For Patrick Curtis and his pals at St. Charles School, that April Fools’ Day would be one they would never forget: Hopalong Cassidy and Montie Montana were going to put on a Western show right in the schoolyard.
Stories I Never, Ever Told My Mom
Long ago, kids had a lot less to worry about — but that doesn’t mean they didn’t get into plenty of trouble while growing up in midcentury Toluca Lake, as Patrick Curtis reveals in these anecdotes.
Audie, the Colt and Me
Legendary World War II veteran Audie Murphy plays a major role in Patrick Curtis’ charming childhood memories about horsing around the neighborhood in the 1950s.
Dracula vs. Toluca Lake’s Little Wild Bunch
Surrounded by a high wall capped with broken bottles stood the home of Dracula! Bela Lugosi had lived in this strange house on Whipple Street for as long as we could remember.
The Real Heroes of Our Youth
Some of us may remember when our Toluca Lake community and world were turned sideways by another virus: polio.
Clark Gable, the Smoke House and the Roadster of Doom
It was a hot, sticky Saturday in July 1949. By 1:30 or so, there was a whole posse of cowboy actors heading to their favorite watering hole, the Smoke House Restaurant.