With just over 50 listings on the housing market this week (not counting mobile homes, condos or townhouses), where does that leave buyers who desperately want to purchase property in the Palisades? “Scrambling!” said Anthony Marguleas, owner of A.M. Realty on Sunset, who represents buyers exclusively. “Many are not only finding themselves in multiple-offers situations but also competing against buyers who can pay all cash.” Marguleas started his company 10 years ago because he felt there was an “inherent conflict of interest” in situations where the listing agent and/or the firm also represented the buyer, “especially when it comes to negotiating.” Marguleas, 38, represents buyers not only in the Palisades but all over Los Angeles. He estimates that about a third of his clients are people moving to L.A., a third are first-time buyers, and a third are buyers ready to move up. “Anyone who has owned property here in the last five years has lots of equity, which puts them in an excellent position to buy a bigger or better house,” he said. Of the buyers he has, Marguleas said that “about 35 percent can pay all cash, and 25 percent can put 50 percent or more down.” Most of them are looking in the $2.5-million range. With currently only two houses listed under $1 million in the Palisades (a probate at 16780 Livorno and a 3 plus 2 on Jacon Way), 16 between $1 and $2 million, and 13 properties between $2 and $3 million, “the choice is limited, even for the most qualified buyer. We write a lot of offers.” Marguleas, who recalled that there were at least twice as many properties available at this time last year, said he never imagined that housing inventory would drop so low. “No one did.” He said the small number of listings on the market has forced him to “really think outside of the box.” A challenge in recent weeks involved a buyer who absolutely wanted to buy in one of the bluff areas. Marguleas sent letters to several bluff owners asking if they were willing to sell. One was, and a deal was struck. Marguleas, who now has two offices (the other is in Pasadena) and is about to open a third in Toluca Lake, also provides prospective buyers with 24-hour access to the MLS and keeps track of local probates, REOs (bank-owned properties), and FSBOs (For Sale By Owner). He said that perhaps the easiest way for someone to get into the Palisades market these days is to do a lease-option on one of the many home rentals available in the area or to buy a townhouse or condo, which have appreciated “24% faster in the last year than single-family homes, making them a great investment in this market.” A resident of the Alphabet streets where he lives with his wife Sue and their four children, Marguleas said the shortage of listings in the Palisades is leading to business practices which could create problems for both buyers and sellers. For example, sellers being solicited directly by buyers may be persuaded to do a private sale, thereby depriving themselves of getting “the best possible representation.” And anxious buyers may make offers on houses that are higher than the bank’s appraised value, resulting “in their either paying too much for the property or having to pull out of escrow because they can’t come up with the extra cash to close the deal.” Another trend that Marguleas finds disturbing is the waiving of inspections, which could lead to litigation. “What if the buyer finds the chimney is cracked within weeks of closing escrow?” Marguleas asked. “We never recommend waiving inspections, no matter how much a buyer wants the house. It’s not good for them or us.”
Mesches Recasts FBI Files as Art
Writer/Artist Arnold Mesches borrows the language of medieval illuminated manuscripts-illustrations and text set off by decorative borders-and gives it a contemporary twist in the current crop of 50 paintings and collages now on view in the “FBI Files” exhibition at the Skirball Cultural Center. Just as early handwritten manuscripts recorded 13th century history, the works in this exhibition light up the darker side of recent American history during the Cold War/McCarthy era. In 1999, through the Freedom of Information Act, Mesches discovered and gained access to 760 pages of FBI files covering his political activities, personal life, teaching and artistic production between 1945 and 1972. “I had goose pimples-it was just unbelievable,” says Mesches, who was struck by both a sense of betrayal-countless former students, neighbors, colleagues and “friends” were among those who cooperated with the FBI-as well as by the alluring aesthetic quality of these typewritten documents that had large portions obscured by thick black lines in an attempt to protect the betrayers. The slashing black strokes in the documents reminded Mesches of the late Abstract Expressionist Franz Kline’s art, inspiring him to create the body of work that comprises