LOS ANGELES — Upstairs, dinosaurs towered above USS Angeles members.
Downstairs, we were stalked by lions.
Elsewhere, we encountered bison, bears and more. We had beamed down to a land of adventures — also known as the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History. The USS Angeles went there on Jan. 25 to see the special exhibit “Fierce! The Story of Cats,” which told the story of felines varying domestic cats to lions, tigers and the species that runs at warp speed: cheetahs.
Jeremy Kranz and I, along with two of Jeremy’s friends, saw all of those, along with the museum’s brilliant and diverse collections of gems. Mother Nature is an artist.
We also saw exhibits such as “Reframing Dioramas: The Art of Preserving Wilderness,” which features more than 75 habitats varying from arctic tundra to tropical rainforest. For the exhibit, the museum restored and reopened a diorama hall that was closed for decades.
Lisa Sobien wasn’t able to join us for the Jan. 25 mission, but she and I went there on Feb. 14 as our Valentine’s Day date on the cat exhibit’s last weekend. We noticed many other couples did likewise. This time around, I caught details on the exhibit that I missed during the Jan. 25 mission.
The “Fierce!” exhibit taught me about the similarities and differences between domestic cats and their wild cousins. The exhibit also explored the history of wild and domestic cats. Felines are believed to have first been domesticated in the Middle East about 10,000 years ago.
The exhibit noted felines’ taste buds aren’t engineered to detect sweetness, although Lisa and I aren’t certain about that because her family’s cats loved ice cream!
In addition to discussing taste buds and hunting techniques, the exhibit had a device that allowed us to peer into it and see something with a cat’s vision.
Lisa and I enjoyed the exhibit, as well as going upstairs to take photos of each other being terrorized by the giant skeletal reconstructions of dinosaurs.
The museum is near the California Science Center at Exposition Park. During the Jan. 25 mission, I arrived early to explore the exhibits there and go on the shuttle simulator ride.
Back on Earth, I saw that the exterior of the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center was finished. The Endeavour space shuttle previously was hoisted upright in its new launchpad configuration, and the center was built around it.
A docent at the museum told me that the Apollo, Gemini and Mercury capsules had been moved from their previous location in the spacious hallway on the second floor in anticipation of the facility’s completion.
Once an opening date is announced, we’ll plan a USS Angeles away mission.
Lisa Sobien, one of the associate chiefs of communications of the USS Angeles, encounters a dinosaur and other creatures at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History. (Photos by Dave Mason / USS Angeles / Angels Flight)
A family of lions graces part of the “Fierce!” exhibit.
From left, Jeremy Kranz, the USS Angeles first officer, and his friends gather outside the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History before seeing an exhibit on cats.
LOS ANGELES — Janice Willcocks laughed so hard that she had tears.
I knew how she felt. The USS Angeles founder and I were watching the “Star Trek” version of Mozart’s “Abduction from the Seraglio.” It was the funniest opera I have ever seen.
Janice and I saw it Feb. 8 during a USS Angeles away mission to Occidental College in Los Angeles, which served as the launching pad for this interstellar voyage. It’s not that unusual for an opera. They’re routinely re-themed to take place in different times and places. I once saw a video of “La Boheme,” which took place in space.
The Pacific Opera Project’s production at Occidental College was re-themed for the original “Star Trek” series and presented mostly in English, even though Mozart’s original opera is in German.
Before the show began, a recording of “Star Trek” music was played outside. Additionally, once we sat down, tribbles would often move from one side of the stage to the other, cooing as they moved.
As the music began, we saw the orchestra in red shirts.
On stage, the baritone vocalist was a Klingon, played by Andrew Potter. He was wonderful and had a strong presence. Instead of the Spanish nobleman Belmonte, as in the original opera, we have Captain James T. Belmonte, played by Brian Cheney. The transformation was similar for the other characters.
Here is how the scene was initially set, according to the program: “The feared Klingon leader, Chancellor Selim, had captured three members of the Starfleet crew …” With this show, we got new experiences with Kirk, Spock and Uhura. This production even added a scene where the captain fights the Gorn.
In one scene, the chancellor needs an engineer to fix his ship, so Belmonte disguises himself as an engineer and puts on a heavy Scottish accent.
Not only were the in-jokes and references well executed, but the show is played in a tongue-in-cheek tone.
These are professional performers, and they didn’t skimp on quality even though they knew this was a comic opera. Even with all the humor, the singing was top-notch.
