Mountain Views News          Saturday, May 5, 2012

6


Mountain Views-News Saturday, May 5, 2012 

ARCADIA HIGH SCHOOL CLASS WINS BRONZE


From Arcadia’s Best

MAD MEN SHOW AT ROD’S GRILL

The episode of AMC’s “Mad Men” that was filmed at Rod’s Grill on Huntington Drive last October 
was featured this past week on the network.

 

An extensive amount of footage at Rod’s is featured in this season’s episode called “Far Away Places,” 
in which star Jon Hamm’s Don Draper character is featured in a tense discussion with his TV wife 
Megan (Jessica Pare) at a Howard Johnson’s motor lodge — motel and restaurant.

 

Many minutes of the episode takes place inside Rod’s from the entry area to the counter to the booth 
in which Don and Megan sit and eat before Don leaves angrily. There are more scenes later in the 
entry and near the restrooms when Don returns to the restaurant looking for Megan.

 

In Hollywood fashion, several scenes that take place immediately outside the Howard Johnson’s in 
the parking lot were shot elsewhere by an actual orange-roofed Howard Johnson’s building.

 

Rod’s is frequently used for filming locations, including the recent HBO series “Luck,” for which a 
mild earthquake took place as stars of that series were eating at the diner.

 

Rod’s Grill was closed for three days last October when “Mad Men” was shooting there. Rod’s owner 
Manny Ramirez said that there are downsides to allowing such filming at his diner. His employees 
potentially lose pay and he can alienate and potentially lose his regular customers, some of whom 
eat two or three meals at Rod’s every day. To compensate Manny and allow him to pay his employees 
their regular salary without working, Manny says TV production companies pay him as much as 
$10,000. – By Scott Hettrick 

By Joan Schmidt

 Could you answer 
questions about our US 
Constitution or explain how it 
works? A group of AWESOME 
Arcadia High School Seniors 
from Mr. Kevin Fox’s Advanced 
Placement Government course 
recently competed in the 25th 
Annual We the People National 
Finals. Over 1300 high school 
students and teachers from the fifty 
states, the District of Columbia 
and the Commonwealth of 
the Northern Mariana Islands 
participated in this great event. 
The three-day competition on the 
US Constitution and the Bill of 
Rights was held on the campus of 
George Mason University and in 
the US House of Representatives 
hearing rooms on Capitol Hill.

 For Arcadia High School, 
it’s been a long journey with 
a lot of preparation and hard 
work. Their first hurdle was in 
Bakersfield when they placed 
first in the California State Finals 
held February 10-11. How did 
they achieve this? First take 
thirty awesome students in Mr. 
Fox’s Advancement Government 
Course who were willing to 
give up over three hours every 
Monday evening! They were 
at City Chambers by 7pm and 
often there till 10pm! These 
thirty students were divided 
into six “units” or groups of five 
students and every week given a 
specific area to do research on. 
The second component of this 
winning team is their teacher, 
Mr. Kevin Fox. You may have 
brilliant students, but you must 
have a strong teacher who not 
only gives you knowledge, but 
inspires you, encourages you to 
seek more knowledge and does 
so with much enthusiasm. Then 
there are their coaches, Council 
Member Gary Kovacic, who has 
volunteered for sixteen years, 
attorney and former school board 
member Jim Romo, attorney Bob 
Garrett, attorney Carl Nielson, 
attorney and member of Arcadia 
High School’s 1996 Constitution 
Team Karyn 
McCreary, and 
Arcadia High 
School teacher 
and Softball 
Coach, Megan 
Leahy. These 
fine volunteers 
came Monday 
evenings 
prepared to 
work. They 
closely listened 
to presentations, 
asked questions 
and offered 
constructive 
criticism. 
Lastly I need 
to mention 
these students’ 
families. The 
students were 
able to make 
this commitment because their 
families are behind them 100%! 
Many students don’t own cars, 
but their parents dropped them 
off. The evening I observed the 
practice, the City Chambers was 
filled with parent supporters who 
were recording or taking photos. 
Student Kim Selinski not only 
had her brother and parents on 
hand to cheer her on, but also her 
grandparents!

 How did the preparation 
session work? First all the 
students come in at various times 
prior to 7pm. Anu Shah arrived 
with his Boy Scout uniform on. 
He recently earned the Eagle 
Scout Award and had been at a 
Scout meeting. His project had 
involved his Hindu Temple in 
Rosemead. Everyone cheered 
when Anu entered. Soon it was 
time to begin.