the “FBI Files.” In these works, actual pages from the FBI files are mixed with images of popular culture, 1950s-era advertising and elements from Mesches’ own figurative paintings and drawings. Celebrities, politicians and other notables of the day-everyone from Malcolm X to Richard Nixon and Marilyn Monroe-also figure in the work, a style that seems to merge Abstract Expressionism with Pop Art, all wrapped in an illuminated manuscript-like decorative border. “Everything I’ve ever known is in my art,” says Mesches, whose animated speech, easy laughter, and quick step belie his 80 years. “I want people to wonder why things are juxtaposed in my work.” Mesches, a lifelong leftist activist, ultimately hopes to expose what he sees as the “evils and ridiculousness” of his long-term surveillance by the FBI, while addressing such broader themes as the right to privacy and freedom of expression. Born in the Bronx and now living in Florida, the artist has strong ties to Los Angeles. He lived here for more than 40 years and taught at USC, UCLA, the Art Center of Design and Otis College of Art and Design. He continues to teach at several universities and art schools. While Mesches views his current series as a summation of a certain historical time, he also sees strong parallels with what’s happening today in terms of limits placed on civil liberties. “It went on then, it will go on again,” he says, making specific reference to the controversial Homeland Security Act and Patriot Act. Surprisingly, Mesches harbors no bitterness towards those who spied on him. “It was a long time ago,” he says. “And what the hell’s the difference? Ninety percent of them are dead.” The exhibition continues at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. in L.A., through March 28. Contact: 440-4500.
Slope Soaring
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
On a clear winter afternoon, swept clean by a recent rain, several flying enthusiasts are out on the Via de las Olas bluffs with remote controls in their hands. In the distance, big jets are taking off from LAX, silently soaring over the Pacific. But the men’s focus is closer by, on the model planes and flying wings that playfully chase each other through the sky, guided by the pilots’ sure hands. The wind coming up the steep hillside provides the ideal environment to keep these engineless gliders aloft, while the pilots can vicariously enjoy the pure joy of swooping through the air, catching the wind and performing acrobatic tricks with a view of the ocean stretching from Point Dume to Palos Verdes. The bluffs at the Mount Holyoke lookout are one of the few locations in Los Angeles perfect for this activity. Soaring specialists come here from all over the city, but many of the diehard are Palisadians. It’s a short trip from home to see if the wind is blowing the right way. “Everybody has a tree they like to watch to see which way the breeze is going,” says Jim Breese, who looks at the palms up the hill above his house on Las Pulgas as his own personal wind meter. The basic flying wings, 3 to 4 feet long and shaped somewhat like a thick boomerang, are made of styrofoam that easily survives frequent crashes. Fancier models, which look more like 3- to 6-ft. replicas of actual airplanes, are made of fiberglass. Palisadian Kerry Feltham, one of the regular “pilots,” even made a movie about this mostly male phenomenon, called “The California Flyboys.” Feltham, a director whose short film “Too Much Oregano” won the Jury Prize at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival, decided that the flying made “a natural subject” for a half-hour film. A teacher at Palisades High School, he stationed himself on the bluffs on and off for about a year with a digital video camera in hand, and completed the film in 2002. The “flyboys” are mostly “guys who do things with their heads all day,” says Feltham. They include a retired pilot, engineer, corporate lawyer, and chiropractor. “It really is a kind of spatial thing-you switch off the analytical part of your brain and go into the rhythm part of the brain.” “I saw Jim [Breese] flying out here and he let me fly the plane,” says Feltham recalling the first time he tried to pilot a model 10 years ago. “I put it in the tree.” But he was hooked. “Now I’m out here a couple of times a week.” “You get better at it,” says Breese. “At first it’s all you can do to keep it in the air. My wife bought me a radio-control set and it stuck. It’s the last she’s seen of me.” The hobby is social and meditative at the same time. “It’s the danger of not being in control and seeing how far you can go without being in control,” Breese says. “It gets you in touch with the wind.” Larry Seversen, a psychiatrist and one of the “flyboys” featured in Feltham’s movie, likes to watch red-tailed hawks as an inspiration for flying. The hobby also has an aerobic