. We love the New York and Chicago base here,” PPBA Commissioner Bob Benton said. “When we told the little kids they were on the Yankees they were excited because they know the names of some of the players.” Pintos consist of mostly eight-year-olds with a few outstanding seven-year-olds and a few nine-year-olds who kept to help provide leadership for their younger teammates. Pinto games are Tuesday or Thursday and on Saturday morning. A pitching machine is used for this age group. The Mustangs are nine and ten-year-olds and play on Wednesday and at noon on Saturday. For many players its their first time facing a peer pitcher. Broncos are 11 and 12 and play on opposite diamonds than the Pintos on Tuesday and Saturday. On Friday night, the Pony division, consisting of 13 and 14-year-olds, plays at the Rec Center. The schedules for all teams in all divisions as well as other important announcements such as field closures are available on the PPBA Web site: www.ppba.net. Opening Day is slated for Saturday, March 18 at the Palisades Recreation Center at 851 Alma Real. The annual pancake breakfast goes from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. Find your favorite local baseball player to purchase a ticket. The cost of admission is $3 and will include sausage, pancakes, coffee, orange juice and the chance to meet with all your friends, while waiting for the first games of the season to get underway. Commissioner Benton shared a piece of trivia about the Field of Dreams. The same people who constructed the baseball field in the Iowa cornfield for the movie “Field of Dreams” also built the “Field of Dreams” which is located in the Palisades. At 9 a.m., the first pitch will be thrown out at the Field of Dreams. The rumor is that Palisadian Ray Liotta will start the season with a fastball on the inside corner. Liotta starred as ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson in “The Field of Dreams.” He was also in “Goodfellas,” “Narc,” “Something Wild” and is currently in post- and pre-production on 11 different films, as well as awaiting the release of yet another.
Tennis Ready to Repeat
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
Now that the Palisades High boys tennis team has reclaimed the City Section championship, it has no intention of giving up the trophy anytime soon. In fact, the Dolphins hope to build a dynasty reminiscent of years past and, at least on paper, they appear to be the clear-cut favorite to repeat. “This is my last year and I definitely want to go out on top,” said senior Seth Mandelkern. “What we accomplished last year was great but that won’t mean anything if we lose.” Palisades began last season as the hunter, trying to dethrone five-time City champion El Camino Real, which the Dolphins did with a 16 1/2-13 victory in the finals that ended the Conquistadors’ 80-match winning streak. Palisades begins this season as the hunted, knowing it will get the best from every team it plays. “Sure, there’s more pressure on us this year but that just makes it more exciting,” said Mason Hays, who will likely play No. 2 doubles with his best friend, fellow junior Michael Light. “We’re a lot more confident this year. Palisades is supposed to dominate in tennis and our motivation is to keep the tradition going.” Palisades has won 25 City titles in all and five in a row twice, from 1969-73 under previous coach Bud Ware and from 1995-99 under current coach Bud Kling. “We have a lot more depth than we did last year,” said Mandelkern, who will play No. 1 doubles with either junior Sepehr Safii or senior Stephen Surjue. “Last year we had holes in some positions but this year we’re solid all the way through the lineup.” Returning singles players Adam Deloje and Surjue will be joined by USTA-ranked freshman Chase Pekar and senior Ben Tom, who had played No. 2 singles as a ninth and 10th-grader before being suspended from the team his junior year for failing to complete Kling’s off-season program. “With four AP classes and college applications I just didn’t have time for tennis,” said Tom, who was still playing for the school soccer two weeks ago but has somehow found time to refine his groundstrokes. “The year off made me a lot hungrier. I’ve been squeezing in time to hit as much as I can and I think my game is coming around. The bad weather hasn’t helped, though. The more practice I get, the better.” Deloje, who transferred from Loyola High to play No. 1 singles for Pali last year, cited the fact that he might not play No. 1 as an indication of the Dolphins’ strength in singles. “I’m not too concerned what spot I play in,” Deloje said. “The great thing about being deep is that our lineup is interchangeable. We’ll probably be switching positions a lot depending on who we’re playing.” While Pekar has proven his mettle on the junior circuit, fellow freshman Justin Atlan survived two weeks of tryouts to emerge as a likely candidate to play doubles with senior Daniel Burge and junior George Hudak. “We’re going to make it hard on other teams in singles,” Kling said. “Even in a round robin situation a really strong player will have a tough time getting through our four guys. Our doubles should be just as good or better than last year too. Kling said the Dolphins will be the favorites to win City. Once again, their stiffest competition will likely come from the West Valley League. “From what I hear, [Woodland Hills] Taft is going to be the team to beat out there,” Kling said. “Unless they’ve had a huge infusion of talent, El Camino Real is going to be down this year. Granada Hills will be strong contenders as will Carson, Marshall and Eagle Rock.” The junior varsity will be paced by a talented pool of ninth-graders including Che Borja, Alexander Gaskin, Spencer Lewin, Jeremy Shore and Ali Yazdi. Sophomores Erik Eckhert and Mikele Grando round out the JV squad. “I like this group of kids and I’m looking forward to the season,” said Kling, who returned from the Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy, last week. Weather permitting, Palisades opened the season Wednesday at Manhattan Beach Mira Costa (result unavailable at press time). The Dolphins host Crossroads today and Beverly Hills next Tuesday at the Palisades Recreation Center. Both matches begin at 2:30 p.m.
