Free Post-Parade Concert

Features Top L.A. Musicians.

FOOD AND DRINK AVAILABLE.

Mix Carlos Santana and SteelyDan, salt it with Cal Tjader, pep-per it with a hot jazz trumpet,trombone and sax and you’ve gotL.A. Carpool — one of the steami-est salsa-jazz-rock sounds on theSouthern California music scene.

With English lyrics, Spanishbackground vocals and an origi-nal conga beat, the twelve-mem-

By CHRIS PRICEAssistant City Engineer,

City Of Santa Clarita.

Architects AreDeveloping ‘Old Town’

Style Streetscape.

Engineers Will DesignNew Traffic Pattern.

Old Town Newhall ischanging again. The first real“town” in the Santa ClaritaValley started changingbarely a moment after it ekedinto existence way back inthe late 19th Century. Just afew mouse-clicks away,inside the photo archives ofscvhistory.com, the curiouswill observe that Old TownNewhall has changed manytimes in its roughly one-

eighth of a millennium ofcontinuous settlement.

If you didn’t knowalready, looking at the famil-iar-feeling, black-and-whitephotographs and reading evena few of the accompanyingstories will reveal the realfolks whose names appear ona good majority of the streetsigns in today’s Newhall.

If you tour Newhalltoday, you will find that the

city of Santa Clarita and thecommunity have been stead-ily adding amenities over thelast two decades. The JanHeidt Newhall MetrolinkStation — located right wherethe old Newhall Depot usedto be — helped facilitate therealignment and expansion ofRailroad Avenue. Both mustcontinue to accommodatemore and more of our com-muters — who don’t cur-

rently make the time to stopin Newhall often enough ontheir way to and from workoutside of town.

The new Veterans Mem-orial Plaza and CommunityCenter, each acting as abookend to the center of OldTown by way of MarketStreet, are already servingthe pleased residents of theneighborhood.

JULY-AUGUST 20065 CENTS YEAR 12, NUMBER 4

By LEON WORDENChairman, Santa Clarita Parade Committee.

Newhall’s Independence Day Tradition Continues.

Veteran Western actor Morgan Woodward(“Cool Hand Luke,” “Dallas”) will lead the 75thanniversary Santa Clarita Fourth of July Paradethrough the streets of Newhall on Tuesday, July 4.

Hollywood notables to serve as division marshalsinclude 2006 Walk of Western Stars honoree AndrewPrine (“Have Gun, Will Travel,” “Gettysburg”), Westernleading lady Donna Martell (“Apache Rose,” “77 Sun-set Strip”) and a “float-load” of cast members from theHBO Series “Deadwood,” led by producer A.C. Lylesand child actress Bree Seanna Wall (Sofia Metz).

The parade kicks off in front of Hart Park at9:45 a.m., traveling up San Fernando Road, turning

Changes Are Part Of Newhall’s History.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 18.

EPOCHAL CHANGE: OLD TOWN NEWHALL WASN’T THE SAME PLACE IN THE 1890s (Left) THAT IT WAS IN THE 1920s (SecondPhotograph) OR THE 1940s (Third Photograph). TODAY (Right) IT BEARS LITTLE RESEMBLANCE, AND MORE CHANGES ARE COMING.

75 Years: A New Frontier.Rock To The Salsa Beat.

L.A. CARPOOL’S GLORIA T.MORGAN WOODWARD. CONTINUED ON PAGE 10.CONTINUED ON PAGE 11.

Summer may be a time forrest and relaxation, but notfor the folks at City Hall.Summer, for them, is a timeto gear up for the onslaughtof new business they’ll facein September and October.

For the staffers who aretasked with implementing theDowntown Newhall SpecificPlan, summer vacations areeffectively canceled. Comefall, the wheels should alreadybe in motion to change thestreetscape and traffic flowthrough Old Town Newhall.

As we’ve been reporting,Old Town Newhall is going tobe a different place. Plans areafoot to develop a historic pre-servation ordinance so thatour heritage isn’t lost, but ma-ny of the physical characteris-tics of the town will change.

Most noticeably, San Fer-nando Road will no longer bea major arterial thoroughfarecarrying high volumes of traf-fic. Within the Old Town sec-tion, San Fernando Road willbe narrowed to two lanes,ending in a “T” intersection atLyons Avenue. The arterialroadways will be NewhallAvenue, carrying trafficthrough to Valencia, and Rail-road Avenue, carrying trafficthrough to Saugus.

Some streets will get newnames, as well. The Old Townportion of San Fernando Roadfrom 5th Street to Lyons willbe called “Main Street.” Southof the Old Town, from 5th toHighway 14, today’s San Fer-nando Road will be called“Newhall Avenue.” North ofthe Old Town, from Lyons toroughly Magic MountainParkway, today’s San Fernan-do Road will be called “Rail-road Avenue.”

These changes won’t hap-pen overnight — or even thisyear — but much of the engi-neering will be done over thesummer.

The other major undertak-ing this summer pertains to theNorth Newhall area. Most of itis undeveloped — that big, va-cant area east of San FernandoRoad between 13th Street andthe Circle J development thatyou might know as the “Cow-boy Festival parking lot.”

In the past few months, theproject area has expanded toinclude the future connectionof Lyons Avenue and Dock-weiler Road in Placerita Can-yon. It has also expanded toencompass the businesses onthe west side of San FernandoRoad between 14th Street andthe Wiley-Princessa bridge.

What should this two-hun-dred thirteen-acre area be-come? Homes? Businesses?Baseball stadium? Landfill?Just kidding. Seriously, thecity recognizes that “what-ever” shouldn’t be allowed tohappen. “Whatever” is whathappened to Old Town New-hall and other parts of SantaClarita before the city wasborn in 1987 and started tak-ing a serious interest in goodplanning in recent years.

You will have a voice inwhat happens to the NorthNewhall area — and some of

your first opportunities to getinvolved are coming this sum-mer. The city is already meet-ing with North Newhall prop-erty owners, and on Wednes-day evening, August 2, the citywill hold a community work-shop to present an overviewof the project and listen toyour ideas (see story, page 18).

Then, over a period of sev-eral days in late September,the city and the consultingfirm of Moule & Polyzoides— the same firm that devel-oped the Downtown NewhallSpecific Plan — will hold anumber of “charettes” (smallgroup meetings) to solicitmore intense public input asthey put some teeth to theNorth Newhall Specific Plan.

It’s clear that some residentswere caught off-guard withcertain aspects of the Down-town Newhall Specific Plan.The local news media carriednumerous stories and the cityissued many press releases tosolicit public input — and still,some of the changes (such asthe street renaming and recon-figuration) have come as a sur-prise to some people.

If you’re reading this, you’renot one of those people. TheGazette was on hiatus duringthe development of the Down-town Newhall Specific Plan,but it’s back for the NorthNewhall Specific Plan. Eachedition of the Gazette reachesfifty thousand Santa ClaritaValley households and busi-nesses via The Signal newspa-per (with an additional distri-bution of five thousand), andwe’ll continue to update youas the plan unfolds.

On a personal note, youreditor is pleased to see thegrowth of the arts in OldTown Newhall. Particularlyexciting is the Canyon The-atre Guild’s decision to bringback “Fiddler on the Roof”with Mike Levine in the star-ring role (see story, page 17).

This writer remembers Le-vine’s magical portrayal Tevyein the CTG’s production of“Fiddler” eleven years ago atValencia High School. If youenjoy the film, you’re in for athrill. This is even is better.

With a cast of a hundred-plus, it’s too big a productionfor the Canyon Theatre Play-house in Old Town Newhall,so they’ll be staging it at theCollege of the Canyons Per-forming Arts Center, July 29through August 30. Don’t besurprised if there are de-mands for a holdover.

There During BuildingOf Tex Williams Home.

Dear Editor:I just read that they tore

down the Tex Williamshouse. My family moved toNewhall in 1958 and built ahouse on Cross Street next towhat is now Gibson Grove.

It seems like just yester-day when I was a kid andwatched them build the Wil-liams’ house in 1960 or so. Ithad a central atrium garden,something new at that time. Abunch of us kids would sneakover after the constructionpeople left and snoop around.I wish I had taken a picture,but I think I was too young fora camera back then.

JANET DOUTRE HARLESS,Eugene, Oregon.

Reader Has SuggestionFor Managing Parking.Dear Editor:

I have to object to theback-in angle parking pro-posed for the reconfigurationof San Fernando Road. Back-ing up is about the most dan-gerous thing that you can dowith a vehicle, particularlywhen you are obstructing theflow of traffic and backingagainst that flow.

It is much safer alwaysto go forward, since yourvisibility is much better. The

sketch (below), while reduc-ing the total number of park-ing places per block, allowsparking while always goingforward. My guess is thatthis would allow a smootherflow of traffic and result infewer accidents.

TOM HANSON,Newhall.

Couldn’t They Think OfA More Clever Name?

Dear Editor:“Main Street” is a ter-

ribly uninspired name, notto mention a not-so-subtleslap in the face to the Span-ish heritage of most of theresidents in the affectedarea. At least use somethinga little less generic. Why nothave a contest and let thepeople decide what to call(San Fernando Road)?

DAVE RICKMERS,Tick Canyon.

The Old Town Newhall Ga-zette welcomes your comments.Letters express the opinions oftheir authors and are not neces-sarily the opinions of Old TownNewhall USA or The Gazette.The publisher reserves the rightto edit or withhold materialsubmitted. Send letters to the e-mail address or post office boxat left below.

From TheMailbag.

2.

DISTRIBUTION: FIFTY-FIVE THOUSAND.

Send Correspondence To:

OLD TOWN NEWHALL USAPost Office Box 802993

Santa Clarita, Calif. 91380

letters@oldtownnewhall.com

VISIT OLD TOWN NEWHALLON THE INTERNET

www.oldtownnewhall.com

PUBLISHED IN COOPERATION WITHTHE SIGNAL NEWSPAPER.

©2006, OLD TOWN NEWHALL USA.

LEON WORDEN, Editor and Publisher.

EDITORIAL.

No SummerBreak For City.

TOM HANSON’S IDEA FOR DOWNTOWN PARKING.

Summer is prime time at the OldTown Newhall Farmers’ Market, heldevery Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.on San Fernando Road between 5thand 6th Streets. Shopping at theFarmers’ Market means you get thebest and freshest produce available,while supporting small local farmers.

This California Certified Farmers’Market is in full swing with stone fruitback in season. The name “stone fruit”refers to their large seeds and includesfruits such as peaches, plums, cher-ries, apricots and pluots.