Several of the funniest moments came when Cheney as Capt. Belmonte broke the fourth wall, looked at the audience and made us laugh.
Everyone left happy. I’ll never be able to watch any other version of this opera without laughing, as it will remind me of this performance. I strongly recommend you view the original or the recent version of this opera.
You can do that by searching YouTube for “Pacific Opera Project Abduction From the Seraglio.” By the way, this would make a great watch party.
Los Angeles has more than one opera company. Los Angeles Opera performs downtown at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. But even though the company takes liberties with its operas, it’s not as bold as the Pacific Opera Project.
Capt. Jeremy Kranz is first officer of the USS Angeles.The Region 4 website welcomes stories about activities from all of the region‘‘s chapters. Please email stories and photos, which are at least 1,200 pixels wide, to Dave Mason, the region’s chief of communications, at davemason1701@gmail.com.
The cast is on stage for its curtain calls after the “Star Trek” version of Mozart’s “Abduction from the Seraglio.” USS Angeles members saw the opera Feb. 8 at Occidental College in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jeremy Kranz / Region 4 / USS Angeles)
Jeremy Kranz and Janice Willcocks go to Occidental College to see a “Star Trek” version of Mozart’s “Abduction from the Seraglio.” (Photo courtesy Jeremy Kranz)
Audience members stand in front of the stage during intermission for a “Star Trek” costume contest. A woman who came as Guinan (not pictured) won. (Photo by Jeremy Kranz / Region 4 / USS Angeles).
PASADENA — Amanda Payatt stepped on a scaffold high above the ground to reach every “Star Trek” fan’s dream.
A nacelle of the original USS Enterprise.
She was among the USS Angeles members who went to Pasadena on Dec. 30 to work on Paramount Skydance/CBS’ “Star Trek” float in the Rose Parade, which took place on New Year’s Day in the same city. Passengers on the float were “Star Trek” actors George Takei (Sulu on the original series), Rebecca Romijn (Number One/Una Chin-Riiley on “Strange New Worlds”), Tig Notaro (Jett Reno on “Discovery” and “Starfleet Academy”) and Karim Diané (Klingon cadet Jay-Den Kraag (on “Starfleet Academy”).
Fifteen USS Angeles members and guests participated in the work, doing tasks such as cutting and gluing leaves for the captain’s chair on the USS Angeles bridge. Jon Lane and Lisa Sobien also worked directly on the float’s bridge. Lisa glued seeds to cover Mr. Sulu’s helm! As previously mentioned, Amanda worked near the nacelle.
Others helping were members Joe, Cassie and Lili Queen; Ed Millner; Cheryl Templeton; Kristine and Dennis Cherry; Jon’s son Jayden Lane; and I, along with Amanda’s friends. Joe organized the USS Angeles away mission and served as our liaison with Paramount Skydance/CBS. Thank you, Joe!
Paramount Skydance/CBS gave us the royal treatment, setting up a “green room” in the white tent near the Rosemont Pavilion, across from the Rose Bowl. We enjoyed pastries and sodas in the tent and were treated to a surprise: the sudden appearance of Karim Diané, a cast member of “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy,” which will start streaming Jan. 15 on Paramount+. Cassie, our Instagram coordinator, later did a video interview with him in front of the float, and you can find that at the Angeles Instagram page.
Inside the pavilion, we walked around the enormous “Star Trek” float, but were amazed by other floats, which featured everything from a re-creation of a bowling alley to a giant cruise ship. The size was impressive, but so was the attention to detail, right down to the details on the Enterprise bridge. More photos by Angeles members will appear in the Angels Flight, the USS Angeles newsletter, which will feature additional stories. The USS Angeles is a longtime chapter in Region 4 of STARFLEET.
It was a fun morning as we helped to prepare the float, which, besides the Enterprise and the bridge, included transporters, a re-creation of filming site Vasquez Rocks and planets. It was a great way to start the celebration of the 60th anniversary of “Star Trek,” and we enjoyed seeing the float in the parade on New Year’s Day.
Fans work on the USS Enterprise, part of a “Star Trek” float for the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day in Pasadena. (Photos by Dave Mason / USS Angeles)
The USS Enterprise comes to life on the “Star Trek” float in time for the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day.
USS Angeles member Amanda Payatt stands at the top of the giant “Star Trek” float, where she worked near a nacelle of the USS Enterprise.
