The
recent movie about Brian Wilson's life, "Love and Mercy, " has
garnered renewed interest in the Beach Boys especially with the 50th anniversary of
the legendary album "Pet Sounds" coming up next year. Every form of
media related to Brian Wilson, including the DVD on the Wrecking Crew (the name
given the session musicians who performed for him and just about everybody else
in the 60's) is now difficult to find, severely backlogged, or at least
currently very popular.
If
you plan to travel to the Los Angeles Area, try to visit the Beach
Boys Monument in
Hawthorne, a suburb of LA by LAX. It is the exact spot where the Wilson house
once stood, and is now California Historical Landmark 1041 managed by Hawthorne
Parks and Recreation. It was dedicated in May 2005 with Brian Wilson and other
family members and friends in attendance.
The
monument is on the corner of 119th street and Kornblum, the street they drove
to at the end of "Lover and Mercy." This author is a former neighbor
of the Wilson's, and can attest to the fact that much of the old neighborhood
has been torn down due to building of the 105 freeway. However, EL Camiino
College is still in tact, and that is where Brian Wilson sat in the parking lot
before class and composed many of his chestnuts. So there is not much more to
see for die hard Beach Boys fans, but the monument is worth the drive for fans
in the area,
 |
| Jann Segal |
119th
street in Hawthorne is easiest to reach from Crenshaw Blvd. The Crenshaw Blvd
exit of the 105 freeway is the easiest way to get there.
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