Explore the delicious varieties thefarmers create that are only available insmall quantities direct from the grow-ers. Enjoy the opportunity to “tastetest” these delicious fruits and talk withthe enthusiastic farmers who offercooking tips and share their connectionto the land. There is also a wide varietyof traditional vegetables, as well asethnic specialties, heirloom tomatoesand a unique assortment of squash.

Certified Farmers’ Markets areinstrumental in preserving the diversityof California agriculture by providingmarketing outlets for the small acreagegrowers of heirloom, culinary, ethnic,organic and other specialty crops notusually grown on the large scale.

Farmers can afford to wait untilthe produce is tree-ripened beforepicking and bringing it to the market.Commercial produce brokers can’thandle ripe produce because it won’twithstand the stress and storage as itpasses through commercial marketingchannels. Once you experience thefull, intense flavor of vine-ripenedfruits and vegetables, you’ll be hooked.

Make it a family tradition to getoutside and enjoy Thursday after-noon and evenings at the Old TownNewhall Farmers’ Market everyThursday during summer. You’ll findconvenient adjacent parking.

3.

By PHILIP ELLISChairman, Newhall

Redevelopment Committee.

Revamped Web Presence Provides

Helpful Information For Residents,

Developers And Media.

It’s amazing, really, and I suppose ina way a bit ironic, given the historicnature of our community. But we’vemade the jump into the technologyage. Newhall is on the Internet.

Thanks to the city of Santa Clarita,in partnership with Gazette PublisherLeon Worden, everything you’ve everwanted to know about what’s happen-ing in Newhall is live and on theWorld Wide Web.

Using the Web site is as simple asturning on your computer and goingto www.oldtownnewhall.com. Thereis literally something for everyone onthe site, which is split into severalsections including:◆ Newhall News: This section of thesite contains all types of informationregarding what’s happening inNewhall — from social events to thearts, shopping and dining opportu-nities, historic resources and much,much more. Newhall News is yourway to stay on top of the scene inNewhall with just the click of a mouse.◆ Development: If you are a develop-er who is interested in investing in theNewhall area, or an interested businessowner or resident in the community,this section has a tremendous amountof information regarding the Down-town Newhall Specific Plan and how itwill enhance the neighborhood.◆ Old Town Newhall Gazette: Didyou miss a copy of the Gazette, orwould you like a free subscription?

This section of theWeb site allows any-one to examine pastGazette articles orsubscribe online. Withthis exciting feature,everyone can keep upto date on everythinghappening in Newhall.

◆ Press: If you are a member of thepress, we haven’t forgotten you. Thissection of the Web site allows membersof the media to attain a variety of differ-ent information regarding Old TownNewhall and the specific plan, as wellas upcoming events in the community.◆ Contact information: We under-stand that no printed material or Website can ever take the place of talkingto a person. This section will give youa direct link to staff members who willbe able to help you and answer anyquestions you might have about any-thing happening in Newhall. Again,they’re just a mouse click away.

As I’ve said in my previous messages,these truly are exciting times. Now,with the help of modern technology, alifetime of information is at our finger-tips. I encourage each of you to visit theWeb site and stay involved in the futureof our wonderful community.

Only through good communication,information sharing and partnershipcan our vision of the future become areality. There is no doubt in my mindthat the new Web site will be a com-plete success. Thanks again to the cityand Leon Worden for their hard work.

If you would like to be a part of thisexciting process, the Newhall Redevel-opment Committee meets on the firstMonday of every month at 7 p.m. Themeetings are held in City Hall, 23920Valencia Boulevard, in the CenturyConference Room. All members of thepublic are welcome to attend.

Visit Old Town Newhall24/7 On The Internet.

Stick To Fresh Fruit.Currently At The Market:◆ Vine & tree-ripened fruits and vegetables◆ Fresh cut flowers◆ Plain and candied nuts,seeds and roasted peanuts◆ Artisan breads and cookies◆ Fresh roasted chicken,potatoes, sweetpotatoes and corn◆ Homemade tamales◆ Handmade candy◆ Live Peruvian music◆ Free children’s arts and crafts projects◆ Friendly farmers

◆ Before The Parade:6:30 a.m. Equestrian staging begins atHeritage Junction (Hart Park).7 a.m. Newhall Rotary Club Pancake Breakfastin the Roger Dunn Golf parking lot on SanFernando Road betw. 5th and 6th streets.7 a.m. Parade registration opens (seescvparade.com for details).8 a.m. Street closures scheduled to takeplace (see scvparade.com for details).8:30 a.m. Equestrian judging at HeritageJunction (Hart Park).8:30 a.m. Santa Clarita Runners’ Kids Runstarting and ending at Newhall Park (seescrunners.org for details).

9 a.m. Santa Clarita Runners’ 5-K Run-Walkstarting and ending at Newhall Park (seescrunners.org for details).9:30 a.m. Parade registration closes.9:45 a.m. Parade begins.◆ After The Parade:Noon-2 p.m. Free concert in Newhall Parkwith L.A. Carpool.Approx. 9:15 p.m. City of Santa ClaritaFireworks Display at Westfield Valencia TownCenter, to be launched from the roof of theparking lot above Buca del Beppo restaurant(see santa-clarita.com/fourth for details).Also: Fireworks over Magic Mountain,Stevenson Ranch and Castaic Lake.

Fourth Of July Event Calendar.

By PATTI RASMUSSENGazette Correspondent.

Charlie Was In

Cowboy Heaven When

Country-Western Star

Moved To Maple Street.

NOW BOTH WILLIAMS AND

HIS HOUSE ARE GONE.

We were just newlywedswhen we moved into ourhome on Maple Street. Thethree-bedroom, two-bath,twenty-year-old home wasperfect for my fixer-upperhusband, and we were happyto settle in and start a family.

Homes in Happy Valleywere built on big lots. Many ofour neighbors had been therefor years. They all seemedmuch older than us, but we gotto know our neighbors quicklyas they were all friendly andanxious to welcome the newkids on the block.

Across the street, myhusband Charlie met twoguys with whom he wouldspend a lot of time. One wasMarty Fischer, a retiree whoworked on old cars — apassion of my husband. Martyhad a restored Pierce Arrowthat was his pride and joy.

Next door to Marty wasa family we would grow veryclose to: Tex and Dallas Willi-ams and their daughter,Sandi, who was just a fewyears younger than me.

Tex and Dallas moved in-to their Newhall home whentheir house in Bel Air burneddown. It had quite the 1960s“Rat Pack” kind of charm —low roof, lots of window.

Not being a huge CountryWestern fan, I hadn’t heardmany of Tex’s hits, but Charlie

was in cowboy heaven. Manyevenings, he would wanderover to Williams’ home andspend hours listening to stor-ies and have a drink with Tex.

Both Tex and Charliewere Jack Daniels aficionados.There were times I had to calland ask Dallas to send Charliehome. I still remember theirphone number to this day.

Our family grew quicklyon Maple Street. When ourthird son was born on Tex’sbirthday, I remember bothTex and Dallas thinking that“Tex Rasmussen” would be aheck of a name ... we namedhim Taylor.

We took a photograph ofTaylor and Tex on their birth-day and Taylor cried thewhole time. I think Tex’sgravely voice scared him.

Many memorable mo-ments were spent with thismost gracious gentleman.Tex and his band sang atCharlie’s thirtieth birthdayparty that was held in ourbackyard. We met some greatcharacters at their home,such as Cliffie Stone andNudie the tailor, who wasriding high on the CountryWestern fashion scene.

Not only did Tex buy Nu-die his first sewing machineby selling off his horse andtack; he also placed the firstorder by outfitting his twelve-piece band. We always knewwhen Nudie came to visit

because he parked his big,old Cadillac in the middle ofthe driveway.

Nudie’s car wasn’t easyto miss. He had these big bullhorns attached to the fronthood.

We lived across thestreet from Tex and Dallasfor twelve years. My youngsons would occasionallywander across the street — itwasn’t a busy street then —and Tex would be there tokeep an eye on them. Whentheir daughter, Sandi, gotmarried in the backyard, wewalked across the street tocongratulate the bride.

Then Tex got sick withcancer. It was hard for us towatch this tall, strapping manwither away. As he lay in thehospital in downtown New-hall, Charlie and I would goand visit him. He was alwayspositive and happy to see us.

Shortly after Tex died,we decided we had outgrownour little house and movedjust a mile or so away. Wealways kept in touch withSandi and her mom untilDallas’ death a few years ago.

We were sorry to seeSandi sell the house and moveout of state. But we were be-side ourselves when we real-ized the new owners razed thehouse to its foundation.

I don’t know who thesenew homeowners are, but I

am pretty sure they didn’thave a clue as to the historyof the man who built it.

Tex Williams owned ahonky-tonk on San FernandoRoad and has a plaque on theWalk of Western Stars. Thewalls of that home on MapleStreet were once adornedwith many gold records. Hewas a generous entertainerwho gave back to the com-munity he called home.

Now that little part ofNewhall history is gone.

Sandi once told me heremployer, Milt Diamond, whoowned the Newhall GeneralStore, used to voice his con-cerns about the loss of manyof the old buildings as thetown grew. The General Storeis long gone. Now the Tex Wil-liams home is gone, and thereare many other historic build-ings that need to be identified.Time keeps on ticking.

The Santa Clarita ValleyHistorical Society has beenactive for more than thirtyyears. They are a hard-working bunch of volunteerswho give hours to save andarchive the history of ourcommunity. They are pas-sionate about their mission,and it is time to give them aseat at the table.

Tex was a great neighbor.Let’s hope he leaves us notonly with a great legacy, butalso with a lesson on losing apart of our history — whichshouldn’t be repeated.

4.

Recollecting My Neighbor,Tex.

LEFT: TEX WILLIAMS’ GRAVELY VOICE WAS SCARY TO LITTLE TAYLOR RASMUSSEN. RIGHT: THE CITY OFSANTA CLARITA GRANTED A “REMODELING” PERMIT TO THE CURRENT OWNERS OF THE WILLIAMSHOME AT 23416 MAPLE STREET, NOT KNOWING THEY WOULD REMODEL IT TO THE FOUNDATION.

The Only Real Hardware StoreIn The Santa Clarita Valley

NEWHALL HARDWARESINCE 1947

24322 San Fernando Road, Newhall661.259.3212

“If We Don’t Have It, You Don’t Need It.”

