DK Travel : Los Angeles : History & Culture

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Union Station

Built in 1939 during the golden age of railroad travel, the design of the dignified Union Station blends traditional Spanish Mission elements with Modernist Art Deco touches. Its lofty main waiting room is graced with a coffered wooden ceiling, highly polished marble floors, and tall arched windows. Union Station has been featured in several movies, The Hustler (1961) and Bugsy (1992) among others.
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

One of the nation’s top research universities, UCLA (founded in 1919) counts many luminaries among its alumni, including Francis Ford Coppola. It has around 150 buildings with architectural gems such as Royce Hall. The Fowler Museum has a marvellous collection of non-Western art. To the north is the lovely Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden.
Venice Boardwalk

It is perhaps fitting that Venice Beach, masterminded by an eccentric visionary named Abbot Kinney, is LA’s epicenter of counterculture. The circus-like scene reigning along the seaside boardwalk (officially known as “Ocean Front Walk”) must be seen to be believed (see Venice Boardwalk Attractions). Avoid after dark.
Venice Canals

Abbot Kinney’s Venice of America was once laced with 16 miles (26 km) of canals. The area languished until the 1960s when beatniks such as Stuart Perkoff discovered its unique charm, dragging flower children – most famously Jim Morrison – in their wake. In 1994, the city restored 3 miles (5 km) of canals, which have since become a beautiful, upscale neighborhood. A narrow walkway that is known as the Venice Canal Walk threads through here.
Walt Disney Concert Hall

The new home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra (directed by Esa Pekka Salonen since 1991) is a spectacular addition to downtown’s physical and cultural landscape. Frank Gehry conceived the dramatic design of this 2,265-seat auditorium, rather like the sculptural interpretation of a ship caught at sea. The exterior “sails” are clad in shining stainless steel panels, while the concert space itself boasts a curved wooden ceiling carefully calibrated for superb acoustics.
Wayfarer’s Chapel

The most famous structure by Lloyd Wright is a striking 1951 glass and stone memorial to 18th-century theologian Emanuel Swedenborg. The chapel, overlooking the Pacific, is surrounded by landscaped grounds that include a reflecting pool and terraced amphitheater.
Wells Fargo Court

The ground floor of this office complex is a treasure trove of public art with nudes by Robert Graham, Joan Miró’s childlike La Caresse d’un Oiseau , and Jean Dubuffet’s cartoonish Le Dandy .
Wheelhouse

Located above the deck officers’ quarters, the wheel-house was the navigational control center of the ship. It features dual brass steering wheels and such modern communication equipment as the “loudaphone,” an onboard telephone system.
William Mulholland (1855–1935)

The chief engineer of Los Angeles’s Water Department.
Wrigley Mansion & Garden

William Wrigley Jr, the man who gave the world Wrigley’s chewing gum, certainly knew how to live. His winter residence in Pasadena is an 18,500-sq-ft (1,720-sq-m) Renaissance-style mansion. It houses the Tournament of Roses Association, which organizes the annual New Year’s Day Rose Parade and the Rose Bowl Game. Memorabilia includes Rose Queen crowns, trophies, and photographs.