The horror writer stayed at the famed Riverside hotel and was so inspired by its arches, angels and atmosphere that she used the hotel, and even the suite where she stayed, as a setting in her 2009 novel “Angel Time” and its sequel. “That’s a great thing for a writer, when you see a place that sparks your imagination,” she once said. I write about her local connection in Sunday’s pre-Halloween column.
Monthly Archives: October 2022
Column: Mike Davis was a proud son of Fontana
Writer Mike Davis, who died Tuesday, was known for his stinging social critiques, especially about Los Angeles in “City of Quartz” and elsewhere. He spent the first six of his life in Fontana and never forgot, in fact reveled in, his working-class, Inland Empire roots. I pen an appreciation, with a lot of details from a 1998 interview I did with him that’s otherwise been lost to time, in my Friday column.
Column: Secession measure inspires jokes, questions
I dig a bit more into Measure EE, the fair share/secession measure on the Nov. 8 ballot in San Bernardino County, and crack a few jokes along the way, in my Wednesday column.
Column: Arrow train start celebrated 3 days early in Redlands
Metrolink train service will be extended to Redlands starting Monday, the system’s first expansion since 2016. I attended Friday’s dedication ceremony with its hoopla, speeches and moments of humor. Find my report in Sunday’s column.
Column: This subcontractor stops traffic. Its name: Gridlock
In Friday’s column, I talk to a traffic control company that’s on the job in Riverside: Gridlock Solutions. (I’d noticed the word “Gridlock” on orange traffic barriers and inquired whether that was a company or a joke or what.) Also, two events of possible interest are coming Oct. 30: a screening of “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925 silent version) at the Mission Inn and a reading by yours truly in Ontario. Finally, a public servant, in canine form, is saluted in Rancho Cucamonga.
Column: Penman, Tran face off at mayoral election forum
Two candidates survived the June primary and are in a runoff to lead San Bernardino: Jim Penman and Helen Tran. I attended a candidate forum to watch how they handled themselves. The questions weren’t that hot, the room was ice cold, the answers were okay, the evening was somewhat amusing and my report is in Wednesday’s column.
Column: Civil Rights Institute prepares to open its doors
An exhibit space devoted to minorities in the Inland Empire, their struggles and successes is about to open in Riverside. I tour the Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California in advance of the Oct. 22 gala opening for my Sunday column.
Column: Sammy Hagar to kick Fontana theater into overdrive
The rocker and native son will give a boost to city-owned Center Stage Theater by lending his name and reputation to the venue and agreeing to perform annually for five years, with proceeds to the city. I attend a council meeting to hear about it, with the bonus of witnessing an unusual arachnid-related incident, all in my Friday column.
Column: Fairplex’s farm expert kept LA County Fair grounded
Don DeLano has been the LA County Fair’s horticulturalist for 31 years and since 2014 has managed The Farm, the 5-acre urban farm on the fairgrounds. I interview him before his retirement for my Wednesday column.
Column: 150 years of stories at Evergreen Cemetery
I tour Riverside’s oldest cemetery, which was founded in 1872, only two years after the community formed. Many local notables are buried there. A party is taking place Oct. 15. And “The Nightmare Before Christmas” is screening there Oct. 22, if that’s more your thing. I write about Evergreen in my Sunday column.