Pasadena

I've heard nothing but great things.

It's safe and 20 minutes from LA.

Cons: not exciting or hip

Pros: loads of restaurants and bars Cons: smog, traffic

It gets hotter than LA in the summer because it's farther from the ocean.

It’s just as expensive as living in L.A. proper, so you may as well just live right in L.A. and skip the extra traffic.

Cons: all the little old ladies street racing. So loud and dangerous.

The pros and cons are the same: white bread.

In Pasadena, California all seem to breathe peace and freedom and make one forget the world and its sad turmoils.

Good schools in San Marino and South Pasadena

Well there's the Rose Parade. There's that.

It's hot, epicenter of traffic to go anywhere at most times if day.

The Norton Simon has a breath taking collection of works of art and a lovely garden, and then nearby at the Huntington Library is an even more impressive art collection and 100s of acres of themed gardens, the Japanese and Chinese being the highlight.

I’d love to live there. It’s expensive as hell from what I can see.

[quote]Good schools in San Marino and South Pasadena

But not in Pasadena itself. And it's DEFINITELY not "white bread." There are many poor neighborhoods. Many of you seem to have an outdated or limited image of Pasadena.

[quote]The racial makeup of Pasadena was 76,550 (55.8%) White, 14,650 (10.7%) African American, 827 (0.6%) Native American, 19,595 (14.3%) Asian, 134 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 18,675 (13.6%) from other races, and 6,691 (4.9%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race numbered 46,174 persons (33.7%). Non-Hispanic whites were 38.8% of the population,[37] down from 70.4% in 1970.[38]

Lots of info

I visited Pasadena on my first trip out to LA last year and I was surprised by the number of homeless people even there.

It’s certainly beautiful but otherwise not particularly different from many “old money City Beautiful suburbs” elsewhere like Winter Park, Florida or Coral Gables, Florida. Same mix of faux Mediterranean architecture, al fresco dining, and overpriced chain shops.

Lots of churches in Pasadena.

Lots of sinners.

You get Sheldon, Leonard AND Me-Saw-DA

It's such a long way to Pasadena, I believe.

Downtown Pasadena is nicer than DTLA. But not sure why I would live there vs Santa Monica, Hollywood, WeHo, Silverlake. Unless you can afford San Marino. In which case, I would prefer Beverly Hills.

People would choose San Marino over Beverly Hills if Asian (loads of them and accompanying food, dr.s, etc), genteel old money (compared to that garish Westside), or want a slower, more laid back vibe. B.H./Bel Air/Brentwood is hipper, but also more posturing and conspicuous consumption, while Pasadena/San Marino has more a chill and off-beat vibe.

Isn't the architecture in Pasadena more like the East Coast too?

I've read (possibly on DL) that location scouts frequently use it as a stand-in for East Coast suburbs.

If you're lucky you can see Bai Ling on the roof of the Recovery Center. And for Halloween the clients usually dress up as Kari Ann Peniche. And now thanks to Lana, a lot of people commit suicide by jumping off the Colorado Bridge. So romantic.

A million people descend on Pasadena for the Rose Parade and the Rose Bowl game.

Pasadena has a significant collection of craftsman homes and old-growth hardwood trees which make it a good stand in for an America of a different time and place (Hill Valley 1955 for example.)

Pasadena and neighboring Glendale are kind of like Santa Barbara, only without a beach.

PROS

1) Community Vibe in Large Metroplolitan Area

2) Interesting Mid Century Modern Architecture and "Culture" (Museums/CalTech/Roses/JPL)

3) Proximity To DownTown LA and Nature (National Forest/Hiking/Mountains/Nature)

CONS

1) Heat Extremes For Area

2) Traffic

3) Land/Home Pricing Similiar To Coastal SoCal

Really unpleasant weather in the summer--very hot and smoggy.

The movie “Rumor Has It” was set there. I still remember the toast Shirley McLaine’s character made, “Life is short but marriage is long so drink up!”

Pasadena is where all B movie actors and poor Hollywood live. It's practically a sea of soap actors, extras, and stunt men.

No thank you!

The Hat

Old Pasadena is charming.

nearby LaCanada-Flintridge is more wealthy and has a lot of stars living there.

The Norton Simon is a 3rd rate museum outside of the Asian pieces.

r32 really overrated

[quote]Pasadena and neighboring Glendale are kind of like Santa Barbara, only without a beach.