Welcome Home, Will Rogers
Historic House and Park Reopens to Public March 25th
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
Will Rogers was the trick-roping, straight-talking, apolitical observer of politics and Hollwood star, who lived with his wife Betty and their three children in an unconventional ranch house in Pacific Palisades. Here was a man whose funeral in 1935 was believed to have drawn the biggest turnout of mourners since the death of Abraham Lincoln. A decent man, his great-granddaughter Jennifer Rogers Etcheverry says, whom everybody liked. And yet, a man who nowadays is unknown to many. Echeverrey will join state officials, other family members and guests to celebrate the reopening of Will Rogers’ recently restored ranch house on March 25, and introduce Will to many who know little or nothing of his legend. “My generation don’t have a clue who Will Rogers was,” says Etcheverry, 40, who said that when singing cowboy Roy Rogers died, she got symphathy phone calls from people. “As a matter of fact, Roy (born Leonard Slye) changed his name to Rogers because he was so impressed with Will,” she says. The granddaughter of Will’s second son Jim, Etcheverry is the one in the family who has taken on the more public role in keeping her famous relative’s memory alive. She was born into a ranching family, on both sides, and from her earliest days had a huge interest in Will Rogers. “I traveled to Oklahoma (Will’s birthplace and museum) and attended events there and as I got older was invited to more things. I’m the most outgoing in the family and I enjoy it and have a very strong connection with my great-grandfather.” She also spearheaded the Will Rogers Foundation through which she hopes to raise funds to finish the ranch restoration project and provide money for ongoing maintenance. Will once said of Los Angeles, “It’s a great place to live, but I wouldn’t want to visit there,” and he was true to his word when he bought 160 acres in the Palisades in 1922, which he cleared with the idea of eventually plotting a polo field, corrals and a weekend cabin. By 1928, he decided to move his wife Betty and three children, Will Jr., Mary and Jim, from their Beverly Hills mansion to the six-room cabin. From then began a protracted building project that resulted in a 31-room ranch house at the time of his death in a plane crash in 1935. When Will died, all work ceased on the ranch, and you could almost say it didn’t resume until three years ago, when the house was closed by the State for a long overdue $5.5 million renovation. Not a showy guy, Rogers built a rustic wood-framed home with a shingle roof and a verandah that looked out over the sweeping lawn, which served his golfer friends in Rogers’ time. Polo and roping were his games. Will loved the ranch ‘ “It was the joy of his life,” Betty wrote. At home, either on his ranch in Oklahoma or California, he always enjoyed riding horseback, roping steers or playing polo, said his biographer Joseph Carter. “He would scratch his head, grin and quip that he figured there was something wrong with anybody that didn’t like a horse.” Inside and out, Will’s ranch mirrors his passions. When he renovated the house by raising the living room ceiling 14 feet, it allowed him to practice roping indoors and to increase the space to fit his Monterey-style furniture, and art collection. The family lived at the ranch at the height of Will’s career. He was the star of Broadway and 71 movies of the 1920s and 1930s; a popular broadcaster, besides writing more than 4,000 syndicated newspaper columns and befriending presidents, senators and kings. And his house was filled with mementos that included Western paintings and etchings by his friends Charles Russell and Ed Borein, Navajo rugs, Argentine bolas, Native American costumes worn by his kids and animal trophies. Rogers adapted his ranch house to his work and his family. His nephew Tom Milam recalled his uncle Will when he was about 12. “Uncle Will would be up about 5 or 6 to go to the studio, come home for lunch, then saddle up and rope until dinner time in the arena at the ranch.” Tom learned to rope with his uncle, who also taught his father how to rope. He remembers Will as being in “superb athletic shape, a fine horseman. “The most quiet I ever saw him was when he was reading the paper. And he read all the papers he could get his hands on.” Extensive work on the ranch house began in earnest in the fall of 2005 with major upgrades to protect it from the damaging forces of