Mountain Views News, Sierra Madre Edition [Pasadena] Saturday, June 30, 2018

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Mountain View News Saturday, June 30, 2018 


KATIE Tse ...........This and That

WALKING SIERRA MADRE... The Social Side By Deanne Davis

“My grandfather’s clock was too 
large for the shelf
So it stood ninety years on the 
floor
It was taller by half than the old 
man himself
Though it weighed not a 
pennyweight more

It was bought on the morn of the 
day that he was born
And was always his treasure and 
pride
But it stopped, short never to go 
again
When the old man died

Ninety years without slumbering
His life seconds numbering
It stopped, short never to go again
When the old man died.” 

(Erich Doll/Henry Clay Work)

As you can see from the picture, 
this particular clock hasn’t spent 
any time on the floor. It sat on 
our mantle for more years than I 
can remember and was my clock-
loving husband, John’s, blessing 
and bane. This clock was more 
temperamental than a cranky two 
year old and he loved it dearly. It 
would go faster than it needed to, 
or slower, or throw it’s chimes out 
of sync but it was one of our rituals, 
that before we left for church every 
Sunday morning, John would wind 
the clock.

 The clock, by the way is a Seth 
Thomas constructed of wood 
with a Bakelite veneer. It features 
Sonora Chimes, which were made in the early 1900’s 
and most of our life here in this house we regulated 
our sleep by hearing what time it was by the chimes, 
which marked the quarter, the half, the three-quarter 
and, of course, every hour. 

 John’s Uncle Virgil, who lived in Union Oregon 
until his death many years ago was the original owner 
of the clock and when he went to his heavenly reward, 
the clock went to John. I suspect Uncle Virgil bought 
the clock not long after it was born and it has been in 
our family always. 

Last March I took it in to our very own Berj 
DerMovsesian, owner of Baldwin Jewelers right here 
in Kersting Court, as it had not been running for 
quite a while and I wanted to see if Berj could whip 
it back into shape as I wanted to pass it along to our 
oldest daughter, Leah. Berj’s eyes lit up like he’d just 
won the lottery and I was thrilled that he would be 
able to work on it.

 Months later, earlier this week in fact, I went in and 
asked whatever happened to my clock. Berj said he 
had just gotten all the parts, was fine tuning it and 
it would be ready any time this week. So, Tuesday 
morning at 9:00, Leah, her husband, Chuck, and I 
met at Baldwin Jewelers so Berj could explain to all 
of us exactly how to care for the Davis Family Seth 
Thomas Clock. Let me just say that it was complicated 
and I am glad Leah and Chuck will be in charge of 
this precious heirloom. Berj confided that he liked 
the clock so much that he kept it on his workstation 
so he could hear it chime while he worked as it has 
such a beautiful sound. It didn’t surprise me. Waking 
at night and hearing the clock chime was comforting, 
reassuring and gave a feeling of permanence and 
peace. I want Leah to have those same feelings now 
that she had when she was a child and always knew 
what time it was when the clock chimed.

 Wanting to know just a little bit more about our 
clock, I googled it (I love you, Google!) and found 
Seth Thomas was born in Wolcott, Connecticut 
in 1785, went to work for clockmaker Eli Terry 
in 1807, bought out Mr. Terry’s factory together 
with Silas Hoadley in 1810 and in December 1813, 
bought out Heman Clark’s clock-making business 
in Plymouth Hollow. Seth Thomas Clock Company 
began producing clocks in 1813. According to Berj, 
this particular Seth Thomas clock is a gem and, even 
though incompetent hands have invaded it, it is still 
in splendid shape...now that Berj has performed his 
magic on it. Hearing the Sonora Chimes again was 
just plain awesome! Thank you Berj!

 Have you noticed the new sign at Taylor’s Market? 
Very nice! And we’re having streets resurfaced! And 
July 4th is next week! Summer is definitely here. All 
the gardenias are blooming and smell delicious and 
the jacarandas! Oh, dear friends and neighbors, the 
jacarandas are beyond gorgeous this year! Look up!

My book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis 

Kindle books of all sorts and hardcover “Tablespoon 
of Love” are on there, as is “Star of Wonder.”

