Hollywood is Burning, Part I: Trapped
by Robert J. AvrechHollywood is burning.
Karen and I lock every door in the house, shut tight the windows, we move through the house switching off all the lights.
L.A. Burns. Not a SFX scene from a movie.
Gazing from our bedroom window, we watch orange flames lick at the darkness, pillars of black smoke climbing into the sky. We can actually smell the acrid odor of burning rubber.
“Look how close they are,” says Karen.
“Just past La Cienega. Maybe eight blocks away.”
Karen gives me a long penetrating gaze:
“What do we do if they come here?”
My mind is racing away. The truth is, we are defenseless. Unless I get crazy inventive like Dustin Hoffman in Straw Dogs.
“After this is all over,” I vow, “I’m going to buy a pistol.”
Karen says: “How about a shotgun?”
Dissolve:
Two Hours Earlier:
The rioters are surging towards the front doors of the theater. They are shouting, but the glass doors are so thick we cannot hear what they’re screaming. But one look is all we need, faces are twisted into expressions of raw hatred. The mob looks intent on some serious violence. Though, I do glimpse a few kids laughing, milling about aimlessly and in apparent good cheer. Hey, maybe this is just a community street festival.
We’re at a screening for a new movie. It’s a Hollywood premiere and charity event for, get this, inner city youth.
I’m friends with the executive producer.
“Bring Karen and the kids,” the producer chirps on the phone,“it’s a kid-friendly movie, there’s gonna be a reception, and really Robert, it’s gonna be fab-u-lous.”
And so: because this producer is my friend and I want to support her movie, and because I’m a Hollywood screenwriter and personal relationships grease the wheels of the business, and because the producer is a player and admires my work, I schlep Karen, Ariel, eleven, and Offspring #2, seven-years-old, to the screening slash charity benefit in the DGA building on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood.
What could possibly go wrong at a swanky premiere?
Inner City Youth Are Outside—But Not For Long
It is a Wednesday evening, April 29, 1992. The Rodney King tape has been running like an eternal loop on every network 24/7.
The film, a real stinker, at long last, cuts to its final fade to black. Everyone is now mingling in the reception area. Guests congratulate the producer, director and stars, assuring them that the film is: ”Great, just great,” and “the best work you’ve ever done,” all the expected and acceptable lies we tell each other.
Suddenly a chill sweeps through the room.
Something is happening.
It’s happening outside.
I step towards the large plate glass doors of the theater. The security men, two burly rent-a-cops, deeply alarmed, start locking the row of doors.
Snap, click.
Snap, click.
Snap, CRACK!
Mesmerized, I stare as something hard bounces off the thick glass. There is a tiny white wound.
“Step back from the doors,” the security men call out in surprisingly firm voices.
I stay put. I want to see what’s happening.
“Please, step away from the doors,” they plead as more guests press forward trying to glimpse the fearful gathering outside.
I see it happening. A classic shot unwinding in slow motion: the mob swarms towards the DGA building, towards us: a thick wave of fury marching with a terrible velocity towards this cocoon of—there’s no way around this—Hollywood liberals.
Sheesh, talk about a target-rich environment.
It’s almost funny.
Here we are, inside, raising charity for inner city youth, and —
— and the inner city youth are outside trying to get in.
Not, mind you, to express their ever-lasting appreciation for our spectacular generosity. Nope, hard as it is to believe, but it looks as if the objects of our charity would like to lynch us.
Or maybe burn us to death.
Almost funny. But not quite.
Hey, This is Just Like the Movies, Only Not Really
Abruptly, we are plunged into darkness.
And as if on cue, a woman screams, just like in the movies.
Offspring #2 leaps into my arms.
Trembling like a frightened rabbit, she stutters:
“D-d-d-addy, what’s happening?”
Karen grips my arm:
“Robert?”
Ariel squeezes my hand, and asks:
“What happened to the lights?”
I’m thinking: Um, Do I really look like I have the answers?
A rent-a-cop calls out: “We turned off the lights so they can’t see inside. It’s a safety precaution.”
I sense panic spreading like a virus through the crowd.
During the 1973 Yom Kippur War I had a long and detailed conversation with an Israeli officer, an incredibly brave and highly decorated tank commander, who explained why Israel always beat the Arabs in war:
“We maneuver, we remain flexible, creative and liquid. The Arabs have a fatal tendency to fall back into a defensive posture. You cannot win a battle or a war when your position is static. We shoot and scoot. We keep moving, we probe the enemy’s flanks and then move in for the kill.”
Excellent advice.
We are trapped in the lobby and outside a mob of rioters are moving in, surrounding the building.
Time to go Israeli.
Next Week: Part II: The Get-a-Way. In which Los Angeles devolves into anarchy, and the police are revealed to be helpless, hopeless and useless.
Note: I’m frequently asked how I’m able to remember incidents in such detail, including dialogue, from so many years ago? It’s simple. I do not rely on my memory. I have been keeping a detailed diary for over 25-years. This post, as so many others, is based on my diaries. If there are gaps in my entries, I check with Karen. She was also keeping a diary, plus Karen has a phenomenal memory.
Copyright © Robert J. Avrech
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191 Comments
Not a pretty picture, you expecting a replay ? I was cruising the channels the other night when I saw the wonderfully named "celebrity rehab sober house" . Switching on I was treated to the Rodney King and Andy Dick show.
"Why, dear God, why can't we all just get drunk ?". Warhol must be haunting Mr. King.
As for the replay, think the streets of London a couple weeks ago when mobs of Muslim immigrants chased the police through the streets. It's here and this time Reginald Denny chose to jump from the 99th floor.
[...] history where superheroes appeared in the 1940s, as the Minutemen, and the 1960s, as the Watchmen Hollywood is Burning, Part I: Trapped – bighollywood.breitbart.com 03/10/2009 Hollywood is burning. Karen and I lock every door in the [...]
Another awesome series appears to be on it's way.