 The students formed a 
circle and sang, “There Ain’t No 
Mountain High Enough” and 
then did their cheer. Everyone 
took seats and one group at a 
time was called up on stage. 
They introduced themselves 
individually and then each one 
gave a presentation on their 
topic. (Each “unit” or group had 
a different topic.) Then each 
volunteer asked questions or 
made suggestions. I stayed for 
two groups. One group dealt 
with an immigration issue. After 
their presentation, Ms. McCreary 
suggested more concrete data/
statistics to back up what they 
said. I told them that Brain Mejia 
from Supervisor Antonovich’s 
office had just given information 
at a meeting I attended the 
previous week. The next day in 
class, the group went on line to 
Supervisor Antonovich’ pages 
and found a lot of data. For 
instance, the exact amounts of 
money spent for certain services 
were given.

 This past Monday, April 
29th, in the final round, all six 
units put in their best effort of the 
year at the Rayburn House Office 
Building on Capitol Hill. Monday 
evening they were awarded the 
Bronze Medal as the third best 
team in the National; Oregon 
came in first and Virginia, second. 
Although disappointed they had 
a great three days of competition 
and enjoyed visiting Washington, 
D.C. In addition to their teacher, 
Mr. Kevin Fox, all five volunteer 
coaches and many parents and 
some alumni of the Arcadia 
program, who attend school or 
work in the D.C. area were on 
hand to support them. 


Anu Shah, Eagle Scout

Arcadia Police Blotter

For the period of Sunday, April 22nd, through Saturday, April 28th, the Police Department responded to 
1,045 calls for service of which 128 required formal investigations. The following is a summary report 
of the major incidents handled by the Department during this period.

Sunday, April 22:

1. Around 2:53 a.m., officers responded to a two-party injury traffic accident in the intersection of 
West Huntington Drive and South Baldwin Avenue. Two drivers collided in the intersection, causing 
one vehicle to overturn and the other to spinout. Four passengers were treated at the scene by the Arcadia 
Fire Department of which three were transported to the Arcadia Methodist Hospital. An investigation 
revealed one of the drivers was under the influence of alcohol, and failed to stop at the red traffic signal. 
The 27-year-old Hispanic male was arrested and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 
2. At approximately 1:17 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 5000 block of North 
Baldwin Avenue regarding an unauthorized yard sale. The resident did not have a yard sale permit as 
required by the City of Arcadia Municipal Code. An investigation revealed the resident had exhausted 
the maximum number of yard sale permits for the calendar year. She was issued a citation. 


Monday, April 23:

3. At about 4:00 p.m., an officer responded to the 000 block of East Rodell Place in regards to a 
burglary investigation. Unknown suspect(s) pried open the victim’s rear door, ransacked the location, 
and fled undetected. Several items were reported missing, and no one saw or heard anything suspicious.
4. Shortly after 7:20 p.m., an officer was dispatched to LA Fitness, 1325 South Baldwin Avenue, 
regarding a theft of two iPhones. While the victims left their gym bags unattended in the basketball 
court, a witness observed an unknown male subject rummaging through their property. The suspect is 
described as a Hispanic adult with long hair and a goatee, wearing black shorts and a black shirt. 


Tuesday, April 24:

5. At about 6:46 p.m., an officer was dispatched to a three-party traffic accident on Huntington 
Drive, west of Old Ranch Road. As party-one proceeded west on Huntington Drive, he collided into 
party-two as she reversed into his lane from her driveway. Party-one then collided into an unoccupied 
parked vehicle. No injuries were reported. 
6. At approximately 5:36 p.m., officers responded 
to JCPenney at the Santa Anita Mall, 400 South Baldwin Avenue, in reference to a theft report. Two 
Hispanic male suspects concealed fifteen pairs of jeans inside a bag, and exited the store without making 
payment. Video surveillance revealed the suspects fled the location in a tan colored Chevy pick-up truck. 


 

Wednesday, April 25:

7. Around 10:00 a.m., officers responded to the 000 block of West Camino Real Avenue regarding 
a residential burglary report. A male adult lured the victim outside her home by explaining her water 
hose was possibly contaminated – due to a broken water pipe nearby. A short time later, the suspect 
received a phone call and immediately fled the location. The victim discovered another suspect entered 
her residence while she was distracted, and stole approximately $20,000 in jewelry. The male adult is 
described as Hispanic with dark complexion, 5’9” tall, clean shaven, with short black hair, and wearing 
dark colored clothing.
8. At approximately 1:44 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the bus stop located on the southwest 
corner of Santa Anita Avenue and Huntington Drive, in reference to a vandalism report. An investigation 
revealed three juveniles tagged the bus bench with yellow paint markers. A 14-year-old Hispanic male 
and two 15-year-old Hispanic males were arrested, transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking, and 
later released to their parents. 