nature’ water, fire and earth quake. The drainage system has been rebuilt, sheer wall for fire protection was installed under the cedar batten and board ranch walls, and a climate control system was installed to protect the artifacts. Betty Rogers deeded the ranch house and surrounding 186.5 acres of rugged canyons and hillsides to the State in 1944 with the proviso that the state would maintain the structures and grounds as a memorial to Rogers, or revert back to the family. Years of stretched state budgets and neglect began to take a toll on the property, and in 2001 Chuck Rogers, Will’s grandson, threatened to sue the state for neglecting the property. The crises was averted when the state launched the extensive restoration that will culminate at the end of the month. Museum curator Rochelle Nicholas-Booth has been working with more than 100 experts on the project. Architects, planners, engineers, construction workers, interpretive specialists and members of the family have contributed to bringing the house back to its earliest period between 1930 and 1935. In order to accommodate the thousands of visitors the ranch enjoys each year, State Parks will renovate the existing museum and refresh the displays. The massive project is the result of a multi-years study that also includes stabilizing the hay barn, historic stable, carpenter shop and guest house. State officials look forward to reacquainting visitors with the ranch. “This was the home of one of America’s most beloved national figures,” said Ruth Coleman, state parks director. “Our children need to learn this story.” The public is invited to the reopening on March 25 at 10 a.m. where they will witness a reenactment of the 1944 ceremony in which the Rogers’ family handed over the deed to the estate to the people of California. The day will also include tours of the home and grounds and a cornerstone laying ceremony by the Masons at Jimmy’s Barn.
Nancy Covey’s Down Home Trip Rejoices in Cajun Country
Music speaks from the heart, shoulders pain and trumpets joy. And there is certainly no better example than the American idiom: jazz, bluegrass, folk and Cajun. Music soothes in times of stress like war and economic hardship, and blooms with love for people and the land. Palisadian Nancy Covey, a lifelong folk music devotee and concert impresario, has decided to carry through with her annual music tour to the New Orleans jazz festival and Cajun country, almost because of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. “These musicians need to feel not forgotten,”Covey says. “They are the heart and soul of New Orleans and need to be encouraged to come back and play.” Covey grew up listening to folk music’Odetta, Bob Dylan and The Kingston Trio. “I was always a folkie; my mom and I would listen to music while we cleaned the house.” After Covey graduated from college, she slummed, traveled and serendipitously landed a job at McCabe’s in Santa Monica, where she had enjoyed the concerts over the years and got to know some people. Strapped for money, she told Bobby Kimmel, who started the concerts at McCabe’s, that she needed a job; she’d clean his house. That lasted a short while, until he commandeered her to help him stage a Doc Watson performance in Santa Barbara. Soon she was making $75 a week, which was good money for a 20-year-old in 1974. In no time, she was organizing concerts for McCabe’s, which entailed scouring music festivals around the country for talent. “I booked musicians like John Hyatt, John Lee Hooker in the days before a lot of bands knew they could play a solo acoustic concert,” Covey recalls. “I Remember Flaco Jimenez played, and a little band who called themselves Los Lobos del Este de Los Angeles said they’d play for free.” Los Lobos became friends and later in 1984 played for Covey’s marriage to guitarist Richard Thompson. Covey stayed at McCabe’s for 10 years, and during that time packed them in. Warren Zevon, Jennifer Warnes, T-Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello, Van Dyke Parks and Jackson Brown all showed up to Covey’s going-away party concert at the club. While Covey was at McCabe’s, she started Festival Tours, which was a natural outgrowth of her excursions to music festivals, where she’d talk musicians into coming to perform at the club. “My first tour was to the Vancouver Music Festival. We stayed at the hotel with the musicians, rode the shuttle to the site, and that’s what we still do. I even made it to the New Orleans Jazz Festival when Jack was five