I'm going to really appreciate this as I had the 'good' fortune to be stationed in a war zone at the time of the riots (I was on an extended tour in Saudi Arabia). During our down time, we'd watch CNN for the 24/7 coverage. Irony of ironies, that's also how we got info on how the war was going.
This is why the 2nd amendment is so needed: "the police are revealed to be helpless, hopeless and useless." It galls me when the left tries to make the 2nd about hunting and sportsman. That is such a misrepresentation.
Robert, this event is really a non-memory for me. I was deployed to the Mediterranean with the Navy. My landing craft was away from the ship for a couple of weeks. We were anchored off a beach we had just put the Marines. We had a personal radio that was picking up a BBC channel and heard a report about rioting. My first impression was that it was unrest in some third world country. After listening to detail about the destruction, I couldn't believe it was in LA.
By the time we got back to the States, the video footage had long since stopped playing on TV. I did see some later during the trial for the guys that almost killed the truck driver at the intersection.
This is one reason why I value my right to carry. I don't feel "better" or "braver" because I carry. But if the fecal matter is about to encounter the rotary wind device, I want to know that I can try to protect my family. I don't plan on spending my last seconds on earth begging some disaffected 13 year old to not kill us.
I'm hoping you all got out ok. I look forward to your next installment.
Robert, I lived in the high desert in 92 and worked in Psadena. Wife worked in downtown L.A. It was a scary time for both of us, especially my wife. I'm not sure what was more surreal. Witnessing the events as they ocurred or seeing the damage later. I appreciate you're recalling this event as we need to remember how people can be influenced and changed by mob rule at any time. And I'm glad you and your family survived. Look forward to the next "episode."
Stationed in Saudi Arabia, huh? Well, I'll bet you had better info on the riots than yours truly. As you probably know the people who have the least information when a war is going on are the soldiers in the field. That's how it was during the riots, especially in the first few hours. Karen and I were focused on, well, survival.
This series is about the LA Riots, but the subtext—using scriptspeak—is the importance of the Second Amendment. The right to self-defense. I'm glad you picked this up so quickly.
Yup, Karen and I felt as id we were trapped in, say, in sunny Liberia or happy-go-lucky Sierra Leone, that's how scary and anarchic was the rioting and the mobs. And the LAPD, well, they kind of went AWOL on us, in short, they fled the battlefield. I now own several handguns and rifles and if I'm ever confronted by a thug, or rioting returns to LA—there's always a grievance, right?—I will be prepared to defend my family and property.
Thanks so much. Enjoy the series as we go Israeli together.
Great post. Looking forward to Part Two.
My prep was shorter and simpler:
>Load battle rifle.
>Ensure sufficient loaded magazines belt pouches.
>Place loaded pistol in holster on ammo belt, with spare magazine pouch.
>Place spare batteries next to flashlight.
>Check supplies of microwave dinners and soda.
>Sit back and watch riot on TV with spouse.
>Occasionally answer door and reassure half of neighbors on my street wanting to "borrow" firearms that if rioting/looting/arson got anywhere close, I would be passing out shotguns(s) and shells as appropriate.
>Return to TV.
I called it "Going Marine Corps", btw.
You use the word "surreal." That's exactly how we experienced it. Los Angeles, our adopted home—Brooklyn born and bred—abruptly devolved into Fatah Land. I lived through the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and let me tell you, the L.A. riots were far more frightening.
You were sane and armed. I was a defenseless idiot.
But no longer.
Semper Fi!
Any time I encounter the old "Why would a civilian ever need an assault rifle ?" cliche, I answer "L.A. 1992 Rodney King." I was worried we were in for a repeat on a national scale had Obama lost.
On the day of the election I cleaned all my guns and laid out my ammunition. Karen and I also figured that if Obama lost there would be rioting. Oh wait, I mean, ahem, an "uprising." Meanwhile, Obama won and gee, what a shock, he's anxious to roll back ownership of assault rifles.
I was at the Pomona Militaria, Knife and Gun show that weekend (since banned by LA county supervisors) Interestingly enough, there wasn't much more activity for gun buying than normal. Likely because anyone who attended already had a sufficient set of self defense tools at home.
As an aside, that show brought over 50,000 people to the LA fairgrounds twice a year and was a swap meet for collectibles of all types. It featured huge numbers of books, clothes, art work, military surplus camping and survival gear and even . . . guns and ammo sold legally with full paperwork. Most of all, it was a conservative/libertarian meeting place where a lot of politics were enacted and the community of liberty lovers could commune together.
Naturally, it was shut down.
Thank you. Riveting. Troubling. 53 died. $1 billion in damage.
And Rodney King's no longer an icon of anarchy, but currently stars in VH1's reality show, "Sober House."
Makes a gal wanna move to Hailey, Idaho.
I recall this as the entry of Maxine Waters onto the national stage. While her district was erupting, she became the demagogue stoking the flames of disaffection. Had a similar character on the Chicago city council recently tossed out. Its too bad that these "Leaders" cannot stop self-aggrandizement at the expense of their constituents.
Brooklyn… Long, Hot, Summer of '68 …
Riots breaking out all over, steadily working their way from Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brownsville, and East New York towards my ethnic blue-collar neighborhood – Park Slope.
Cops in full armor unable to cope. Patrol cars flipped over and set on fire.
The mob advances to Union Street, the "line of demarcation". It looks like all hell is gonna break loose.
Suddenly, a shot rings out from a rooftop – then another.
Two of the rioters in the front line fall to the ground wounded. The mob halts, pauses, flees.
The danger has passed. Summer heat fades and cool autumn refreshes.
No one knows who fired those 2 shots.
Park Slope survived the riots to become a very expensive neighborhood favored by writers, artists, cinema stars, and psychotherapists.
I doubt many of these "beautiful people" know the history of Park Slope – rescued from the mob 40 years ago by blue-collar folks who can't afford to live there anymore.
Rescued, we must acknowledge, by two well-aimed shots rifle shots.
Hey, all you anti-gun Park Slope beautiful persons – the 2nd AMENDMENT is your FRIEND.
Mine, too.
Then and now.