side to it. When the planes don’t stay aloft, or crash into one another during “combat,” they can fall down the hillside, and the pilots hike down one of two paths to get them. Yet planes that fall into a certain spot, known as the “Bermuda triangle,” are often lost forever. “Whoever goes down the mountain the fewest times wins,” Breese says. Breese, an engineer who designs hard drives for computers, taught a class at the Palisades/Malibu YMCA last year about how to put together a plane. Although none of the students got into flying regularly after building their planes, Breese maintains that it’s a great hobby for kids. The kits cost $45 and up, with the radio transmission costing $70 and up. Breese allows the young children walking on the bluffs with their parents to try his radio controls. “We encourage questions. We like to find new addicts,” he jokes. The hobby can get expensive for those who go onto fiberglass planes, which can cost $500 or more. They are best for experienced pilots because the planes can break easily when they crash to the ground. Gas-powered planes, which are noisy, are never used on the bluffs, and electric-powered models are seldom flown there, as most of the pilots prefer to use the natural wind power. Some aircraft pilots “waggle their wings” in friendly hello when they see the glider fliers on the bluffs. The best “flying” season is spring and summer, when the on-shore breezes provide just the right lift. About five to 10 people will come out on the weekend with a good wind. The informal group, known as the Palisades Soaring Club, often flies until dusk. “It’s very relaxing, being out there with the sun and fresh air, the ocean breezes blowing on you,” Breese says. “It’s an all-engrossing sort of thing.” To purchase a copy of “California Flyboys,” e-mail ae126@lafn.org. Introductory beginner kits can be found at hobby shops, such as Hobby People, 10825 Pico, 234-2425 or Evett’s Model Shop, 1636 Ocean Park, 452-2720. Fiberglass models can be found at specialty retailers such as www.nesail.com
Skatepark Opens at Rec Center
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
A festive atmosphere surrounded opening ceremonies for a portable skatepark on the resurfaced outdoor basketball courts at Palisades Recreation Center Sunday afternoon, the culmination of a four-year volunteer effort spearheaded by Huntington Palisades resident Susan Nash. “I’m happy. I’m relieved,” said Nash, an attorney whose 14-year-old son, Michael, is a skater. “Just watching all these kids have so much fun makes all of our efforts worth it. It feels like this was meant to be.” The ceremony started with brief speeches by Nash and Rec Center Director Cheryl Gray, a presentation of checks by Debbie Dyner-Harris (representing City Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski) and the Palisades Rotary Club, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Then the real fun began, as dozens of local skaters and rollerbladers, clad in helmets and pads, took to the ramps. The kids also enjoyed chowing down on In-and-Out burgers, participating in a raffle for hats, T-shirts and boards donated by PaliSkate, Grind King and Slide Angle and listening to live music by Altered (a group consisting of Corpus Christi students and skaters Matt Lamb, Nick McCormack, Leo Rosetti and Sean Vinnedge). “My friends and I have been waiting for this for a few years,” said 13-year-old Corey Rasmussen, a 7th-grader at Corpus Christi. “I’ve been to Skate Street in Ventura, Vans in Orange County and a few others. This one is good because it’s so smooth.” “Yeah, it’s pretty fun,” added 8-year-old Wylie Beetley, who goes to Marquez Elementary. Gray announced that the skatepark is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays and 3:30 to 7 p.m. on Fridays. Beginning in March, it will be open from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. Sunday’s event was free, but normal park admission will be $2 a day or $50 for a yearly pass. “This is all the work of Susan,” said Erica Simpson, owner of PaliSkate on Swarthmore. “I’ve given them advice along the way but I know the kids are totally excited about this. I think it’s pretty cool because it appeals to a lot of different ages.” Having just as much fun were the skaters’ parents and families, many of whom arrived with cameras and camcorders to catch their kids hanging ’10’ off of five-foot high birms and sliding atop narrow balance beams. “I was totally for it,” one parent said. “I have an 8-year-old and I felt the Huntington Palisades opposition was totally unfounded. This is a community of activity. To have something like this in a safe area, where parents can drop their kids off, is just great.” Nash originally lobbied for a permanent facility on the opposite end of the park in a space behind the south playing fields, but that proposal was scuttled by