Goodbye
Kona
Lanes
Sadly, Costa Mesa's own Kona
Lanes (2699 Harbor Blvd.) was bulldozed this past Summer. This great
Tiki/Googie hybrid was designed by Quigley & Clark in the
late 1950s.
Luckily, the big backlit roadside sign was saved and adopted by the fine
folks at the National Sign Museum. Also, a few longtime Kona fans
managed to save smaller momentos -- like bowling pins. Sadly, a
near-super-human effort to save the building's blueprints was thwarted
by an earlier-than-expected purging of Kona's offices.
Johnie's
Broiler
Still Endangered
Johnie's Broiler, at 7447 Firestone Blvd. in Downey, CA, closed in early
2002 and the parking lot was rented to a used car dealer. Since then,
Johnie's has suffered grievous bodily harm - both inside and out. The
diesel-y smell of approaching bulldozers is on the wind. But thanks to
some enthusiastic preservationists, there's still hope. Visit their
website at JohniesBroiler.org.
More
Googie News
This page is updated at random intervals. For more related news, please
visit the following sites:
- Lotta Livin': MODCOM's message board
- MODCOM: Los Angeles Conservancy Modern Committee
- Recent Past Preservation Network
- Society for Commercial Archeology
- Society of Architectural Historians (S. Calif. Chapter)
-
By the Way: News from the roadside