Hardly. Glendale is full of Armenians and Pasadena has a large black and Hispanic population.

Pro: Me

San Marino is much quieter than BH. Only one small commercial area along Huntington Dr. No high-rises or fancy shopping areas. No apartments or townhouses. Just lots of very expensive single-family homes.

Wasn’t Mildred Pierce shot in Pasadena?

[quote] Hardly. Glendale is full of Armenians and Pasadena has a large black and Hispanic population

No. Glendale is Armenians and Hispanics. Pasadena is Hispanics and non-Arminian whites.

The traffic in and out of Pasadena is horrible. I flew into LAX for the day (lunch meeting) and the drive to Pasadena took about 2.5 hours each way in excruciatingly slow traffic.

They are only 28 miles apart. It takes me 30 minutes or less to travel that far where I live.

R39 IMDB says Glendale and Malibu.

R41, LAX to Pasadena during a weekday sounds like a nightmare. Opposite ends of the city.

You should have taken a helicopter taxi. I hear they are all the rage in Southern Cal.

What's the castle looking place in OP's pic?

R45, the US Court of Appeals building.

In front of it is Colorado Street Bridge, AKA Suicide Bridge, scene of over 100 people throwing themselves off to their death in the arroyo seco below.

It was a hotel from 1903-WW II

R46 It looks like a mental institution. That fits

Glendale had a reputation of discriminating against and not renting to black people in the 50s-70s, which has resulted in a fairly low percentage of black residents even today, compared to the Valley, Burbank and Pasadena.

To me, it’s the cultural center of LA. I detest the Westside and the San Fernando Valley for its shitty people, congestion and overwhelming traffic, but Pasadena and its surrounding environs are an oasis both physically and mentally. The foothills and Arroyo provide great hiking opportunities (with waterfalls, streams, grand vistas). The ethnic makeup ensures a great selection of restaurants and public events. Shopping is convenient and there are a ton of mom and pop shops. Lots of gardens, smaller museums, historic architecture to enjoy. It’s slightly warmer than downtown but not hot like the San Fernando Valley. And while traffic can heavy, there are plenty of alternate routes.

Honestly, those bitching about the heat and traffic are jealous Westsiders and Eastsiders (Silver Lake, Echo Park, Hollywood Hills) who don’t want to admit they have a peaceless, crappy, gridlock-ridden way of life and are kicking themselves for not being able to buy/afford a house in Pasadena.

As for cons, public school system sucks but there are tons of elite private and parochial schools. The surrounding towns (San Marino, La Cañada, Arcadia and South Pas) have the finest public schools in the nation.

Pro - Halloween was filmed there.

R50 = President of the Greater Pasadena Council of Realtors.

The post is an actual transcription of the minutes from their annual meeting, only the word "Jews" has been redacted and replaced with "shitty peeople."

With all the wealth in Pasadena, their school district pays teachers and substitutes way less than Glendale, South Pasadena, Monrovia, Montebello, Santa Monica, Manhattan Beach,LAUSD, San Marino, Arcadia, Burbank, La Canada schools.

Their teachers accept jobs because they have been fired or rejected by all other districts.

[quote] Glendale had a reputation of discriminating against and not renting to black people in the 50s-70s, which has resulted in a fairly low percentage of black residents even today, compared to the Valley, Burbank and Pasadena.

So all they were left with was Armenians. Glendale is home to the Armenian mafia.

Hasn’t Glendale been ruined by the disco lights, leather mask and fisting death?

The house and street in Glendale used in Mildred Pierce still look the same today.

I believe that hotel was the inspiration for Disney World's Tower of Terror.

La Canada and that area is the most suburban feeling area in LA. If I was a straight guy with wife and kids working in corporate America maybe. But that whole area is just bland. The Westisde is beautiful, glamorous, exciting. Yes, if you want peace move to the Pasadena area. But if I wanted that, I would just move out of LA.

David Lee Roth, Eddie and Alex Van Halen grew up in Pasadena, Roth still owns a house in the area.

Serial killers migrate there. They live in vans and park under bridge overpasses.

I've always associated Pasadena with being the winter residence of many of the turn of the 20th Century Chicago millionaires....the Armours, Pullmans, Fields, Meekers, Harrisons, etc.

Jack Parsons and L Ron Hubbard performed their black magic rituals in Parsons' house on Orange Grove. Also where Hubbard was having sex with Parsons' wife.