Interestingly, even though everyone knows conservatives tend to keep weapons in our homes and have military training and experience, not even the most rabid, looney-tunes liberal expressed the least fear that we might take to rioting in the streets if "our" candidate lost the election.
As to Mr., "Why can't we all just get along"; well, Rodney, if you'd stop getting likkered up, slapping around your wife and racing around the L.A. freeways at upwards of 100 miles an hour, we'd all get along just fine.
At least, as I remember the case…
I lived at 3rd and La Brea (quite close to the DGA building) during the riots, and was (and still am) a member of the guild…I don't remember hearing of this happening at the building at all. I was shooting in of all places, Simi Valley when the riots broke out. We shot wrapped and I drove back to L.A. before the curfew. I made it home without incident, although there were fires as I came north on La Brea. I had been in contact with my mother who at the time lived within a few blocks of me. She was undisturbed throughout, but glued to the tube like everyone. Not disputing that the LAPD didn't have its head up its a$$ the whole time–as I recall they were guarding Beverly Hills as they let the areas where actual rioting was occurring burn. And it took days for the National Guard to arrive, famously without bullets for their guns, or at least that was the rumor. Fortunately, neither of us were ever in immediate danger during the three days. We didn't have any guns (I still don't, but I appreciate those who do as long as they know what they're doing), and for some reason I didn't fear being torn apart by mobs. I was more concerned with fire, since several firemen in the affected area had been shot at by rioters.
I think my father was in a high-rise hotel that night since he was visiting the city for a business convention that night. Naturally, he stayed in, and I don't think he's been back to the city either.
Thats one of the damages. People deciding that they would rather have their conferences in a town where sanity is the rule instead of the exception. Might have something to do with California's economic meltdown, too.
Meh. You and your family survived. And learned the lesson of personal responsibility for your own protection brilliantly.
May your tribe increase.
Mazel tov!
The Korean business community were under siege and they fought back. Rodney King and his enablers are a bunch of criminals.
Did not realize that Waters, a radical leftist and a Jew-hater, burst on the scene during the riots, but gee, what a stunner.
Karen and I were born and bred in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn. Park Slope and Brooklyn Heights were as far away as, um, Idaho. I was aware of the riots, sure, my mother was a public school teacher and she was vilified as a Jew-oppressor by the black community during that period. Thanks so much for writing about the shots that saved Park Slope. Amazing.
On many shows, the retired LAPD cops who assist productions with traffic control on shoots came around to the Teamsters drivers and said
"We *know* some of you guys are carrying.
Our advice is to get 'em out, and strap 'em on.
No fooling."
And the riots didn't end with the arrival of the bulletless National Guard (who were justifiably worried that gangbangers would take their unloaded full-auto M-16s away from them.)
They ended when combat-loaded infantry Marines with service in GW I arrived from Camp Pendleton.
After that, it got a lot easier for the police to concentrate on escorting the fire engines around to put out the fires.
The DGA incident didn't make the news, I assume, because thank G-d no one was killed or injured, thus it fell into the memory hole. But while it was happening, it was truly frightening. Though I'm sure the liberals who were there didn't, for one moment, connect the dots between their ideology that ultimately enables race rioters. As for the Second Amendment, well, I can't count the liberals who repeat the same mantra to me: “I don't like guns.” Which gladdens the heart of every criminal from LA to NY.
CA's economic meltdown. Again, failure to connect the dots. CA is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Democrat Party, hence taxes and laws are rabidly anti-business, thus the state has devolved into one giant junk bond. But the citizens keep voting for Democrats. My wife, a Ph.D psychologist has this diagnosis: "Liberals are, by definition, mentally ill."
Yes, I learned that my safety and the safety of my family is my responsibility. I learned that the state is a weak vessel, in essence a gigantic DMV. As Rabbi Mier Kahane said: "Never Again."
Here's how I'm rioting: sending tea bags to the Obama Commune, formerly known as The White House.
FWIW, nota bene that few of the 1992 "L.A. Troubles" crossed the boundaries into the much smaller and more sensible ancillary cities, whether Beverly Hills, or Burbank, let alone any of the O.C.
Their riot plans were best summarized as
1. "Shoot arsonists and looters on sight."
2. Repeat as necessary.
LAPD's leadership was basically taking the "run and hide" approach, letting citizens fend for themselves. The rank and file were aghast, but they nonetheless followed orders.
It's not that it's a weak vessel;, its just the state cannot be everywhere all the time and we wouldn't want it to. Our government can and should only be reactionary. It's a shocking and uncomfortable lesson to have to learn.
One of my most vivid memories of the riots was TV news footage of looters stealing TV's and VCR's and G-d knows what else from businesses—with LAPD officers standing a few feet away watching.
Truth be told, and obvious as it was, the typical "rioter" could have given a ratz azz about the plight of Rodney King pr anybody else. Those animals were shameless opprotunists bent on anarchy. Otherwise how do explain Korean shopkeepers being the victims of so many unhinged animals? I watched the King tape ad nauseam, and failed to see one shopkeeper in a smock run out and join the P.D. in their beatdown. Flash forward, despite all kinds of warning, who is wading around in New Orleans with freshly looted T.V.s hoisted high to preserve them fro water damage? Take a wild guess? I'm tired of the sins of others decades ago being the excuse for everything. We have our "affimitive action" president, it looks like he's going to be a disaster, enough already. Let's let competence and meritocracy decide who leads and not skin color. I'll support a man or woman of ANY etnicity, if they are competent. The L.A. riots were an excersize in American self loathing, there was no valid excuse.