By ADELE MACPHERSONCommunity Services

Superintendent,

City Of Santa Clarita.

DEPUTIES HAVE MADE MORETHAN ONE HUNDRED ARRESTS

IN PAST YEAR.

Stiffer Fines And Sentences.

The city of Santa Clarita isunder siege right now, exper-iencing a three hundredpercent increase in graffiti in-cidents citywide.

There is no question thatgraffiti is a blight on the com-munity. In an effort to keep ourcommunity clean and safe, thecity has taken a “zero toler-ance” posture toward graffiti.Through constant effort andvigilance, the city will continueto do whatever is necessary torid the community of graffiti.

Over the last severalmonths, the city has steppedup its eradication, enforcementand database systems in an ef-fort to ensure that graffiti in-cidents are reduced in ourcommunity; that perpetratorsare apprehended; and that graf-fiti is quickly removed.

Incidents of graffiti haveincreased dramatically in theSanta Clarita Valley over thelast year. In response, the cityof Santa Clarita is workingclosely with the Santa ClaritaValley Sheriff’s Station’sCOBRA team (Career Offend-er Burglary Robbery Assault)and CIT (Community Interac-tion Team), as well as thedistrict attorney’s office andlocal judges to contain andremove graffiti.

By creating a graffiti remov-al database, the city is able toidentify the number of graffitiincidents; gauge how quicklythe graffiti is removed; andtrack the location, identifiers

and other vital information.This innovative database

serves as an effective tool forthe Sheriff’s Department tomonitor graffiti “hot spots”and subsequently identify andarrest taggers. Over the pastyear, sheriff’s deputies havemade a stunning one hundredtwenty-five arrests for graffitivandalism. The typical sen-tence for a juvenile tagger isprobation, forty hours ofcommunity service and anorder to stay away from gangs.

To better assist the city andthe Sheriffs Department incatching graffiti vandals, aspecialized surveillance equip-ment program will also beinstalled in an unmarked cityvehicle. This provides theSheriff’s Department and thecity with a system to improvethe arrest and conviction ratefor graffiti offenses.

At the request of the CityCouncil, the city’s “restitutionrate” for graffiti vandalism wasraised to $155 per hour. Thisenables the courts to adjustthe fine to reflect the degree ofdamage caused by tagging.

Additionally, as a result of ameeting between CouncilmanFrank Ferry, city staff mem-bers and the district attorney,the courts recommended thatthe city create a strong inter-vention program for first-timeyouth offenders. This will ul-timately result in harsher sen-tences and require offendersto perform community ser-vice locally, instead of in theSan Fernando Valley.

The city removes graffiti onpublic rights-of-way by use of apressure washer, sandblaster,chemicals, graffiti towels orpaint. When graffiti appears onprivate property, the city’sCommunity Preservation divi-sion issues a “Notice of Graf-fiti,” requiring the propertyowner to remove it withinseven days. If the graffiti is notremoved after the second

5.

By ALEX HERNANDEZEconomic Development

Administrative Assistant,

City Of Santa Clarita.

Featured On

The Food Network.

The Gazette spotlights adifferent Old Town Newhallbusiness establishment ineach edition. This month thespotlight is on The Egg Plan-tation, located on WalnutStreet in the heart of OldTown.

This Old Town Newhallbusiness first opened itsdoors more than twenty-fiveyears ago. Then owner,Maurine Anderson,introduced the Egg Plant’soriginal 101-omelet menu. In1985, the business was takenover by Bettie Travis andMargerie Riberdy, whochanged the name to The EggPlantation and made it re-nowned as a breakfast locale.

Current owners Simonand Shannon Mee reopenedThe Egg Plantation inOctober 2000. Since then, theMees have obtained a liquorlicense to service privateparties and have added moreselections to the menu, suchas espresso beverages and“Just for Kids” items.

Simon and Shannon areresidents of Santa Clarita.Simon completed his restau-rant training in England andmoved to Santa Clarita in1994. He has previouslymanaged a restaurant at theFour Seasons Beverly Hillsand a Starbucks beforedeciding to manage his ownrestaurant. Simon and Shan-non collectively have morethan twenty years of restau-rant experience.

Weekly, the restaurantuses more than six thousandextra-large, farm-fresh eggs.This fact caught the attentionof a producer and scout forThe Food Network. A showsegment devoted to eggs wasfilmed at The Egg Plantationand originally aired in 2005,

generating many phone callsand new business for theestablishment. Repeat airingsof the show have had viewerstraveling from several statesand neighboring counties toenjoy the restaurant’s cuisine.

The Egg Plantationfeatures the original 101-omelet menu and four of theoriginal chefs. Simon says theservers quiz the chefs to see ifthey know the ingredientsand the order number for all101 omelets — which they do.

To date, no one has eatenall 101 varieties of omeletsthe restaurant serves.

Saturday and Sunday arethe restaurant’s busiest daysof the week. The restaurantcan seat approximately onehundred twenty people, andon busy days, Simon has useda call-ahead policy to shortenwait times for customers. Onthe restaurant’s busiest daysof the year — Mother’s Dayand Father’s Day — The EggPlantation has been known togive small, personalized giftsto customers.

Simon and Shannon em-phasize customer servicewith their staff of nearly thirtyemployees. Understanding

the many restaurant optionsin Santa Clarita, Simon says,“I want our staff and food to‘wow’ our customers so theycome back again.”

The Mees also enjoy theopportunity to interact withcustomers, whose suggest-ions have often been added tothe restaurant’s menu, suchas the Nutella crepes.

The Egg Plantation is afamily-owned, full-servicerestaurant serving home-cooked meals. It offers busi-ness luncheons, privateparties, catered events, winetastings and delivery.

The Egg Plantation is amember of the Santa ClaritaValley Chamber of Com-merce. The store is located at24415 Walnut Street in OldTown Newhall, phone661/255-8222. Operatinghours are daily from 6 a.m. to2 p.m., closing only onChristmas day.

Menus can be viewedonline at eggplantation.com.On the Web site you’ll findthat customers can dine forfree on their birthday withvalid identification, and everyTuesday, seniors can dine fortwenty-five percent off.

The Egg Plantation:An Old Town Fixture.

SOME OF THE CREW, READY TO SERVE YOU:(From Left) RYAN BRAHE, JULIAN AGUERO,

TERRY WANKEL, OWNER SIMON MEE,STEPHANIE DUGGAN, AGELITA WEBER.

EV

AN

TH

OM

AS

ON

TELL EVERYBODY WHAT YOU THINK.

E-mail A Letter To The Gazette.Letters@oldtownnewhall.com

What’s Being DoneAbout Graffiti?

CONTINUED ON PAGE 13.

6.

By DAVID DESMONDGazette Correspondent.

DAMKEEPER’S WARNINGS

WENT UNHEEDED.

The Gates Of Hell

Opened Onto A Sleeping

Saugus Population.

CANTIL — Back someeighty-five years ago, a familyin Cantil, a small communityin the northern Antelope Val-ley, was celebrating a union.On November 26, 1920, Mr.and Mrs. Cody Miller witnes-sed the marriage of theirdaughter, Gladys.

Cody Miller was the stationagent at the Southern PacificRailroad’s Cantil station. Hiswife, Minnie, kept house. Sev-enteen-year-old Gladys wasmarrying Tony Harnischfeger,a thirty-three-year-old nativeof New York and a worker forthe Los Angeles Departmentof Water and Power.

In the following years,Tony and Gladys would havetwo children, Coder, born in1921, and Gladys Antoinette,born in 1924. It must havebeen quite an honor for CodyMiller to hear that theynamed the boy Coder, aprobable derivation of hisgrandfather’s name.

The good times for Tonyand Gladys didn’t last. Atsome point in late 1926 or1927 the marriage dissolved.Tony took a transfer to a newdam constructed in Saugus —the St. Francis. He left withhis oldest child, Coder.Gladys and her youngdaughter, Gladys Antoinette,stayed in Cantil with herparents.

While Tony Harnischfegerand son Coder were in Sau-gus, Tony took up residencewith a woman named LeonaJohnson. Tony’s wife, Gladys,promptly secured an interloc-utory decree of divorce.

It was during this time inearly 1928 that Tony Har-nischfeger, the damkeeper,began telling people thatsomething was seriouslywrong with the St. FrancisDam.

Several books and inter-views regarding the dam sug-gest Tony warned manypeople that the dam mightfail, including its architect,William Mulholland.

Tony’s cottage sat directlybelow the dam. He had stepsbuilt up a hillside near thecottage in the event of the un-thinkable.

On the evening of March12, 1928, at close to midnight,the dam collapsed and thegates of hell were opened to asleeping downstream popula-tion. Tony Harnischfeger, hisson Coder and LeonaJohnson were the first ofapproximately five hundredpeople to die that evening.The water and debrisfollowed the Santa Clarariverbed all the way toVentura.

In the years that followed,the legend of Tony Harnisch-feger would play a role in theofficial inquiries and newsreports. Tony and Coder’sbodies were never found. Thebody of Leona Johnson,Tony’s girlfriend, was the onlyone of the trio recovered.

Mulholland, the self-trainedengineer who brought waterto Los Angeles via the LosAngeles Aqueduct, acceptedfull responsibility for thefailure of the St. Francis Dam.

He retired in that same yearand died a broken man in1935.

The human side of thedisaster took a huge toll onthe family of Cody and MinnieMiller. The Mojave Record ofMarch 23, 1928, reported that“all of the people of the Cantilcommunity extend heartfeltsympathy to Mr. & Mrs. CodyMiller and daughter Gladys intheir great loss in the St. Fran-cis Dam disaster.”

Another heartbreakingentry was noted in the Rands-burg Times on April 6, 1928:“Cody Miller returned to Can-til Saturday after a fruitlesssearch for the body of hislittle grandson who was lostin the San Francisquito Damdisaster.”

Minnie Miller and her

daughter Gladys spent a lotof time together in theaftermath of the disaster. Onenewspaper article noted thatthe two traveled to Bakers-field to collect insurancemoney for Tony’s survivingchild, Gladys Antoinette. Thenewspaper also mentionedthat Minnie Miller hadbecome seriously ill.

It is unclear whether theMiller family received anymoney from the death of theirgrandchild (Gladys’ son) fromthe city of Los Angeles. Ac-cording to accounts in “Man-Made Disaster: The Story ofSt. Francis Dam” by the lateCharles Outland, the city ofLos Angeles’ legal team wasformidable.