USS Angeles members Lisa Sobien and Jon Lane, sitting in the captain’s chair, work on the bridge of the USS Enterprise. It’s part of the “Star Trek” float in the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day.
Karim Diané , a member of the “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy” cast, visits the food and refreshments tent for volunteers working on the “Star Trek” float in the Rose Parade.
Volunteers work on the planets on the “Star Trek” float in the Rose Parade.
Joe Queen works on the leaves that will grace the captain’s chair on the “Star Trek” float. Joe is the USS Angeles member who organized the mission to decorate the Rose Parade float.
Cassie Queen, left, and Lili Queen work on putting glue on leaves that will grace the captain’s chair on the “Star Trek” float.
David Nottage, who has been commander-in-chief of STARFLEET, is returning to his former position of Region 4 coordinator.
During the recent election, David received more votes than Region 4 Coordinator Ron Coleman, whose achievements included rebooting the region’s website and launching the first Region 4 summit in more than a decade.
David, who will continue his role as the long-time commanding officer of the USS Golden Gate in San Francisco, will start his new term as Region 4 coordinator on Jan. 1.
And Ron has been appointed STARFLEET chief of operations and will move into that position on Jan. 1. He also will continue to be commanding officer of the USS Wessex, an Oceanside-based STARFLEET chapter with members around the world.
The regional coordinator is elected by the commanding officers of each Region 4 chapter. The region consists of STARFLEET chapters in California, Arizona and Nevada. The region includes Hawaii, but there are no chapters there.
In his concession mail, Ron thanked all the chapters who participated in the election and the commanding officers who voted for him.
“I appreciate the trust you placed in me and the cooperation we’ve shared over the past year,” Ron told Region 4 commanding officers.
He went on to congratulate David.
“I want to acknowledge the results and offer my sincere congratulations to Fleet Admiral Dave Nottage on his selection as the next regional coordinator,” Ron said. “I respect the decision of the region and wish him success as he steps into the role, and I stand ready to support a smooth and effective transition.”
“It has been an honor to serve Region 4. Together, we have made the region better, and I look forward to the direction FADM Nottage will take us,” Ron said. “Thank you again for your support and leadership.”
David Nottage, who was commander-in-chief of STARFLEET, has been elected to his former position as Region 4 coordinator. (Photo courtesy David Nottage)
Under Ron Coleman’s term as the Region 4 coordinator, the region improved its website and held its first summit in more than a decade. (Photo courtesy Ron Coleman)
STARFLEET’s Region 4 will present special “Star Trek” speakers during its first summit in more than a decade.
The summit will be open to everyone attending Loscon on Nov. 28 at the Hilton Los Angeles Airport, 5711 Century Blvd., Los Angeles.
Loscon is providing a meeting room at no charge to Region 4, which will hold its summit starting at 11:30 a.m. in the room called “La Jolla B.”
The summit will continue throughout the afternoon.
To attend the summit, you must buy a Loscon membership, which costs $75 for the weekend for adults and older youths if tickets are purchased by Nov. 20. After that, the rate will be $85.
The weekend rate for children ages 3 to 11 is $25. You can pay atloscon.org, the website operated by USS Angeles member Kristine Cherry, or at the door. There is no discounted daily rate.
Once you buy a Loscon membership, there is no additional charge to attend the Region 4 summit.
The summit will consist of four, 75-minute panels, which allows for 15 minutes of Q&A after each hour-long talk. Panelists include Larry Nemecek, a journalist who has covered “Star Trek,” and award-winning composer David Raiklen.
The schedule consists of:
– 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. “Star Trek Crafts” with Tracy Newby (moderator) and Stacy Meyn. Tracy and Stacy are experienced Loscon speakers with a rich knowledge of “Star Trek.”
– 1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. “Star Trek Costuming” with Tracy Newby (moderator), Stacy Meyn, Larry Nemecek, Ron Coleman and Dave Mason.
– 2:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. “What is STARFLEET?” with Region 4 Coordinator Ron Coleman (moderator), Larry Nemecek and Dave Mason . Ron, a longtime “Star Trek” fan and leader in STARFLEET, and others will talk about Region 4 of STARFLEET: The International Fan Association and its various chapters. We also may use this time to conduct Region 4 business and recognize STARFLEET achievements.
We encourage people who haven’t heard of STARFLEET to come to this session and learn all about us!
