"From the cesspools of excitement, where Jim Morrison once stood..." go lyrics from the Frank Zappa song "Tinseltown Rebellion." Not a cesspool, but equpped with a swimming pool, the Tropicana Motel, at 8585 Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood, California, was a place where Morrison stood, ate, and did other rock-star things. Other rockers favored the location as well. The median strip is the former right of way of the Pasadena and Pacific Railway, later the Pacific Electric Santa Monica Boulevard/West Hollywood line, and finally the Southern Pacific West Los Angeles branch. The motel was torn down within two years after this photo was taken. 4/7/1985"
From The Infamous Tropicana Motel Hollywoods's Facebook pages:
The Tropicana Motel
At one point, this hotel/motel was the property of baseball great Sandy Koufax. Sadly, it was torn down in 1988 and an unattractive Ramada Inn built on the site.
In the 1960's and '70's, the Trop was the West Coast base of many musicians. It was often the first hotel sort of place many band members stayed at on their first trips to Los Angeles. There were several bungalow [sic] behind the motel that offered more private lodging.
The Tropicana was basic and affordable. It was located on Santa Monica Boulevard close to the clubs in West Hollywood and the west side.
There are many stories of long, late-night parties going on there in the '60's and '70'. Jim Morrison of the Doors lived there, and would often spend days sleeping off his party binges. Chuck E. Weiss, Tom Waits were residents too. Frequent guests included Janis Joplin, Van Morrison, Bruce Springstein, Eddie Cochran, the Beach Boys, Jim McGuinn of the Byrds, Led Zeppelin, Guns and Roses, Martha and the Vandellas, and Frank Zappa, whose "freak-outs" were legendary. It was a first stop on the way up the rock and roll ladder, as well as a place to stay once you'd made it. The big record companies grew on Santa Monica Boulevard and the Sunset Strip during this era, and made LA the rock and roll recording center of America.
info source: LA Time Machines
Dukes Coffee Shop was located at the Tropicana motel on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood.
Over the next few months, Facebook will be archiving all groups created using the old groups format. If you would like to continue using this group, you can ask the admin to upgrade to the new groups format, which makes it easier for members to connect and share.
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, DBE (27 February 1932 – 23 March 2011), also known as Liz Taylor, was an English-American actress. A former child star, she grew to be known for her acting talent and beauty, as well as her Hollywood lifestyle, including many marriages. Taylor was considered one of the great actresses of Hollywood’s golden age. The American Film Institute named Taylor seventh on its Female Legends list more from WIKI
Originally published February 1, 2011 Even though I assembled this post, I think it might be questionable! BC Rachelle Spector
From Rachelle Spector’s website:
“A chance meeting that same year at the famed industry hangout Dan Tana’s would change her life forever. Introduced by a mutual friend, the 23-year-old small town girl and hopeful singer spent the next several hours in deep conversation with one of music’s most renowned producers. She had no idea who he was or that he would soon be indicted for a murder that dominated the headlines for the next few years.”
Dan Tana's Street View
“We talked about religion, politics, he told jokes, stories about his past, growing up, normal getting-to-know-you questions,” Rachelle says of that first meeting. “But the most important thing was a comment he made: ‘Timing is everything.’ That has stuck with me till this day.”
“They spoke until six the next morning and Phil (Spector) was smitten, declaring his love for the pretty blond and asking for a kiss, which Rachelle politely declined. For her, love developed more slowly, and over the course of a more traditional courtship, the couple became inseparable. This of course set Hollywood tongues a-wagging that the much-younger Rachelle was nothing more than a gold-digger. A notion she understands, but dispels with a girlish giggle when asked about what she finds attractive in her husband.”
“I like the way he looks,” she says. “He’s boyish and cute, witty, smart and we are so much alike even though we are generations apart. We share common interests, a love of music, people, life, old films, a strong work ethic, even certain mannerisms.”
“The pair married three years later in September 2006 and started working on the CD that fall, though completion on the project was delayed several times during the first and second trials, where Rachelle stood determinedly by her husband’s side. The recording clearly served as an emotional outlet for the producer and a special time for the couple to enjoy the creative process together” read more from RachelleSpector.Com
This is a photo of the late Lana Clarkson. Phil Spector was convicted of fatally shooting Ms. Clarkson at his Alhambra, California mansion on February 3, 2003.