Star of Wonder the CD is now on TuneCore! Take a 
look!

 Blog: www.authordeanne.com

 Follow me on Twitter, too! https://twitter.com/@
playwrightdd

BODY SNATCHERS


Happy Fourth of July! To 
me, Sierra Madre’s Fourth of 
July parade is the essence of 
summer! It’s Mayberry from 
“The Andy Griffith Show,” a living Norman 
Rockwell Americana painting, and “The Far 
Side” rolled into one. It’s one of those things that 
goes in the “You know you’re a Sierra Madrean 
if...” category along with Mary’s Market, the 
Mount Wilson Trail race, and memories of Bean 
Town even before it expanded to its current 
size (bonus 
points for 
buying things 
from Robert’s 
Market and 
Little Stuga!). 
One other 
experience 
vital for 
any Sierra 
Madrean 
is seeing 
“Invasion 
of the Body 
Snatchers” 
at least once. 
Just the name 
lets you know 
it must be 
great!

 This 1956 
cinematic gem 
stars Kevin McCarthy as protagonist Dr. Miles 
Bennel and Dana Wynter as Becky Driscoll, 
his love interest. It’s your typical sci-fi mystery 
thriller with all the corny effects and acting 
you’d expect from a film of that era. Here’s the 
story in a nutshell. Aliens are invading Earth by 
sending out “pods” containing blank prototype 
male and female bodies. These bodies assume 
your features until they resemble you completely 
at which point they “take over” your body when 
you fall asleep. Great stuff! The “pods” are 
sleeping bag-sized leafy shells that start foaming 
as they mature. (I think they used dish soap.) 
When ripe, the pod bursts open and the body 
inside flops out like a blow-up doll. Classic!

 We first meet Becky as she gets off a train 
in the quaint Santa Mira station to meet Miles. 
There’d be nothing noteworthy about this, 
except that it’s about nine in the morning, and 
Becky is wearing a low - I mean LOW - cut dress 
with what appear to be little wads of tissue or 
cotton balls barely covering her bosom. What? 
You mean you don’t wear this when traveling? 
The next half-hour of the film follows Becky 
meeting various other Santa Mira folks, the men 
making a conscious effort to look her straight in 
the eye.

 Other highlights include a great scene in which 
Dr. Miles, 
Becky, and 
their friends 
Jack and 
Teddy (that’s 
a woman) 
Belicec 
discover a pod 
at the Belicec 
residence. 
After killing 
the sudsy pod-
man with a 
garden pitch 
fork, Jack and 
Miles lay him 
out on Jack’s 
pool table 
while they all 
smoke and 
get a couple 
rounds of gin 
and tonic. Becky is particularly distressed, so 
Miles gives her a couple pills to go with her 
drink. He is a doctor, after all. Wow, the 50’s 
must’ve been something! 

 While “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” is a 
must-see in it’s own right, it’s unique because it 
was filmed in Sierra Madre! (prominent footage 
of Kersting Court, Sierra Madre Blvd., and the 
old building that is now Sierra Fitness) When 
the city started showing movies in the park, the 
first was “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” on the 
Fourth of July. My dad was sorely disappointed 
when this did not become an annual Sierra 
Madre Fourth of July event. But that doesn’t 
mean that you can’t start your very own Body 
Snatchers 7/04 tradition! Then you can brag 
that you’re a truer Sierra Madrean, too!


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1224 Arden Road, Pasadena 
SIERRA MADRE POLICE BLOTTER

During this period, the Sierra Madre Police Department 
responded to approximately 379 day and night time 
calls for service.

Thursday, June 21

Sometime between the hours of 10:00PM on 6/18 and 
10:00AM on 6/19, an unknown suspect(s) removed 
the vehicle registration card and the 2019 registration 
tab from an unlocked vehicle parked in a driveway in 
the 500 block of Sierra Meadow Ln.

Friday, June 22

At about 6:43PM, officers responded to a single car, 
non-injury accident in the 400 block of Theresa lane.

NOTE:

Call to register for your block party visit by the SMPD 
on National Night Out, 8/7/18!

CONTACT: CSO Lou Oronoz @ 626/355-4596

 
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Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com