 Angel City
Press was
established in
1992 and is dedicated to the publication of high-quality nonfiction
books. The award-winning books from Angel City Press are sold in
fine gift and book stores, and on the Web.
Drenched in
nostalgia yet
undeniably cool, each Angel City Press book is luxuriously illustrated
and showcases the modern design concepts of California's top graphic
artists.
So it is with the
entire
treasury of Angel City Press books -- each is forever readable, forever
giftable. Angel City Press books are published
with extraordinary attention to detail, in the finest tradition of the
bound page.
By May of 1993 we
had our first book, Hollywood du Jour, in the hands
of hungry, nostalgic readers... but not for long;
they were quite busy whipping up Sticky Orange Rolls from the
Tick Tock Tea Room and swilling Moscow Mules from Cock 'n' Bull.
Sometimes it's a little lonely on this end of the book supply chain,
and we are pleased that Publishers
Weekly took
notice of our milestone.
Angel City Press is
located by
the sea in Santa Monica, California
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Who's talking /
signing where?
See the
Angel City Press Event Calendar
Join our Mailing List
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| Hollywood Rides a Bike: a
bi-coaster-al phemonenon... |
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Hollywood always knew the appeal of the bicycle.
That’s the “why” of film critic Steven Rea’s homage to Hollywood on two
wheels (okay, sometimes three wheels), Hollywood
Rides
a
Bike:
Cycling with the Stars. This image-filled tome is proof
positive
that Hollywood, well, yes, pedaled its wares, long before biking became
über-trendy.
Rea has assembled the ultimate tribute to
twentieth-century foxes and a universal collection of cycles . . .
these photos of film folks on spokes are sure to be treasured by fans
of all ages, genders and persuasions. Already the leader of the bike
pack online with his universally recognized Rides
A
Bike blog on Tumblr, Rea
has preserved the best in Hollywood’s documented cyclology in these
pages, never to be lost in cyberspace.
For everyone who ever pedaled to the movies, ate popcorn in a
cinema, or watched a classic movie channel, Hollywood Rides a Bike
by Steven Rea is a coffee table must-have. In fact, it’s a double-copy
must-have . . . keep an extra in your pannier for easy reference.
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| No
ankle bracelet for this Exhibitionist... |
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Earl L. Stendahl came to Los Angeles in 1909 with the zeal of a showman
and an extraordinary eye, and went on to create one of the most
influential art galleries in the world.
Never-published vintage photographs from the Stendahl family archive
illustrate April Dammann's Exhibitionist:
Earl
Stendahl—Art
Dealer
as
Impresario, a colorful
biography of the man who introduced
modern art
to Los Angeles and put Pre-Columbian art on the map.
In 2011, the Stendahl Galleries celebrate one hundred years of
continuous operation in Los Angeles—a remarkable feat. Three
generations of dealers (including April's husband, Ron Dammann), have
been instrumental in forging an aesthetic identity for
the West Coast and beyond: a legacy of unsurpassed connoisseurship.
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| Noir Afloat berths... |
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The long-awaited book from
Ernest Marquez, Noir Afloat,
is here!
This is Ernie's latest very true story of the renowned gambling ships
that anchored in Santa Monica Bay in the 1920s and 1930s. It’s the tale
of Tony Cornero, the cockiest gangster who ever bootlegged a
bottle of scotch, the man who helped found Las Vegas, and the smooth
operator of the most glamorous gambling ship in the Pacific, the Rex.
Cornero’s story is filled with
every
tantalizing tidbit of the era. The
law’s conquest of Cornero and the gambling ships helped to jump-start
the career of Earl Warren from California attorney general to governor
to Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Glitz, gangsters, and under-the-table politics—it’s all here in the
book that represents thirty years of research by best-selling Southern
California author Ernest Marquez, whose unparalleled collection of
images and memorabilia is showcased in Noir Afloat.
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| Spotting
Harlow in Hollywood... |
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The
world didn’t call Jean Harlow
the Blonde Bombshell for no reason. She was the first Hollywood sex
symbol, the Platinum Blonde, the mold for every famous blonde superstar
who hit the big screen—yes, even Marilyn Monroe followed Harlow’s lead.