News, heck, no-one I knew in the DGA ever mentioned it, and I used to attend meetings quite frequently, although this was in the waaay early internet days, and also before cell phones were glued to our ears 24/7. (hI think I had an translucent electric blue pager then–it was rad!) I suppose because it wasn't a DGA event but a separate screening nobody heard about it. Regardless, I'm glad you weren't hurt. I have to say, though, the riot was a direct result of people reacting to what seemed an astounding verdict–film of a black guy being beaten to a pulp by white cops and they all get off by an all-white jury. I'm NOT justifying it or sympathizing with rioters, (and I've served on juries, and understand the disconnect of film from reality and the events leading up to the beating, how the law applies, jury instructions work etc. etc.), but if it was years of anything, it was the LAPD being notoriously heavy handed (and largely ineffectual) in dealing with the gang problem in South Central L.A. in this period, and perceived by locals there to be extremely bullying and racist. I remember the second trial when the LAPD finally prepped for the verdicts and nothing happened. (many co-workers swaggered around bragging about how loaded for bear they were–personally I've always suspected that the most competent gun owners don't broadcast that they're carrying or boast of their skills)
[...] wonder these days how far we are from a repeat of this scene. I don’t remember it vividly, just the feelings I had watching the violence on television. I [...]
I remember the riots well. I lived in the Hollywood Hills at the time, north of Franklin. From where I was I could see the whole of LA before me, smoke rising up from different places like it was a city at war. Fires raged, people raged. Only a few blocks from he they looted and burned down stores. I kept my .38 in my jacket pocket just in case and a knife in the other. Because you never knew what was going to happen. Another friend of mine watched them burn down a store across from his apartment.
As far as I know, rioters didn't invade homes. A lot of them were organized gangs who went on a looting spree. They would back up their tricks into store windows smashing in, then grabbing stuff and loading up their trucks. After that there were a lot of stores who installed crash barriers in front of their stores.
What really sickened me at the time was the way the local press acted on TV. They called it "the uprising" None of them would call it a riot. If I didn't already have contempt for the press at the time, I would have started then.
I remember all the Korean shop keepers who stood on their roofs with their rifles….It is amazing given these times how many people are asking me about firearms – including my mild mannered CPA friend who never thought about owning one before.
Still, I think the best weapon for the scenario you describe is a pump action shotgun – with the plug taken out so you can load more than 3 rounds. (plug is for Fish and Game requirements).
Unless someone is all drugged up or licquired up, the sound of a round chambering in would sober most people.
And you don't have to be a marksman; plus stray rounds won't really be the danger hat a pistol or rifle would be…
Mobs are not people, but cowardly one-celled organisms. They flee as soon as we fight back.
You're quite right. Thanks so much for the articulate correction.
The show was good for business and a place where Conservatives could network. Sigh. And citizens wonder why CA's credit rating is about the same as Zimbabwe.
someone remarked, re Maxine Waters: imagine being MARRIED to her! (She does have a husband, and he is a wizened little creature.) Imagine morning coffee, for example.
When American blacks use slavery as an excuse for, well, every deviant behavior, I remind them that six million Jews were gassed, shot, starved and worked to death, just 60 years ago, and not one went on to riot or use the Holocaust as an excuse for social failure. The opposite, most survivors went on to build decent and prosperous lives.
Yes, the city did look like a war zone. Like some African country in the midst of its umpteenth coup. As for rioters invading homes: well, we had no idea what would happen, did we? Anything could have happened as far as I was concerned. Violence and anarchy were rampant. Yeah, I remember some calling it an uprising. I said to Karen: "Yup, just like the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising." Nauseating. And evil.
Please tell me how Good people in CA get their hands on firearms? I thought that the State of CA discourages the Law Abiding folks of the state from defending themselves (If you are a "gang banger" it okay to have firearms).
The Koreans were incredibly brave and yet I remember some newscasters calling them "vigilantes." I knew then and there that the media were not just dopey liberals, but depraved enablers. Karen also votes for a shotgun. But I have zero experience with them and rely on my training with the Springfield .45.
Thanks so much. No, we were not hurt. But to this day I can feel my daughter in my arms, shivering with fear, her teeth actually chattering. Everybody has a grievance. Germany had grievances after WWI. In my experience, those who use grievances as excuses for, well, anything, are just a bunch of thugs looking to get away with murder.
Maxine Water co-habitating with a Homosapien is beyond this screenwriter's vivid imagination.
I purchase my weapons at Martin B. Retting, 11029 Washington Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232
Phone: (310) 837-2412
CA law provides for a ten day waiting period while you are vetted. But it is quite legal—at the moment—to purchase firearms.
The attacks on the Koreans was pure thuggery and opportunism, though some excused the assaults on the grounds that the Koreans were "leeches" on the black community. Language the Nazis used to describe Jews.
Take a look at the rioting in Malmo Sweden by Muslim Jew-haters and their leftist enablers as the Israeli tennis team played in an empty stadium. Bye-bye Sweden.
If the "Brady Bunch" want to outlaw all the guns, can I use my swords and hunting spear?
My hat's off to you and your wife. You must have had an intense drive home.
I, too, love the line "Time to go Israeli." (Off topic: I've always believed that if Israel just completely unloaded on those who do her harm, that area of the world would be a much better place.)
Who was it that said,"A .22 for every Jew?" That would truly make Rabbi Kahane's statement come to be.
A pump sliding and racking a round truly has a deterrent effect but I do prefer a side by side 12 gauge stage coach shotgun. Looking down the business, a perpetrator gets the ticklish notion that he is about to be shot with a pair of baseballs. Their eyes usually get as big as the barrels. Quite amusing to watch the reaction.
It was an awful time. The most scared I'd ever felt until, well, the little seismic disturbance in 1994 we call the Northridge Earthquake, which was infinitely worse. You can hide from rioters, but when Mother Earth Herself shakes you off like a flea, well, you truly re-evaluate your place in the cosmos. As someone downstream in the thread pointed out about the riots, emotional outrage quickly gave way to systematic looting. Grievance isn't an excuse, but when it's exacerbated by supposed authorities with heads firmly up arses, horrible things happen.
At the Battle of Cannae, Hannibal and his troops, slaughtered 70,000 Roman troops in about 6 hours with swords and spears. And hey, the Khymer Rouge murdered 1 million Cambodians with plastic bags.
What we need to do is convince the rioters to lay siege to the LA Times Building – that would convert some liberals Robert
If there is a skeet range in your area you'll see how much fun a shotgun can be – with a rifle or pistol it is "aim" – with a shotgun it is more "point"
Okay, I'm gradually getting talked into a shotgun.
