Brothers in Alms
Last week, two campaign committees based in Montebello filed for bankruptcy: Calderon for (State) Senate ’98 and Calderon for Attorney General.
Nothing unusual there: When a candidate loses a race and has trouble raising funds to pay off his or her debts, bankruptcy is often the only option. But a look at the state legislative roster shows a Tom Calderon of Montebello as a state assemblyman from the 58th District. So was this an instance of a sitting legislator not being able to balance his books?
Turns out that’s not the case. The bankruptcy filing was actually made by Charles Calderon, a former state senator who lost his reelection bid to fellow Democrat Marta Escutia. And yes, Charles Calderon is related to Tom Calderon: the two are brothers.
“People tend to confuse the two,” said Valerie Martinez, press aide to current Assemblyman Tom Calderon. “But let me make it clear: Tom didn’t have anything to do with the bankruptcy.”
Delighting in Depression
The start of a decade of economic misery seems an odd thing to celebrate, but two L.A. non-profit organizations are hosting a party on Friday, Oct. 29 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the stock market crash of 1929.
The Lively Arts History Association and the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles are sponsoring “The Crash Bash” from 7 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. at the Ebell Club on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Lucerne Boulevard. In highlighting the end of the Jazz Age and the beginning of the Great Depression, the two organizations will have a 10-piece band and a dancing class. Tickets go for $30.
“We’re looking back at the evocation of the Roaring ’20s,” said Lively Arts Chairman Walter Nelson. “We’re really not going to dwell much on the Depression. Maybe at the end we’ll have a sing-along of ‘Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?’ ”
There will be no jumping off the ledges at the conclusion, however, Nelson said.
Armed and Hungry?
A recent Saturday morning at the new Krispy Kreme franchise in Van Nuys saw hour-long waits at both the walk-up and drive-through windows.
But the relentlessly convivial crowd didn’t mind the wait until about 8 a.m., when an armed and burly security guard with a large black bag barreled to the front of the line and behind the counter. The restless crowd got jumpy and whispered theories: Was this an overzealous doughnut fiend who found a clever way to get up front?
Turns out the new location has broken all Krispy Kreme sales records and has hired regular visits from an armored services company to make its cash deposits.
Roger Glickman, president of Great Circle Family Foods, owner of the Krispy Kreme area franchise, says both the La Habra and Van Nuys locations are using armored trucks and armed security to handle cash sales.
“We do have armed security officers making daily pickups, always at different times, as a mechanism for keeping our staff out of harm’s way.”
The security guard left the store with a bag full of cash, but no doughnuts.