In her short decade in Hollywood, Harlow created a new genre of movie
star—her fans idolized her for her peerless image and her gorgeous
façade. Harlow
in
Hollywood
is the story of how a town and an industry created her image, shaped
her myth, and determined her reality.
The year 2011 marks the centennial of her birth, and fans all over the
world are ready to celebrate. Now, renowned Harlow collector Darrell
Rooney and best-selling Hollywood historian Mark Vieira team to present
the most beautiful—and accurate—book on Harlow ever.
With more than 280 rare images, the authors not only make a case for
Harlow as an Art Deco artifact, they showcase where she lived, worked
and played in the place that created her stardom.
Harlow in Hollywood is a must
for
every film buff, Harlow collector, and Hollywood history aficionado.
Harlow in Hollywood
is in bookstores now. You may order your
autographed and inscribed copies here,
if you like.
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| sleeping
under
a
Blanket
of Stars... |
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Santa Monica, California, is a
beachside resort, its streets filled with trendy shops and trendier
shoppers, beautiful homes and gorgeous gardens. . . all juxtaposed to
so many homeless people that actor and political satirist Harry Shearer
has dubbed Santa Monica “the home of the homeless.” Those without a
place to call their own are nurtured by the city’s warming sun and its
healing ocean air; a fortunate few are aided by local social service
institutions. Most, however, go unnoticed as they struggle to survive.
And many of them -- thousands of them -- are women.
On the pages of Blanket of
Stars: Homeless Women in Santa Monica, these women
speak for homeless women everywhere. Each
shares a compelling history of her life, as she has lived it, revealing
the intimate details that led to the street. For some, there is a
spirit of independence and overcoming the odds; for the vast majority,
there is only the fear of each new night where all that protects them
is a blanket . . . a blanket of stars. The Nobles tell these
groundbreaking stories with tender words and dramatic images: images
that haunt us, images that make us smile, images that tear at our
hearts, images that call out to us to act. These are not just the women
of Santa Monica. They are the women of California. They are the women
of America. And the world. Learn from them. |
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Before
(and
after)
we
jammed
ourselves
into
roller
coasters,
Knott's
Preserved tells a rich
history
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How could one place have the world’s best boysenberry
preserves (no, Aunt Susan's isn't better!), world-class roller
coasters, and Independence Hall, too? Where does a Ghost Town exist
alongside a two-hundred-foot Sky Jump, while people wait three hours
for a chicken dinner? Knott's Preserved: From
Boysenberry to Theme Park, the History of Knott's Berry Farm
has all the answers—and many, many more.
Brimming with more than 200 images -- most of them never before
published -- Knott's Preserved reveals
exactly how the Knott family turned a berry business into one of the
major theme parks in the world. Artists and designers will flip at the
details and artwork the authors display—the how-it-happened of Knott's
from the earliest days. The berries and fried chicken were a just a
yummy lead-in to what would become a thrills capital of the world.
Plus, it's a story of how a man and a woman remained true to their
values, sharing profits and credit whenever they could. Heartwarming?
Yes. Decidedly so.
For everybody who ever put their arms around Whiskey Bill and Handsome
Brady, screamed in terror at Knott's Scary Farm, or marveled at the
Calico Mine, this is the book that's filled with as much nostalgia as
the Farm itself. Knott's Preserved is a must for every theme park lover
and all those kids at heart.
--
On-air:
Co-authors Christopher Merritt and J. Eric Lynxwiler on AirTalk with Larry Mantle (April 21, 2010)
In print: Check out Mike Mello's Knott's Preserved Celebration
coverage in the Orange County
Register (April 18, 2010)
Online: Listen to the Knott's Preserved at Knott's
podcast from The Season Pass (April 18, 2010)
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| willed
into
existence...
--
Inventing
L.A. : The
Chandlers and Their Times...
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In
1882,
when
General
Harrison
Gray
Otis
began
working
for
the paper that was to become the Los
Angeles Times,
the city of Los Angeles was still a sleepy little town with fewer than
a hundred thousand residents. However, Otis was the first of a dynasty
of men to build what would later become a world-renowned and
award-winning newspaper.
