Those Wacky Venetians


By Jim Smith

The headline on the June 24 Los Angeles Times article (Venice Turns 100, but Not Without a Fight) should have been “Those Wacky Venetians are at it again!”


It seems it’s even harder for the Chicago Tribune overlords at the downtown media monopoly to accept the idea of Venice than it was for the Chandler family and their real estate cronies. Perhaps the lack of artistic or lifestyle originality among these ruling circles has made them envious of a small, but vibrant community, scarcely 100 years old. So instead of even-handed coverage of Venice, every story is a variation on the theme, “those wacky Venetians...”

In spite of the newspaper’s bias, the Martha Groves article does have a point: the Venice Centennial Committee has very little to show for its work. New arrivals moving to Venice in a few months or next year will never know there was a centennial unless an old-timer tells them.

An obvious problem with having a meaningful centennial celebration is that Venice does not have a city government to spearhead it. Come to think of it, Venice does not even have a functioning neighborhood council, thanks in part, to the fervent opposition of some who now call themselves the Venice Centennial Committee.

And neither does Venice have a friendly L.A. City Councilmember to support the centennial. Venice’s last elected city councilmember was Ruth Galanter, a Venetian, who was removed from her position in a bloodless coup performed by the L.A. City Council. In Galanter’s place, they imposed Cindy Miscikowski - and her faithful deputy, Sandy Kievman - who proceeded to support everything Venetians hate, including Playa Vista and LAX expansion. Newly elected Bill Rosendahl, who is expected to pursue a more Galanterist policy, will not take office until July 1, three days before the centennial.

Kievman - who has proclaimed her disdain for all things progressive about Venice, including this newspaper - has inserted herself as co-chair of the “official” Centennial Committee.

The Committee - whose other co-chair is David Buchanan of the Marina Media Group - has acted strangely in the eyes of many Venetians. It has invited corporate contributions and sponsorship in an anti-chain store community; it has planned for swimsuit (women-only) contests; and it entertained the idea of making Arnold Schwarzenegger the Grand Marshall of its parade. Its website contains a history of Venice that proclaims: “In the 60’s, the beach area of Venice was taken over by winos, drug addicts and motorcycle gangs.” This is a period which many Venetians are nostalgic about, and consider the wellspring of present day art and culture.

In order to celebrate Venice history since the 60s, the Beachhead created the “Venice Peoples Centennial,” as an umbrella group under which to hold events that honor the people whose struggles saved Venice during the last 50 years. The Peoples Centennial has since been endorsed by the Venice Peace & Freedom Party and the Venice Arts Council. Events include the annual Venice Independence Day Parade (July 4) and free shows at SPARC.

Even so, its doubtful that many Venetians will have more than a foggy idea that without people like John Haag, Rick Davidson, Anna Haag, Marge Buckley, Jane Gordon, Earl Newman, Mary Lou Johnson, Bea Free, Marvena Kennedy, Morrie Rosen, Carol Berman, Maryjane, Vera Davis, Bob Wells, Abe Osheroff, Sadie Doroshin, Steve Clare, Flora Chavez, Elizabeth Elder, Barbara Avedon, Moe Stavnezer, Arnold Springer, Sheila Bernard, Ruth Galanter, and many more, there would not be a Venice as we know it. They fought off the developers, the downtown bureaucracy, the landlords and the police in order to defend Venetians who were victimized by those groups.

And it’s unlikely that many Venetians will have heard of the many accomplishments of Action Industries, the Venice anti-poverty nonprofit corporation that built the 15 low-income HUD building in Oakwood and opened grocery stores on West Washington (now Abbot Kinney Blvd.), before its spectacular collapse in the 70s amid charges of embezzlement and corruption ended hopes for nonprofit housing for a decade.

Here’s an idea for lifting the historical fog about Venice. How about if one of the celebrities and artists occupying a million-dollar homes mentioned in the Times article steps forward to pay for every issue of the Venice Vanguard (which covered most of the first 50 years) and the Free Venice Beachhead (which covered most of the past 40 years) to be put on the internet where they would be accessible to everyone and not just a few historians. Between the two newspapers, more than 80 years of Venice history is covered. The cost of scanning and maintaining a web site would be chicken feed for a rich person and a great service to Venice. It could be one of the few lasting and tangible results of the centennial.

Posted: Fri - July 1, 2005 at 01:00 PM          

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