Autry Museum of Western Heritage
A deceptively small Museum near Glendale (which could explain why I take it for granted). Built by the original singing cowboy Gene Autry, it has a mix of traditional western history along with Hollywood Western History. Interesting, but you should way be into Westerns before going there.
Read MoreEames House and Pacific Standard Time…
Hip-Hop Artist, and former Architectural Drafting Student, Ice Cube talks a little about the history of the Eames House, and how its design worked with the world around it, rather than imposing its will on it.
I saw this in an Ezra Klein piece in the Washington Post, and it led me to Pacific Standard Time, which basically looks like a Zagat’s for the L.A. Art Scene. It requires registration, but its free to use.
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Getty Center
More view spot and gardens than museum, but it’s a museum as well. Bring your camera and skip the postcards.
Read MoreGriffith Park Observatory
Very lovely spot near the Hollywood Sign. Used in a bunch of movies (Rocketeer being the one that sticks in my mind). The actual Observatory is…meh…as a Science Museum, the view is spectacular on a clear day. It gets crowded on the weekends.
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Huntington Library and Gardens
Mr. Huntington, as I recall, made his money on the Trolleys in Los Angeles and bought himself a glamorous palatial estate. The Trolleys are gone now, but his home is still here, and it is spectacular. There’s a Tea Room, Japanese Gardens, African Gardens…it’s just a great place to come an waste a day strolling around, taking pictures and relaxing.
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La Brea Tar Pits / Museum Complex
This covers a lot of ground. Yes, there are the famous Tar Pits were a lot of Dinosaurs died back in the day, but there is a fabulous Museum Complex around it, including the super-expanded Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which despite having the words “Los Angeles” and “Art” mixed in there, is actually worth the trip. There’s a Folk Art museum nearby, as well as a Tar Pit Museum, and the Petersen Auto Museum across the street. And Food Trucks, did I mention food trucks?
Read MoreMuseum of Death / Hollywood Forever
There truly is some morbid @#$% going on in Hollywood, personified by these two…ahem…landmarks. I have been to neither, and I only know where the Museum of Death is because its across the street from my Toyota dealership. I’ve driven past the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, which apparently boasts some notables among its…ahem…residents. The night I drove past it was Halloween a couple of years ago, and the place…was…packed. They were showing old Horror Movies and people were partying it up. It actually looked fun.
Read MoreQueen Mary, The
It’s a grand old liner from back in the day, permanently docked down in Long Beach, available for tours…and is supposedly haunted.
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