MORE ON HUELL HOWSER and his California’s Gold
Huell Howser’s California
Oh, the places he’s gone! Click on the map to explore landmarks Huell Howser has visited over the years.
Here’s an episode from Huell’s ‘Downtown’ Series where he looks at one of the last great American Raiload Stations, still in existence, Los Angeles’ Union Station
Oh, the places he’s gone! Click on the map to explore landmarks Huell Howser has visited over the years.
Watch this video for a first-rate historical tour of Los Angeles’ Union Station, the “last of America’s great railway stations,” built in 1939. Join Huell in discovering one of LA’s most cherished buildings as he revisits and amazes at one of the easiest, most convenient forms of transportation in LA: the trusty train.
Nothing to do with Huell Howser’s series, above, but that it’s another great old train station, currently awaiting restoration in Oakland’s West Oakland. It is, supposedly, being run by the same company handling Los angeles’ Union station
The Oakland 16th Street Station (also known as the Oakland Central Station) was one of three train stations in Oakland, California, United States at the start of the 20th century. The Beaux-Arts building was designed by architect Jarvis Hunt, a preeminent train station architect, and opened in 1912. For decades the 16th Street Station was the main Oakland station for Southern Pacific (SP) through trains, with East Bay Electric Lines on the elevated platforms. It was a companion (or “city station”) for Oakland Pier, two miles away, which was demolished in 1960. Amtrak (the National Railroad Passenger Corporation) used this station as its main Oakland stop for nearly two decades. The station was severely damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, but continued serving trains at an adjacent building. It closed in 1994, having been replaced by the stations in nearby Emeryville and Jack London Square. The last Amtrak train serviced the station on August 5, 1994, after which passengers accessed downtown Oakland via the Emeryville Station, until Jack London Station opened in May 1995.[2]
The former station is located at 16th and Wood Streets in the West Oakland neighborhood of Oakland, with the official address being 1601 Wood Street.[1] It is next to and visible from the Interstate 880 connector ramps of the MacArthur Maze. The station buildings are largely intact, including the interlocking tower and ironwork elevated platforms that carried commuter trains of SP’s East Bay Electric Lines until 1941.
The station was purchased in 2005 by BUILD, an affiliate of BRIDGE Housing, and is being restored as part of a local redevelopment project[3][4] and will not be used as a railroad station again. The tracks of the Southern Pacific (now Union Pacific) main line moved westward in the 1990s and now run on the other side of I-880, leaving the station isolated.
The station was used in films such as Funny Lady, RENTand Hemingway & Gellhorn. Mumford & Sons also filmed their music video for “Babel” here.
The original 16th Street depot was a smaller wood structure, built when the tracks were on the shoreline of San Francisco Bay. Later the shoreline was filled and now lies nearly a mile west.
Passenger trains now reach Oakland via the Jack London Square station, the Coliseum station, and the nearbyEmeryville station.
Arts & EntertainmentHuell Howser and Downtown’s Gold
The Unforgettable Host Searched Out the Central City’s Secrets, and the Effects Were Long-Lasting
Posted: Friday, January 11, 2013 2:40 pm | Updated: 4:02 pm, Fri Jan 25, 2013.
by Richard Guzmán
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES – Remembrances of Huell Howser have been flying across the state since the public television host passed away on Monday, Jan. 7, at the age of 67. Fans have lovingly recalled the Tennessee twang and the folksy approach he exhibited in KCET series such as “California’s Gold” and “Travelling With Huell Howser.”
Howser became famous for his fascination with seemingly all aspects of life in California, which were often punctuated with bursts of “That’s amazing!”Downtown was no exception. He explored the community at various times over the decades, and made it the centerpiece of its own 15-part series, fittingly titled “Downtown,” that ran from 2006 until 2009.
In “Downtown,” Howser explored various Central City businesses, destinations, events and residences. He brought his camera to restaurants such as Cole’s and the French Garden. He dropped in on the Biscuit Company Lofts. He showed up at Los Angeles State Historic Park and Art Walk.
