Hello world!

Hi. My name is E.J. Stephens, and I, like many of you, now have a blog. … But you already knew that. (That’s what turns me on about ya’ - your attention to detail!)*

I know our time together is limited, so I will briefly tell you some of the things that interest me. I am an unapologetic fan of my family; I love the Beatles, baseball, and Boingo … plus lots more things that don’t start with B.

I’m a true history geek. I have spent a great deal of time studying it, exploring the sites where famous things happened, and now writing about it. I have done tons of traveling, and have accomplished some cool things, like climbing Kilimanjaro, riding a recumbent bicycle across the United States, and backpacking through 40 countries - but we have plenty of time to talk about that later.

Since I work in a Hollywood studio, I consider myself a film buff (with a pile of unsold screenplays to prove it). I host a film series in Newhall, California, and teach classes on film history – when I’m not busy fighting crime.

In this blog I will tell you what the California Stephens clan is all about, what we are up to, and the stuff we think is cool. I do lots of writing, so I will link to the stories I have done, some of the background on those posts, and some of the things I have in the works.

Criticize liberally, but kindly, since I have very thin skin (and hair).

ejs

*special thanks to Ace Ventura.

The Tapho Files #4

This wasn’t a dead weekend – it was a “mostly dead” weekend.

On Saturday, I went back to the Pioneer Cemetery in Sylmar to get some pictures for an article I’m writing. Pioneer was the cemetery used in Plan Nine From Outer Space – the greatest bad movie of all time – and is only open on the third Saturday of the month. I met two delightful sisters there, Jacky Walker and Alma Wade, who are members of the San Fernando Historical Society, which oversees the cemetery. They confirmed that Plan Nine was indeed filmed there, and Alma has actually purchased a brick for Bela Lugosi in the memorial courtyard to let the world know about the connection. I will be going back this week to meet with Jacky, with the portable DVD player in hand, to do a scene-by-scene survey of the film to match it up with actual cemetery locations. The ladies hope to use this information for future tours, and hopefully, for a screening of the film at the cemetery.

Bela's brick at the filming site of his "masterpiece."

Alma Wade & Bela's brick

Alma (right) & her sister Jacky Walker later that night after getting all "zombified" for the march.

I rushed home to pick up my stepson and then sped to Universal Studios where he attended Halloween Horror Nights with some friends.

I made it back in time to go to downtown Newhall to meet with 600 of my closest “life-challenged” friends for a Zombie March. The March went from a comic book store in downtown Newhall to Heritage Junction inside the William S. Hart Park where the Heritage Haunt was going on. It was a gruesome looking crowd, but I had the distinct impression that lots of the marchers looked better with their makeup on than without it.

"We are the three dead amigos ..."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfytC-Vdwrk

Heritage Haunt gets better every year. They began two years ago by creating a wonderful haunted house (inside the Newhall Ranch House, which IS a haunted house. Ask anybody who regularly works there!) They have expanded their efforts to include much more of the property with new attractions like “Psycho’s Funhouse,” “Haunted Village,” “Desperado’s Haunted Hay Ride,” “Chewy’s Pirate Cove,” and a New World Dance presentation of “Sleepy Hollow.” It is fantastic! Hats off to Ed Marg and the rest of the Haunters. Believe me, it’s as good as the theme parks, and a lot cheaper!

http://scvhaunt.com/

Since we don’t have Boingo concerts to attend at Halloween anymore, we now have time to check out other October happenings. I would suggest the screenings of The Haunting next Saturday at the Alex Theatre in Glendale. It’s a cool film, and what makes this screening special is that psychic Michael Kouri will be on hand to introduce the audience to the ghosts that never left the building after their show closed.

http://www.alexfilmsociety.org/

Until next time …

Bob Mitchell “Plays” for the Dodgers

 

