First, let's discuss the handful of top-notch dogs whom I count as close friends in L.A. Here I am with Marty Marcus's Boxers, Buttercup and Rum. Buttercup is getting to be a dignified old lady, and she and I are very close, especially because she is hostile towards men, and it was only after many weeks of olive branch extensions back in 2002 that we became great pals. Rum is about twice the size of Buttercup, and may even be part mastiff. I just have never heard of a Boxer being as massive as Rum.
Next, we have Pula, possibly the sweetest little girl dog ever. Pula is the slim and sleek 40-lb. Husky belonging to Merrilee Holt. Pula loves to play chase as well as pick specific toys out of her basket for games. If I could figure out how to do it, I'd post a little camera-video I took of Merrilee playing the harmonica to Pula, which results in a melodious sing-along in which Pula howls and hums and sings!
Moving right along, we have Apache and Montana Baker. Terry and Mo and I drove out to see Andrea and James Baker (plus their little girl Fiora and brand-new baby boy Declan) at their new house, and it was a warm reunion for me with Apache, their gigantic, fuzzy, elderly Shepherd, and Montana, the little Shepherd mix. Here's the good-natured Apache with Terry:
Okay, now we've covered the dogs. Stepping it up, let's take a look at the mean machine I rented while tooling around car-centric Los Angeles. I think my rental, the Chevy Cobalt, barely lost out to the Aston Martin as James Bond's car of choice in the new flick. I was repeatedly mistaken for a celebrity as I rolled up to the fancy restaurants in this baby. Note the sporty rear spoiler:
Here are some lounging sea lions we saw on the way back from Alana and Matt's wedding up in Big Sur. The males can get to 5,000 lbs.
Here are Monique Russell's feet in some fashionable-yet-comfortable shoes. Mo and Alana are both big fans of the "special shoe."
Here's a vintage Gremlin that was parked near Terry and Mo's place. Terry is thinking of putting in a bid:
Check out the size of the windows in this high-rolling hotel on Beverly Blvd. I mean, what's going on here? Is it a hotel or a maximum-security state prison? Is this an architectural student project gone awry?
This has always been one of my favorite houses in Beverly Hills. The owners obviously said, "Hey, now we're rich, so how can we let the world know? I've got it: we'll build our actual driveway out of marble. It'll be shiny and will scream 'We've arrived!'" (Yes, the whole driveway is shiny marble.)
Speaking of houses in Beverly Hills, this has to be in the top three. The owner of this house realized the American Dream and, as a reminder to himself, built a replica of the Statue of Liberty in his yard:
Alana, Marty and I went to see Casino Royale at Mann's Chinese Theater on the big screen. Here's a cool billboard right near Beverly and Robertson:
That's so neat that Alana can balance that candle on her head like that!! Good picture Chuck!
Posted by: Terry Brown | Friday, December 01, 2006 at 12:56 AM