months old, and I was breast feeding.” Jack is an eighth grader at Crossroads, who “would spend the whole day playing bass if he could.” The Louisiana trip is set from April 27 through May 4, with a second weekend add-on for the final weekend of music at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Covey has structured the two weeks as an “insider’s trip to Louisiana.” Not knowing what events would unfold six months ago, she booked a hotel in the French Quarter, just behind Jackson Square for the first weekend. The group will have tickets for two days of the festival, and a third day on their own so they can explore New Orleans. The tempo changes with a visit to the swamps of the Louisiana bayous, Cajun Country. One night, the guests will be invited to the home of the zydeco musician Geno Delafose, whose band has been voted Best Zydeco Band in Louisiana. On another afternoon they’ll partake in the annual crawfish boil at Marc and Ann Savoy’s country home. “This is one of the great parties of certainly my year and now theirs,” Covey says. “It’s not open to the public, but only friends and neighbors of Marc and Ann’s will join those on the tour.” The couple are central figures in the revival and tradition of Cajun music. The 700,000 Cajuns in South Louisiana are descendants of French Canadians, who by refusing to pledge allegiance to the British crown, which required them to renounce Catholicism, were forced to flee their homes, and eventually settled along the bayous of south central and south western Louisiana, where they could live according to their own beliefs and customs. Today, Cajuns are famous for their unique French dialect (a patois of 18th-century French), their music and their spicy cooking. They continue to preserve their folk customs, which include the old-fashioned crawfish boil. Covey’s friendship with many of these musicians over the years makes the tour intimate and very local. “My tour is for people who don’t take tours,” she says. “I started this tour for friends, not for the cruise types.” For those interested in Covey’s Louisiana Music Tour, call Nancy Covey at 454-4080 or e-mail to festtours@aol.com.
Marjorie M. Hegener, 88; A Corpus Christi Founder
Marjorie Mabie Hegener, a former 51-year resident of Pacific Palisades, passed away peacefully in her sleep on February 27. She was 88, and had lived in Claremont the past four-and-a-half years. Born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Marjorie moved with her husband Joe to Pacific Palisades in 1950. They were founding members of Corpus Christi Catholic Church the following year. Actively involved in a variety of Catholic Church-related philanthropic activities, Marjorie was a lifelong member of the Holy Communion Guild and with her daughters was active in the National Charity League. She served for many years as secretary of the Dunning Foundation and had a longtime devotion to the Sisters of the Social Service and to their mission among the poor. She served with both the Juniors of the Social Service and the Social Service Auxiliary in virtually every office and was a driving force behind the annual Presentation Ball, where both of her daughters and five of her granddaughters were presented. A member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre and a Dame in the Knights of Malta, Marjorie was sustained in her life by her unwavering trust in God and by her heartfelt motto of ‘Faith, Family and Friends Forever.” She was honored with the ‘Spiritus” award by the Social Service Auxiliary in 2002. She was preceded in death by her husband Joseph L. Hegener, who passed away in 1988. Survivors include her son Paul J. (Pete) Hegener and his wife Denise of Vero Beach, Florida; daughters Mary Jo Bernard (husband John) of Salida, Colorado, and Susan Parrish (husband John) of Smith Mountain, Lake Virginia; and her brother Dr. Richard Mabie (wife Kitty) of Claremont. She is also survived by nine grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. There will be a Rosary said for Marjorie at 7 p.m. on March 21, at the Claremont Chapel, 325 N. Indian Hill Blvd., Claremont, and the funeral service on March 22 at 10 a.m., at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church in Claremont. Immediately following the funeral service, she will join her beloved husband at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Marjorie’s memory will be welcomed by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation at 5005 LBJ Freeway, Suite 250, Dallas, TX 75244.
