So this shot means a ton to me. I will tell you why, it holds layers and layers of LA (and my) history.
Let us peal back some layers of this, we'll start some recent notes.
This is the intersection of the 105 (the Century Freeway) and the 110 (the Harbor Freeway).
1. From the image's vertical center (the 110) to horizontal left (the 105) is a two lane flyover interchange. This is where the opening number from La La Land was filmed. It bugs me a bit because they used the southbound AND northbound car pool lanes - yet in the shot all the cars are traveling northbound.
2. The 105 had been planned for years, but was the last freeway approved and built in the Los Angeles county part of the greater metro area. Other freeways (and even a few tollways) were built in Orange County, San Bernardino County and Riverside County - but this was the last one built in LA county int he built up sections. The 105 was fought over and finally built with some odd limitations: it was allowed no more three lanes each way (not counting car-pool). It had to have car-pool lanes and was the first (in LA County) to have car-pool to car-pool only interchanges. It was also the firsst freeway to have the bad idea of signals on some interchanges to regular traffic flow. A freeway should NOT have signals once you are on.
3. The major road just north of the interchange is Imperial Ave. The highway to the left going north to south is Figueroa Ave, and the next one to the left is Vermont. My Grandfather, Ham, used to work right there at Cambridge Wirecloth. Way before the Harbor Freeway because the 110 and before the 105 was a gleam in its father's eye.
4. Before the 105 was built the 110, was widened massively, including carpool lanes that were elevated above the freeway.
5. If you follow Figueroa up in the picture until it disappears into what looks like a building. That is USC, University of Southern California, which I attended school year 1976-77.
6. Just south of that, and barely visible, is the Colosseum. Built for the 1932 Olympics it has been used by USC (still), UCLA, LA Rams, LA Raiders, LA Dodgers, the 1932 and 1984 Olympics, the 1959 World Series (as the Dodgers base before Dodger Stadium) as well as John F. Kennedy's acceptance speech in 1960.
6a. I was a cheerleader for UCLA at that stadium the 1979-80 season of UCLA football.
6b. I went to a Papal Mass with John Paul II at the Colosseum.
6c. In 1984 I attend the Los Angeles Olympics there and saw Carl Lewis and Tommy Hitnaus compete.
7. North of that - up in the foothills is a spec of white. That is the Griffith Observatory in Griffith Park. Famous as hell and you've seen it in a zillion movies from Rebel Without a Cause to Charles Angles, Full Throttle.
8. The 110, the Harbor Freeway, wasn't always US 110. It was built by the city to connect downtown Los Angeles (in the upper section of the image) to the Los Angeles Harbor (not seen) after Los Angeles annexed half of the harbor (now known as the Port Of Los Angeles / Long Beach). It marches down Figueroa Blvd - which was built in that thin strip of land LA annexed to connect the city to the port. Figueroa was, for many years, the longest street in any single city - it stretches 30 miles almost all in the city of Los Angeles. Back then the Harbor Freeway was known as the 11. The 11 means that it was not part f the Interstate highway system when it was built. The expansion changed the name to the Interstate 110 because federal funds were used. And still, the part of the roadway north of Los Angeles' downtown is known as the Pasadena Freeway, but is numbered 11 because it is too small and limited to be part of the Interstate system.
9. Next to the freeway at USC is a car-lot called Felix Chevrolet. It has had a giant Felix the Cat sign out there very visible from the old 11. The expansion put a second level and you can't really see Felix anymore. But it always brings a smile to me - because as you drove from Inglewood or Gardena (my childhood homes), the 11 would move from slightly below grade to above grade and the Felix sign would pop up. My grandfather would say, "Hi Marty Mart" and wave at the sign, called my aunt (who was down syndrome) the cat. She would laugh and yell "Hi Daddy, daddy daddy". It was a game that never failed. And Zela would often give Martha a nudge right before the sign so she could say it first. It still brings a smile to my face.
10. In the upper center left, the first set of hills that suddenly dip, that is the Cahuenga Pass. When Ed and I lived in the Hollywood Hills, we lived right there, towards the left in those hills.
11. Right were the new 105 exits the image to the left used to be a big park. My mom and Jeanie would take us kids (younger than 7 years old) there every now and then to play croquet, as there were public, permanent croquet fields there, much bigger than the backyard fields could ever be.
Images:
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Opening scene in La La Land. On the overpass (all cars are going the same way - not right, but okay)
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Los Angeles Olympic's Opening 1984
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The Griffith Observatory
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Hi Marty! Hi Marty!
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