HOT

Expensive

no view of Ocean

[quote]Wasn’t Mildred Pierce shot in Pasadena?

They missed.

If it were cheaper, maybe. But it’s just as expensive but harder to get anywhere. Never understood it. Maybe in 1900 when it was a resort with a train stop. But in 2019 LA, there are much better bank for your buck areas.

Pasadena is pretty staid, like Santa Barbara. San Marino even more staid, though the Huntington's gardens are beautiful.

La Cañada / Flintridge is also a very wealthy area and very suburban in feel. Next door neighbors might not ever even see each other, with all the trees and greenery. My sister and her husband lived in La Cañada for 20 years and raised thier kids there. It's beautiful but it could be dull, as you're basically just stuck with your family.

I don’t think anyone’s mentioned the Gamble house yet, one of the finest Arts and Crafts era homes by Greene and Greene.

I've been cat-sitting for a friend in Pasadena for 3 weeks. The place is quiet -- too quiet. My Citizen app shows nothing for miles. I mean this is boring. I did go down to Colorado Blvd for a bit and after 9 PM they roll up the streets. Most restaurants were closed. Pasadena is also an upscale chain restaurant heaven. However, there were some cute Japanese coffee/boba tea shops.

The only areas I've felt were unsafe were anywhere near a gold line stop (prime example Lake which has a ton of homeless and other characters hanging about) and that 7-11 on Orange Grove and Lake.

It does have the Pasadena Playhouse, which has been in the past a theater that feeds to Broadway (Baby, It’s You, Sister Act, and Purlie). So you might catch an out of town tryout.

I'm doing the museums tomorrow as the city is hosting Art Night, so everything is free.

My only "celebrity" sighting was Iain Armitage, the kid who plays Young Sheldon having a hamburger across the street from the Pasadena Playhouse. He was dressed in a suit, so I assume he was seeing or had just seen Little Shop of Horrors.

Pasadena is where I'll live when I return to SoCal. My mom retired to Pasadena last year from downtown LA. She's of poorer stock so she lives just north of the 210. There are pockets there that are considered the rough parts of Pasadena. It was certainly so a couple of decades ago. I love the Gold Line and it's a godsend for my mom, who takes it a few days a week to visit her old neighborhood. But I agree, the Lake Station has that sketch feel to it. Not sure if it's particular to that station or because that is standard operation for LA metro stations. The Lake Station elevator is a literally a public toilet.

Life south of the 210, especially south of PCC and Cal Tech, is much wealthier. If you live close enough to Old Town, there's less of a suburban feel and a little more like the life I have on the east coast. North of the 210 and East Pasadena is much more suburban and is less appealing to me.

Vroman’s is one of the last great independent bookstores

The Laemmle Playhouse has been around for awhile and is a great neighborhood art house movie theater (right next to Vroman's). I haven't been to the Playhouse in a couple of years, maybe it has been refreshed but it's an older theater and doesn't have the latest amenities--but it's fine for art house movies.

Then there's the Academy Cinemas which has been around even longer. I remember it from the late 80's. It shows second run movies for dirt cheap prices. I haven't visited since, likely, the early 90's. It had really springy seats and gross sticky floors but hey $2 movies were great for a poor student. I can't imagine much has changed since they're still showing second run and older movies.

My niece and her husband lived in historic Castle Green. Very cool and they honestly thought their unit was haunted. But huge HOF and the place just wasn't very comfortable. They were close to Downtown Pas, which I personally loved, but they opted for a house with a yard and bought in South Pas. Honestly, that's a city that strikes me as Mayberry.

R49, most places in CA discriminated against Blacks and Asians moving into segregated neighborhoods well into the 60s and early 70s. Fair housing laws changed that. I'm from a tiny town adjacent to San Francisco where there is now a lot of diversity but into the early 70s their were still very segregated neighborhoods. When a Chinese family tried to buy a house around the corner from ours in the mid 1960s the neighbors complained and the seller backed down. My father was disgusted at their behavior and I was proud of him for that. Another Chinese friend parents' had a white family arrange the purchase of their house on the Peninsula because it was so difficult for anyone but Caucasians to buy there.

Too hot, too far from the water. I don't see the point of living in Southern California if you're not going to live at the beach.

I like the suburb feel of it. It's the closest thing in LA that reminds me of home.