In July, the world lost a great talent, and we lost a great friend in Bob Mitchell. Here is a link to a video that is on YouTube from last year when we took Bob to Dodger Stadium on 7/11/08. He was the original organist when Dodger Stadium opened in 1962, and the Dodgers asked him to come back and play for the 7th Inning Stretch as part of their 50th anniversary in L.A. He also introduced the game from home plate (look for my gorgeous wife Kimi at his side). Bob was hoping to play again for them on his 100th birthday in 2012, but sadly he died this year on the 4th of July. We miss him dearly. (BTW, Andrew Roy made this video and posted it. Great job!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4-DBfMXNV0

The Tapho Files #3

To truly be a bad movie, I feel it has to be boring. That’s why I disagree with people when they say that Plan Nine From Outer Space is the worst film of all time. Far from it. While Plan Nine breaks every rule of good filmmaking: the story is ridiculous, the acting horrendous, the directing (by that angora sweater wearing auteur, Ed Wood) clownish; it is never boring. So, while it is a “bad” film in every way – deliciously awful in fact –  it has been able to transcend its badness to become a 50-year-old camp classic by never descending into boredom.

We showed Plan Nine last Saturday night at “Flickers at the Junction” in Newhall. We did a “Good Bela/Bad Bela” night by showing a twin-bill of Bela Lugosi films, starting with Dracula, followed by Plan Nine. The assumption by our guests was that Plan Nine was the “Bad Bela” portion of the evening. I felt otherwise, since of the two films, the only one that could be called boring is Dracula – there, I said it.

I got some good intel that night from one of the guys who was working on setting up “Halloween Haunt” outside of the Saugus Train Station where we showed the films. It turns out that he had recently visited the Pioneer Cemetery in Sylmar and learned that it was the one that appeared in Plan Nine.

The next day I drove through the Newhall Pass over to Sylmar and found the cemetery. It was locked up, but did look like the place. I had brought the DVD along with a portable player, but the batteries were dead, so I couldn’t confirm. I’m embarrassed to say that I went back two other times and had similar problems, so I wasn’t able to match up the cemetery with the scenes of the DVD. Yesterday, I went back with Kimi and a new set of batteries, and although it was misty and the hills were partially covered, we got the confirmation we needed. We also learned that there is a cleanup going on at the boneyard this Saturday. I will be there, DVD in hand, to get some pictures for an upcoming post.

(BTW, Plan Nine’s star Tor Johnson is buried here in Newhall. Check out my article on Eternal Valley Cemetery for pictures.)

Until next time …

The Tapho Files #2

On Monday, Kimi and I went to Burbank to have lunch with our Disney and Warner Bros. friends at the neutral site of Islands. Afterwards, we motored over to the WB studios to take up our posts as docents at the Warner Bros. Museum. All of the other docents are retirees, but since Kimi and I didn’t retire but were outsourced from the studio, we are the only non-septuagenarian docents in Warner Bros. Museum history.

I took up my post on the first floor by the original Maltese Falcon statue (“the stuff dreams are made of”) and the piano used in Casablanca. The statue has always been protected under Plexiglas, but this was not the case for the piano for the first month that we were there. It was out sharing the same airspace with me and all the thousands of tourists who pour through the museum as part of the WB VIP Tours. I wanted to be the first line of defense between it and the fingers of anyone who believed that the price of admission included the touch of a holy relic of filmdom. Since then it has been placed under Plexiglas, and it no longer needs me for protection, but I like to think, for company. So this is where I stand. (BTW, the piano is less than four-feet high and has 54 keys. It is painted burnt orange with a floral pattern on the front. From what I understand, WB doesn’t actually own it, but it is on long-term loan from a collector. As for the Falcon, they know it is the original because it was dropped during filming (it weighs 43 lbs.) and the tail feather was bent. It also bears the scratches that Sydney Greenstreet put on it in the movie.)