threatened litigation. “I was disappointed initially, but if we had ended up with that [facility] there would’ve been a lot of opposition to it. This is somewhat of a compromise but it’ll still be supervised whenever it’s in use and the equipment is state-of-the-art.” Including donations from well over 100 residents, the Palisades Skate Fund headed by Nash received large contributions on behalf of many Palisades business and service clubs, including Coldwell Banker, American Legion, Palisades Lions Club and the Palisades-Malibu YMCA. Thus far, the fund has received $60,000 to pay for the equipment and the cost of hiring a supervisor for three years. “So many people have been so supportive,” Nash said. “People like Bob [Lutz] and Mary [Elizabeth Horan] who have given their time and money. Of course, Erica from PaliSkate has been great and so has [Park Advisory Board member] Mike Skinner. He really went to bat for this the same as he did for the ball fields.” True Ride, Inc., a Minneapolis-based company that made the equipment used at the Rec Center, has built over 100 permanent skateparks and provided portable equipment and installation for numerous multi-use facilities. Coincidentally, its founders Dave and Greg Benson have a skateboarding nephew, Jack, who lives in the Palisades. At noon, Termite and PaliSkate team members did a demo of high-flying moves and stunts that drew cheers from the crowd. “This is pretty nice,” said 12-year-old Termite skater Hanna Zanzi of Westminster. “Our team manager told me about it, so I decided to come. I like grinding and this is a good park for that.”
Palisades Sound Master Grundman Wins Grammy for ‘Album of Year’
Bernie Grundman, a Palisades resident since 1976, received a Grammy Award for “Album of the Year” for hip-hop duo OutKast’s “SpeakerBoxxx/The Love Below” at the 46th annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center Sunday. Grundman has won many awards in his field of audio mastering, but this is his first Grammy. Grammys for mastering are new, and have been awarded only for the past three years to the engineer who masters the “Album of the Year.” Mastering is a critical part of the final shape and the quality of the sound. Grundman attended the gala event with his wife Claire, an artist, and his son Paul, a musician/producer, who is currently an engineer for Jackson Browne. He was also accompanied by artist-on-the-rise Celeste, who grew up in the Palisades and has performed professionally since she was 8 years old. What is mastering anyway? “Well, it really can sonically make or break an album,” said Paul Grundman. “It is the final process. The mastering engineer must, like a microsurgeon of sound, listen with his best ears to decide what to do, or what not to do, using a mastering console primarily. The mastering console is like the treble and bass knobs (on a stereo system), but imagine about 20 or 30 of them, each dedicated to a particular frequency and each affecting the entire sound.” The Grundman console was custom created by Bernie Grundman and the late Karl Bischof, his partner of 30 years. There are only a few of these consoles in existence-here and in Tokyo, Japan, where Grundman has another studio. “It’s really great that they are recognizing mastering in the awards” Grundman said. “It was really wild to get up there and see all of the people from the stage.” “My father recently gave Andre of OutKast some of his favorite jazz albums by Sonny Rollins because he was becoming interested in John Coltrane,” Paul said. “If you tell Bernie you’re into jazz, you’re speaking his language. He’ll just find something you’ve never heard and it’ll blow you away.” Grundman mastered while at A&M records for 15 years, and in 1983 opened his own studio, Bernie Grundman Mastering. With his associates Brian Gardner and Chris Bellman, he has built a client list that includes Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, Eminem, Enrique Iglesias, Dr Dre, Christina Aguilera, Alanis Morissette, Fleetwood Mac, Missy Eliott, Barbra Streisand, Quincy Jones, Snoop Dogg, Blink 182, Madonna, Elton John, David Bowie and Beck, to name a few. “We are so happy for him,” said Alexia Csato of the Palisades hair and beauty salon “Le Studio” (formerly Peter & Alexia) on Via De La Paz. “We want to send our warmest congratulations!” Peter added, “He’s been one of our best clients and a great friend for over 20 years now, and we’re so glad that he got a Grammy.” “We were nervous towards the end because it is the last award they give, but I knew he was going to win,” Celeste said. “We jumped out of our seats and screamed when they announced OutKast.” “My father has always been my hero. I’m a fan too,” said Paul Grundman. “When I saw him on stage, I don’t think I had seen him smile so much like a kid before. It touched my heart and I’ll never forget it as long as I live.”
