In honor of Halloween, I'm posting the spookiest-looking photo in the Orange County Archives. Actually, it's a scan of three very old negatives that chemically bonded themselves together. They come from a collection of negatives (most of which are in excellent condition) from the Smart Studio in Santa Ana. At least two of the fused images are of Mary Smart, taken in the very early years if the 20th Century. (And yes, I enhanced the color, to make it even weirder-looking.).
Tonight, Halloween, and Saturday night, beginning at 8pm, Kona's (formerly Sam's Seafood) - the last authentic 1960s tiki restaurant in O.C. - will offer free tours of it's "haunted" basement. It's a great opportunity to explore another corner of this amazing Huntington Beach establishment. I understand there's a tunnel that runs from the basement under the highway. Some say it was used to smuggle booze during prohibition. But the building wasn't built until much later. (Sam's existed, but at another location.) That just makes the tunnel that much more mysterious. For more information, click here and read the fourth post from the top.
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Former Fullerton mayor Bob Root died on Wednesday at age 88. His obituary reports that "He was instrumental in the redevelopment of the historic downtown and the founding of the Fullerton Railway Plaza Association."
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Fountain Valley mayor John Collins has an article in the Fountain Valley View today, discussing and promoting the Fountain Valley Historical Society.