Annual Summer Party!

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Rub elbows with some of Southern California’s most interesting writers while you dine and drink lavishly in a unique historic setting.

This year’s party is at the historic Zane Grey Estate on “Millionaire’s Row” in Altadena.

The 10,000-square-foot Mediterranean-Mission/Spanish Revival-style mansion was designed by Myron Hunt and Elmer Grey (no relation to Zane). Built in 1907 of reinforced concrete, it is said to be the first fireproof house in Altadena. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

We’ll have docents to show us around the house.

Menu will include appetizers, salads, main dishes, including vegetarian, delicious desserts, and beverages, including wine and beer.

Location
Zane Grey Estate
396 E. Mariposa Ave., Altadena, CA 91001
It’s easy to find and there is plenty of street parking.

Annual Summer Party!

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Rub elbows with some of Southern California’s most interesting writers while you dine and drink lavishly in a unique historic setting.

This year’s party is at the historic Zane Grey Estate on “Millionaire’s Row” in Altadena.

The 10,000-square-foot Mediterranean-Mission/Spanish Revival-style mansion was designed by Myron Hunt and Elmer Grey (no relation to Zane). Built in 1907 of reinforced concrete, it is said to be the first fireproof house in Altadena. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

We’ll have docents to show us around the house.

Menu will include appetizers, salads, main dishes, including vegetarian, delicious desserts, and beverages, including wine and beer.

Location
Zane Grey Estate
396 E. Mariposa Ave., Altadena, CA 91001
It’s easy to find and there is plenty of street parking.

Party
Annual IWOSC Winter Party — IWOSC Holiday Bash at the Biltmore!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

5:45 p.m to 10 p.m.

5:45: No-host cocktails or library tour
7:30: Dinner and program

Kick off the season in style at IWOSC’s annual Holiday Bash at the Biltmore! Follow the tradition of presidents, celebrities, dignitaries – and IWOSC writers – by celebrating history, architectural splendor, and creativity at the beautiful downtown Biltmore Hotel!

Join your fellow scribes and guests on Thursday, December 4, at one of L.A.’s most beautiful locations: the historic, elegant, architecturally awesome Millenium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

We’ll meet for no-host cocktails in the gorgeous Rendezvous Court, or take an escorted tour of the hotel, including the Presidential Suite.
We’ll dine at the Biltmore’s Smeraldi’s Restaurant, on their famous custom pasta bar with all the trimmings, salad, non-alcoholic beverages and dessert. There will also be a no-host bar.

Awards and prizes follow.
We’ll have drawings for some terrific door prizes.

No-host cocktails and library tour begin at 5:45 p.m.
Dinner is at 7:30, followed by program.

Location:
Millenium Biltmore Hotel Los Angeles
506 South Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2607

IWOSC Summer Party!

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Don’t miss the annual IWOSC Summer Party!

It’s your opportunity to rub elbows with some of Southern California’s most interesting writers, while you enjoy a light repast and quenching drinks in a unique historic setting.

This year’s party is being held at the landmark stone residence of John Steven McGroarty, a playwright, Los Angeles Times columnist, author, historian, elected Congressman, and Poet Laureate of the State of California from 1933 until his death in 1944.

Nestled in the Verdugo foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in Tujunga, this impressive stone structure was built in 1923 and is also known as “Rancho Chupa Rosa.” Like many nearby homes constructed in the period, much of the property was constructed with rocks found in the soil or from the nearby Tujunga Wash. The home features a large veranda with a spectacular view of surrounding oaks, the sprawling city below, and the majestic San Gabriel Mountains to the north.

Today, the McGroarty Residence is filled with antiques, McGroarty’s personal library, and mementos of California’s colorful history. It is a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, and has been a community arts center since 1974. It is currently operated by a volunteer Board of Directors, the Friends of McGroarty Arts Center (F.O.M.A.C.), whose mission includes support for both the visual and literary arts.

IWOSC loves to introduce you to great places of local literary history, like the McGroarty Residence, but the Summer Party ALSO introduces next term’s Board of Directors, who will be installed as part of the afternoon’s program. We’ll also be honoring a few of our own.