I'd agree looking down the twin barrels of a side-by-side would be terrifying (at least to those not on meth or PCP) but after 2 rounds…
My next chapter is about the, um , intense drive home. It was a nightmare and I still dream about it.
I was in Israel during the Yom Kippur War, General Ariel Sharon initiated and completed an incredibly brilliant and complex crossing of the Suez Canal, in the dead of night, hence enveloping the Egyptian Third Army. Israel could have annihilated this entire army, plus the Egyptian Second Army who were also enveloped—a double envelopment—but Henry Kissinger said no way, and sigh, another stupid cease-fire was declared in order to save Arab honor. Disgraceful. Notice America and her allies never declared a cease-fire with Germany or Japan. Nope, unconditional surrender. Works wonders for civilization. Unless you're Jewish.
I was 7 during the riots. It was a scary time. I remember not leaving the house, and my parents trying to hide their worry from my brother and me.
We were living in the hills, and had an amazing panaramic view of L.A. My most vivid memory of the riots is sitting on the balcony, counting the fires that were spread out across the city. The image has always stuck with me. I was too young to really know what was going on (and, luckily, removed from the violence) but seeing the city burning was absolutely terrifying.
Yes, Karen and I also watched the fires throughout the city and reassured our children that all would be fine. I'm not sure they believed us.
I was a Texan transplanted to LA on a short contract for the feds. I was arrested for carrying a handgun and prosecuted and convicted for having a concealed weapon for protection.
The police found my weapon by search of a Texas tagged SUV, cuz they had the right to search any vehicle they wanted and as they told me, everyone knows that all Texans carry a gun
This was in Orange County, I was in Newport Beach for the day looking at properties for the bank of which I was fed compliance guy.
The judge made some asinine comment about how I did not need a gun and I commented that Mr Denny did and I would not allow myself to get in that position.
The judge cracked down, gave me big fine and time.
I bailed out and left the state
I spent several years cleaning the situation and needless to say I have not been back to the newest state of mexico
Dear Mr.Avrech,
With a wife like Karen, I would make sure that she picks out a Shotgun as well. In fact, everybody in your household should be able to load, fire & keep clean all the firearms in your house. Since you have been in love with here since you were 9, She must be a keeper!
By the way, Is C.O. Cindy still lookiong for a "Good" boyfriend?
Disgraceful. I spent time in Texas researching a script. I hung out with a Texas lady who carried a Smith & Wesson in her cute little hand bag. In fact, almost everyone I met in Texas carried. I felt safe. Needless to say, I love Texas.
No need to lay siege to the LA Times building; they will go bankrupt any day. As will the NY Times. Have to check out skeet ranges. It's a plan.
My next chapter is about the, um , intense drive home. It was a nightmare and I still dream about it. Not sure who dropped that .22 nugget of wisdom, but it's a keeper.
Thanks so much for your concern. Karen is a keeper and, uh, diminutive. She can't get her little hands around my .45. or my S&W .38. I'm pretty sure a scatter gun would blast her shoulder right out of its little socket. Same for my girls. But I have a Ruger .32 Bird's Head grip that's nice and small and packs zero kick. I can't speak for Cindy, sorry. And I promised her confidentiality. Good luck, friend:-)
If I can't get 'em in two rounds in a confined space or hallway at 10 ft then I deserve to lose my military shooting medals. Plus my side by side makes a grrreat improvised bludgeon. Batterrr up!
Okaaaaay! I'm going to learn how to shoot a shotgun. In truth, another excuse to spend $ on firearms. My personal stimulus package—that will actually work better than anything Comrade Obama has in mind.
forgot to mention that I was in hospital, for back surgery, during riots and had a friend bring my a handgun
after watching riots and fine folks in action, it would not have surprised me to have to use it while I was on my back
i visited with the hospital personnel and they were worried and there was very little security – but I sure did not let them know that I was armed until after the fact
i know that I would have been turned in by one of the couple of nut nurses that I had
after my 1-2 years in los angelos during 92-94, I had not interest in ever going back or letting my family go there for any reason
we do florida for disney and every where else but california
entertaining, as i knew it would, to see the people having to deal with the mess that they made in california
now, these same folks are coming to colorado and trying to screw it up – I may have to sell my house and move back to texas full time
Flash to the cinematic image of Jim Bowie, on his back in the Alamo, blasting away as the Mexicans burst in and cut down the great man.
I love my adopted home, California. It's where I make my living, this is where Karen and I have lived in our lovely Spanish style home for over 20 years. This is where we raised our children and melded with the wonderful Jewish community. But I am not blind to the state's huge fiscal problems brought about by out of control unions and the Democrat's intolerance of business and growth.
Poor beautiful Colorado—slowly morphing into a colony of Berkeley.
We have cousins, also Orthodox Jews, in Texas, and they love it.
Yeah, but robertavrech, the Romans had swords and spears, too. Not sure that works as a comparison.
Man – I LOL'ed when I read this! Someone ought to come out with a CD of the "Best of Maxine" – uttering her pearls of wisdom in DC
Um, yeah. Point taken. What can I say, I have a weakness for elegant double envelopments. Gen. Ariel Sharon adored Hannibal's tactics, and pulled off several victories that are battlefield masterpieces.
Hailey, Idaho. Is there a synagogue there:-)
Yay! Another series."Time to go Israeli". I love that!
More apropos to use the Battle of Little Bighorn, maybe.
If you are looking for a good shotgun for a smaller individual then a .410 ga is perfect-a-mundo! While it doesn't have the knock down power of a 12, the 410 can be loaded with a variety of readily available and legal "frangible" or flechette rounds that can make it a very nasty experience for the clown on the other side. Since you seem fond of a pistol size package, Taurus Arms makes a sweet piece called "the Judge" as I'm sure that adding "Jury and Executioner" would entail too much engraving on the backstrap.
It's a 5 round hand gun chambered in 410 ga. that also takes a .45 cal LR.
