Usually all Balwinder Samra sees inside the electric truck manufacturing facility he oversees as chief executive of Balqon Corp. are truck parts and employees.
But in April, the Harbor City factory served as the stage for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s State of the City address, with 400 guests coming from all over the region to hear how companies like Balqon are “greening” the economy.
While Samra said he and employees were flattered by Villaraigosa’s presence, one surprise guest garnered extra attention: Los Angeles Lakers point guard Derek Fisher.
“All of a sudden I had my cousins calling me on my cell phone asking if I had seen Derek Fisher in the audience as they were watching the speech on TV,” Samra said. “It was a total surprise. Who knew a Laker would one day end up in our factory for something?”
Although Samra and other Balqon employees were able to get Fisher to sign autographs and even one of their electric trucks, Samra said he forgot to ask why Fisher was there in the first place.
“I don’t think it matters,” Samra said. “All that matters is that we met him. And that they win the championship, too.”
Small Buzz
Attorney Tim Lappen who often finds himself behind the wheel of exotic and expensive vehicles now has another unusual ride crowding his garage.
The chairman of the family office group at the L.A. law firm of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP in Century City recently took delivery of an electric Mini Cooper one of the very first to hit the streets.
The car, which looks similar to a standard Mini on the outside but has electrical components filling the back seat space, is not expected to be available in wider production in the near future. Instead, Lappen and a select few will test the vehicle for a year.
Through his personal and client relationships, Lappen has been lucky enough to drive such exotic vehicles as a hydrogen-powered BMW and a $2 million, 1,001-horsepower Bugatti Veyron.
The little electric car compares well. Real well.
“It’s a blast. It’s got tremendous torque,” he said. “It’s like a little go-cart.”
‘Idol’ Hands
Brian Riordan clearly recalls the longest day of his life. Actually, it was more than two days 58 hours to be precise.
That’s how long Riordan went without sleep after he got a call from a then-new TV show called “American Idol.” The program needed a sound remix for a concert that was scheduled to air in three days, and the producers figured Riordan, chief executive of Levels Audio in Hollywood, was the man for the job.
Riordan estimated he had 100 hours of work to finish in three days and only himself and his wife to accomplish it.
Contrary to the Hollywood stereotype, Riordan didn’t use performance-enhancing drugs. He doesn’t even drink coffee. “My energy was all based on stress,” he said.
The concert aired on time and established the career of the new show’s winner, Kelly Clarkson.
Today, “American Idol” remains Riordan’s biggest customer. He admits that sound men live “a vampiric existence,” but he swears never again to pull a double all-nighter.
Staff reporters Francisco Vara-Orta, Richard Clough and Joel Russell contributed to this column. Page 3 is compiled by editor Charles Crumpley. He can be reached at [email protected].