– 4 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. “Star Trek: Past, Present and Future” with Dave Mason (moderator), Larry Nemecek, Ron Coleman and David Raiklen.
We’ll look at “Star Trek” from its beginning in 1966 to “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy” and possibilities for other shows. “Legacy,” anyone?
Larry, a bestselling author who wrote “Star Trek: The Next Generation Cmopanion” and hosts “The Trek Files” podcast and “Trekland Tuesdays LIVE,” was one of the moderators interviewing actors on stage at Creation Entertainment’s “Star Trek” convention in August in Las Vegas.
David Raiklen is an award-winning composer whose music has been performed at the Hollywood Bowl at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. He is a producer and composer for the sci-fi series “Space Command” and has spoken regularly on the music of “Star Trek” on Loscon panels and at USS Angeles meetings.
In addition to the Region 4 Summit, USS Angeles members will be involved with other aspects of Loscon. For example, Dennis and Kristine Cherry will again run the convention’s blood drive.
As usual, Loscon will feature a variety of panels focusing on science fiction and science, with an emphasis on authors and experts.
The convention’s theme is “Tell me a story.” Guests of honor are writer Ursula Vernon/T Kingfisher, artist Benton Jew, musician Lynn Gold and fan Tadao Tomomatsu, who delivers a video message at loscon.org.
STARFLEET Region 4 Coordinator Ron Coleman will lead the “What is STARFLEET?” panel at the Region 4 Summit. (Photo courtesy Ron Coleman)
Larry Nemecek will sit on several Region 4 Summit panels, including “Star Trek: Past, Present and Future.” (Photo courtesy Larry Nemecek)
Composer David Raiklen will be part of the “Starfleet: Past, Present and Future” panel at the Region 4 Summit. (Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
Dave Mason will lead the “Star Trek: Past, Present and Future” panel at the Region 4 Summit. (Photo by Lisa Sobien/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
Kristine and Dennis Cherry are chairs of the annual blood drive at Loscon. They’re seen here attending Comic Con Revolution in Ontario. (Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
VENTURA — The crew of the USS Wessex joined forces once again with the Community Outreach Center of Ventura and Island Living Apartments to help local students get ready to boldly go into the new school year!
With the help of our dedicated members and friends, we raised $300 — an increase from last year’s $200. These funds helped us purchase 18 new backpacks for kids from low-income families in Ventura, north of Los Angeles.
On July 14, our Commanding Officer, RADM Ronald Coleman, proudly presented the backpacks to Sherry French, Island Living manager. These backpacks are part of the Community Outreach Center of Ventura annual Back to School Drive, which aims to support over 500 kids by ensuring they start the year equipped and confident. The big giveaway event is scheduled for Aug. 2.
By partnering with the Community Outreach Center of Ventura and Island Living Arts, we’re not only helping. We’re investing in hope, creativity and brighter futures for our community’s youth.
A heartfelt thank you goes to every crew member and supporter who made this mission possible.
Together, we can help these kids boldly go into a successful school year!
From left are Island View Apartments Manager Sherry French, USS Wessex Commanding Officer Ronald Coleman and another person dropping off backpacks. The USS Wessex recently helped efforts to provide backpacks for low-income students in Ventura, north of Los Angeles. (Photo courtesy USS Wessex)
Editor’s note: This is original content written for the Region 4 website. This same story appears on the USS Angeles’ website, ussangeles.org, but with different photos.
By Commodore Dave Mason
UNIVERSAL CITY, California — Red alert!
Lisa Sobien, Christopher Mulrooney and I had just boarded the Enterprise-D when we discovered the ship was in trouble. You could see the panic in the face of the doctor in Sick Bay.
We went from there to the Enterprise-D bridge: the actual set that was used for filming in “Star Trek: Picard” during its third and final decision. We got there just in time. The ship was still in danger!
Fortunately, we not only surived, but thrived as we explored Enterprise-D areas such as Engineering and went “Back to the Future” during Universal Studios’ Fan Fest Nights.
The USS Angeles mission on April 26 at the Los Angeles area theme park began with Chris and I meeting at Quark’s Bar and Grill on Universal’s upper lot, where Chris enjoyed some of the “Star Trek”-themed food offered by Universal Studios. Dishes vary from Vulcan Fritters to Klingon Targ Legs and the Tribble Truffle Trio, a treat featuring chocolate and butterscotch.