Created as the companion book to the Peter
Jones Productions documentary film
premiering on PBS October 5, 2009, this book
tells the century-long
story of the most famous family and their dominion over the Times, as they worked to create a
city of international fame. Author Bill Boyarsky follows the history of
the paper as it was passed
down from the hands of General Harrison Gray Otis, to his son-in-law,
Harry Chandler, to Norman Chandler, and finally to Otis Chandler, then
his hand-picked successor Tom Johnson... and its eventual sale and loss
of family -- and regional -- control.
Far beyond being a tale of publishers, Inventing
L.A.:
The
Chandlers
and
Their
Times
is the story of the Chandlers' reign over Los Angeles with the help of
their mighty scepter, the Times,
and
their
entwinement
with
politics,
family
feud,
and
fortune.
This
is
truly
a
rich
history
of
the
building
of
one
of
the
most
famous,
populated,
and
culturally
rich
cities
in
the
world.
--
On-air:
Larry
Mantle
of
AirTalk
talks
with
Bill
Boyarsky
[listen/download]
(10/05/2009).
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| Dream
a
big
dream
with
Dreamers
in
Dream City... |
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From immigrants
to billionaires, unknowns to the world-famous, surfers to moviemakers,
quacks to rocket scientists—Dreamers are attracted to Harry Brant
Chandler’s Dream City.
Los Angeles and the metropolis that surrounds it is home to
photographer Chandler—a fifth-generation Angeleno—and the fifty-four
subjects he presents in compelling color portraits and biographies.
Chandler contends—and every reader will certainly agree—that being in
Dream City allowed these Dreamers to conjure bigger-than-life dreams
and turn their every dream into a fantastic reality. A member of the
famed Chandler family of Los Angeles Times fame, Chandler left the
newspaper world behind, ventured into films and electronic media, and
found a way to blend all three.
In addition to classic photojournalistic techniques, Chandler melds the
eye of a moviemaker, the captured reality of a classic artist behind a
lens, the exponential potential of digital enhancement and the passion
of a history lover to create his own take on his L.A., his Dream City.
Then he fills it with Dreamers of today and yesterday. Dreamers in Dream City.
It
takes
one
to
know
one.
Talking about
Dreamers: On June 18, 2009, Harry Brant Chandler and historian
Kevin Starr explored the fascinating lives of inspirational Southern
Californians at ALOUD L.A. at the Los Angeles Public Library. Listen to
the podcast here.
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| When
you're
alone
and
life
is
making
you
lonely,
pick
up
Downtown
in
Detail... |
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Until
the
late
1970s,
Downtown
Los
Angeles
was
simply
a
relic
to
treasure,
a
symbol
of
suburban
progress
by
its
own
demise.
As
businesses
moved
out
of
what
was
once
the
heart
of
the
city,
many
Downtown
buildings
suffered
the
swing
of
the
wrecking
ball.
But
suddenly,
up
stepped
the
conservators
of
history,
the
people
who cared
that their city had a vivid past -- and magnificent buildings were
saved. Now, through the lens of master photographer/historian Tom
Zimmerman we see scores of reasons why. We see the stories the
buildings tell, up close, and, yes, very personally.
In Downtown
in
Detail,
Zimmerman finds the unique vantage points from which to capture
architectural details that are the highlights of buildings, the ones
that are often undiscovered. He finds the sculptures, tiles, clock
towers, gargoyles and bas-relief panels that historic architects used
to define an era.
In the words of Linda Dishman,
executive director of the Los Angeles
Conservancy -- a woman who spends her every day saving the historic
sites of Los Angeles -- "This book is much more than a window into the
past. The vast majority of buildings pictured are still here, right
now. I hope you'll take these photos as inspiration to go Downtown and
see them firsthand . . . in Tom Zimmerman's remarkable photographs, we
see the details that are there, waiting for each of us to rediscover,
enjoy, and preserve for future generations."
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| Take a stroll on the century-old Santa Monica Pier... |
Celebrate
a
century
of
good
times
on
the
Santa
Monica
Pier!
Vintage
images
and
magnificent
color
photos
capture
this
beloved
international
icon
at
its
very
best.
For a hundred years the Pier has
represented
the link between
people and the Pacific, a connection to all that's possible, probable
and worthy of dreams. In this commemorative collection of vintage
images,
colorful artwork, fascinating history and amazing lore, author James
Harris invites anyone
who has ever enjoyed the Pier to revisit its past and contemplate its
future.