A small article in the Mo-jave Record of September 4,1929, tells an interestingstory. “Mrs. Cody Miller anddaughter Gladys and party offriends were here (Mojave)last weekend. While here,

Mrs. Miller received the newsof the death of her only bro-ther, George Moom Pophamof Chicago. Mr. Popham wasa district attorney for eightyears and later was of thefirm of Dearrow (sic),Popham and Sissman. Mrs.Miller had planned a visitnext month. We all extendour deepest sympathy to Mrs.Miller.”

The law firm mentioned inthe story was misspelled. Infact, it was the law firm ofClarence Darrow, consideredby many legal scholars to bethe greatest trial lawyer of the20th Century.

A question in the legend ofTony Harnischfeger arose.Minnie Miller’s grandson waskilled as a result of a civilengineering failure. Thebuilder of the St. Francis Dam— the Los Angeles Depart-ment of Water and Power —was considered a bully inpress accounts of the time.Minnie’s brother, GeorgePopham, was a law partner ofthe greatest trial lawyer in theUnited States.

Why didn’t Clarence Dar-row take on the Los AngelesDepartment of Water andPower? This question wasanswered upon further re-search. In his book, “ClarenceDarrow For The Defense” byIrving Stone (1941), Stonetells of the “Popham” scandal.

George Popham was in-volved in a scandal in Clar-ence Darrow’s law firm.Darrow hired Popham to han-dle the firm’s criminal work.Popham was still newly hiredwith the firm when he forgeda will for a woman client.

Darrow went into court un-aware of the forged will. “Thescandal broke over the forgedwill, and Clarence was sickabout it.” After Darrow re-turned from court, Pophamtold another attorney in thefirm to testify on his behalf orhe would blow his own brainsout.

This message was convey-ed to Darrow, who respond-ed, “You go back and tellPopham that’s the best thinghe can do, but not to do it inthe office; he’s made enoughmess around here.” The yearwas 1922 and it is assumedGeorge Popham was fired.

Minnie Miller, George’sNOW YOU CAN ADVERTISE IN THE GAZETTE.

CALL 661/259-1234 EXT. 237

St. Francis Dam: One Family’s Ordeal.

CODY AND MINNIE MILLER (Seen Here InHappier Times, About 1922) LOST THEIR

LITTLE GRANDSON IN THE 1928 FLOOD THATDEMOLISHED SAN FRANCISQUITO CANYON.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7.

7.

sister, would pass away soon afterGeorge in 1929. In his last years, CodyMiller was affectionately called the“mayor of Cantil.” Bill Pappas, aneighty-year-old Cantil native,remembers Cody.

“He used to tell me he lost family inthe St. Francis Dam disaster. Cody wasa friendly guy. He had a habit of fixingpancakes for anyone who came to seehim at the train station.”

Bill’s wife listened intently. “He musthave been very lonely,” she said.

Bill Pappas believes Cody Miller diedin the late 1930s.

Don Ray, a journalist for the Los An-geles Daily Journal, is a historian whohas spent more than twenty-five yearsresearching the St. Francis Dam. Ac-cording to Ray, Gladys Miller spent themajority of her life as a street evangelistin downtown Los Angeles. Her daugh-ter, Gladys Antoinette, also known asLittle Toni, died in 1969.

Gladys Miller died two years later in1971. The majority of their life in LosAngeles was spent in poverty.

The tragedy of the Miller family andTony Harnischfeger underscores thesuffering from both a man-made disas-ter and a broken family.

The definitive book on the St. FrancisDam is Outland’s “Man-Made Disaster.”It is available from the Arthur H. ClarkCompany, P.O. Box 14707, Spokane,Washington, 99214. The Internet hassome great photos and text on thedisaster. Look up “St. Francis Dam” atscvhistory.com for more information.

This story originally appeared inthe August 25, 2005, edition of MojaveDesert News and is reprinted bypermission.

ALL THAT WAS LEFT OFTHE FACE OF THE DAM

MADE A FITTING TOMBSTONE.

Dam,CONT.FROM PAGE 6.

8.

By PAT SALETOREExecutive Director,

Santa Clarita Valley

Historical Society.

Bandit May Have

Had A Screw Loose.

But He Got Sunshine

And Three Square Meals.

When they think about atrain robbery, most peopleconjure up a picture of menon horses chasing a train attop speed, guns drawn andbandanas over their faces. Itevokes a picture of the OldWest. Generally speaking, I atleast tend to think of the “OldWest” as the late 1800s.

Here in Santa Clarita, themost famous train heist hap-pened in the 20th Century.

Shall we shift our scenejust a little? It’s 1929. For thepast couple of decades, Amer-ica has been earning its stripesas a world power. The econo-my is booming. Al Capone is agangster kingpin presidingover a famously brutal form ofviolent crime. Herbert Hooveris the new president.

Now it’s November 10,and things are starting to lookkind of bleak. The stock mar-ket in New York crashed lastmonth. The world outsideAmerica is in unrest. It is anunstable time.

In the Santa Clarita Val-ley, things aren’t any better.Just a year ago, the St. FrancisDam collapsed and the areastill has not recovered fromthe disaster. Into this situationenters our anti-hero.

Tom Vernon was just re-leased from jail. He had gottencaught for writing a bad checkfor some cattle in 1923. Hetold the rancher it was for amovie shoot, but he just wentand sold the cattle for cash.

Tom’s life, to this point,reads sort of like fiction.That’s no coincidence, since alot of it was fiction.

Tom told everyone hisreal name was Tom Averill andthat he was the son of JamesAverill and his wife Ellen “Cat-tle Kate” Watson of Wyoming.He regaled people with the sto-ry of how the pair was lynchedfor cattle rustling in 1889.

That part was actuallytrue, and quite well known.The details are sketchy anddepend a lot upon the story-teller, but none seems toinclude a son named Tom.

Not a problem, Tom says;he was left for dead by thelynching party, then rescuedand raised by an Indiannamed Iron Tail.

Iron Tail was featured inBuffalo Bill’s Wild West Showand was one of the Indiansused as a model for the IndianHead nickel.

Tom apparently wassomehow attached to BuffaloBill’s show for a while — long

enough to feel he could dubhimself “Buffalo Tom” Vernon.

An honest living wasn’tfor him. This latest stint in Fol-som Prison was his fifth timebehind bars — all prior to 1929.

Weighing his options, thebest plan Tom could think of isfar from honest. He goes therodeo grounds in Saugus (nowknown as the Saugus Speed-way, home of the Swap Meet).

There is some curvingtrack there. Tom pulls up afew railroad spikes and waitsfor his ship — or in this case,train — to come in.

In the evening, a massivethree-barreled, 5000-seriessteam locomotive comes by,the Owl. The locomotivestrains the rails and flops over,effectively stopping the pas-senger cars, as planned.

What doesn’t go as plan-ned is that the passengers startgetting out of the train. They’reunharmed; the passenger carshave remained upright.

This doesn’t suit Tom Ver-non. He calmly gets the pas-sengers back into their seats,telling them a relief train hasalready been dispatched.Once he gets them settled, heproceeds to rob them — thencoolly walks over the hill tothe town of Saugus. There hehitches a ride with Tom Frithto the Hollywood Hospital,where Tom tells Frith hisdaughter has been admitted.

Tom then leaves for Wyo-ming with the $300 he gleanedin the escapade.

Sure enough, when hegets to Wyoming, a similartrain robbery happens there,too. After that, Tom goes toOklahoma where he is appre-hended.

What follows is a mediacircus, as Wyoming and Calif-ornia compete for extradition.In the end, Tom himself, choos-es the destination. He denieshaving anything to do with theWyoming robbery and freelyadmits the California job.

Moreover, he declines tofight extradition back to Calif-ornia. Wyoming continues itsefforts to acquire him, but inthe end, District AttorneyFitts races to Oklahoma on anairplane to bring Vernon tojustice in California.

Just when you think thetwists and turns are over, well— they aren’t. Once back inCalifornia, Vernon implicatestwo other people in the Saugusheist. They hire lawyers, andthe charges are finally drop-ped. Then the authorities startquestioning Tom’s sanity. Har-ry Carr, a local columnist, alsoquestions Tom’s mental health,proclaiming, “Any man whogoes repeatedly into prison is asubject for alienists. Nearly allcrooks are subnormal, mental-ly. An automobile driven by adrunken man is stopped by thepolice. But an anatomy drivenby a crazy brain is cheerfullyallowed the right of way.”

Harry Carr thinks a men-tal examination of Tom Ver-non would be a waste of time

and money.Vernon is sent back to

Folsom with a life sentence.And the story is not over.Once he gets to prison,

another prisoner declares thatTom wasn’t even involved inthe robbery.

This idea doesn’t evercatch on, since Tom had beenidentified by the people whowere robbed.

Looking into the incident,I have a couple of opinions.

One: It seems to me thatTom Vernon couldn’t say twocorrect sentences in a row.And Two: Tom Vernon wascompletely disinclined towork for a living — especiallywhen you had to work sohard to get a job at thatparticular point in history.

His solution to the prob-lems caused by these two evi-dent truths was to go back toprison. In prison, you getthree square meals per dayand a bed. Given a choicebetween Wyoming andCalifornia, he chose the latter— probably for the weather,more than anything.

By 1957 or ’58, Tom musthave been given a pardon be-cause he was living withfriends in the Sacramento area.

Want to see more de-tails? Find out more from theSCV Historical Society at theSaugus Train Station inHeritage Junction, inside Wil-liam S. Hart Park, and onlineat scvhistory.com. Come andvisit us or call 661/254-1275.

Passengers Robbed! ‘Buffalo Tom’ Captured!

TOM VERNON, SEEN HERE FOLLOWING HIS RELEASE FROM FOLSOM PRISON IN THE LATE 1950s,CAPSIZED A LOCOMOTIVE BEHIND TODAY’S SAUGUS SPEEDWAY IN 1929 AND ROBBED THE PASSENGERS.

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Watch Santa ClaritaHistory On The Tube.

“Points Of Interest”WITH HOST PHILIP SCORZA

MONDAYS AT 6:30 P.M.

“Legacy: Santa Clarita’s Living History”WITH HOST LEON WORDEN

THURSDAYS AT 6:30 P.M.

ONLY ON S.C.V.T.V. CHANNEL 20AVAILABLE TO COMCAST & TIME WARNER CABLE CUSTOMERS

9.

By ALAN POLLACKProgram Chairman,

Santa Clarita Valley

Historical Society.

Now Home To ‘Deadwood,’

Newhall Has Always Been

A Popular Film Setting.

