Old Memories Of Los Angeles & California Areas
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Recently We Were Given Pictures From Zoot Suit Era 1943 Pictures Due To
the Age Of all These Old Photos We Decided To give them their Own Page. Lets
go Back In Time & Enjoy The Picture Content ! photos were once a Reality ?
Above Photo Is WestWood Towards West Hollywood
Pictures Below Depict Zoot Suiters In Style
Above Zuit Zooters Hands Full
African Americans and Mexican Americans grew
up together in the same neighborhoods and faught
side by side during the Zoot Suit Riots.
Picture Below Zoot Suiters Before the Sleepy
Lagoon missfortune
Old Zoot Poster Below With Ben Crosby
Below Popular Night Clubs Had Signs Such As This !
Above Tacky Signs Such As This Hung From
Popular Clubs. Below This Poster Would
Hang From The Fedora Lounge Window
Below The Fedora Lounge
Below The Fedora Lounge
The Fedora Lounge Was Popular In Harlem
These Two Zoot Suiters Don't Mind Posing
Below The ( Sleepy Lagoon Zuit Suiters)
THE SLEEPY LAGOON ZOOT SUITERS
Better Known As The 38Th Street Gang
In The Above Row : Gus Zamora, Manual Reyes, Bobby -
Telles, Manny Delgado, Jose '' Chepe'' Ruiz, Hank Ynostroza;
The Second Row : Jack Melendez, Victor Thompson, Angel
Padilla, John Y Matuz, Ysmael''Smiles''Parra, & Henry Leyvas.
Their Story Below As It Went Down After The Next Few Pictures
Below Military and Zoot Suiters Clash
The Hate And Anger Depicted Below
Military and Regular Whites Combined their Efforts
In Battling Zoot Suiters
Above Heading States This Zooter Lie Beaten
Naked Humiliated In A Los Angeles Street
Below A Zooter On A Short Term Trial
Cops Above Try To Get Info From Half Striped Zoot Suiter
This Lower Picture shows Law Enforcement Officers
in a group portrait exibiting their firearms
The Officer at the Top Left had a Los Angeles
County Jail Ficility named after him :
~ The Sheriff's Dept Biscailuz Center ~
Above Militarty Checks Out Zoot Pants
Below Female Zoot Gang Gets Arrested
Photo Below Depicts American Female Gangs
This Photo Above 1942 Zoot Girl Gang
ow The Service Men Appear Drunk & Unruly
These Army Guys Above Are Looking For Trouble !
As The Zoot Suiters Below Are Also Ready For Trouble
Above Photo During Zoot Suit Riots
SLEEPY LAGOON : Was The Larger of two reservoirs used to irrigate crops on the Williams ranch in rural Los Angeles, in what is now Bell, California A swimming hole by Day and Lover's Lane by night. Remember in the 30's LA was not yet developed so lots of areas were still rural / fields and farm land.
On One Particular Night A Murder Took Place and The 38th St Gang Was Blamed. The Pictures Below Tell The Story : > > > > > > >
38Th St Members Were Arrested For Murder They Did Not Commit
Below Many Zooters Are Rounded Up And Jailed
Round Up Zoot Suiters Crack Down
Above Teenage Roundup Of Zoot Suiters
Below Youths Were Part Of Several Hundred Rouded Up In
A Week-End Police Drive Against Youthful Gang Activities.
Youths Above & Below Charged With Murder.㺖 youths were indicted
For The Killing Of Jose Diaz On Montebello Township Ranch.
Above The Legion Of Sleepy Lagoon Trial Begins Now
Below Deputy Sheriff Cordes Clears Court Room From
Weeping Woman After Hearing The Verdict In The Gang
Death Trial, January 12, 1943
Above Possibly One Of The Zoot Suiters Wifes, Or Girl Freind
Bottom Photo Shows The Homies Boarding Jail Bus
Above 1940's Zoot Suiters Headed For The Big House Of Do Right !