Its dramatic story of survival -- fighting Mother Nature, politics and
changing times -- makes Santa Monica Pier more than a landmark, more
than a pleasure pier or a must-see on the West Coast. There's something
for everyone on the Santa Monica Pier. Who knew that Popeye was born on
the Pier? That Joan Baez strummed a guitar in an apartment above the
Carousel? Official pier historian James Harris brings his favorite spot
in the world to life in 128 pages of pure nostalgia and fascinating
facts. If you love the Santa Monica Pier -- and who doesn't? -- you'll
treasure this trip back through time.
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| new edition of Deanne Stillman's
classic Twentynine
Palms |
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Twentynine Palms
is a compelling account of the devastating murder of two young girls by
a troubled Marine in the rural California desert town of Twentynine
Palms. More than just a murder-mystery, Twenty-nine Palms is a
passionate dissection of desert life itself. With the desert as a main
character, Deanne traces the family histories of the murder victims
back for generations, in one case to the Donner Party and the
other to
a shack in the Philippines, and then, the inevitable and fatal arrival
of each family in the Mojave. The Mojave becomes a character for
Stillman,
as powerful and immediate as any of the actors in this real-life drama.
The first edition of Twentynine Palms
was a Los Angeles Times
bestseller, and was named one of the best books of 2001 by the Los Angeles Times Book Review.
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| Relive the Los Angeles of Don Benito Wilson
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Benjamin
Davis
Wilson
trekked
from
Santa
Fe
into
the
dusty
hamlet
of
Los
Angeles
with
Kit
Carson's
party
in
1841.
A
decade
later,
he
had
become
Don
Benito
Wilson,
made
his
fortune
and
was
the
second
mayor
of
Los
Angeles.
His
landholdings
become
the
sites of Pasadena, Beverly Hills, Culver City,
Riverside and more. As a Los Angeles County supervisor he oversaw a Los
Angeles County that included what is today Orange, San Bernardino and
Kern Counties. Historian Nat Read tells the amazing story of Don Benito Wilson, complete with vintage photos and illustrations.
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| Angel City Press goes underground
with Brown
Acres |
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In Brown Acres: An
Intimate History of the Los Angeles Sewers, Anna Sklar
captures the complex and often alarming history of the Los Angeles city
sewer system. With more than fifty photographs, diagrams and maps, Brown Acres
provides a unique look at the underground history of Los Angeles as it
traces the links between sewage, ambition and politics.
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| They came to L.A. because it was a Paradise Promoted |
With
more than 250 photographs and rare ephemera, all collected by author
Tom Zimmerman, Paradise Promoted
is the first book to showcase the era from
1870 to 1930 when boosters developed the small town of Los Angeles into
the city that would become Americas most cutting-edge metropolis. Los
Angeles was the subject of the longest, loudest, most persistent
promotional campaign in the history of the
United States. Nothing was
too exaggerated, absurd, or flat-out bizarre to be fodder for the
relentless effort to convince Americans to slam the door forever on
their home and sally forth to what booster supreme G.W. Burton called
"The fairest daughter among the sisterhood of cities in the world." |
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| A hundred years of the
Port of Los Angeles... |
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The Port of
Los Angeles has served its region for a century, not just by
bringing
ships and their cargo to Southern California, but by establishing Los
Angeles as a major presence on the international maritime scene.
Because of its Port, Los Angeles is the key that has opened North
America to the Pacific Rim and brought the world closer together. In
2007 the Port observed the Centennial of the formation of the Board of
Harbor Commissioners, and the official founding of the Port of Los
Angeles. To celebrate and commemorate that event, Los Angeles authors
Ernest Marquez and Veronique de Turenne collaborated to create Port of
Los Angeles: An Illustrated History from 1850 to 1945, a
book devoted
to the earliest years of this remarkable maritime center.
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| see Paris Beyond the
Iconic |
The Champs-Élysées. The Eiffel Tower. Notre Dame
Cathedral. Poetic
cobbled
streets, working-class cafés,
and
lovers—so many lovers. These are the classic images of Paris, the
most-photographed city in the world.
But now, based on an international exhibition curated by the authors, Beyond
the Iconic by
Guy Bennett and Béatrice Mousli presents
a revolution in imagery—139 contemporary images from 24 photographers
whose work is preserved in the permanent collection of the renowned
Carnavalet Museum in Paris. These artists reinterpret the city,
capturing the day-to-day realities of everyone's favorite capital.
