Who Wrote the Book of Love?

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In the popular “Sex and the City” movie that hit the big screen last year, Sarah Jessica Parker’s character is glued to the book “Love Letters of Great Men.”

The book piqued the interest of downtown L.A. attorney and self-described romantic John Kirkland, so he ran out to snag a copy. Only to learn it didn’t exist.

“I looked for some examples of love letters of great of men, or the kind that were referred to in the movie,” said Kirkland, a corporate and securities partner at Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps LLP. “And the more I looked into it, the more interested I became.”

Kirkland, 45, ended up compiling love letters from the likes of Henry the Eighth, Napoleon and Leo Tolstoy, and published his own version of “Love Letters of Great Men.”

He said about 80,000 copies have been purchased, and the book’s been translated into Korean, Lithuanian and Turkish.

So, does Kirkland plan another book to accompany the upcoming sequel to “Sex and the City”?

“I plan to have a second book come out by the end of the year,” Kirkland said “There was so much I wanted to get in it, including a phenomenal letter from Ronald Reagan to Nancy that he wrote on Air Force One.”

Stair Master

Hayley Amberg says trotting up stairs is not so unusual for her. Employees of her company, Air-Tec, climb stairs every day to install heaters and air conditioners.

Still, she said, climbing the 1,500 steps of the U.S. Bank Tower in downtown Los Angeles a few weeks ago was much more than she’s used to.

“It was really hard,” said Amberg, chief of operations at the Carson company owned by her father, Clayton Dunn.

The trek by Amberg and 50 of her employees and customers was part of what’s called Stair Climb to the Top at the skyscraper, which is 75 floors and the tallest building west of the Mississippi River.

The event, which attracted 2,000 participants, raised about $300,000 for the Stuart M. Ketchum Downtown YMCA, of which $21,000 came from Air-Tec.

Amberg, 41, said she prepared for the workout by running up and down stairs at the beach.

“It’s long, it’s difficult and there’s no way out,” she said of the tower climb, which took her 20 minutes. “I kept thinking that the faster I do it, the quicker it’s over.”

Best Revenge

Marilyn Barrett likes to make bold statements, whether with her career or with her fashion.

Barrett, 57, left her job as an attorney with Jeffer Mangels this summer as she was sensing it was more economically safe to do so. But starting her own West L.A. practice, Barrett: A Law Corporation, wasn’t the only motivation.

She wanted to spend more time on her side project: an eco-friendly T-shirt company she founded called Revenge Is.

Revenge Is sells black and gray T-shirts made from recycled plastic bottles and organic cotton. They are emblazoned with socially conscious messages, such as “Revenge Is Energy Independence.” They’ve even been featured on the “Today” show.

But is she bold enough to incorporate her fashion line with her professional attire?

“I wouldn’t wear one of the T-shirts to court as I wouldn’t feel right representing a client wearing some political stance,” Barrett said. “I’ll have to stick to the boring suits for now.”

Staff reporters Alexa Hyland, David Haldane and Francisco Vara-Orta contributed to this column. Page 3 is compiled by Editor Charles Crumpley. He can be reached at [email protected].

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