The Santa Clarita Valleyhas served as Hollywood’sback lot from the earliest daysof film making.

On Saturday, August 26,noted film historian Marc Wan-amaker will tell everything youever wanted to know aboutthe history of movie-making inthe Santa Clarita Valley. Thepresentation begins at 2 p.m.at the Santa Clarita Valley His-torical Society’s headquartersat Heritage Junction, insideWilliam S. Hart Park. It will bepreceded by an ice cream so-cial at 1 p.m., to which the pub-lic is also invited.

As early as 1903, Westernfilm producers used the SantaClarita Valley’s rugged topo-graphy as a backdrop. Topstars such as Harry Carey Sr.,William S. Hart and HootGibson filmed here and calledthe valley home.

Carey, whose career span-ned the silent and talkie eras,introduced acclaimed film di-rector John Ford to the worldand starred in Ford’s firstmovie in 1917 — shot partiallyin Placerita Canyon and atBeale’s Cut in Newhall. Hebuilt a ranch in San Fran-cisquito Canyon (today, theTesoro Del Valle development)and hired a group of NavajoIndians to run a trading post onthe property. The trading postand much of the ranch wereswept away in the St. FrancisDam flood of March 12, 1928.Carey and Ford were friendsand mentors to John Wayne,who made many films locally.

“Two Gun Bill” Hart was asilent movie actor known forhis attention to realism in hisWestern film. His movie careerlasted from 1914 to 1925, end-ing with the classic “Tumble-weeds.” He purchased a ranchhouse in Newhall in 1921 andlater, upon his retirement, builta hilltop mansion where helived with his sister, Mary El-len, until his death in 1946.

Hart counted among hisfriends the legendary lawmanWyatt Earp and famed Westernartist Charles Russell. In 1940,Hart built and financed theAmerican Theater on SpruceStreet in Old Town Newhall —the valley’s first. He willed hisranch to Los Angeles County tobe used as a public park.

Hart’s later movie careerwas overshadowed by flashierWestern stars such as TomMix. Mix filmed some of hismovies in Newhall and estab-lished one of his early “Mix-ville” movie towns there. Hismost notable film in Newhallwas “Three Jumps Ahead”(1923), in which he purport-edly jumped the 90-foot-deepBeale’s Cut on Tony the Won-der Horse. Mix’s heroic jumpwas in reality performed by astunt man using a ramp.Beale’s Cut also appeared inthe 1939 John Ford-JohnWayne classic, “Stagecoach.”

Hoot Gibson made mo-vies in the valley, but was alsoknown for his ownership of arodeo arena in Saugus in the1930s that later became theSaugus Speedway. A saddle heused in the rodeo in 1934 canbe seen in the Historical Socie-ty museum at the Saugus TrainStation. The Saugus Train Sta-tion itself was seen in the 1923Charlie Chaplin comedy, “ThePilgrim,” and in Frank Sinatra’s1954 thriller, “Suddenly.”

A number of film studioscan be found throughout theSCV, the most famous ofwhich are Melody Ranch andDisney’s Golden Oak Ranch,both in Placerita Canyon.

Trem Carr established a

movie ranch for MonogramPictures in the early 1930s inPlacerita Canyon just east ofpresent-day Highway 14 at alocation that is today used bythe Golden Oak Ranch. ErnieHickson built a Western movieset for Carr. In 1936, Hicksonpurchased property in Placer-ita Canyon to the west ofCarr’s expiring leasehold andmoved his entire set to thenew Monogram Ranch.

Upon Hickson’s death in1952, Gene Autry purchasedthe property and MelodyRanch was born. CountlessWestern movies and televisionshows (most notably “Gun-smoke”) have been filmed atthe studio, and many famousactors walked the dusty streetsand boardwalks of its Westernmovie sets. Sadly, MelodyRanch burned to the ground inthe raging wildfires of 1962.The ranch was painstakinglyresurrected by the Veluzatfamily in 1991 and is currentlythe home of the HBO series,“Deadwood,” and the annualSanta Clarita Cowboy Festival.

Marc Wanamaker is aworld expert on film history.He is the founder of BisonArchives, a research institu-tion and informational archivededicated to the history of themotion picture industry. He isa professional consultant onmotion picture projects andco-produced “Ticket to Holly-wood,” a documentary onHollywood history.

Wanamaker has workedon production and researchprojects for many film andtelevision studios in Los An-geles and New York. He is theauthor of several books, in-cluding “MGM, When the LionRoars” and “Hollywood: Thenand Now.” Wanamaker hasworked on or appeared inmore than one hundred docu-mentaries and feature filmssince 1971. He is consideredthe unofficial historian forHollywood, Beverly Hills, LosAngeles and West Hollywood.

The Santa Clarita ValleyHistorical Society is proud topresent this dynamic andentertaining speaker. We hopeto see our members and thegeneral public at the SaugusTrain Station on August 26.Admission is free. For moreinformation call 661/254-1275.

Famous Film Historian To DivulgeValley’s Movie-Making Secrets.

CHARLIE CHAPLINAT THE SAUGUS

TRAIN STATION IN‘THE PILGRIM’ (1923).

HARRY & CAPPY CAREY.Born in Saugus to early film stars Har-ry Carey Sr. and Olive Golden, HarryCarey Jr. (Dobe) and his sister, Cappy,discuss their childhood in the SantaClarita Valley. Youngsters during theSt. Francis Dam Disaster, they sharetheir memories of actor William S.Hart, painter Charlie Russell and theirschool days in Newhall. Dobe also dis-cusses his own film career, wherein hecrossed paths with legendary directorJohn Ford and John Wayne.

FRANK ROCK, DAM MAN.Perched high above Saugus, the St.Francis Dam held 12.5 billion gallons ofwater to serve a thirsty and growingLos Angeles. But William Mulholland’sfinal engineering feat would last justtwo years. At three minutes before mid-night on March 12, 1928, the great St.Francis collapsed and sent at least 450people to their deaths. In words andpictures, local dam expert Frank Rocktells the story of America’s worst civilengineering failure of the 20th Century.

JOHN BOSTON:TIME RANGER.You know him as “Mr. SCV.” Nowhe’s available on DVD. John Boston’s“Vignettes of SCV History” is a“must” for anyone who has taken hislocal history class — and even moreso for anyone who hasn’t. Join Bos-ton for a wild journey through theSanta Clarita Valley’s colorful past asonly the Time Ranger can lead you.The episode is jam-packed with his-toric photos and old movie clips.

HISTORICALACTON TOUR.Even older than the original railroadtown of Newhall, Acton boasts plentyof 19th-century buildings that stillstand — if you know where to look.Follow the Acton Womens Club foran informative tour that will showyou where to find them. Along theway you’ll visit with the owners ofthose old buildings, learn about thecommunity church and trek throughthe historic Acton Cemetery.

HARRISON SCOTT,RIDGE ROUTE EXPERT.Before Interstate 5, there was High-way 99. Before Highway 99, therewas the Ridge Route, an engineeringmarvel that wound its way along themountaintops from Newhall to theSan Joaquin Valley. Learn all about itand see photos from the collection ofHarrison Scott, the historian whoconvinced the U.S. government toadd the road to the National Registerof Historic Places.

NNooww OOnn DDVVDD..

~ MORE TITLES AVAILABLE ~All DVDs 1/2 hour ~ $15 each ~ 100% of proceeds benefit SCV Historical Society

Available at the Saugus Train Station Museum, Saturdays & Sundays 1-4 p.m.Or online at scvhistory.com ~ click on “Books-DVDs-VHS” ~ add $3.20 postageOr write to SCV Historical Publications, P.O. Box 802993, Santa Clarita CA 91380

Make checks payable to “SCV Historical Society”

Santa ClaritaParadeCommittee.Leon Worden, ChairmanDuane Harte,Vice Chairman

Carol Rock, SecretaryAlan Wykoff,Lineup Marshal

Phil Lantis,City Arts & Events

John BostonRobert DixonJohn EnriquezBruce FortinePauline HarteDebbie HillmanEric KilloughJ.W. KilloughDennis M. KoontzJeff LuiJames McCarthyGloria Mercado-FortineRusty ParrJulie ReamRon RollinsPhilip ScorzaSusan ShapiroBeth ShawJennifer ShawJim ShawLillian ShawJoyce SteinBobby StoneJim StoneLinda StorliDeputy Artie Thompson

M. Teresa ToddMari Jo TropcichRon TropcichFred TruebloodStephanie WeissMayor Laurene WesteCharles WillettChuck WillettRick WillettConnie Worden-RobertsLisa WykoffMathew Wykoff

Sponsors.City of Santa ClaritaGreater SCVOptimist Club

The SignalSCV Living magazineThe Newhall Land and

Farming CompanyFrontier ToyotaSanta Clarita StudiosSanta ClaritaAmateur Radio Club

Temple Beth AmiAV Party RentalsAV Equipment RentalAcademy Addressing& Mailing

Advantage DisposalAndy Gump Inc.Blue Barrel Disposal Co.Castaic LakeWater Agency

County of Los AngelesPower Chrysler Jeep

Parade Judges.Laurene Weste, Co-ChairJames McCarthy,Co-Chair

Laura Hauser,Equestrian

Jim HeintzmanCarl KanowskyTerry KanowskyLinda LambourneSteve LambourneDennis OstromSue OstromLinda PedersenTom PedersenJohn ThomasVal ThomasPat Willett

ParadeAnnouncers.Connie Worden-Roberts,Chair

Bob DiPrimioBruce FortineDeborah GrandinettiRick GrandinettiJohn GrannisGloria Mercado-FortineTim MyersGeorge PedersonEd ReddCarol RockLinda StorliM. Teresa ToddRon Tropcich

ber band presents a solid wall of sound thatwill knock your socks off — but you’ll want tokeep your dancing shoes on when they take thestage at Newhall Park on July 4 at noon, follow-ing the annual Independence Day parade.

Out front with lead vocals is the sexy Colom-bian-Irish diva, Glora T. Behind her is an award-winning collection of talented musicians who,as L.A. Carpool, have hit Number One on themajor Internet music sites including MP3.com.

On lead guitar is former Geffen Records artistFrank Garcia, who writes the original melodylines with producer Jack Gold, creator of theL.A. Carpool sound. Rick Ryan, a veteran lyri-cist who went platinum with a song for Crosby,Stills, Nash and Young, writes the words.