Castle Green has an annual open house/tour. Interesting place. And there's also an annual tour of the Bungalow Heaven neighborhood, with eight or ten Craftsman and Craftsman-adjacent homes open for touring. Recommended if you're into that kind of thing (and they have great homemade cookies!)

Lots of whores and sluts crawling around everywhere

Living near the beach is overrated and overpriced. Unless you work near the beach, you will be driving east to west, west to east every day and night.

Pasadena has one gay bar, Boulevard. I've been there a few times. It's a bit of a dive but they actually have good karaoke singers, lol.

I just drove past the Boulevard the other day. I didn't know it was still a gay bar. There used to be a couple of other ones in that stretch of Colorado back in the day.

Con: Living near these bozos.

SGV Pride in Pasadena tomorrow!

Does anyone know about the flowers? When I was there everything smelled like flowers and it was amazing. What type of flower and what time of year is best?

R83, during the lead-up to the Rose parade? The city import tons of roses for their floats.

Meh. The beach isn't any more expensive than it was in San Francisco or New York. Even if it were, living on the water, watching the waves crash all day, smelling the sea air, walking on the sand, just sitting on the deck soaking it in, it's totally worth it. I don't spend time driving inland.

It defeats the whole purpose of living in LA to live in a pseudo- East Coast suburban town. You live in LA for the coast.

Having a pool > than living near the beach

I almost never use our pool, nothing beats the ocean and the sand.

You don't have to live at the beach to go there.

Most people who move from the Midwest or East coast never budge from the westside because they like to tell people in their hometowns that they can walk to the ocean.

Not everyone's a beach person. And if you're from the east coast, it's a very different feel than the Jersey Shore or Ocean City, MD.

Thanks R84. Think I answered my own question. It's the jasmine in Spring. I was so struck by it, but it's maybe only a few places a visitor might find themselves near Colorado Blvd?

And there are better beaches in California than the ones in LA, so if you're looking for a beach lifestyle why live in LA at all?

[quote] And there are better beaches in California than the ones in LA, so if you're looking for a beach lifestyle why live in LA at all?

Taking a guess. Beach + a corporate or film job.

Pasadena was one of the last cities to desegregate schools back in the 70s.

And the racism continues till today.

If you want a good laugh, check out the schools attempts at celebrating diversity. Or walk around downtown--the only dark skinned people are working behind the counters.

The beach in LA is not relaxing and Malibu's a rat fuck unless you go up in the hills but I prefer to live on the water, not near it. I went North and found Montecito, it's pure heaven. I wasn't here for the mudslides and fires, thank god, and my house is fine.

The poster who mentioned that it's very different from the Atlantic is correct. I grew up on the Atlantic and spend time there still, it's a completely different vibe from the Pacific. I still prefer the Atlantic but I hate the winters. I never spend more than a few weeks on the East Coast in the winter anymore.

I was a post-doc at Caltech, and then came back years later to be a staff scientist there.

Lived in Pasadena.

It was founded as essentially a giant Turberculosis sanitarium. The San Gabriel mountains directly to the north, the desert to the east, LA to the west and the ocean beyond that. There are beautiful hiking opportunities nearby, tons of old money neighborhoods. Parts of Pasadena have AMAZING old mansions.

But. With the exception of poorer neighborhoods northeast of the Caltech and Pasadena City College campuses, Pasadena is outrageously expensive to live in. WATER and utilities are unbelievably high. When the droughts are going on, the city rations water by making it impossible to afford. It is unbelievably noisy. The sounds of summer in the rest of the country are constant in Pasadena: lawn mowers, leaf blowers, construction, traffic, sirens, people. It is never peaceful or quiet (comments by pet-sitter upthread notwithstanding). While there are excellent 99 cent stores and fresh produce stores/stands, things like gas, milk, all grocery items (aside from fruit and vegetables at said produce stands) are about twice what they cost in the rest of the country. There is a great farmers market in the parking lot of the Marine base off of Orange Grove Blvd (part of the path of the rose parade), but even that is MORE expensive than eve the overpriced supermarket chains. The only thing cheap? wine! Hooray!

Traffic is a nightmare. There is NOWHERE to park. It is so expensive to park.