Palisades Gets a Dedicated Police Car 4 Days a Week
The dedicated police car promised by West L.A. Captain Mike Chambers started patrolling Pacific Palisades yesterday. Chambers agreed to provide the vehicle, up to four days a week, after attending several heated community meetings in December and January in which residents demanded more police protection in the town. However, how long the two-officer patrol car will remain dedicated to the Palisades is already in question, given the news this week of Chambers’ impending transfer. After only 10 months on the job, Chambers, commanding head of the West L.A. police station, has been reassigned to the organized crime division downtown. Replacing Chambers is the current head of that division, Captain Vance Proctor. The move is expected to take place as early as next week. Whether the dedicated car will remain in the Palisades “will now have to be determined by Captain Proctor,” Chambers said. “I will certainly convey why I think there is a need for it, but it will be up to him on how to best deploy the resources of West L.A.” While West L.A. is the largest police division in Los Angeles, covering 65 square miles, it has one of the lowest crime rates in the city. Proctor said that while he had not yet had a chance to discuss any specifics with Chambers, he was aware of “the unique geography and isolation of the Palisades.” Besides the dedicated patrol car, Chambers had also assigned a second senior lead officer to the Palisades in January, an assignment that was short-lived. Barb Scallon is currently replacing “a senior lead who is on vacation in another area,” according to Senior Lead Officer Chris Ragsdale. Whether Scallon will again be deployed to the Palisades is also up in the air. Chambers said her assignment to the Palisades was always only meant to be “temporary,” based on her availability. Proctor, who lives in Ventura County, has been with the LAPD for 38 years. He is familiar with the West L.A. division, having served as patrol captain from 1988-90. He said he is looking forward to returning to what he described as a “diverse beat. Personally, I could not hope for a better posting.”
Dog Fight Over the Dog Park
Nearly 50 residents from the Via de las Olas bluffs neighborhood crowded into Mort’s Oak Room Monday night to defend their turf and denounce efforts by other Palisades residents to create an off-leash dog park on the infamous Oxy site along PCH. Reiterating the numerous fears and objections that were expressed in a front-page article in last Thursday’s Palisadian-Post, audience members from Friends over to Mt. Holyoke argued that the proposed three-acre dog park near the mouth of Potrero Canyon would bring incalculable damage to their quality of life and could ultimately destroy homes along the bluffs. The two-hour meeting was hosted by PaliDog, the ad hoc Community Council committee that has spent five months researching potential dog-park locations in Pacific Palisades. When their investigation began to focus on the flat, undeveloped piece of land where Occidental once hoped to drill for oil, they were quickly opposed by BRAD (Bluff Residents Against Danger). “Our objective is to enhance the community,” PaliDog chairman Norm Kulla said in his welcoming remarks Monday night. “We all feel proud to live here and we want to make it better”-by having a park where dog owners can gather while their dogs exercise and socialize. “Whatever we do will have to be supported by the community.” Kulla said he had read numerous e-mail alerts from various opponents of the Oxy site and found two main themes in their concerns. “One is unrelated to our proposed park, and that is the history of the city’s failure to address problems on the Via bluff,” Kulla said. As described by BRAD members, these ongoing grievances include concerns about bluff stability, the fact that Via de las Olas has been withdrawn from public use and is no longer maintained by the City of Los Angeles, and there’s little or no patrol and enforcement of the posted signs restricting traffic to the street. (See Letters to the Editor, page 2.) “The second area of concern,” Kulla said, “has to do with the park location itself,” and especially the existence of an overgrown trail that traverses the hillside from Lombard on Via de las Olas down to the Oxy site, near the mouth of Potrero Canyon. PaliDog members felt that this trail would never be an issue, since the 10-minute hike each way would discourage most potential dog-park users. A parking lot would be built at the park itself, with traffic-signal access off PCH. Nevertheless, BRAD members warned that the trail would actually prove popular and would attract unknown hordes of people who would park for free on Via de las Olas and adjoining streets in order to access the dog park. This additional vehicle traffic would “further