Los Angeles A to Z

Book excerpt: Few cities captivate the imagination as does Los Angeles. It is the locus of spectaculars: movies, earthquakes, freeways, riots, sunsets. In this fascinating desk reference, Leonard and Dale Pitt have gathered a sweeping array of information on the City of Angels. Bolstering their historical and humanistic approach with scientific and technical information, the Pitts include alphabetically arranged entries on history, geography, automobile culture, sports, movies, current events, architecture, flora, fauna, scandals, biography, the arts, politics, neighborhoods, and ethnic, racial, and religious groups. Quotations throughout provide provocative and amusing tidbits about the city that has been called "the fulfillment of the American Dream." Copiously illustrated and wonderfully anecdotal, this is a book for anyone with a question, large or small, about Los Angeles. "It's a great place to live, but I wouldn't want to visit there."—Mark Twain "At heart, Los Angeles is a vast cross-section of the Corn Belt set down incongruously in a Maxfield Parrish setting."—Irwin S. Cobb "Hollywood is wonderful. Anyone who doesn't like it is either crazy or sober."—Raymond Chandler "Great weather and automobiles."—Jamal Wilkes