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Esotouric Presents "A Visit to Lost Bunker Hill with author Nathan Marsak" webinar

About This Webinar

This is a recording of a webinar that previously streamed live. You can purchase a ticket to watch the recording, but you won’t be able to participate in the live chat or Q&A.

Please join us on Saturdays at noon Los Angeles time for a new live webinar.

When Los Angeles history lovers are asked to name the landmark they most regret was demolished, the entire Bunker Hill neighborhood frequently tops the list. Perched above Downtown, its photogenic collection of faded Queen Anne mansions turned rooming houses was a favorite subject of photographers, painters and film noir cinematographers. Even though Bunker Hill was wiped away more than 50 years ago, it lives on through thousands of images, in the popular imagination, and in a few precious relics that still survive—if you know where to look.

Join Esotouric, L.A.'s most eclectic sightseeing tour company, as we welcome Bunker Hill expert Nathan Marsak for an immersive time travel trip to the lost neighborhood that is his obsession, and that was very different from the bleak picture painted by politicians and redevelopment agencies.

Nathan is the author of the new book Bunker Hill Los Angeles: Essence of Sunshine and Noir (Angel City Press).

Get ready to be captivated as Nathan shares never-before-seen images from his personal collection and tells the real story of the wonderful mixed use, multi-generational, low-income community that was wiped clean by the Federal bulldozer.

Also joining us is Bunker Hill native son Gordon Pattison. Gordon’s family owned the last two mansions still standing when the hill was redeveloped, and he is likely the last person alive who can speak about life as part of the lost community.



The webinar will reveal:

• Nathan Marsak’s personal, fifteen-year research journey, from true crime blogger (with our 1947project and On Bunker Hill sites) to publication of his book.

• The tools Nathan uses to piece together a neighborhood that no longer exists, from maps to census records, newspaper archives to city directories, miniature models to eBay bids, and so much more.

• The human cost of redevelopment, revealed through the stories of several unforgettable Bunker Hill residents.

• The surviving relics of Old Bunker Hill that you can visit today.

• A visit from Nathan’s alter ego, The Cranky Preservationist, to tell you what we can learn from the urban planning failures of Bunker Hill, and the tools and tactics 21st Century Angelenos can use to keep them from happening again.

• Plus Nathan and Gordon will offer a narrated travelogue of an extraordinary piece of 1949 B-Roll film footage driving through the heart of lost Bunker Hill.

This webinar is an illustrated lecture packed with rare photos and video that will bring lost Bunker Hill to life on your digital device. And you'll find the look of an Esotouric webinar is a little different than your standard dry Zoom session, with lively interactive graphics courtesy of the mmhmm app.

After the presentation, Nathan, Gordon, Kim and Richard will answer your questions about Bunker Hill, Downtown Los Angeles and their passion for historic preservation, so get ready to be a part of the show.

Can't join in when the webinar is happening? You'll have access to the full replay for one week.

So tune in and discover the incredible history of Los Angeles, with the couple whose passion for the city is infectious.

FYI: Immediately upon registering, you will receive a separate, automated email containing the link to join the webinar. The webinar is reliable on all devices, Mac, PC, iOS and Android.

About Esotouric: As undergraduates at UC Santa Cruz, Kim Cooper and Richard Schave inexplicably hated one other on sight. (Perhaps less inexplicably, their academic advisor believed they were soul mates). A chance meeting 18 years later proved much more agreeable. Richard wooed Kim with high level library database access, with which she launched the 1947project true crime blog, highlighting a crime a day from the year of The Black Dahlia and Bugsy Siegel slayings. The popular blog’s readers demanded a tour, and then another. The tour was magical, a hothouse inspiring new ways for the by-then-newlyweds to tell the story of Los Angeles. Esotouric was born in 2007 with a calendar packed with true crime, literary, architecture and rock and roll tours. Ever since, it has provided a platform for promoting historic preservation issues (like the Save the 76 Ball campaign and the landmarking of Charles Bukowski’s bungalow), building a community of urban explorers (including dozens of free talks and tours under the umbrella of LAVA) and digging ever deeper into the secret heart of the city they love.

About Nathan Marsak: Nathan is the author of the books Bunker Hill Los Angeles: Essence of Sunshine and Noir and Los Angeles Neon and can be found spitting tacks in the character of The Cranky Preservationist. You can find him online at the On Bunker Hill - http://bunkerhilllosangeles.com and at RIP Los Angeles - https://riplosangeles.com blogs.

Rights and permissions: By attending an Esotouric webinar, you acknowledge that the entirety of the presentation is copyrighted, and no portion of the video or text may be reproduced in any fashion.

Who can view: Everyone
Webinar Price: $10.00
Featured Presenters
Webinar hosting presenter
Native Son of Bunker Hill
Historic preservation advocate. Formerly Asst. Professor Periodontics at USC and UCLA. Long time private practice of periodontics in WLA.
Hosted By
Esotouric webinar platform hosts Esotouric Presents "A Visit to Lost Bunker Hill with author Nathan Marsak" webinar
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