Los Angeles Then and Now

Rating:
Summary: Lord! How disappointing!
Review: I am a Los Angeles history buff (specialty, the early 1900s), so I bought this book for my library, but I was really disappointed in it.

For one thing, it is very badly edited; grammatical errors (mostly misplaced or dangling modifiers) abound. I mean, for such a handsome book, it really deserved a go-through by a professional editor.

Secondly, who really needs a photo of the present-day Roma restaurant at the corner of Hollywood and Wilcox (complete with a guy in a cowboy hat hurrying to beat a flashing "Don't Walk" light and a lineup of late-model cars waiting to cross)?

Or who needs a shot of the Virgin megastore where the historic Schwab's restaurant used to be? And on and on . . . Some of the "before" shots are worthwhile, but most of the "after" shots are really pedestrian -- including that hustling cowpoke.

The best pic is on the cover -- the opening of the movie "Hell's Angels" at Grauman's Chinese. There are some other good older pix inside, too.

As has been mentioned, this book is way too heavy on Hollywood, and the depth of the research by the author can be measured by the number of times she mentions the names of Hollywood movies. I am suspicious of some of the facts in the book, too, although I can't quite pin down the reason right now. Maybe it was all those grammatical errors.

Finally, this book was printed in China, and I have nothing against the Chinese or their desire to earn big bucks from the rest of the world, but couldn't the author have found a printer right here in the U.S. to do this book? "Produced by PRC Publishing Co." PRC, get it -- "People's Republic of China"?

So, don't make this your coffee table gift. If you want a so-so addition to your library of L.A. books, buy it second hand somewhere or pick it up off the remainder table. It has a very nice cover, but you know what they say about books and their covers . . .

Rating:
Summary: Los Angeles History for Tourists Only
Review: I was given this book by a friend when we were in a Hollywood book store because he thought this was a book all about Hollywood. He then went back and bought me Rosemary Lords "Hollywood Then and Now". The error because the cover of the Los Angeles book has a photo of the Chinese theater in Hollywood on the cover. This book, side by side with the Hollywood book is not very different in content. In fact, it contains some of the same locations as the Hollywood book.

I was raised in Hollywood and Los Angeles and love the history of the area. The archival photographs are quite nicely reproduced, however, the current-day photographs are very poor. I enjoy digital photography and was in Hollywood a few weeks ago and visiteds some of the same historic scenes from this book. I quite easily found the angle of the original shots found in this book.. why this book showed those same shots but taken from different angles than the original photos is beyond me. The modern photos in this book are also very unflattering, out of focus and even amateur in appearance... not much more than snapshots.

The worst thing about this book are the many obvious mistakes in locations and historic details just as the Hollywood contains. Very disappointed!

Rating:
Summary: Los Angeles History for Tourists Only
Review: Of the 69 Then and Now photos, 30 were basically the same because
the view had not changed over the years. I lived in LA for over 30 years and there are so many areas that have changed completely it's a shame that they weren't used.

Rating:
Summary: Too many then and now photos basically the same
Review: Of the 69 Then and Now photos, 30 were basically the same because
the view had not changed over the years. I lived in LA for over 30 years and there are so many areas that have changed completely it's a shame that they weren't used.

Rating:
Summary: Los Angeles, Then and Not Really Los Angeles
Review: Perfect as a gift for those whose coffee table is Hollywood challenged. Apparently, the author/editors believe Los Angeles is 9 parts Hollywood, 1 part unimportant. Also, this book is for the advanced Hollywood student who already knows where most of these vital cultural icons exists - addresses are infrequently provided - or doesn't really care. Original camera positions for the "then" pictures are not duplicated in the modern version, and worse, the year in which the historic photograph is taken is not uniformly provided. Film star names are essential to the sparse narrative, as opposed to information as to the significance or relevance to Los Angeles/rest of planet of the site/photo chosen.

Rating:
Summary: Los Angeles, Then and Not Really Los Angeles
Review: Perfect as a gift for those whose coffee table is Hollywood challenged. Apparently, the author/editors believe Los Angeles is 9 parts Hollywood, 1 part unimportant. Also, this book is for the advanced Hollywood student who already knows where most of these vital cultural icons exists - addresses are infrequently provided - or doesn't really care. Original camera positions for the "then" pictures are not duplicated in the modern version, and worse, the year in which the historic photograph is taken is not uniformly provided. Film star names are essential to the sparse narrative, as opposed to information as to the significance or relevance to Los Angeles/rest of planet of the site/photo chosen.

Rating:
Summary: Correction to previous review?
Review: The incisive review you include from a reader is said to be written by "scott r. johnson". Are you sure it isn't from the prominent Los Angeles architect R. Scott Johnson? Clearly the reviewer really knows his Los Angeles (as do I). Even though I will buy this book -- I've seen it in a store -- I sincerely appreciate Johnson's incisive comments, which contrast with the uncritically adoring reader reviews of the other books in this Thunder Bay series.

Paul Corneil, World Architecture Database

Rating:
Summary: Correction to previous review?
Review: The incisive review you include from a reader is said to be written by "scott r. johnson". Are you sure it isn't from the prominent Los Angeles architect R. Scott Johnson? Clearly the reviewer really knows his Los Angeles (as do I). Even though I will buy this book -- I've seen it in a store -- I sincerely appreciate Johnson's incisive comments, which contrast with the uncritically adoring reader reviews of the other books in this Thunder Bay series.

Paul Corneil, World Architecture Database

Rating:
Summary: Captivating
Review: This is a wonderful book. It's absolutely captivating. Once you start looking at the pictures, you can't put it down. I love the photographs as well as the historical narrative. I'd recommend this book to anyone. I only wish it were longer.