From there, we went on the studio tram, which took us into the back lot and the Courthouse Square where “Back to the Future” was filmed. That’s where we saw actors re-enact a scene from the movie in which George McFly defends Lorraine from the evil Biff. We also were entertained by Marvin Berry and the Starlighters playing at the Enchantment Under the Sea prom in front of Hill Valley High School. Later in the same block as the school, gas station attendants sang with a smile around a 1950s car. Talk about a full service station!
Lisa later joined us at the square, where we ran into Doc Brown and other characters from the 1950s, played by Universal Studios cast members. We remembered the tram guide’s advice to avoid mentioning anything from 2025 and use terms like “nifty.” In addition, many fans came dressed in the orange vest jacket that Michael J. Fox wore as he played Marty McFly, the outfit that caused a malt shop owner to think Marty was in the Navy.
Back on the upper lot, we saw the special activities at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, where we posed for photos with a small but clever fantastic beast and its handler. We also saw special projections on the Hogswarts castle.
More photos from the Universal Studios event will appear soon at ussangeles.org.
A Starfleet physician reacts to the sound of red alert in the sickbay on the Enterprise-D at Universal Studios Hollywood. USS Angeles members beamed aboard the ship during Fan Fest Nights on April 26. (Photos by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
Starfleet officers stand ready for action the Enterprise-D bridge set from “Star Trek: Picard,” which is on display at Universal Studios Hollywood for Fan Fest Nights. USS Angeles members explored the set April 26.
Christopher Mulrooney of the USS Angeles takes command of the Enterprise-D bridge at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Biff gets angry with one of his classmates after losing a fight to George McFly, who defended his future wife Lorraine in a re-enactment from “Back to the Future.” The re-enactment took place in the Courthouse Square, the Universal Studios Hollywood area where the first two “Back to the Future” movies were filmed.
USS Angeles member Lisa Sobien sits in the Enterprise-D captain’s chair at Universal Studios Hollywood.
“Back to the Future” fans visit the Courthouse Square, where the “Back to the Future” I and II were filmed, at Universal Studios Holllywood. USS Angeles members beamed down there April 26 for Fan Fest Nights.
Editor’s note: This story originally appeared in the March edition of Angels Flight, the USS Angeles’ newsletter. The Region 4 website welcomes articles and photos from all chapters. You can submit them to Chief of Communications Dave Mason at davemason1701@gmail.com.
By Commodore Dave Mason
LOS ANGELES — Jeremy Kranz and I found the Oscars.
We discovered the statues that the winners held. They were behind glass in a small gallery at the mammoth Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, a four-story building across the street from a site of previous USS Angeles away missions: the Petersen Automotive Museum on Los Angeles’ Miracle Mile.
It was the USS Angeles’ first visit to the Academy Museum, which opened in 2021 in the former May Co. building on Wilshire Boulevard. Jeremy and I found countless treasures from Hollywood’s past and present at the museum, which was featured in a brief segment on the March 2 Oscars telecast on ABC.
During our Feb. 1 mission, Jeremy and I discovered treasures such as Sam’s golden yellow piano with a flowery design from the 1942 black-and-white film “Casablanca.” This little upright piano, by the way, has just 58 keys. Pianos usually have 88.
Dooley Wilson, the actor and singer who portrayed Sam, had great musical skills, but he was a drummer, not a pianist. So he only pretended to play, and the actual piano heard in the song “As Time Goes By” was played off-camera by either Elliot Carpenter or Jean Plummer and added to the soundtrack. But it is Wilson singing.
By the way, Rick (Humphrey Bogart) never said, “Play it again, Sam.”
He said, “Play it!”
Earlier in the film, Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) asks Sam, “Play it once, Sam. For old times’ sake.”
Elsewhere at the museum, Jeremy and I journeyed into the future. We saw the models from sci-fi movies such as the spaceships from “Interstellar” (2014). I was excited to see the model that was used as a spherical shuttle on the moon in “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968). This “miniature” is large enough that one person can’t lift it without help.
The “2001” model is a rare treasure, given that director Stanley Kubrick ordered the destruction of all the models, props and blueprints to prevent their re-use in other directors’ films.
And Jeremy and I enjoyed sitting down and watching clips from different sci-fi movies, everything from “The Day the Earth Stood Still” to the “Star Trek” and “Star Wars” films, play around us on a 180-degree screen.