The biggest problem, though is the general emotional state of virtually everyone I ever met there. Everyone in Pasadena, except for maybe the old-money types who live in fabulous mansions, or the Hollywood crowd (I was constantly seeing celebs at the dog park, at the grocery store, hiking the trail in the nearby canyons) is frustrated and angry. Everybody fees they are destined for better than their reality. From traffic cops, to check out people at Ralphs, to waitstaff in restaurants, etc.. EVERYBODY feels they should be a star. In whatever area they feel gifted in, everybody fees under-valued and unrecognized. It makes people operate with a slow simmer of anger. Everyone is anxious to lecture everyone for things they might do wrong, whether having a Bully breed dog, or littering, or eating the wrong foods, or wearing the wrong shoes. Nothing is too small to invite criticism. EVERYONE feels smug and suerior in one way or another and seem to need to let the world know that. Pasadena is full of hurt angry people, out to create more misery.

The rose parade is a nightmare. People who stake out their spots on Colorado Blvd are assholes. I would drive home late at night after a long day in the lab, and drunks (they are all drunk by 11 or 12, and this continues for about 3 or 4 nights before actual new year's day) are pelting all the cars with raw eggs, sour milk, even piss. disgusting, truly.

So. All in all. Out all of the places I have lived (and I have lived in every area of the country except TX, Alaska and Hawaii), Pasadena and Boston are my the two places I like least. Both are unhappy places with poorly-adjusted people.

^^^tuberculosis.

Was once the ultimate WASP spot in SoCal. The old guard are dying off but you can still find old ladies wearing white gloves volunteering at the History Museum.

Speaking of history, back in the day they wouldn't let monied Jews live there so said Jews formed "Beverly Hills."

You can't park there overnight without a permit. Pain in the ass but keeps the streets pretty.

Once had a fair sized African American community but they've been upended by Latinos (see: a sudden plethora of Latino supermarkets).

"Suicide Bridge" was absolutely stunning (especially at night) until they put up anti-jump barriers.

Stately Wayne Manor (from Batman TV show) is/was there.

20 mins from downtown LA (without traffic) but rife with wildlife, especially coyotes.

My niece and nephews started at Pasadena Poly, which is a superb school and thought to be something of a feeder school for CalTech. They didn't enjoy being surrounded by Pasadena old money who let you know it at every turn. Sister, husband and family moved back to the Westside and the kids went to Brentwood. Even though the kids there were money conscious, they weren't social snobs like in Pasadena. They compared it to the UK. Either you are or you aren't.

[quote]There is a great farmers market in the parking lot of the Marine base off of Orange Grove Blvd

There's a Marine base in Pasadena? I've lived in the area since 1987 and never heard of this. Where on Orange Grove?

Pasadena has historically been the place you live if you are old money LA and not in the entertainment field. There are nice parts of pasadena. There are alot of beautiful old homes/architecture built by now famous architects of the early 20th century. They dont generally tear down those houses in Pasadena to build tacky McMansions. You can really notice the difference in home interiors between pasadena and beverly hills looking at real estate for sale websites. Pasadena they may remodel what is there from 1920 somewhat but it looks historically correct with the interior design/furn to match and in BH etc they either tear it down and build a white box or they remodel it beyond all recognition and turn it into a white box. See a pattern there?

R100, It is on Paloma and Sierra Madre, just north of Orange Grove, and on the southwestern edge of victory park. It is the staging area for the rose parade floats, and also the site for Pasadena HS track and field events.

tried to post a link to google maps, but DL wouldn't let me.

Robert Reed lived and died at 980 Stoneridge Dr. Pasadena

SMOG ALert

R104, I remember those. They would force us kids to stay inside during recess. I wonder if they still have them?

Is there a lot of smog in Pasadena?

R106, I live in bad side of the tracks, adjacent Eagle Rock, but smog is nowhere near as bad as when I was a kid.

[quote] Or walk around downtown--the only dark skinned people are working behind the counters.

Well, Pasadena is 48-55% white.

33-37% Hispanic

14% Asian

It's not uncommon to see people of color throughout the city.

R100, i used to walk past the marine base and occasionally there would be military funeral going on there. It was heart-breaking.

I was visiting and spent time downtown a few of the days I was there, R108.

The customers at the shops, cafes, etc. were maybe predominantly white--maybe about 90%

A friend who lived there described racism in the public schools so intense that she moved her daughter into a private school.

BS R110

I grew up in Pasadena, and I was recently there. Shops and restaurants on Colorado Blvd were full of Asians, Latinos, Blacks and Whites.

Pasadena High School is 80 % non white; John Muir HS is 90 % non white - odd to think that these schools are racist...