 

Thursday, April 26:

9. Shortly after 3:20 p.m., an officer responded to Sephora at the Santa Anita Mall, 400 South 
Baldwin Avenue, in regards to a theft report. A female adult was observed concealing merchandise 
inside her purse, and exited the store without making payment. An investigation revealed the suspect 
also stole from another store. The 19-year-old White female was arrested, and transported to the 
Arcadia City Jail for booking.
10. At about 8:50 p.m., an officer responded to the 000 block of Diamond Street regarding a theft 
investigation. The victim explained he let two friends stay inside his apartment while he left for a 
meeting. When he returned, he discovered his friends had left and noticed his laptop was missing. An 
attempt to contact the subjects by phone met with negative results. 


Friday, April 27:

11. At approximately 00:36 a.m., officers responded to the Arcadia Badminton Club, 12336 Lower 
Azusa Road, in regards to female subject inside the location not wearing any pants. An investigation 
revealed the subject was intoxicated and unable to care for herself. The 24-year-old Hispanic female 
was arrested, and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 
12. Around 7:31 a.m., an officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for two broken stop lights, in 
the area of Baldwin Avenue and Fairview Avenue. The officer discovered the driver was never issued a 
license. The 34-year-old Hispanic male was cited, and his vehicle was impounded for 30 days. 


Saturday, April 28:

13. At roughly 10:29 a.m., an officer responded to the Arcadia Police Department front counter 
regarding a fraud report. The victim discovered an unknown suspect(s) made a fraudulent purchase 
using his American Express credit account. The victim had his credit card in his possession at the time 
of the report, and he had no idea how his information was compromised. 
14. Around 4:40 p.m., an officer conducted an enforcement stop on a red Mazda Protégé for a 
broken tail light, in the area of Second Avenue and Santa Clara Street. A records check revealed the 
passenger, a 41-year-old Hispanic female, and the driver, a 50-year-old Hispanic male, had outstanding 
felony warrants. The suspects were also in possession of methamphetamines and drug paraphernalia. 
They were arrested, and transported to the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 


Opening Night at the Hollywood Bowl

Friday, June 22, 2012 6-11:30pm!

 Come celebrate one of the most talked about highlights of the upcoming summer! Join the 
Arcadia Recreation and Community Services Department as we kick off the 2012 summer 
season with our annual adult excursion to the Hollywood Bowl on Friday, June 22, 2012 
from 6-11:30pm. Enjoy an evening of spectacular fireworks and music with Conductor 
Thomas Wilkins and Inductees Reba McEntire and Chaka Khan! Tickets are $40.00 per 
person and participants meet at the Arcadia County Park parking lot (near the fountain) on 
Santa Anita and Huntington at 6pm. 

Please register by Thursday, May 10th on-line, by fax 626.821.4370 or in person! Go to the 
City of Arcadia’s website: ci.arcadia.ca.us, to download the registration form or stop by the 
office, 375 Campus Drive. For more information please call 626.574.5113!

“Second to None” Documentary

To Be Featured at Arcadia AAUW Meeting

 A documentary celebrating the achievements of American women will be presented 
at the Monday, May 14, meeting of the Arcadia Branch of the American Association 
of University Women (AAUW). The film contains episodes that follow American women 
through the Suffragette Movement up to their modern-day involvement in business and 
entrepreneurship.

Some of the stories featured in the documentary are told by the women themselves who 
overcame odds to do great things. The documentary was produced by Farmers Insurance as 
an outreach to the education community. 

 Arcadia AAUW meets at the Church of the Good Shepherd’s Jordan Hall, 400 W. Duarte 
Rd., Arcadia (SW corner of Duarte Rd. and Holly Ave.). Socializing and refreshments 
begin at 6:30 p.m. with the program to follow at 7:00 p.m. The meeting is free, and ample 
parking is available in the church parking lot.

 Membership in the American Association of University Women is open to women 
and men university or college graduates, as well as to those holding an Associate of Arts 
degree or its equivalent. For more information, please call Tamara Kato at (626) 375-6756 
or Patricia Dietrich at (626) 446-8437.

ROTARY SALUTE TO SENIORS LUNCHEON

he City of Arcadia Recreation & Community Services Department in conjunction with the 
Arcadia Rotary Club is hosting the annual Rotary Salute to Seniors luncheon on Tuesday, 
May 8th from 11:30am-1:30pm at the Arcadia Community Center, 365 Campus Drive.

Jack Lamp has been selected by the Senior Citizen Commission to be the 2012 City of 
Arcadia Senior Citizen of the year and will be recognized at the luncheon by the Mayor and 
the Rotary Club for his extensive volunteer commitment to the community. 

 There are still tickets available for the luncheon and may be purchased at the Community 
Center. The cost is $4 per person. For more information, please call Arcadia Senior Services 
at 626.574.5130.