Check out Taurus Arms web. They have a great video of this very affordable "hand cannon". Fun times had by all.
Oh! BTW, just for giggles, google up "AA-10 automatic shotgun" and follow the you tube link to Black Water USA. The AA-10 is a RECOILESS automatic shotgun that fires a 30 round burst/600 rounds/min of 12 gauge. It even chambers mini hand grenades! It's a little much for home defense but technology is such an amaaazing thing.
After watching this vid, all I could think of was Debbie Boone's ballad, "You Light Up My Life". I'm just kinda sick that way.
My bad…it's the AA-12 automatic shotgun not AA-10
I'm familiar with The Judge and have been thinking of purchasing it for a while. It's a fine machine. My wife, Karen, is a formidable lady, but I suspect that she won't be able to rack a shotgun. She can't rack the slide on my Springfield .45. But heck, I'm gonna look into shotguns. I'm sick that way. My neighbor, a Lubavitch Rabbi, swears by the scatter gun he owns.
Never split your command—except when you have to:-)
I was coming home to San Francisco on the express bus from Stanford where I worked the night the Rodney King riots spread to San Francisco. Suddenly, an announcement came on the bus PA system. "We will be re-routing the bus tonight. We will move the route west and out of the downtown area as a result of civil unrest on Market Street from the Ferry Building to City Hall. We will make sure we drop you off at a safe area where you can get a cab or call relatives to pick you up. We regret this inconvenience." Inconvenience, my ass. "Let me off this bus! I live here, and nobody's going to tell me where I can go or how I can get there." I checked my gun to make sure I had it fully loaded, got off the bus, and marched right through the rioters, daring them to do anything about it.
All true, except for everything after the bus PA announcement. They don't allow concealed weapons in San Francisco. In fact, they barely allow gun ownership at all. Who was I or anyone else with half a brain on that bus to risk death or serious injury to stand up to the mob? So I slunk down in my seat, like everyone else, got off the bus at its final destination, and took a taxi to my home on one of the city's famous hills. At least there, things are a bit different. The gun was (and always is) loaded, with plenty of backup ammo. The rioters were safe on Market Street. My home is another story entirely.
DFTT
And don't forget that Sweet Little Maxine has resolutely refused to call it a riot. It was "a uprising, a uprising." My favorite TV footage showed the Korean shop owners standing in their doorways, armed to the teeth, daring, DARING the mob to try something.
DFTT
An uprising. Yeah, exactly like The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. It's just so interesting when those in government are obviously insane and stupid.
Love those brave Koreans.
But first…make sure you count the enemy!!
Good advice:-)
Just last year when oil prices were peaking Waters the commie threatened to nationalize (you know, steal) the oil companies. she is a traitor of the highest magnitude. Justifying the riots was just the begining of her nonsense.
robert you missed the anti jewish riots that happened in NYC during the David Dinkins administration. Of course, dinkins the incompetant denied the riots were happening for three days, until he & his security detail got literally chased down the street & out of brooklyn. Only then did the nypd move in with large forces and end the troubling affair. Somehow, none of these racist inner city riots are ever called racist by the blindfolded driveby media. No wonder their going out of business. Half the counrty no longer believes them anymore.
=====We are trapped in the lobby and outside a mob of rioters are moving in, surrounding the building.
Time to go Israeli.=====
Great stuff. I was in Santa Barbara at the time and when hell broke loose I grabbed my gun and raced back home to LA where my mom was alone. I remember doing about 100 mph on the 101 flying by a military caravan on its way to LA.
My friend and I videotaped the chaos from atop his apt roof [Tower & Wilshire] and across the street was a Big 5 that was being looted by dozens of malcontents. People were literally running out of Big5 with racks of clothes, including the rack. The police were in their cars outside and refused to get out; they’d flash their lights, blaze their sirens but the lunatics would laugh and carry on rioting. If I were in charge the police would have been given shoot-to-kill orders.
a shotgun is the best defensive weapon around. There is not a door or window that cannot be covered by someone with a shotgun, whether side by side or pump. When I lived in the bronx I bought one just for that purpose. First invaders thru the door or window get turned into swiss cheese.
On our drive home, which you will read about in the next chapter, next week, there was no "racing." Streets were choked with traffic and fires blocked other streets. It was a nightmare. I remember that Big 5 store and the looting. I was horrified.
I am so sold!
I look forward to your next article, Robert. Glad you and your family were ok.
My friend’s uncle owns an upholstery shop in Downtown and he and his employees exchanged approx 500 rounds with rioters outside. It was definitely a crazy time.
Great Satan:
Thanks so much. We're fine. Though I will never forget nor forgive the rioters for the hell we endured, and for the murders, torture, and the financial ruin brought on individuals and my city. Five hundred rounds is a lot of lead. The weapons must have turned white hot.
Robert, it's sad what the liberal lunatics have done to this state. Regarding the upholstery store shootout there was not 1 person killed. Fortunately the rioters were a poor shot but I expected more from my friend’s uncle. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he at least struck a few malcontents.
You're a good man Robert; you can just call me Satan. For the liberals it's Mr. Great Satan™.
Truth be told, and obvious as it was, the typical "rioter" could have given a ratz azz about the plight of Rodney King or anybody else. Those animals were shameless opprotunists bent on anarchy. Otherwise how do explain Korean shopkeepers being the victims of so many unhinged animals? I watched the King tape ad nauseam, and failed to see one shopkeeper in a smock run out and join the P.D. in their beatdown. Flash forward, despite all kinds of warning, who is wading around in New Orleans with freshly looted T.V.s hoisted high to preserve them fro water damage? Take a wild guess! I'm tired of the sins of others decades ago being the excuse for everything. We have our "affimitive action" president, it looks like he's going to be a disaster, enough already. Let's let competence and meritocracy decide who leads and not skin color. I'll support a man or woman of ANY etnicity, if they are competent. The L.A. riots were an excersize in American self loathing, there was no valid excuse.