Please do join us at the festivities.

The menu will include delicious light summertime fare, wine, soft drinks and yummy desserts.

Location

McGroarty Arts Center
7570 McGroarty Terrace
Tujunga, California 91042
Map

IWOSC Summer Party!

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Don’t miss the annual IWOSC Summer Party!

It’s your opportunity to rub elbows with some of Southern California’s most interesting writers, while you enjoy a light repast and quenching drinks in a unique historic setting.

This year’s party is being held at the landmark stone residence of John Steven McGroarty, a playwright, Los Angeles Times columnist, author, historian, elected Congressman, and Poet Laureate of the State of California from 1933 until his death in 1944.

Nestled in the Verdugo foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in Tujunga, this impressive stone structure was built in 1923 and is also known as “Rancho Chupa Rosa.” Like many nearby homes constructed in the period, much of the property was constructed with rocks found in the soil or from the nearby Tujunga Wash. The home features a large veranda with a spectacular view of surrounding oaks, the sprawling city below, and the majestic San Gabriel Mountains to the north.

Today, the McGroarty Residence is filled with antiques, McGroarty’s personal library, and mementos of California’s colorful history. It is a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, and has been a community arts center since 1974. It is currently operated by a volunteer Board of Directors, the Friends of McGroarty Arts Center (F.O.M.A.C.), whose mission includes support for both the visual and literary arts.

IWOSC loves to introduce you to great places of local literary history, like the McGroarty Residence, but the Summer Party ALSO introduces next term’s Board of Directors, who will be installed as part of the afternoon’s program. We’ll also be honoring a few of our own.

Please do join us at the festivities.

The menu will include delicious light summertime fare, wine, soft drinks and yummy desserts.

Location

McGroarty Arts Center
7570 McGroarty Terrace
Tujunga, California 91042
Map

IWOSC Annual Winter Party

Monday, December 5, 2006

Sugar Plum Fairies are already dancing in our heads! On Monday, December 5, we kicked off the holiday season by returning to the beautiful and historic Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles for IWOSC’s annual winter party. Drinking and dining at Smeraldi’s, the Biltmore’s main-floor restaurant just off the old lobby, with a lavish buffet.

For guests who plan to arrive early, we also arranged two cool, free, pre-party tours.

At 5:30 p.m. one group toured the Los Angeles Central Library. This docent-led tour included the art and architecture of both the historic 1926 Goodhue Building and the new Bradley Wing with its seven-story atrium.

Our second pre-party docent-led tour was of the historic Biltmore Hotel itself. Erected in 1923, this venerable hotel was known as “the Host of the Coast,” and indeed, during the 1930s the Biltmore hosted a half-dozen Academy Awards banquets, among many lavish events. The hotel is famed for its splendid Spanish-Italian Renaissance architecture, and its interior murals created by Italian-born artist Giovanni Battista Smeraldi, who, as a youthful apprentice, worked on several palaces at the Vatican.

IWOSC Annual Summer Party

Sunday, August 6, 2006

Spend a leisurely summer afternoon mingling with fellow writers, feasting on Mediterranean food, sipping wine and sangria, and taking in a panoramic view of the San Gabriel Valley and beyond.

We’ll be at the Depression-era William O. Davies Memorial community building at Farnsworth Park. The historic stone building reveals the influence of the naturalistic trend of the California Arts and Crafts period and the handmade, careful construction of local artisans. If it’s a clear day, we’ll be able to see the downtown Los Angeles skyline and the Pacific Ocean. The building is both cool and cooled. It’s historic, beautiful, easy to locate, and the parking is free.

Outgoing president Flo Selfman will present the new 2006-07 board and introduce the “Spirit of Sharon” Award, named in honor of Sharon Gilbert.

Menu: Chicken and beef kebabs, Greek salad, fresh fruit, hummus, tabbouleh, fresh grilled vegetables, rice pilaf, baklava and pastries, beer and wine, sangria and soft drinks.

Location

Farnsworth Park
568 East Mount Curve Avenue
Altadena, CA