exacerbate bluff instability,” said Tom Giovine in his two-page complaint, while inviting “wayward and unseemly people to roam the bluff streets.” “You’re putting my home and the neighborhood in jeopardy,” said Regina McConahay, who noted that she lives “at Ground Zero,” across from the Lombard trailhead. “We are big dog lovers and we support an off-leash site-but not on the Oxy site.” Ines Boechat, a professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine UCLA, and her husband, Vicente Gilsanz, a professor at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles, have lived on Via de las Olas since 1984 and spoke out about “the health hazard raised by the dissemination of bacteria contained in fecal material eliminated by potentially thousands of dogs frequenting the park, that would spread through water and the environment. It would particularly affect young and elderly individuals who live in the proximity of the park.” The threat of litigation also arose when Giovine asked, “Who’s going to compensate the homeowners if the bluffs are destabilized by all the cars and people? Whoever is responsible for building this dog park and approving this dog park, we will hold them responsible. We will absolutely sue.” He did say, however, that “I’m not against a dog park,” and he encouraged PaliDog to take a more serious look at Temescal Gateway Park above Sunset. Attorney George Soneff urged Kulla to pursue Joe Edmiston, executive director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy which oversees public uses in Temescal. “You should put community pressure on Joe-get him in here to answer questions,” Soneff said. Trying one last time to overcome the polarized atmosphere in the room, Kulla told the audience: “I know that you have overwhelming concerns, and there’s a huge problem in your neighborhood-Via de las Olas. Your perception is that the Oxy dog park would make worse the existing problems. But are you willing to work with me on solutions?” “Absolutely not,” Giovine responded. “Well, if this isn’t going anywhere, I’m not crazy,” Kulla said. “I don’t want to keep banging my head against a wall. The dog park idea will evolve, we’ll find a solution. But since your community is so strong against the Oxy site, we won’t go forward unless you have a change of heart. Any ideas, we invite that. We’ll keep plugging away.”
Miller’s Goal Beats Hami
First place in the Western League was on the line Tuesday night at Stadium by the Sea and the Palisades High women’s soccer team was locked in a tense 1-1 tie with Hamilton when the Dolphins’ smallest player made perhaps the biggest play of the season. As the second-half clock wound under 13 minutes, forward Lucy Miller curved a high shot over the goalie’s head and into the corner of the net from just outside the penalty area and Pali held on for a 2-1 victory that catapulted the Dolphins (10-2-1 overall, 7-1-0 in league) into the lead and avenged a previous 1-0 loss to the defending league champion Yankees. “It was definitely a shot,” Miller said with a smile. “I was shooting for that corner.” Hamilton (12-3, 7-2) struck first when Lauren Klibingat snuck between two Pali defenders in the penalty area and scored in the 29th minute. Pali answered back when Tia Lebherz scored on a header off of a cross from Miller in the 34th minute. The Dolphins can clinch the league title with a victory over Venice Monday.
Passing Shots
Sunday’s Game Was Super
Like most of my friends and media associates, I wasn’t expecting much from last Sunday’s Super Bowl. As was the case for most of the 37 games preceding it, I figured the competitive aspect of the event would be over by halftime. Instead, the Patriots and Panthers gave us one of the most exciting championship games in the history of football and Tom Brady established himself as the NFL’s best clutch quarterback since John Elway. Since learning that Carolina’s back-up offensive right tackle Matt Willig lives here in the Palisades (look for a story on him next week), my heart was with the Panthers, but my brain told me New England would win. I also figured, with two great defenses, that it would be a low scoring game. And I was right–at least for the first 27 minutes. One of the many trivia questions rattled off at the party I went to was the lowest score at halftime of a Super Bowl. The answer is two points, in Super Bowl IX, when only a Pittsburgh safety stood in the way of a scoreless first half (the Steelers went on to win their first Super Bowl with a 16-6 victory over the Vikings). I was rooting for the game to go into overtime. Not because it’s never happened before in a Super Bowl, but because I would’ve won money in the pool I had entered. It’s a shame that the Patriots only had to drive 30 yards for the winning field goal, thanks to John Kasay’s kick-off blunder. It would have been more dramatic if