Keeping the beat is Drummerworld’s HandPercussionist of the Year, Richie “Gajate” Garcia— who was John Denver’s percussionist andnow tours with the likes of Sting, Patti LaBelleand Diana Ross. You’ll hear him on the occasion-al movie soundtrack, such as “Maid in Manhat-tan” with J-Lo and “I-Spy” with Eddie Murphy.

Graduating from the salsa nightclub scene,L.A. Carpool can be heard in feature films and ontelevision, as well. The original Carpool number,“Mi Guajira,” plays on a jukebox in the Ray Liottafilm, “Narc.”. Recent performances include a liveKJLA broadcast to ten million bilingual homesand a Telemundo concert in Huntington Park.

Give the Carpool a ride on July 4 at noon.Bring your dancing shoes.

Oh, and did we mention it’s free?It’s free to you — thanks to the generous

support of the city of Santa Clarita, The Signal,Santa Clarita Valley Living magazine, SantaClarita Studios, The Newhall Land and Farm-

ing Company and Frontier Toyota.Kudos go to Santa Clarita Mayor Laurene

Weste, Signal Publisher Richard Budman andthe Santa Clarita Parade Committee memberswho are organizing things in the park: PhilLantis (aka the city’s Arts and Events adminis-trator) and Lillian Shaw of the Greater SCVOptimist Club, who is handling the vendors.

L.A. Carpool performs from noon to 2 p.m. inNewhall Park on July 4. Food and nonalcoholicbeverages will be available in the park. You canbring the family for a picnic — and you don’teven need to bring the fixings with you.

10.

Concert,CONT.FROM FRONT PAGE.

ACCLAIMED LATIN AND ROCKPERCUSSIONIST RICHIE

GAJATE-GARCIA OF L.A. CARPOOL.

Santa ClaritaParade Credits.

The following individuals, organizations and companies areresponsible for putting in a hundred zillion hours — and insome cases, more than a few dollars — to bring you the 2006

Santa Clarita Fourth of July Parade and the post-paradeconcert in Newhall Park. Any omissions are unintended.

11.

left on Lyons Avenue, northon Orchard Village Road andending at 16th Street nearNewhall Park, where L.A.Carpool will perform at noon(see separate story).

This year’s theme is “Cele-brating the New Frontier.”Floats will be judged on theircreative interpretation of thetheme — and it is open to in-terpretation! “The New Fron-tier” might be construed tomean Newhall’s history as aWestern frontier town. Or itmight refer to “space, the finalfrontier,” recognizing SantaClarita’s strong aerospace sec-tor (not to mention that theoriginal “Star Trek” was oftenfilmed here, and today, manyNASA/JPL engineers live here).

Or it might be consideredan acknowledgment that OldTown Newhall is on thethreshold of a new frontierand a new future, as you’llread about elsewhere in thisedition of the Gazette.

Newhall certainly is adifferent place from what itwas in 1932, when the localIndependence Day Paradebecame an annual event —missing only a couple ofyears during World War II,which is why this is the 75th“anniversary” parade and notthe 75th “annual” parade.

You might be surprised toknow that a few of the com-panies and organizations thatparticipated in the 1932 event— and even one or two of theparticipants — are still around.Of course there was The Sig-nal, which reported that the1932 event was “the greatestand most colorful festivity thathas marked the public doingsin town for many years.”

After all, the previousyear, in 1931, “the populationof Newhall celebrated the Glo-rious Fourth by trips in everydirection, most of that direc-tion was toward the beach.”

Local Historian Art Perk-ins and Chevrolet dealer TedLamkin were determined to setthings aright in 1932 with aproper celebration that wouldbecome a lasting tradition.They picked an “Old Time”theme (as if 1932 weren’t “oldtime” enough), with a prospec-tor and his family, the 20 MuleTeam freight line, cowboys andranchers — along with whatThe Signal called “the newer

things that have become a partof our community life.”

One of the newer thingswas local merchant S. DavidDill’s brand-new 1932 schoolbus, hailed as “an impressivelesson of the progress both oftransportation and the numberof pupils.” Mrs. Dill picked upkids and drove them to SanFernando High School beforeHart opened in the mid-1940s.

Speaking of companiesthat are still around today,there’s no record of whetherNewhall Ice Company’s icesculpture survived all the wayto the end of the 1932 parade— but with flowers and fruitencased in ice, the entry didwin a prize for originality.

After the parade, an esti-mated two thousand peoplestayed around for the greasedpig-catching and greasedpole-climbing contests.

Enthusiasm for Indepen-dence Day celebrations ebbedand flowed through the years.Festivities reached a zenith inthe late 1940s and early 1950swhen Ernie Hickson invitedthe community to his Westernmovie ranch in Placerita Can-yon, which he temporarily re-named “Slippery Gulch” forthe event. (Today it’s knownas Melody Ranch.) Hicksonissued tokens that were goodfor drinks, games and enter-tainment, and Signal Publish-er Fred Trueblood Sr. printedup some souvenir copies of aWestern-flavored tabloid cal-led “The Slippery Gulch Ga-zette” (no relation to whatyou’re reading now, althoughadmittedly there may be somesimilarities).

Hickson died in 1952,which may explain why theNewhall Old West Association,which ran the celebration,started to have difficulty find-ing someone willing to organ-ize it. The parade almost didn’thappen in 1955 — but “almost”is the key word. Perkins, True-blood and a dozen of theirfriends and family membersparaded through Newhall tokeep the tradition alive.

Things slowly picked upin the 1960s and hit anotherzenith with the American Bi-centennial in 1976. Thousandsof people took to the streets ofNewhall to watch more thantwo hundred entries go by in aparade chaired by Bill Bergerand former Mayor Jo AnneDarcy. (Darcy wasn’t yetmayor; there was no city ofSanta Clarita then.) Celebritiesin Newhall’s 1976 parade in-

Parade,CONT.FROM FRONT PAGE.

GRAND MARSHAL: MORGAN WOODWARD.A familiar face to Western fans as well as those of the long-

running television show, “Dallas,” Morgan Woodward has been seenmore than two-hundred fifty times on various TV shows and featurefilms. His more memorable roles include Punk Anderson on“Dallas,” Boone Walton on “The Waltons” and Shotgun Gibbs on“Wyatt Earp.” He has the distinction of making more guestappearances on ”Gunsmoke” — nineteen — and “Wagon Train” —eleven — than any other actor. Film fans will remember him asBoss Godfrey, the man with no eyes from the movie “Cool HandLuke” (seen here). Woodward was honored in 1998 with both aGolden Lariat Award from the National Western Film Festival and aGolden Boot from the Motion Picture and Television Foundation.He was given a saddle on Santa Clarita’s own Walk of Western Starsin 1990. His hobby is restoring and flying antique airplanes.

DIVISION MARSHAL: ANDREW PRINE.Andrew Prine is a familiar face around the Western world, starring

as Andy Guthrie in “The Wide Country” and making several guestappearances in television shows such as “Gunsmoke,” “Wagon Train,”“Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman,” “V” and “Six Feet Under.” He started hisfilm career alongside Anne Bancroft in “The Miracle Worker” and wouldgo on to appear in more than thirty films including “Gettysburg,” “TheAvenging Angel,” “Chisum,” “Bandolero,” “Texas Across the River” and“This Savage Land.” He continues to work in theater, appearing at theAhmanson in “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” and “The Caine Mutiny.” Atwo-time winner of the Dramalogue Critics Award for Best Actor, Prinewas inducted this year into Santa Clarita’s Walk of Western Stars.

DIVISION MARSHAL: “DEADWOOD”FEATURING A.C. LYLESAND BREE SEANNA WALL.

“Deadwood ... 1876, South Dakota: Inan age of plunder and greed, the richestgold strike in American history draws outa throng of restless misfits to an outlawsettlement where everything and everyonehas a price...”

Producer A.C. Lyles, child actress BreeWall and several extras from the Emmy andGolden Globe award-winning show — filmedat Melody Ranch and airing Sunday nights onHBO — make their parade debut this year.

A.C. Lyles is a consulting producer of the show and was an associate producer of “Rawhide,”another notable Western often shot in our valley. He’s been working for Paramount Pictures fornearly eighty years, starting out in the mail room and being named head of the publicity departmentat age nineteen. He’s been given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Cowboy Hall of Fame inOklahoma City, Oklahoma, and he received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1988.

Bree Wall is featured in each episode as Sophia Metz. “Deadwood” is Bree’s first actingexperience. When she’s not among the wild characters who make up the gold rush SouthDakota town, she’s a fourth-grader in Riverside who loves school, horses and soccer. Blond-haired and blue-eyed, she is of Scandanavian descent and has two sisters and a brother.

DIVISION MARSHAL: DONNA MARTELL.Donna Martell made her screen debut in the 1947 Republic film,

“Apache Rose,” with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. Eventually shesigned with Universal, where she appeared in “Meet the Killers” withAbbot and Costello and Boris Karloff. Among her many credits in aleading role: “Ten Wanted Men” opposite Randolph Scott, “Kim” withErrol Flynn, “The Hills of Utah” with Gene Autry, “Love is a ManySplendored Thing” with William Holden. She has made dozens ofguest appearances in Westerns such as “Bat Masterson,” “Cheyenne,”“Bonanza” and the popular “77 Sunset Strip” with Efrem Zimbalist Jr.She was named a Sweetheart of the West at the Golden Boot Awardsby the Motion Picture Television Foundation.

DIVISION MARSHAL: BOYS & GIRLS CLUB AUCTION WINNER.Each year the Santa Clarita Parade Committee donates a Division Marshal position to the SCV

Boys and Girls Club’s annual benefit auction. Auction proceeds pay operating expenses for the club,which serves youngsters age seven through seventeen. This year’s winning bidder is Lyn Fairly.

Fourth Of July Parade Marshals.

LYLES. WALL.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12.

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12.

cluded sportscaster Gil Strat-ton and actress La WandaPage, who played Aunt Estheron TV’s “Sanford and Son.”

What can people expectto see this year? Well, alongwith 25,000 other spectators,you can expect to see a giantdisplay of patriotism and ahuge slice of today’s SantaClarita Valley.

There will be kids andmilitary veterans — and morekids. There will be moms anddads and dogs and horses.There will be jeeps and churchgroups and old cars and Amer-ican flags and lavishly decor-ated floats. There will beRepublicans and Democratsand environmentalists andpoliticians. There will be TVcelebrities and local businessowners who want to catchyour attention.

And there will be a fewsurprises that we don’t wantto spoil.