Kimi spent most of our two-hour shift on the second floor in the Harry Potter exhibit. For HP fans everywhere, this room is the Holy of Holies. Inside, you find the Sword of Gryffindor, the Goblet of Fire, the Triwizard Cup, original artwork from the books, a giant spider from the second film, Harry’s room under the stairs, Tom Riddle’s diary, and dozens of other costumes and treasures from the non-Muggle world. Kimi usually stations herself near the sorting hat. This hat is one of the original five used in the films. Tour guests sit on a stool (also from the films) while Kimi places the hat over their heads. The voice of the hat appears from a speaker overhead, and the guests get sorted into one of the four Hogwarts houses (In reality, one of the three Hogwarts houses, because there is no sound clip from any of the films of someone being placed into Ravenclaw, so no one on the tour goes there.) We all have the soundtrack memorized by now, and know who is going where before the guests do. This helps us to know when a person is about to need some consoling by being sorted into Slytherin. (Incidentally, some people get really shaken by being placed there and insist on being re-sorted!)

When our shift ended we left the lot by way of the Forest Lawn gate and went across the street to visit Buster Keaton, an old friend who we never met. Buster has resided since 1966 at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills Cemetery along with several thousand of his closest friends. A couple of those nearby friends are Marty Feldman and Stan Laurel, who shared Buster’s love of comedy during life, and real estate in death.

Kimi and I came to see Buster regularly during our WB days. We hadn’t been to visit since leaving WB, and this day was a significant one for us. We lost a good friend of ours this year, the legendary organist and choir director Bob Mitchell. Bob accompanied several silent films for a series I host in Newhall called “Flickers at the Junction.” He first played for us in 2007 for Buster’s classic Civil War-comedy The General. We had him scheduled to play for the same film again on July 11, but he passed away a week earlier. Monday would have been Bob’s 97th birthday. We didn’t have time to actually visit his grave at Hollywood Forever that day, so we were at Forest Lawn to say hello through a mutual friend.

Until tomorrow…

Buster on a rainy day

Kimi at Buster’s Grave

George seems to be pointing at Buster

Kimi and Stan

What hump? Marty Feldman’s grave

Ray Collins’s grave. He played Lt. Tragg on “Perry Mason.” It says so right on his plaque.

Red Barry’s grave, near Buster. He starred in the “Red Ryder” serials. He committed suicide in 1980.

The Tapho Files #1

Today I am starting a new feature called “The Tapho Files.” This is a play on the word “taphophile,” which is one of the descriptions that can truthfully be used on me. Here is a brief definition of a taphophile from the horse’s (meaning Wikipedia’s) mouth.

“A passion for, and enjoyment of cemeteries … involves epitaphs, grave rubbing, photography, art, and history of (famous) deaths.”

This pretty much describes me. I love finding famous graves, and have traveled the world doing it. I am lucky to live in Southern California where every cemetery (just about) contains the remains of someone of note. I’m often struck by how some world famous people can be housed for eternity behind memorials the size of a postcard (Humphrey Bogart is a prime example), while the forgotten rich of previous eras can have monuments that would make pharaohs drool (check out the island at Hollywood Forever). I seek out famous graves for the excitement of finding lost treasures, and to be reminded that even fame and wealth are no insurance policy against the “Great Leveler” who will eventually invite us all to the eternity dance. It helps to kick my lazy butt into action.

I should point out that I am no fan of funerals, death, or necrophilia. Neither do I see a cemetery as a place to pick up chicks - like in Wedding Crashers - although knowing what strange animals we humans are, it probably works.

Until tomorrow…

Cynthia & Ms. Baines

42,000 days, 6,000 weeks, over 1,000,000 hours – any way you add it up, Ms. Gertrude Baines has lived a loooong time! On Monday, April 6, 2009, she turned 115-years-old and was certified by Guinness as the World’s Oldest Living Person.

Linda Bell, right, and Cynthia Thompson, left, of the Western Convalescent Hospital in Los Angeles, with 114-year-old Gertrude Baines behind.

I got to spend some time with her a few weeks earlier. We didn’t actually meet, because she slept through the interview (which was her right at nearly 115!), but it did afford me a chance to speak with Cynthia Thompson, her caregiver. Cynthia, who is 45, and Ms. Baines have a very close and special relationship. I truly believe it’s a big part of why she hangs around.

Cynthia Thompson looks in on Gertrude Baines, 114, the oldest documented person in the world.