Photo Below Arrival At San Quentin
Below The Sleepy Lagoon Zoot Suiters
Above Alice McGrath & Sleepy Lagoon Defendants In
Chino State Prison 1944 :
Back Row : Smiles Parra, Bobby Thonpson, Jack Melendez
Middle : Little Hank, Unidentified, Alice Greenfield, Others
Unidentified Indididuals.
Families Visiting Defendants In Chino State Prison, 1944.
Back Row : Ysmeal Parra Holding Daughter, Gus Zamora,
John Matuz and Grandmother Mrs Acuna;
Sitting Row : Delia Parra and Matuz Female Cousin
Alice McGrath With Jack Melendez and Hank Ynostroza 1944
Below Alice, & Gus Zamora At Chino State Prison 1943/44
Above Photo 1943 Or 1944
Picture Below Henry Levyas
Sleepy Lagoon Defendant Above
Picture Below Victor '' Bobby Levine'' Rodman Thompson
Drawing Below By Manny Delgado 1943 Or 1944
Below Jose ''Chepe'' Ruiz, Boxing San Quentin State Prison 
Picture Below San Quentin 1943
Above Photo Joe Ruiz ''Chepe'' is the new feather
weight champ here now ''San Quentin'' 1943
Above photo Ysmael ''smiles'' parra said there all
getting along fine, most of them go out for some
type of sport, like boxing, baseball and basketball.
San Quentin Cell Block 1943
One of the sleepy lagoon boys wrote .......there is
a tense stillness that seems to crawl over the cell-
block. Then you realize that you are alone.
Below San Quentin Prison
Until the mid-1060's, the prison's showers only used
salt water , pumped directly from the San Francisco
Bay. Today the place houses Calif only gas chamber.
These Next Photos Are The Sleepy Lagoon
Defense Fund , Also A Parent Meeting In
Fighting The '' Sleepy Lagoon '' Trials.
Below Hollywood Fundraiser For The ''Sleepy Lagoon'' Defense Fund
Above At Mocambo, A Night Club on Sunset Boulevard. Photo Left To Right Are : J.Edward Bromberg, Lupe
Below Alice Greenfield McGrath
Portrait Of Alice Geenfield McGrath 1943 Or 1944
Below Defense Fund, & Parent Meetings Paid Off
Above Sleepy Lagoon Defendants Leaving Hall Of Justice, October 24, 1944
Below The Defendants On Day Of Release
Photo Above Los Angeles Hall Of Justice, October 24, 1944 Defendants On Their Day Of Release, Greeted by Family and Friends.
Below Release At Los Angeles Hall Of Justice
Above Defendants, with Family and Friends with Attorney Ben Margolis, at Los Angeles Hall Of Justice.
DECADES LATER IN 1978 A PLAY WRITTEN DEPICTING THE ZOOT SUIT ''SLEEPY LAGOON'' ERA TOOK PLACE, AND IN MARCH 1978/79 THE PLAYBILL OF ZOOT SUIT TOOK PLACE IN THE WINTER GARDEN THEATER IN NEW YORK CITY.
Below The Program For Zoot Suit The Movie : Direct From LA'S Famous Hollywood Dome Theater 1979.
Above is the program for Zoot Suit
Below Edward James Olmos as ''El Pachuco'' In The Play
Above Edward James Olmos Played El Pachuco On
Stage In The Play Zoot Suit In 1978 or 1979.
Below Original Sleepy Lagoon Members with actors who Played Them
Above ''Smiles'' Parra with actor who played him in the original
presentation of the play Zoot Suit In Spring 1978
Below Other Original Sleepy Lagoon Members
Information On This Photo Above Misplaced
Below 38th St Gang Actually Started In The 1920's
In The 1920's 38th St Gang Began In South Central Los Angeles. Better Known As Chicano History For Their Involvement In The Sleepy Lagoon Murder and Trial. This Picture Above Taken In San Quentin Prison in 1943.
Below The Modern Day 38th St Gang Picture Taken 1979
The 38th St Gang Has Changed Substantially Over The Years. The Gang Now Numbers Over A Thousand Members Across The Country. This Picture Of 38th St Members Taken On A Street Corner In South Central Los Angeles In The Year 1999
ZOOT SUIT SLEEPY LAGOON STORY