The late Lana Clarkson
The real irony here is that Spector met both Lana Clarkson and present wife, Rachelle Spector on nights he dined at Dan Tana’s. On the fatal evening of Lana Clarkson’s demise Spector had dinner at Dan Tana’s and then, later in the evening, went to Hollywood’s House of Blues where he met the beautiful blonde actress. Spector met the blonde Rachelle Spector for the first time at Dan Dana’s. I’m not not saying anything here other than it’s an ironic twist.
These two gorgeous blondes are so similar in appearance they could have been twins. What a terrible American tragedy this is. These two ladies were poised for success, now one is gone and the other lost her husband – possibly for a long time. And her husband’s story is as tragic as Ms. Clarkson’s. Phil Spector is hands-down the premiere Rock and Roll music producer of all time, some might say (including yours truly) not just a producer but an artist in his own right read more…
This video “Here in My Heart” is from Rachelle Spector. The song was produced by Phil Spector.
It’s one of those songs that sometimes runs through your head, or when you hear it you know it but you’re just not sure of the lyrics.
I always thought it said: “rapped up like a noose, you know a runner in the night.” Never knew what the words meant…
Well here are the lyrics to “Blinded By The Light” which are significantly different than my original take:
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Madman drummers bummers,
Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin’ kinda older,
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin’, sneezin’ and wheezin,
the calliope crashed to the ground
The calliope crashed to the ground
But she was…
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Some silicone sister with a manager mister told me I go what it takes
She said “I’ll turn you on sonny to something strong,
play the song with the funky break”
And go-cart Mozart was checkin’ out the weather chart to see if it was safe outside
And little Early-Pearly came by in his curly-wurly and asked me if I needed a ride
Asked me if I needed a ride
But she was…
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
She got down but she never got tired
She’s gonna make it through the night
She’s gonna make it through the night
But mama, that’s where the fun is
But mama, that’s where the fun is
Mama always told me not to look into the eye’s of the sun
But mama, that’s where the fun is
Some brimstone baritone anticyclone rolling stone preacher from the east
Says, “Dethrone the dictaphone, hit it in it’s funny bone,
that’s where they expect it least”
And some new-mown chaperone was standin’ in the corner,
watching the young girls dance
And some fresh-sown moonstone was messin’ with his frozen zone, reminding him of romance
The calliope crashed to the ground
But she was…
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light,
revved up like a deuce,
another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
Madman drummers bummers, Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin’ kinda older,
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin’, sneezin’ and wheezin,
the calliope crashed to the ground
Now Scott with a slingshot finially found a tender spot and throws his lover in the sand
And some bloodshot forget-me-not said daddy’s within earshot save the buckshot, turn up the band
Some silicone sister with a manager mister told me I go what it takes
She said “I’ll turn you on sonny to something strong”
Man, that’s some writin’. Way to go Springsteen (the song was crafted by Bruce Springsteen, in the early 70s I guess.) When did Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues single come out? Also kudos to the Manfred Mann band, there’s some really fine musicality going on there…
I remember an event in about ’73, at The Tropicana Motor Hotel on Santa Monica Blvd. in Hollywood. I was crashing on the floor of Chuck E Weiss’ motel room. Tom Waits was living down-stairs, Bob Dylan was staying there, he had his kids and was driving a station wagon, and Baha Marimba Band members were staying just a few doors down. It was close to the night that Sal Mineo was murdered. I was sitting on Weiss’ bed when the story played on his lousy TV. The really creepy thing was that the crime had just happened a few blocks away from the Tropicana. This link is where I got “Trivia: John Lennon once put up a reward to find Mineo’s killer.”
Sal Mineo was a East Coast-ish, Italian-ish actor who played a troubled-teen from a troubled family with complicated relationships with both co-actors: James Dean and Natalie Wood in one of the most influential movies of the rock and roll age, Rebel Without A Cause. Mineo won an Academy Award for “Best Actor in a Supporting Role” for his role as John ‘Plato’ Crawford. Sal Mineo was in fact, Brooklyn-born Italian but was picking up a California patina.
Anyway, I recall Weiss holding up one of Springsteen’s first albums, it was the first I had heard of Bruce Springsteen. Chuck E Weiss is always on the sharpest point of the cutting edge. In the middle of all this, a couple of nights later Mineo gets slaughtered! Too much…
Probably best known for the perennial “Do Wah Diddy Diddy,” (Is that where Puff Daddy – Diddy got his name? Don’t care!) Manfred Mann was a 60s doper band. “Blinded By The Light” is probably a better, stronger song, I just didn’t realize that it was Manfred Mann. Good song dudes!!!
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