Gay's Lion Farm

Charles and Muriel Gay opened Gay's Lion Farm east of Los Angeles in El Monte, California in 1925.  They bred, trained, and exhibited lions there, and it quickly became a popular tourist attraction. Some of the lions they raised and trained were used in Hollywood movies.

I am so glad that the person who visited the farm took the time to write the date and a few other notes on the backs of the cards.

Saturday, July 17 - 1926  "Numa" This lion earns $10,000 a year in the movies.

This card also has the same date on the back.

Grrrr....

Saturday - July 17 - 1926 "Slats"

Slats was the original MGM logo lion and was used in all the black-and-white MGM movies from 1924-1928.

In 1928, an unfortunate event happened while Charles and Muriel were in Europe. Three of the lions escaped as they were being moved between cages. The farm manager was slashed by one of the lions and ended up dying. That lion and the other two had to be shot.

Gay's Lion Farm had to close in 1942 because war shortages made it impossible for them to get the ton of horse meat they needed daily to feed the lions. Although the farm no longer exists, there is allegedly a life-size statue of a lion at the Interstate 10 overpass where the farm used to be. Somehow, this reminds me of the North-going Zax and South-going Zax from Dr. Seuss.  Remember them? They meet face-to-face in the Valley of Prax and are both unwilling to move. Eventually freeways and overpasses are built around them. It's just a visual similarity, although the moral of the Seuss story (compromise) doesn't apply here.

Mini Views of Florida

Here are some bright mini views of Florida, a keepsake from someone who went there on vacation from Binghamton (Bingo), New York in 1947.  The views measure about 2.5 by 3.5 inches. I especially like the train. All 20 views are still in the folder, but I only selected 9 of them to post.

Streetcar Sunday - Portland's Morrison Street

Here are two views of Morrison Street in Portland from similar vantage points, but a decade apart. On the first one, you see the post office on the near left side with the Oregon Hotel in the background. On the right-hand side, you see the Marquam Grand Theater, the brick building. It was built in1891 and was also known as the Marquam Grand Opera House. Both Sandra Bernhardt and Mark Twain entertained audiences here. I am sure the MG on the streetcar stands for Marquam Grand.

Notice that in the second card, the theater is no longer there and a new building has taken its place.

Dan Haneckow of Cafe Unknown does such a beautiful job of describing this fascinating transition, that I urge you to check out his blog if you're interested in the details. And here is a link to an earlier Portland Streetcar Sunday post on this blog. And, last but not least, here are the back sides of the cards:

here's the view as it looks today, with the former Meier and Frank department store (now Macy's) on the right.

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