Plan to come out earlyand make a day of it. The New-hall Rotary Club starts flippingthe flapjacks at 7 a.m. in theparking lot of Roger DunnGolf. Work off your pancakebreakfast in the 5-K Run at 9a.m. at Newhall Park, hostedby Santa Clarita Runners (witha Kiddie Run at 8:30 a.m.).

Stake out your placealong the parade route in timefor the starting gun at 9:45 a.m.— and arrive in time to beatthose 25,000 other people to aparking space. Look for one ofthe seven speaker systemsalong the parade route andsituate yourself nearby if youwant to hear an official paradeannouncer tell you whatyou’re seeing as it passes by.

And don’t forget to followthe final parade float over toNewhall Park, where you’re infor a free concert that youwon’t want to miss. Food andbeverages will be available, soyou can plan a picnic in thepark without stopping homefirst to grab your picnic basket.

The concert runs fromnoon to 2 p.m., so there’s plen-

ty of time for an afternoon napbefore the fireworks at night.Look for them to start a littleafter 9 p.m. in the skies abovethe Westfield Valencia TownCenter, Stevenson Ranch, SixFlags Magic Mountain andCastaic Lake.

The 2006 Santa ClaritaFourth of July Parade isbrought to you by a team ofvolunteers known collective-ly as the Santa Clarita ParadeCommittee.

There are far too manystandouts to mention here —from Duane Harte who gathersup the cars for the dignitariesto Carol Rock who writes thescript to Lillian Shaw and LisaWykoff who register theentries to Alan Wykoff who“launches” them in the paradeto Bob Dixon who closes thestreets to Deputy Artie Thomp-son who organizes the securityto Ron Rollins who runs theradios to Jim Stone who pro-vides the sound systems to

Chuck Willett who cartsequipment around to RichardBudman who hosts the com-mittee meetings to Phil Scorzawho tapes the parade for TV toPhil Lantis who irons everytingout to Pauline Harte who dec-orates VIP cars to Teresa Toddwho helps with publicity toConnie Worden-Roberts whoorganizes the announcers toMayor Laurene Weste whoorganizes the judges — anddozens of hard-working volun-teers in between. So we won’t

name names. But Julie Reamof Saugus deserves a round ofapplause for lining up all of ourTV Western celebrities.

Direct costs are coveredby parade entry fees and dona-tions. Indirect costs (city stafftime to close the streets andsheriff’s deputies for crowdcontrol) are graciously cover-ed by the city of Santa Clarita.

Have a fun and safeFourth of July. We’ll see youout there on the streets ofOld Town Newhall.

Tradition,CONT.FROM PAGE 11.

Top: Detail From TheCover Of Fred Trueblood

Sr.’s “Slippery GulchGazette” Of July 4, 1952.

(Thanks To Fred True-blood III For Sharing.)

Above: Ernie HicksonIssued Tokens That

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13.

By LARRY MANKINPresident,

Santa Clarita Valley

Chamber Of Commerce.

Committee’s First Expo

Is A Success.

Group Will Hold Networking

Mixers And Mentor

High-School Students.

The Hispanic BusinessCommittee was formed inJanuary 2004 as part of theSanta Clarita Valley Chamberof Commerce. The organiza-tional group created a missionstatement that reads, “It is themission of the Hispanic Busi-ness Committee to aggres-sively represent and promoteHispanic business in theSanta Clarita Valley throughleadership, advocacy andmember services.”

“Our committee has anumber of goals that are im-portant to our constituency,”said Dora Zavala, the com-mittee chair for 2006. “Wefeel it is important to be thevoice of business for one ofthe fastest growing businesssectors in the Santa ClaritaValley — the Hispanic-ownedbusiness. We work togetheras a group in promoting thediversity and richness of ourHispanic culture.

“We also hope to providea venue for future leaders ofthis community by continuingto invest in our local youth,”she said. “Our success is de-rived from the support of thechamber, the collaboration ofthe city, the vitality of thecommunity and the talent ofour committee.”

The Hispanic BusinessCommittee (HBC) has createdan aggressive program ofwork over the first two yearsof its existence. The programis built around networking,mentoring, education andcommunity involvement.

The full committee nowhas more than ninety register-ed members. The HBC meetson the third Thursday of everymonth at the SCV Chamber

office. Committee meetingsare open to any resident ofLos Angeles County.

The HBC recently held itsinaugural Hispanic BusinessExpo at the new CommunityCenter in Old Town Newhall.The event, chaired by CeliaGallardo, was considered byall who attended to be majorsuccess. Nearly twelve hund-red persons participated in theday-long business show.

The Expo, along with theannual HBC Gala scheduledfor September 8, raises fundsfor the committee to distributeas scholarships to needy grad-uating Hispanic high schoolstudents. The Gala is chairedby Kathy Sturkey.

Two additional programsinitiated by the HBC are amonthly mixer and a mentor-ing program for at-risk highschool students. The monthlymixer will draw sixty toeighty persons and is held at a

participating chamber-mem-ber restaurant. The mixersare held the first week ofeach month and are chairedby Fernando Lauchu.

The mentoring program,chaired by Monica Alatorre, isdesigned to provide a businessmentor for students attendingBowman High School. Mem-bers of the group will meetwith high school studentseach week over a five-weekperiod. The mentors provideguidance and support to thesestudents while promoting theimportance of continuing theireducation.

“I have personally attend-ed the HBC monthly meeting,”said Chris Fall, 2006 chairmanof the chamber’s board of di-rectors, “and I am amazed atthe passion and commitmentof this committee. The com-mittee allows the seventeenhundred members of ourchamber to welcome new His-panic businesses that may ormay not have been willing toengage the chamber.

“I believe in strength innumbers,” he said, “and theHBC continues to bring intothe chamber new memberswith their advocacy programsand outreach.”

Anyone interested injoining the Hispanic BusinessCommittee may call the SantaClarita Valley Chamber ofCommerce at 661/702-6977.

Chamber Reaches OutTo Hispanic Businesses.

Helping Stage The Hispanic Business Committee’sSuccessful Expo At The Newhall Community CenterIn May Were (From Left): Nora Hutton, Dr. MonicaCarbajal-Alatorre, Dora Zavala, Marisela Handley,

Celia Gallardo, mariachi band members and Jeff Lui.

Especially For Seniors.

SIGN UP NOW FOR AQUA AEROBICS.Looking for an exercise regimen that’s easy to follow

and leaves you feeling stronger, healthier and happier? Tryworking out in water. All summer on Tuesdays and Thurs-days, Linda Bennett, a board-certified ACE fitness instructorand the SCV Senior Center’s fitness director, will hold anAqua Fitness session at the Bouquet Canyon Seniors facility,26705 Bouquet Canyon Road. Students age eighteen and old-er are welcome and are asked to bring a towel, aqua shoes,sunscreen, and bottled water. The cost is $5 per class or $35per month for those over sixty, and $6 ($45) for those undersixty. Sign-ups will be taken through August 1 and classesrun through October. For information call Linda at 661/993-3969 or the Senior Center at 661/259-9444.

SENIOR CENTER SCHEDULES SUMMER DANCES.Want to flex your dancing muscles on the best hardwood

floor in town? Then the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center isthe place for you. Couples and singles age eighteen and olderare invited to attend classes taught by Barbara Wright onThursday evenings from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., and to partake in theSenior Center’s summer dance series. On July 28, the themewill be “Rock This Town,” and August 25 will bring “HotNights, Cool Tunes.” For information call 661/259-9444.

SUPPORT GROUP FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED.The Visually Impaired Assistance Services Depart-

ment of the SCV Senior Center conducts a bimonthlysupport group for individuals age eighteen and older withsight impairments. The group meets on the second andfourth Mondays at 1 p.m. in room A3. For information callJohn Taylor at 661/259-9444, extension 125.

notice, the property owner isissued a $100 citation.

The city and the Sheriff’sDepartment also offer a train-ing program for volunteerson graffiti removal; ongoing“Teens Against Graffiti” com-munity service projects; a$500 monetary reward pro-gram for leads that result inthe arrest and conviction of agraffiti vandal; and Spanish-speaking options on the city’s25-CLEAN hotline.

Most recently, in an effort tostay on top of graffiti and be

even more responsive, the cityhas hired a full-time graffiticoordinator, Ryan Wasson.

Wasson is focusing on graffi-ti removal, organizing schooloutreach events to create in-centive programs and identifytaggers, arranging volunteertraining, and providing supportfor businesses and homeown-ers in the community in theirgraffiti removal efforts.

The City has also addedtwo part-time staffers toassist Wasson with graffitiremoval, in response to thecontinued increases.

For more information aboutbecoming a volunteer, the re-wards program, or to reportgraffiti, call 661/25-CLEAN.

Graffiti,CONT.FROM PAGE 5.

14.

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FINANCINGO.A.C.

2006 ReadersPoll

By MICHAEL MARKSArts and Events Supervisor,

City Of Santa Clarita.

Bid Package To Be Sent

To Interested Artists.

The city of Santa ClaritaArts and Events Office is de-veloping a mural program forOld Town Newhall.

This unique part of the cityfeatures an art gallery operatedby the Santa Clarita Artists As-sociation and two theaters: theRepertory East Playhouse andCanyon Theatre Playhouse.The area comprises the New-hall Arts and Theatre District.

To artistically enhance theenvironment of this downtownlocation, the city of Santa Clar-ita will implement a mural pro-gram with a goal of completingone mural per year. City staffmembers have identified sev-eral locations for future muralsand have selected a prime lo-cations for the first mural.

The first location is thenorth facing wall of El Troca-dero Steak House at 24274 SanFernando Road. This locationwas selected due to its low UVexposure, high-profile loca-tion at Market Street and SanFernando Road, excellentarched wall motif, wall con-

dition, and the history of al-most zero graffiti vandalism.

Property owner Frank Magaand restaurant owner Raul Bo-jorquez met with city staffmembers to develop ideas forthe mural’s theme. Artists willhave a choice of two differentthemes upon which to basetheir artwork. One theme willbe the Estancia de San Francis-co Javier, the mission outpostwas built at Castaic Junction in1804. The second theme willcenter around the vaquero —the California cowboy of Span-ish and Mexican days.

A “request for qualifications”will be advertised to artists tosubmit proposals for the muralproject and will be reviewed byMaga, Bojorquez and the boardof directors of Old TownNewhall Association, with finalselection by the Santa ClaritaArts Advisory Committee.