The interesting thing about the Northridge Earthquake (and all others), is that there wasn't any looting or widespread civil breakdown.
Turns out that gangbangers get just as cosmically perturbed by them as everyone else, and they all have families to worry about too.
Exactly–the kumbaya (and I mean in in the sincere "come by here my Lord" meaning of the song; I refuse to use it sarcastically, what can I say, I loved to sing it in summer camp) good vibes lasted for days because everyone was equally scared poopless. But I do wag my fingers at the people at the local drugstore who jammed up the prices on batteries and bottled water for a few days.
The shoot, loot and scoot Olympics of 92' held in LA.
Ahh, the days of tommy gun cleaning and hot ladies smoking in bed…where have they gone?
A great piece. I too can't wait for part II. I grew up in AZ. I have friends that won't come here without there guns, and we all insist on at least 1000 or 2 of .308 for the m1a in case I have to get out quick…
It amazes me when I meet people who grew up here ask "Why do you need a gun?"….pretty obvious to me…
Gold medals galore:-)
Scott:
I am forced to tell you a great secret of the Jewish world: hot ladies in bed and guys cleaning machine guns are alive and well—in Israel. Though quite often the hot ladies are also cleaning the Galil assault rifle.
Ah Arizona, meth labs and ahem, undocumented workers—AKA drug cartels.
Robert, the story I told you about my friend's uncles upholstery shop, they're Korean.
======Satan—why does that designation feel soooooo wrong:-)======
Consider it a guilty pleasure.
Your IDF comment reminds me of a story. Prior to the rebirth of Israel in 1948 when the British controlled Israel and during WWII the British sent Moshe Dayan [as far as I'm concerned a hero of Biblical proportions] was sent by the British to Russia to observe the fighting between the Soviets and the nazis. The Soviets didn't want this revered Jew getting in any trouble or killed so they placed him in an outpost with Russian soldiers that was safe. Shortly after Dayan arrived to the outpost he and the Russian soldiers faced a surprise attack by the nazis. Dayan grabbed a machine gun and started chopping down nazis. When the dust settled he was the sole survivor. This story spread like wildfire and high ranking Russian soldiers nominated Dayan to receive the highest medal offered by the Red Army. The General at the time, Marshal Rorossovsky, said there is no way in hell we're giving a Jew whose not even Russian such an award. Dayan received the second highest medal.
G-d bless' em.
Maxine is a fool of the highest order – closely followed by Barbara Boxer.
Let's not forget: Nancy Pelosi, and Diane Feinstein, millionaires the old fashioned way—through marriage. Which explains their thorough disregard for fiscal responsibility.
Lawhawk:
Oh boy, you had me going:-)
And don't forget DiFi was serving on some appropriations committee when it leaked out that she was voting for something that would directly enrich her husband's company – the MSM quickly swept that under the rug.
Pelosi is supposed to be worth about $50 million I think she and her husband own a Napa winery.
Sarah Palin is everything Pelosi, DiFi & almost all Dem Femmes claim to be: self-made, regular mom & wife, and middle class.
Remington Marine 12GA. Recommneded for home defense.
Right, I saw the 12GA in Israel. It's an old and very reliable deign. Alas, my wife would never be able to rack the slide. Thanks so much for the excellent recommendation.
Thanks so much. Glad you enjoyed the piece.
Ah, Arizona, home to exploding meth labs and deadly drug cartels—AKA Undocumented Workers.
"In which Los Angeles devolves into anarchy, and the police are revealed to be helpless, hopeless and useless."
My Dad was on the LAPD for 23 years. The riots that year were horrible, and I can remember a few things – like him being sent to "blend in" and scout hotspots to see where help was needed. The problem? My Dad is white and was at the time undercover in narcotics. As he put it, he had about as much chance of blending in as "a turd in a punchbowl"…
I'd like to talk to him more about it because I can't really remember the finer details of much of anything (I was 10 or 12 years old at the time) and I can tell you right now that the police being "helpless, hopeless and useless" was not due to police incompetence (quite to the contrary, LAPD is one of if not THE best trained police forces in the world) so much as it was an impossible situation which no police force unwilling to gun down the mob would be equipped to handle. It was a display of the worst kind of mob behavior displayed by humanity. You can second guess the leadership of the force all you want, but it is virtually impossible to control what amounts to a mass of angry, unreasoning people hellbent on indiscriminant destruction fueled by blind rage.
In short, my point is, the LAPD, vilified and short on officers at the best of times, was essentially handed a squirtgun filled with gasoline and told to put out the fires of hell.
Robert, you just brought me back to a frightening ride home from Beit El, during Ehud Barad's reign of terror. Knowing that you're alive, makes me feel better. Waiting for part 2.
Okay, I'm on it. Thanks so much. Next riot, I'll be loaded for bear. Video is great. Here's the URL for those who are interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhstuvzMiB0
You and thousands of others here in Texas
I see you one Cynthia McKinney, and a Sheila Jackson Lee for your Feinstein and Pelosi. They may not be as rich or as powerful, but true nutters in their own right! Thanks, Georgia, for electing people like this in my state. Oh, and don't forget, we have some real winners in the Rino league, Senators Snowe and Collins. Why do these women make me hate my own sex? *sigh*
Didn't know about the winery business/Pelosi. My husband loves California Wines so I am curious to know the brand of her company so we can avoid it like the plague!!
Here is a bit on it from the San Francisco TV station KGO
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/pol...
There is just a bit o hypocrisy alluded – liberals? Hypocritical?
Another great story, Robert, I am sorry this one had to be based in such an awful event. I lived in ATL during the riots, so there were some problems. My ex-husband got hit in the face with glass at a stop light, people were standing around with ball bats and just attacking white people. I remember watching this on tv and feeling the horror, it didn't seem real across the country, until my ex came home from work, finally, an hour late with a face all cut and bloody. I think it is a wonder it didn't spread all around the country. I also think everyone should be prepared for the very real possibility that Mexico collapses and we have a sudden influx across the border.
Robert,
I have been shooting a double barrel shot gun since I was a little 45 lb girl. I promise you'll do fine!