BTW – Kimi and I were invited back for Ms. Baines’ birthday party. There were about 200 media people, photographers, elected officials, and well-wishers there. Again, we didn’t get to meet Ms. Baines, but we were able to leave her a gift – a sweater (Cynthia told us that she loves sweaters). Imagine our surprise when on the following morning we received a phone call from Cynthia telling us that Ms. Baines loved her sweater and that she wanted to thank us personally! Moments later, a true ‘voice from the past’ came on the phone and said in a shaky tone, “Thank you for the sweater, I really like it, and I needed one.”

What can I say, but WOW!

cynthia-and-ms-baines

Down the Road to Eternity

James Dean billboard located at the site of his last stop 20 minutes before his fatal crash.

The death of James Dean was a pivotal moment in film and cultural history.  A few months ago, Kimi and I, along with our pal Alan Pollack, traced his final day. Here is an article about James Dean’s final ride, which was published in The Signal in Valencia, California.

down-the-road-to-eternity

On February 28, 2009, former CHP officers Ernie Tripke and Ron Nelson appeared in Newhall, along with a panel of writers and filmmakers, co-sponsored by the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society and the William S. Hart Park. The purpose of the panel was to try to learn conclusively if James Dean stopped in Newhall on his final day of September 30, 1955. Check out this film made by Leon Worden of SCVTV.COM about Dean’s final day, as well as the raw footage of the panel discussion. Retired CHP officer Otie Hunter, who issued Dean a speeding ticket an hour before he crashed, also appears in the video.

 www.scvtv.com/html/scvhs021509btv.html

www.scvtv.com/html/scvhs022809-1of2btv.html

At the Birth of a Legend

Retired CHP officers Ernie Tripke, left, and Ron Nelson, right, discuss the death of James Dean in Newhall, California on Feb. 28, 2009.

Retired CHP officers Ernie Tripke and Ron Nelson are great guys, and great friends. They have known each other for 60 years, and spent three decades working together on the force. They made thousands of traffic stops during their careers, and were on the scene at hundreds of accidents. But one car crash in particular, which they investigated in 1955, forever changed their lives and made Hollywood and cultural history. See, Ernie and Ron were the lead investigators for the accident that claimed the life of James Dean.

(This article was originally published in The Signal in Valencia, California.)

birth-of-a-legend

On February 28, 2009, Ernie and Ron appeared in Newhall, along with a panel of writers and filmmakers, co-sponsored by the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society and the William S. Hart Park. The purpose of the panel was to try to learn conclusively if James Dean stopped in Newhall on his final day of September 30, 1955. Check out this film made by Leon Worden of SCVTV.COM about Dean’s final day, as well as the raw footage of the panel discussion.

www.scvtv.com/html/scvhs021509btv.html

www.scvtv.com/html/scvhs022809-1of2btv.html

Cinema History ‘lives on’ in Eternal Valley

"Plan Nine From Outer Space's" Tor Johnson is one of Eternal Valley's "permanent residents."

This is an article that was recently published in The Signal in Valencia, California, about Eternal Valley Cemetery in Newhall. It’s a neat place to visit if, like me, you are into classic rock and rollers like Gene Vincent, and bad movie “stars” like Tor Johnson. Give it a look.

http://www.the-signal.com/news/article/11560/

Latino Rocker Ritchie Valens Still Remembered 50 Years after ‘Day the Music Died’

Fans remember Latino rocker Ritchie Valens on the 50th anniversary of the 'Day the Music Died'.

Ritchie Valens was only 17-years-old when he crashed in the same plane that claimed the lives of legendary rock and rollers Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper.

"The Day the Music Died is the day I wish had never come" reads a note placed on Ritchie Valens' grave on the 50th anniversary of his death.

But in his short life, he accomplished a lot. He had three solid hits with “Donna,” “La Bamba,” and “Come On, Let’s Go,” and he was well on his way to being the first Latino rock and roll superstar. Fifty years after the ‘day the music died’ Valens is still remembered by those who love his music and still wonder what might have been.

(This article was originally published in The Signal in Valencia, California.)

ritchie-valens