“He was just really affable and genuinely excited to learn about what was going on Downtown,” said LAPD Commander Andy Smith, who appeared on an episode in 2007 when Smith helmed Central Division.
Smith recalled how the two spent a couple of hours walking through Downtown for an episode on safety in the Central City. They stopped often to talk to people on the street, to vendors and to other police officers on patrol. They spoke with patrons at Pete’s Café.
It was part of Howser’s effort to show all aspects of the rapidly changing community. He spoke of his hope to capture a warts-and-all view in a 2006 interview with Los Angeles Downtown News.
“We want to talk to people on the street who wouldn’t normally be approached and show that Downtown has lots of layers,” Howser said in the interview. “When you come Downtown you’re going to come into contact with the best and worst Downtown has to offer. You’re going to have some positive and negative experiences and some experiences in between. And that’s what life’s about. If you want an antiseptic experience, go to Universal Citywalk or Disneyland. If you want to see what life is about in Southern California, come Downtown because it’s all compressed here.”
Abrupt Retirement
Howser began his television career at WSM-TV in Nashville after receiving his B.A. from the University of Tennessee. He moved to Los Angeles in 1981 to work as a reporter for KCBS-TV. In 1987 he joined KCET and began producing “Videolog,” which paved the way for “California’s Gold.”
Angelenos began speculating on Howser’s health late last year when his retirement from KCET was abruptly announced. He passed away at his home in Palm Springs.
Those who were the subject of Howser broadcasts say the impact was long-lasting. They include Sean Woods, a California State Parks superintendent who appeared on the Los Angeles State Historic Park episode of “Downtown.”
“He wanted his viewers to understand about the hidden treasures and the green space in Downtown,” Woods said.
“To this day, when people see that episode they come out to the park. His impact was tremendous,” he said.
Howser’s visit to the hidden French Garden restaurant was part of the premiere episode of the Downtown series. During his stop at the space on Seventh Street in 2006, he chatted with diners and restaurant owner Benoit Lesure.
After the episode first aired, Lesure said business boomed. He recalled being booked almost nightly for about a year with customers telling him they saw the restaurant on the show.
Lesure said even to this day he gets new customers who learn about the restaurant through reruns. Howser also became a regular at French Garden and would talk with many other customers before finally sitting down for his meal.
Grateful for the business Howser brought to the restaurant, Lesure regularly offered to pay for his meals. Howser politely refused every time.
“He always paid. He wanted to be treated like everyone else,” Lesure said.
Georges Laguerre, the owner of TiGeorges, the Haitian chicken restaurant on Glendale Boulevard in City West, fondly remembers Dec. 16, 2002. That was the day Howser and a cameraman walked into his place and began filming for a pre-“Downtown” series episode.
“He aired the show about a month later and, man, let me tell you we were on a roll for about a good month with people coming in every day,” Laguerre recalled last week. “I had to hire extra help.”
Howser returned to the restaurant on a day when it was particularly crowded and told Laguerre he would put the episode on a second time to keep the momentum going. He was true to his word.
“He ran it again,” Laguerre said. After the episode aired, Laguerre put up a picture of himself and Howser at the front of TiGeorges. He considered Howser a dear friend.
“We liked each other from the get-go,” Laguerre said.
Howser’s passing naturally prompted a wave of remembrances from friends and public officials. One came from Fourth District City Councilman Tom LaBonge, whose office is helping to arrange a Tuesday, Jan. 15, sunset salute to Howser at the Griffith Park Observatory.
“Huell Howser was my friend for over three decades, and no one knew this state better,” LaBonge said in a prepared statement. “He had a great ability to find fresh faces in old places, and he paid tremendous attention to our incredible California infrastructure. Huell was an advocate for good.”
The Salute to Howser starts at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 15 at the Griffith Park Observatory, 2800 E. Observatory Rd.
Contact Richard Guzmán at richard@downtownnews.com.
© Los Angeles Downtown News 2012