Fun in SoCal !

Those of us who were lucky enough to spend at least a part of our childhoods in Southern California had a lot of options when you wanted to have some good clean fun with your family. Here are just a few...

I love this awesome shot of the entrance to the California Alligator Farm in Buena Park (right next to Knott's)! The undated photo is from the mid-to-late 50's. Check out the sign - "Drop In"! Back in those days it really was a kind of road-side attraction. My family went there a few times when I was a kid, and there was something strangely fascinating about those scaly reptiles; you realized that they'd be perfectly happy to eat you if they had the chance. Did you know that alligators are only native to the United States and China?


One of my favorite places in L.A. is the wonderful Griffith Observatory. Why, I was just there a few months ago! Even if you don't go into the observatory (which is free, so why wouldn't you?), the view alone is worth the trip. You can see miles and miles of the city, all the way to the ocean - on a clear day of course. This photo (probably from around 1957) shows a great sign that is long-gone. You may remember the lady in this picture, who we previously saw miniature golfing.


There's the RMS "Queen Mary", you can still visit the ocean-liner-turned-tourist-attraction (seen here in April, 1972) at its permanent berth in Long Beach. Take a tour and check out the art deco splendor, and get a feel for what it was like to cross the Atlantic in luxury (and long before air travel was common). I have some early-70's photos from aboard the ship if anybody cares to see them!


From 1966, here is the sign for Marineland of the Pacific, formerly in beautiful Palos Verdes. The leaping Pilot Whale ("Bubbles"?) and couple of Common Dolphins make for a striking tableau. A stylized spray of water (resembling a whale's exhalation) also forms the letter "M". Marineland has been closed for many years, and although buildings remained up until fairly recently, I've read that all traces have been torn down for a new luxury development.