The Old Town Newhall Mur-al Project will be advertisedshortly. The selected artist willbe requested to complete themural by the end of June 2007.

Any property owner inter-ested in participating in futuremurals in Old Town Newhall,or artists who would like toreceive the request for qualifi-cations, should contact thecity of Santa Clarita’s Arts andEvents Office at 661/286-4078,or by e-mail at mmarks@santa-clarita.com.

By PHIL LANTISArts and Events

Administrator,

City Of Santa Clarita.

Statue Memorializes

Youngest Congressional

Medal Of Honor Recipient.

Local Sculptor Blends

Art With History.

Memorial Day weekendbrought the unveiling of astatue honoring “Willie theDrummer Boy” at the Veter-ans Memorial Plaza in OldTown Newhall, which is dedi-cated to all U.S. militarypersonnel, past and present.

The statue serves as asymbol of honor for all ofAmerica’s veterans. Willie’sstory reminds us that not allrecipients of the Congres-sional Medal of Honor weremen — at least not in age.

Boys under sixteen servedon both sides during the CivilWar, often playing drum, fife orbugle and leading the charge.When Willie Johnston’s fatherenlisted with the Union Army,young Willie, born in Vermontin 1850, begged to go with him.Willie joined Company D,Third Vermont VolunteerInfantry as a Musician on Dec-ember 11, 1861, and saw hisfirst action at Lee’s Mills,Virginia, on April 16, 1862.

Next came the “SevenDays” battle and the PeninsulaCampaign outside Richmond,Virginia, from June 25 to July 1,1862. On retreat, many strongsoldiers threw away theirequipment to lighten their load— but not young Willie. Heheld onto his drum and carriedit safely to Harrison’s Landing.The only boy to do so, Williehad the honor of drumming forthe division parade.

The accolades kept com-ing. The division commanderreported Willie’s bravery to theWar Department. SomehowPresident Lincoln learned of itand recommended Willie for aCongressional Medal of Honor,the nation’s highest militaryaward. On September 16, 1863,War Secretary Edwin M.Stanton personally presentedthe medal to thirteen-year-oldWillie for an act the youngsterperformed at age twelve.

Willie Johnston was onlythe seventh person to receivethe Congressional Medal ofHonor and remains the young-est person ever to earn it.

Stanton stated that Williedeserved the award “for exem-plifying the spirit of all our sol-diers, and for serving yourcountry so well. ... May all ourcitizens demonstrate the devo-tion shown by this young man.”

Stanton’s words exempli-fy the spirit of the Santa Clar-ita Veterans Historical Plaza,and Willie Johnston, thedrummer boy, is a wonderfulsymbol of that spirit.

The five-foot tall bronze isthe work of local artist MarkHenn. Mark’s interest in historyand art grew with him in hisnative state of Ohio. “I remem-ber reenacting the Battle ofGettysburg in my backyard,”Mark recalled. Art, however,remained his first love, leadinghim to California to fulfill achildhood dream of workingfor the Walt Disney Company.Twenty-three years later, Markstill works for the Mouse.

Mark didn’t neglect hispassion for American history.For ten years he pursued his in-terest by becoming a Civil Warreenactor. The highlight washis participation in the 125thanniversary Battle of Gettys-burg reenactment in 1988.

These days, Mark hasstowed his uniform and isblending his passions for artand history to create works inbronze. Largely self-taught,Mark has taken inspiration

from artists such as Rem-ington, Russell, Daniel Ches-ter French and Grant Speed.

In 2001, Mark received acommission from the Invent-ing Flight Committee to sculptWilbur and Orville Wright. Hismonument, unveiled in sum-mer 2003 during the hundredthanniversary of the Wright Bro-thers’ flight, is located at Leg-acy Plaza on Deeds Point.

Several organizations andindividuals contributed tomaking the “Willie” statue areality. The Veterans MemorialCommittee raised fundsthrough the sales of bricks,tiles, pins and bumper stick-ers, and the group partneredwith Wayne and Marilyn Hack-ett, who produced a play thatraised money for the project.Their love story with musicand dance, titled “Wartime Ro-mance,” was produced June 2through 4 at the College of theCanyons Performing Arts Cen-ter. The play tells the story ofMarilyn’s father, Captain TomJohnson, and his romance ofhis future bride, the late Mar-garet Johnson, through lettersduring World War II.

Marilyn was inspired totell their story when she dis-covered her father’s letters inthe attic of their home. Theproduction was created tohonor the veterans of theSanta Clarita Valley and toraise additional funds for theWillie Johnston statue.

If you have not visited theSanta Clarita Veterans Histori-cal Plaza recently, stop by andvisit Willie. The plaza is locatedat the intersection of NewhallAvenue, Market and WalnutStreet in Old Town Newhall.

15.

Civil War Hero Honored.

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Footnote.California was official-

ly neutral during the warbut tended to side with theSouth. Within Los AngelesCounty, Abraham Lincolnlost the presidential elec-tion in both 1860 and 1864.

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News From The Santa ClaritaArtists’ Association.

Opportunity To Win SignedPrint By Noted Watercolorist.

How would you like to own anoriginal print from a nationally recog-nized watercolorist for as little as $2?Here’s your chance. The Santa ClaritaArtists’ Association has received adonation of a work titled “Red TailedHawk” (seen above) by Bill H. Arm-strong and will raffle it off to raisefunds for the association’s Art Galleryat 22614 8th Street.

The signed print, valued at $250(wholesale), comes to the associationthrough Armstrong’s son, Cort. Raffletickets are available during the gal-lery’s operating hours, Wednesdaysthrough Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4p.m., until the end of July. Tickets are$2 each or three for $5.

A retired art professor from theUniversity of Missouri in Springfield,Bill H. Armstrong has been paintingfor more than fifty years. His paintingshang in many museums and privatecollections throughout the UnitedStates and Europe. Armstrong isrecognized by the American Water-color Society as one of the outstandingwatercolorists in the nation.

The public is invited to visit thegallery and view the work of associa-tion members. For information call661/222-7328.

Members of the Santa Clarita Art-ists’ Association are displaying theirwork at several locations around town:

◆ Artistic Smiles Dental Office.24155 Magic Mountain Parkway.

Ongoing display; two major ex-hibits in the dental office have featuredworks by more than 40 participatingartists. The public is invited to visit.

◆ Java Dave’s Coffee Shop.22876 Copper Hill Drive, Saugus.

Ongoing display; have a cup ofcoffee in this new shop and enjoymany original pieces of art.

◆ Senior Center Wine Auction.At Saugus Speedway, August 19.

Wine auction sponsor All CorkedUp! has invited association members todisplay their art under ten canopies atthe event, which benefits the SantaClarita Valley Committee on Aging. Tenartists will be selected to participate;applications are available at Santa Clar-ita City Hall, 23920 W. Valencia Boule-vard, Room 120 (ask for Janet Zaldua).

◆ SCAA Art Gallery.22614 8th Street, Old Town Newhall.

The gallery is open everyWednesday through Sunday from 10a.m. to 4 p.m. This month’s featuredartist is Billy Davis. A Miniature Showis planned for August. Stop by andlearn how to become a member — andpurchase your raffle tickets! Call661/222-7328 or visit santaclaritaartists.org on the Internet.

16.

Art In Full Bloom.

MAKE YOUR BUSINESS EVERYBODY’S BUSINESS.ADVERTISE IN THE GAZETTE.

CALL 661/259-1234 EXT. 237

COMING SOON From TheCanyon Theatre Guild.

The Canyon Theatre Guild isonce again producing a summer musi-cal at the Performing Arts Center atCollege of the Canyons. This year’s of-fering is one of Broadway’s best-lovedmusicals, “Fiddler on the Roof.”Sharing directing duties once again —following their success with last sum-mer’s production of “The Wizard ofOz,” are TimBen Boydston and PattiFinley.

In the little village of Anatevka,Tevye, a poor dairyman, tries to instillin his five daughters the traditions ofhis tight-knit Jewish community inthe face of changing social mores andthe growing anti-Semitism of CzaristRussia.

Rich in historical and ethnicdetail, “Fiddler On The Roof” hastouched audiences around the worldwith its humor, warmth and honesty.Its universal theme of tradition cutsacross barriers of race, class, nation-ality and religion, leaving audiencescrying tears of laughter, joy andsadness.

The show features a star turn inTevye, among the most memorableroles in musical theatre, portrayed inthis production by Michael Levine.Golde, his wife, is being played byCTG newcomer Mari Miranda, andTevye’s daughters are HeatherThompson as Tzeitle, Jenessa Willettas Hodel, Meghan Walter as Chava,Kaylin Mahoney as Shprintze andJustine Kelly as Bielke.

Leah Kari is Yente, the match-maker, and Greg Finley plays LazarWolf, the butcher. Motel, the tailor, isSean Goodman; Perchik, the revolu-tionary student, is Garrett Deagon;and Fyedka, the young Russian, isplayed by Matthew Lawrence.

The fiddler is being portrayed byHebert Pabon and Randy Simer is theRussian Constable. Also in the castare Marlowe Weisman as the rabbi;Brent Denison as Mendel, the rabbi’sson; Barry Agin as Mordcha, theinnkeeper; Mark Luther as Avram andDarel Roberts as Nachum.

Lisa Weisman is the ghost ofGrandma Tzeitel, Rena Bailey-Barrettis the ghost of Fruma Sarah, JamesWarnock as Yussel the hatmaker, andCarol Rock as Shaindel. Nikki Berra,Mary Blackstock and Marie Samuelare the understudies for Tevye’sdaughters.

The papas are Michael Davies,Ron Kari, Jon Myl, Darren Norton andFrank Rock. The mamas are SandieAllaway, Erin McGrath, MargoCaruso, Rosa Ferreira, Tricia Hulet,

Lisa Weisman and Rena Bailey-Barrett. The sons include JonathanEwart, Alberto Pabon, Colin Robert,Cameron Simer and Braden Wells.The daughters are played by JenniferAlexopoulos, Nikki Berra, MaryBlackstock, Sarah Carman, ChloeQuinn Henson, Jenni Mabrie, KamberMoen, Marianna Pabon, Marie Samu-el, Katie Simer, Bethany Sweany,Calliope Weisman and Denim Weis-man. The Russians are Erik Klein,Tom Lund, and Bret Kenyon.

Jerome Robbins’ original choreo-graphy is being recreated by JanMarieRennels. Tamarah Ashton-Coombs isthe musical director. The productionwill feature a live orchestra playingthe celebrated score by Jerry Bockand Sheldon