Together they go deep into the true heart of Paris. Beyond the cliches.
Indeed, Beyond the Iconic. |
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| Santa Monica Mountains : take a peek (take a peak!) |
The Santa
Monica Mountains is the only range that transverses a major
metropolitan city in North America, slicing Los Angeles and defining
it, shaping its hills and its valleys, its canyons and its ocean front.
The Santa Monicas is undeniably a range on the edge of the world,
welcoming the Pacific into its rocky ridges, almost daring the ocean
waves to break at its foothills. And these are
mountains that have gone uncelebrated, until now in The
Santa Monica Mountains: Range on the Edge,
a compelling history and commentary by award-winning writer Matthew
Jaffe, punctuated with 140 breathtaking images captured by renowned
landscape-art photographer Tom Gamache. |
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My California continues to inspire
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| We are
very pleased that the
cities of Benicia, Santa Barbara,
Sacramento
and Whittier have joined Long Beach by
including
My California in their Community-wide
Reads events. More news is on the California
Arts Council and CaliforniaAuthors.com
Websites. All proceeds collected by Angel City Press
for sale of this book -- almost $90,000 so far -- are donated to the
California Arts Council to fund writing programs in California schools.
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Drive, he said...
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Some say that here
in Los Angeles we consider driving to be a birthright. Certainly the
automobile has had a profound impact -- as explored in the "Driving
Passions" pieces on KCET's online series CA Stories. D.J. Waldie, author of Real City
and Where We
Are Now, weighs
in with "Rush" (Flash
slideshow | text).
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... along the
Grand
Concourse of Los Angeles...
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And speaking
of "Driving Passions" -- take a tour through the Angel City Press
book Wilshire Boulevard,
via
The book, of course, is available for sale
at several
places
along
Wilshire
Boulevard ...
Spring 2011: now available in a
paperback edition!
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doing swimmingly, thank you: Santa Monica Beach... |
When the land
grant Rancho Boca de
Santa Monica was awarded to Francisco Marquez and Ysidro Reyes
in 1839,
little did their families imagine that the sand separating their land
from the waters of the Pacific would become one of the most famous
beaches in the world, now visited by millions of visitors each year.
The Marquez-Reyes union helped define the history of Santa Monica
Beach. Ernest Marquez
has collected images and information that together define the
history of this magnificent beach. Now,
with dramatic images by
Carleton E. Watkins, H.F. Rile, Valentin Wolfenstein and many more,
Marquez’s Santa Monica Beach: A
Collector’s Pictorial History is destined to
become not only the definitive biography, but also the most beautiful
and authoritative record of an American treasure.
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Ernest
Marquez
was
born
in
1924
and
grew
up
in
Santa
Monica
Canyon, swimming the Pacific
waters
at the heels of Olympian Buster Crabbe and snacking on the watercress
that grew in the canyon’s creek.
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|
a new home for Los Angeles
Times books...
|
Los Angeles Times
Books are now
distributed by Angel City Press. In
keeping with the mission of Angel City Press to offer works that
showcase Southern California, Los
Angeles Times Books are a collection
of treasured volumes that reflect the work of the world-renowned
newspaper’s staff writers, columnists, photographers and Paul Conrad,
the Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist. In addition, Los Angeles Times
Books feature titles which are significant to the Southern California
region, from history and sports to gardening and food. Click here
to explore what's available...
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| Read more / Where to buy |
 Here's our press
archive, where can see what
others say about Angel City Press.
Gotta write: Please read our submission
guidelines before you pitch us your book.
Gotta read: "I want that book NOW!" Check here to locate
places to buy Angel City Press
books. |
| "Angel City what?" |
We are not
the only "Angel City" in the City of Angels -- there are many! If you
are
not looking for our wonderful books, you may be searching for these
similarly-named neighbors:
Angel
City
Chorale -- they sing much
better than we do...
Angel
City
Derby
Girls -- they skate, we don't...
Angel
City
Brewing -- whose products just might be more
refreshing than ours on a hot day.. |
Some reasons why we do this...
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| Our beloved brother Ron
Haver loved the movies more than anybody... |
Warrantless search? Surrender here...
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