Brady had to drive his team the length of the field as Joe Montana did to beat the Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII, but I have no complaints. I arrived at the party broke and I left it broke, but the game itself was a gem. I would rank it alongside the Patriots’ victory over the Rams two years ago in Super Bowl XXXVI (won on Adam Vinatieri’s field goal on the final play), the Rams’ 23-16 victory over Tennessee in Super Bowl XXXIV and the Giants’ 20-19 victory over the Bills in Super Bowl XXV as the most exciting finishes ever. My personal favorite, however, will always be the first Super Bowl I ever saw: Super Bowl XIV back in 1980. A record crowd of over 104,000 packed the Rose Bowl to watch the Steelers battle the underdog Rams through seven lead changes before pulling away for a 31-19 victory and fourth Super Bowl title. So what did I think of the halftime show? I missed it. I was outside playing touch football in the street… It was nice to read the NBA All-Star picks of Steve Kerr on the internet last week. Steve, of course, retired before the start of the current NBA season but grew up in the Palisades and played for PaliHi on his way to winning five championship rings (three with the Chicago Bulls and two with San Antonio). Palisadian-Post managing editor Bill Bruns remembers when Steve wrote for PaliHi’s student newspaper, The Tideline, some 20 years ago. Now, he’s working as an analyst for TNT and a columnist for Yahoo! sports. Steve had several interesting points, including one on Vince Carter’s receiving the most votes for the upcoming NBA All-Star game: “Carter’s an extremely talented player who is fun to watch. But he’s not close to being the best player in the NBA. Just like in politics, it’s not who deserves it, it’s who is most popular.” Steve added that, in his opinion, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett are the two best players in the game and that Duncan should actually be the West team’s starting center, since that’s the position he really plays. Kerr’s starting lineups are as follows: for the West… Peja Stojakovic, Kevin Garnett and Duncan on the front line with Sam Cassell and Kobe Bryant in the backcourt. And for the East…. Ben Wallace at center, Jermaine O’Neal and Ron Artest at forward, Baron Davis and Jason Kidd at guard. Finally, I’d like to congratulate our Palisades neighbor and hall-of-fame Dodgers play-by-play announcer Vin Scully, who was named best radio and television play-by-play announcer at the 13th annual Southern California Sports Broadcasters awards in Toluca Lake. Still going strong Vin, keep it up.
Kogan Excels at Swim Fest
She’s only been swimming competitively for four years, but Hannah Kogan is already making quite a name for herself in the pool. The 10-year-old Palisadian placed fifth in the 50 Freestyle event at the Southern California Swimming Festival January 24, held at Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach. Kogan swam the event in 29.79, just 15 hundreths of a second behind her personal-best time of 29.64. “I’d say the 50 Free is my best event,” said Kogan, one of 32 swimmers in her age group from California and Nevada invited to the annual SoCal Festival. “I swam for the Palisades-Malibu YMCA for three years but decided to try Team Santa Monica last year and I liked it.” The change has proved beneficial for both Hannah and her identical twin, Samantha, who joined Hannah at the Junior Olympics last summer in Mission Viejo. “She’s a good breaststroker,” Hannah said of her sister. In addition to placing fifth in the 50 Feestyle, Kogan finished ninth in the 50 Butterfly (34.22) and 12th in the 50 Backstroke (36.92) in Long Beach. She also swam Butterfly in the 200 Individual Medley and anchored her squad’s 200 Freestyle Relay team, swimming the final leg in 29.1 seconds. “It’s not officially a record, but that is the fastest I’ve done for that event.” Qualifying swimmers were placed on one of four teams: North, South , East and West. Kogan’s South Blue Division team accumulated the most points and finished in first place. “You have to be picked to go, so I was pretty excited,” said Kogan, a fifth-grader at Marquez Elementary who is excited to be graduating in June. “Each team is appointed a coach and they decide, based on the information they are given, who will swim what events.” This year will be a challenge for Kogan, who “ages up” next Thursday when she turns 11. “I’m moving up from the 10-and-under division to the 11&12s and that’s a big jump,” Kogan said. “It’s cool because most of my friends on the team are in the 11&12s, but it’s also harder because I’ll be competing against older swimmers.” As well as she has been doing, Hannah will only get better, faster and stronger and she looks forward to future successes. “I really like swimming and I like my team. It’s a lot of fun.”