I thought that the good Cynthia McKinney lost in the last primary? But yes, she is at least in the running! How about Patty Murray of WA? I think she made the statement that al Queda was building shopping centers and roads in Afghanistan.
But wait! There's more! (in the voice of Don Pardo) – how about the new head of the House Intelligence Committee from TX (forget his name) but didn't know the difference between Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims. That is the basis for understanding the various terrorist groups these days.
I am glad that I sent some money to Saxby Chandliss – Sarah Palin sure helped him too, I think.
I think we can say that screwball politicians aren't limited to any one state. I remember taking a 24 hour drive from UVa to FL in 1971 – a diving trip – and stopping at underground Atlanta. Saw the window of Lester Maddox's shop and he was selling genuine Lester Maddox ax handles.
But truthfully we should by the luck of the draw get one out of 2 decent Senators in CA, wouldn't you think?
Makes you feel safe with such dedicated leaders doesn't it?
Dulcamara,
Thanks for the info. I have been shooting all my life, and being a small woman and only 5'2, I tend to get brusied. I am not sure exactly what I'd need the mini hand grenades for, but I'd really like to find out!
I remember the riots well. I was a LT in the Marines stationed at 29 Palms. There for about 48 hrs there was a lot of talk about sending us into LA. I remember going over to the PX thinking I'd pick up some maps and everything had already sold out.
Satan—why does that designation feel soooooo wrong:-)
In Israel I was very close friends with an IDF sniper. He could shoot the wings off a fly at 1,000 yards. He once told me something I have never forgotten: "The only thing harder than hitting a major league fast ball is scoring a hit with a pistol against a moving target during combat."
I guess that's just one of a myriad reasons why I'll never be president. But if I were…..
Lagmart:
Thanks so much for your comment. Let me emphasize that I have the greatest respect for the rank and file of the LAPD. My beef is with the command structure, who had zero idea how to handle the riots. Thus the city was reduced to anarchy and we citizens were at the mercy of thugs.
I'd love to hear what your dad has to say about the riots. Please let me know.
Yes, we're alive and well and here to tell the story. Thanks so much.
Sigh, we were was also waiting for The Marines. I know better know. I count on myself and no one else.
The police weren't the problem, it was their cowardly commanders and the quislings mayor. Residents would have been better off if they just took to the streets with their guns and started executing rioters. The way it unfolded in L.A is just a byproduct of the banana republic we've become.
If there's any justice the judge will be violently assaulted by a gun toting illegal alien. Once our politicians and judges are victims then maybe they'll understand the 2nd amendment and the right to self defense. They are content to sacrifice our children and family members to these foreign drug cartels and home grown gang bangers in the name of “diversity” and political correctness; this will only change when the body bags are filled with their children.
No. If I recall, the next step in Britain (or was it Scotland) was to ban swords and knives when the disarmed populace tried to get inventive.
Uh, no.
They had a chief who bragged that he "had a plan", which upon close inspection come the day, turned out to consist entirely of pouting, and hiding under his desk.
And the exact response to such widerspread rioting is PRECISELY to start gunning down the mob.
You don't reason with thousands of people with the mentality of a gnat. You gas them, you shoot them with rubber bullets, and if that that doesn't break things up, you start picking off the leaders with your designated marskmen. If that doesn't work you start shooting people en masse.
A riot is a mob of people that is a danger to life and limb and to all of society, the exact circumstance under which such use of force is not only sanctioned, but required.
And come the day, the LAPD, from sergeants up to the chief (and the mayor), turned out to be too pigeon-livered to do their frickin' JOBS, which was to protect the law-abiding citizenry.
Had every such supervisor been fired the next day, it would have been entirely reasonable.
Can't wait for more, your narrative is riveting!
That evening was the date of my bridal shower — I had just moved to California from Missouri in preparation for my wedding two weeks later. We could smell the smoke at the shower in Glendale, and afterward my fiance gave me a little snub-nose something to put under my pillow that night. I remember thinking that I had finally found true love and — so help me — no one was going to take it away without a fight! I have not stopped trying to leave this state ever since. (Husband's job is too good, but I'm ready and willing to flee at a moment's notice!)
This past Christmas, I asked for a Glock 17 — it seems they're a little back-ordered. Hmmmn…
A Glock 17? That is the most romantic thing I have heard! (sniff, Brushing back a tear) How come I never meet women like you? Are there any more around like you? (Tammy Bruce is spoken for as well)
I just got to talk to my Dad. According to him, it turns out the LAPD was plenty able to take care of the problem and everyone knew what needed to be done to stop the nonsense. The problem was that the mayor at the time was retiring and Chief Gates wanted to be the be the next mayor, and all the people under him wanted to be the next chief. As a result, nobody wanted to be the one who made the unpopular decisions. The cops themselves knew what needed to be done, but weren't allowed to do it for what amounts to politics. When it became obvious what the police response was going to be, it ignited the situation into the fires of hell and just plain got out of hand.
It sort of reminds me of something that Glenn Beck was talking about the other day. A cop got shot in Houston by an illegal immigrant and is clinging to his life. We apparently knew the guy was in the country illegally, had a rap sheet a mile long on both sides of the border and had the police been allowed to enforce the law, this could have been avoided. Why is this relevant? Politics. The idiots in government refuse to enforce the border and the immigration laws because they think they'll lose votes. For the same reason (politics – albeit over a different issue) the '92 riots went from a situation that could have been managed to all out chaos that claimed lives and millions of dollars in property damage.
P.S. Robert, my dad says "It is my contention that they DID know what to do, they didn't have the backbone to do it and risk political suicide."
Oh, Oscar, how you flatter a girl! All the cool gun-toting girls are in Utah and Idaho now — they got tired of the LA metrosexual types and went where the conceal/carry laws are a little more…liberal.
[...] To read Part I of Hollywood is Burning, please click here. [...]
[...] To read Part I of Hollywood is Burning, please click here. [...]
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[...] To read Hollywood is Burning, Part I, please click here. [...]
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