@esotouric.bsky.social
Just a couple of lifers looking out for Los Angeles. Join us for architecture, crime, literature & history tours, preservation battles. Newsletter: http://esotouric.substack.com
Councilmember Curren Price will be back in Judge Larry Paul Fidler's courtroom on Friday, April 10 to be arraigned.
In January, councilmember Curren Price took leave from City Hall for a 6-day preliminary hearing on public corruption charges; Judge Torrealba ruled he'd stand trial. At 10am (Foltz Dept 106 9th fl) Judge Fidler arraigns.
Much more to come--stay tuned!
esotouric.substack.com/thepriceisri...
For shame! After the paperboy in the General Otis group was stolen, the Los Angeles Times publisher's last companions were the worldly ladies sculpted by Prince Paul Troubetzkoy. Their beauty was otherworldly. But the cops won't enforce AB 476 and the city is much uglier for it.
Heads up, corruption watchers: councilmember Curren Price's case is back on the docket with Friday's 10am arraignment before Judge Larry P. Fidler. esotouric.substack.com/thepriceisri...
Does he intend to fight or plead out? “I’m not gonna resign with a felony, no.” www.youtube.com/live/1kt1qfm...
On Saturday, join us on a stroll through Franklin Village Old Hollywood, to discover holy temples and literary landmarks, crime scenes and architectural marvels, and to celebrate the preservation of Monastery of the Angels--the reason we wrote this tour! esotouric.com/event/frankl...
On March 21, Victorian Bunker Hill shimmers back into view on a very special walking tour with historian Nathan Marsak and native son Gordon Pattison. Before riding Angels Flight, you can get a signed book or zine as a souvenir of a real time travel trip. bunkerhilllosangeles.com/2026/03/07/b...
On the anniversary of Charles Bukowski's passing, here's an angel's eye view of the gritty Westlake neighborhood that shaped him as a man and a writer. Thanks to The Artery LA for capturing this stunning dronescape.
Explore Hank's haunts with us on 5/9. esotouric.com/event/charle...
No longer on Taft, this charming Craftsman is now in pieces, being stitched together with salvaged beams from a fine Beverly Hills home for the next century of happy use. It no longer greets the dawn, now facing south, not east. Hollywood's loss is Altadena's and all our gain.
First stop on our Film Noir/ Real Noir tour was the Bradbury Building, where the winds had peeled a slice of the original sandstone facade and dropped it on the Broadway sidewalk. Delicate little treasure, it now lives on our rare L.A. titles bookshelf.
Today! We've got room for YOU on the Film Noir / Real Noir walk, departing Grand Central Market at 10:30am bound for time capsule locations that bring a lost and sinister Downtown Los Angeles into view. Is it motion picture magic, or an actual crime scene? esotouric.com/event/film-n...
Wind damaged signage repair update: with his neon charged, vintage mascot Speedee at the National Register Downey McDonald's seems eager to get a hot apple pie to you while it's still sizzling!
Our special guest on Saturday's Film Noir / Real Noir tour is Bunker Hill native son Gordon Pattison, who can hold the door knob from the lost Victorian mansion The Castle and honestly say "I know I have touched this before!" esotouric.com/event/film-n...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8Y9...
Saturday on the Film Noir / Real Noir tour: how did Jack Webb catch the forensic science bug, and what's the connection to L.A.'s hidden tunnel network, Ray Bradbury and perfect chicken feathers? You'll find out on this time travel trip! esotouric.com/event/film-n...
Bob Blumenfield moves to send Barry Building demolition appeal back to PLUM with City Attorney feedback after he allowed it to be voted out of committee with no quorum and Brown Act violations. Will all five members show up, listen and DEBATE?!
Today at LA City Council: Barry Building appeal reheard. Don't allow demolition of a landmark (allegedly) for no new project! esotouric.substack.com/p/barrybuild...
Was the PLUM vote voided by Nithya Raman and Bob Blumenfield yapping over Native American public comment? youtu.be/AWULjrfpSgM?...