The museum’s futuristic exhibits extended to its “Cyberpunk: Envisioning Possible Futures Through Cinema” exhibit, which focused on movies such as two classics from 1982, “Blade Runner” and “Tron.” A section on the “Terminator” movies featured sketches used in planning the look of Arnold Schwarzenegger as an android with some of his skin exposed.
The exhibit also explored later films such as “Alita: Battle Angel” (2019). The title character of “Alita” was played by Rosa Salazar, who portrayed Capt. Lynne Lucero in the Tribble-inspired “Star Trek” short “The Trouble with Edward,” also from 2019.
Other exhibits explored the histories of animation, Los Angeles filmmaking, the use of color and, of course, the Oscars.
One large room was dedicated to a timeline for the Academy Awards, from the ceremony’s beginning on May 16, 1929 at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood to its current home across Hollywood Boulevard and just down the block at the Dolby Theater.
Visitors in the Oscars timeline room walked around a giant table as they followed the history. Behind visitors was one long wall covered by videos of acceptance speeches. The videos were magically turned on, one grateful speech at a time.
Nearby exhibits were devoted to movies such as “Boyz N The Hood” (1991), which starred Cuba Gooding Jr., Ice Cube, Morris Chestnut (now starring as the title character of CBS’ “Watson”) and Laurence Fishburne.
Next to that area was an exhibit devoted entirely to Lourdes Portillo, a filmmaker known for her poignant documentaries about Latin America and social justice. The exhibit, which includes a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) altar, tells the story of the Chihuahua, Mexico native, who grew up in Los Angeles and went on to create films such as “Las Madres: The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo” (1985), “La Ofrenda: The Days of the Dead” (1988) and “Señorita Extraviada/Missing Young Woman” (2001).
Elsewhere, Jeremy and I entered the animation exhibit, which takes up an entire floor. The exhibit begins with a large room where families watch movies varying from the latest Disney movies to the 1914 animated black-and-white short “Gertie the Dinosaur.”
Another room in the exhibit shows models, such as one created for the robotic title character of Disney/Pixar’s “WALL-E” (2008). Animators often use physical models as a guide to creating drawings or, as in the case of “WALL-E,” computer-generated images.
One area was devoted to “Skeleton Dance,” one of Disney’s Silly Symphonies, which were cartoon shorts without dialogue and set entirely to music. The exhibit featured a screening of “Skeleton Dance” and the sheet music. Near it was the actual xylophone, consisting of windpipes, that was used for the music that accompanied an animated skeleton playing the bones of another skeleton’s back as if they were a xylophone.
Jeremy and I also learned about movie history in “Hollywoodland: Jewish Founders and the Making of a Movie Capital,” about the Los Angeles studios, including Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, Columbia, Universal, MGM and Paramount. The exhibit shows how the major studios started and takes an honest look at the antisemitism that the industry’s founders faced.
Jeremy and I also explored “Color In Motion: Chromatic Explorations of Cinema.” The exhibit covered the history of color, beginning with its earliest use when colors were hand-painted directly onto film.
The exhibit featured colorful costumes such as the green dress that Kim Novak wore in the 1958 Alfred Hitchcock classic “Vertigo” and classic technology such as early Technicolor cameras.
In one of the museum’s interactive segments, Jeremy and I waved our hands to control a projection of colors in motions. There was some applause from spectators as we and others made the colors move dramatically.
As we went through the museum, we stumbled upon a beautiful prop from one of my favorite comedies, “The Great Race” (1965). It was the crown designated for Crown Prince Fredrick Hopenick’s coronation. Jack Lemmon played both the prince and the villain who impersonated him, the wicked Professor Fate.
It was among the countless treasures in a museum that made me feel like singing the song, “Hooray for Hollywood.”
Jeremy Kranz stands in front of a scene of Marilyn Monroe in the 1956 blockbuster “Gentleman Prefer Blondes” on Feb. 1, 2025, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The image promoted the Los Angeles museum’s exhibit on the use of color in movies.(Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
A model from”2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968) stands Feb. 1, 2025, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. This miniature was filmed as one of the shuttle that lands on the moon.(Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
Brilliant costumes from a movie made in India grace the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ exhibit on the use of color in movies.(Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
Dave Mason visits the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Feb. 1, 2025. (Photo by Jeremy Kranz/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures stands in the renovated May Co. building at Fairfax Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. (Photo by Dave Mason/USS Angeles/Angels Flight)
