Rumor Control

As things always go, reports of an ‘airplane crash’ on March 9 fortunately turned out to be a gear collapse on the rollout, meaning low speed, so no real injuries or significant damage. Good news, all is well at our Fullerton Municipal Airport.

I tried the scone, baked fresh on the premises, with homemade jam and an Americano. Very impressive.
New In Town

When is a Starbucks not a Starbucks? When it is converted to The Mugs, at 444 N Harbor, the corner of Harbor and Chapman. They had a soft opening on March 10, and everything was going very smoothly by the time we got there on the 13th. Friendly staff, comfortable surroundings, and virtually all are getting rave reviews already.
Kudos

The rain has been just what we needed but the wind, not so much. Two of our Fullerton Honors banners were just about blown off their mounting brackets on Commonwealth. But, thanks to the City of Fullerton, they were cared for. The families must be greatly relieved because we have lost some of these in the past due to high winds.
Little League and Tommy

(Dodger great Eric Karros, center) We squeaked in a mention at the deadline in the last issue. Still, we wanted to include this photo because it shows how following the amazing Jon SooHoo (official LA Dodgers team photographer) can lead to an organized photo with everyone in the same spot. Not easy to do when so many are trying for the same shot, but he has the charisma and authority to get it done. He told me his hand spoiled the shot, but I liked it. We were not even going to straighten or crop it.
Big Win for the Hornets

Our Fullerton College Men’s basketball team had a spectacular season, culminating in an 83-73 victory over City College of San Francisco on Sunday, March 12. They were ranked #1 in the state for most of the season and finished 32-1, 16-0. Congratulations to all, and especially to All-Tournament MVP Shaquil Bender. Having a player named Kobe Newton on the team also helped, as he scored 25 points—a familiar-sounding and winning combination. Photo by Jim McCormack
Photo Quiz
Send answers to Mike at AllMedia@sbcglobal.net
Last time: Wow, controversy- sort of. We put the answer right in the copy and figured a number of you would submit that, but come to find out; we had the incorrect name. Bill gave us all of the correct info regarding Tim Buckley, but the restaurant’s name was not El Capitan, which explains why a search got us nowhere. Frank swore it was El Comidor. Bill #2 swore it was El Camador. Finally, after all of the swearing, aha, Clara told us it was El Comedor, which opened in 1948, ten years before that section of the city streets route U.S. 91 was turned into what became the Riverside Freeway, AKA the 91 Freeway. El Comedor was known as an upscale restaurant with a cocktail lounge and piano bar, lasting in that location for 20 years. Our final response before the deadline came from Ron, who worked there alongside Tim Buckley and told us, “Tim would take a break and sit out back with a notepad and write songs until someone noticed he wasn’t in the kitchen.” He later visited Tim backstage at the Troubador after he returned from Viet Nam. It is said that, among others, Vice President Richard Nixon and Walt Disney dined at the El Comedor. Check the menu from 1960, and you will notice they dubbed their margaritas “The dry martini from south of the border” and served empanadas sprinkled with powdered sugar for dessert. This was so early in the local Mexican Food game that they described each item. Final thought, the owner was also a Bill, Bill Rubidoux, who used his Mom Susie’s early California recipes to create what we discovered was a revered location that is missed to this day.
This time: Where in our downtown is this clock tower?
Categories: Downtown, Local News