The Carlton Way tenants are fighting the city's wrongful demolition of their block of historic RSO multi-family housing for a massive compound that includes tens of thousands of feet of luxury co-working space. Background esotouric.substack.com/carltonway Help them! www.instagram.com/carltonserra...
6:30pm on Zoom, a presentation from Homeboy Industries to HUNC about their plans to activate and preserve Monastery of the Angels, including a Q&A segment. hollywoodunitednc.org/2026/03/02/p...
We've advocated to keep the landmark intact and in use. Eager to hear more. esotouric.com/monastery/
When Cole's first announced it was closing, we urged the owners to find a buyer to keep the oldest Downtown restaurant alive.
esotouric.substack.com/coles
Now after months of a long goodbye, March 29 is the final day... before new operators take over!
la.eater.com/restaurant-c...
WHOA! Los Angeles City Council consent vote rejects Barry Building appeal--but Marqueece Harris-Dawson brings it back for reconsideration, makes Traci Park 2nd. Why? PLUM was a mess: Brown Act, quorum, Blumenfield and Raman talking during public comment.
esotouric.substack.com/p/melrose-ba...
Los Angeles history is our obsession, and we'd love to take you on an immersive time travel trip:
WALKS:
Film Noir / Real Noir (3/7)
Franklin Village Old Hollywood (3/14)
Bunker Hill Dead or Alive (3/21)
Know Your Downtown LA (3/28)
Private tours, too!
esotouric.com
What a kick to see Desmond Shaw's SKYCAL flyover of Times Mirror Square. Confessed racketeer Jose Huizar rewrote our landmark nomination so his donors could tear part of it down. But it's still here, and would be a great home for a scrappy newsroom! www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAG5...
Scoop: As redevelopment begins at the Rancho Los Amigos Poor Farm Cemetery, a ground penetrating radar survey shows regular rows consistent with burials. LA County falsely claims there are no burial records. Rev. Dylan reads the names of the dead out loud. esotouric.substack.com/names
Saturday's tour is all shadows, bullets, blondes and saps. Film Noir / Real Noir illuminates the genre's locations and true crime inspirations and reveals a very saucy reason that Raymond Burr was delighted to be cast in Joseph Losey's remake of "M"! esotouric.com/event/film-n...
Live on KFI's Monks & Merrill at 1pm: Angelenos For Historic Preservation talk about their appeal to stop the city granting a demolition permit for the landmarked, billionaire owned Barry Building--for no new project. kfiam640.iheart.com/featured/mon...
More esotouric.substack.com/p/melrose-ba...
LA City Planning has ignored the opposition of councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, the Melrose bungalow tenants and many concerned citizens, and moves to allow conversion of 10 RSO units in Virgil Village to tiny houses for sale--or listing on Airbnb! esotouric.substack.com/melrose-barry
Two dangerous land use decisions from Los Angeles City Hall... one made in secret, the other in silence
esotouric.substack.com/melrose-barry
Barry Building PLUM debacle/1920s bungalow courts are among the most desirable LA apartments. City Planning just put a target on every tenants' back.
We all love seeing old Bunker Hill play a vice zone in classic film noir, but for neighborhood historian Nathan Marsak, even the half-redeveloped 1990s plateau has its charms--so he sat through Ken Russell's "Whore" to find them! Don't miss the puke stone. bunkerhilllosangeles.com/2026/03/01/b...
Checking in on the towering National Register Speedee mascot sign at the Downey McDonald's, which we've been advocating to have properly restored after unpermitted work. Good: wind-damaged plastic panels repaired, neon mostly working. Bad: those severed legs still look horrible!
We have room for YOU on today's Weird West Adams tour, packed with fascinating tales and gorgeous houses, a visit to the ashram where Leonard Cohen sought peace and the first chance to visit the Elmer McCurdy sideshow museum this year--with new exhibits! esotouric.com/event/weird-...
New urban infrastructure mapping project:
Let's Find Lost Tunnels Under Los Angeles!
esotouric.substack.com/tunnels