Let me hear about South Central in its heyday (Los Angeles: home, live)

[imaterry78259]

Does anyone know??? I heard that Sinatra and the Rat Pack use to go clubbing in the area

[Charles]

I put a ton of great photos of Compton on this thread:

//www.city-data.com/forum/los-a...y-compton.html

[Elle Oh Elle]

When??? It's been around for awhile.

[Carlite]

Walter Mosley's mystery novels, e.g. Devil in a Blue Dress, paint a detailed picture of life in South Central from the 40's through the 60's.

[Mr. Opinionated]

It wasnt always the bastard stepchild of Los Angeles. It began as a caucasian area except for the vibrant jazz mecca known as Central Avenue, before white flight. There is much attention being given to this and the rest of the South Central area lately as they have contributed so much to the color and culture of one of America's most notable metropolises...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central...e_(Los_Angeles)

[Elle Oh Elle]

Originally Posted by Mr. Opinionated

It wasnt always the bastard stepchild of Los Angeles. It began as a caucasian area except for the vibrant jazz mecca known as Central Avenue, before white flight. There is much attention being given to this and the rest of the South Central area lately as they have contributed so much to the color and culture of one of America's most notable metropolises...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central...e_(Los_Angeles)

That was the case with a LOT of cities here, because at first the earliest immigrants were whites who saved their money and ended up in LA. I wrote in another thread the same thing happened to Westlake awhile back, all the previous residents just moved and it became a drug-infested area with immigrants. Nowadays no one really moves anymore except Hispanics, Asians, and sometimes the extremely rare African or European.

[nickdahammer]

Central Avenue was the West Coast jazz hub. Buddy Collette, Mal Waldron, Charles Mingus grew up here. I think Mingus lived right off the stem, as a matter of fact. Collette never went east, preferring to stay home and mentor young musicians. I highly recommend the 'Central Avenue Sounds' CD set and book. I always felt that the Ken Burns 'Jazz' series short-changed the L.A. scene bigtime.

[Exitus Acta Probat]

Way back in the day, South Central was home to several tribes of Amerindian peoples who found its soil ideal for growing maize and it was a good hunting ground for javelina and several sub-species of grouse.

[calipoppy]

Marilyn Monroe at a nightclub on Central Avenue

[nickdahammer]

What a great, great shot! Thanks.

Originally Posted by calipoppy

Marilyn Monroe at a nightclub on Central Avenue