The US Census Data shows the Pasadena is 54% white...funny to see how this city could be so racist when almost half the residents are non white.

And R110 Private schools such as Chandler and Poly are mostly white - was your friend trying to flee the nonwhites in the Pasadena high schools?

Everyone says that there’s nobody meaner than the little old lady from Pasadena.

She’s gonna get a ticket sooner or later ‘cause she can’t keep her foot off the accelerator.

She’s the terror of Colorado Boulevard.

My favorite Pasadena school event was a Native American day, where teachers wore fringed costumes and everyone had headbands with a feather sticking out of them.

This was in the 21st century.

R111, it is funny (but all too common) when cities where the majority of residents are non-white somehow maintain racism.

It shows how important it is to them to keep whites in power.

You see this a lot in Florida and Texas, but it definitely is the case in Pasadena as well.

R116 Oh, you don't mention a school. Did you forget what school you were at ?

Please name the school and year - we can easily identify those teachers and report them

Caltech kids are fun because they manufacture their own drugs

R117 So you are saying that high schools that are 80 - 90 % non white can be so racist to their fellow non whites to the point that their parent removed them to put them in majority white private schools?

This is nonsense.

Still waiting to here what school R116 went to, if he can remember. He seems to be able to remember events at the school - let's get the school's name.

-Pasadena native

Oh, and by the way, Pasadena has had Democratic mayors since 1990. Do the racist Florida cities have Democrats in charge ?

R111, the census “estimates“ the white population of Pasadena might be 53.9% because they believe the Hispanic population is undercounted by 5%. It’s believed the actual 2019 white population in Pasadena is actually 48%.

I was in Pasadena yesterday and saw many minorities (Hispanic and Asian). Love those random Boba tea shops. Sprinkled throughout the city.

The thing that is weird about Pasadena is the huge old money there. Julia Child was from Pasadena; her dad and the whole family were very stuffy old money. Julia was not exactly miss liberal pant, though, so not sure why she condescended re her family. Anyway, that huge money created the dynamic of the whole town at one time, and there is still a sense of that classism, because that part of the city still exists.

I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time here. The owner was a very special little old lady from Pasadena.

This kind of house is what typifies that old money Pasadena, that still separates the classes there.

[quote]Glendale is Armenians and Hispanics. Pasadena is Hispanics and non-Arminian whites.

Don't forget us!

R116 did not go to school in Pasedena. I got the run down by telephone and I do not remember the name. If you mention a few Pasedena middle schools, I might be able to remember.

And the private school was not in Pasadena. My friend figures that if the public schools were that bad, then the private schools would be worse.

I am Pinkie and the blue boy who I saw every fucking year.

R86 No

I happily left the Hollywood Hills to live in Pasadena. You can get much more house and land for your buck in Pasadena. Lots of gay neighbors as well as celebrities. Meryl, Erica Jane, Mandy Moore, Oscar de la Hoya, David Lee Roth, Paul McCartney.

I just talked about this thread to a white person and her two non-white friends who all lived in Pasedena at some point in the last twenty years.

They all noted that Pasedena was one of the most racist cities any of them had ever lived in. The white woman said that cities with the largest minority populations are often the most racist.

When a minority rivals a majority in the social hierarchy, it usually creates conflict. The Hispanics were always large populations, but the Whites were always on top. It changed in the 70s and 80s and that created conflict for about two decades. Even today, you have films that paint Los Angeles as black and white only and the public just accepts it.

So I'm in Pasadena for a couple of days, I'm going to visit the Huntington Gardens and maybe the Arboretum, and on the recommendation of a Datalounger, the Norton Simon Musuem.

Any recommendations for other stuff? Any decent nature trails in the areas, for morning pre-museum exercise?

R131, the Gamble House is magnificent, even if you aren’t that into architecture. The tour groups are small and very informative.

I’m pretty sure that old aunt is haunting the place, but I can’t blame her; I’d never leave, too.

I’ve stayed in Old Town for some LA-based vacations. The train is a quick trip into downtown LA, but I imagine that’s considered très touristique.

It’s very quiet, to me, and on nights that I want to keep things low key, I have dinner and walk around looking at the beautiful buildings. Green Castle is right there and breathtaking. DL favorite Mindy Cohn did a Celebrity Ghost Story about her stay there!

It’s boring. Get an Uber to WeHo. Or train to DTLA.

My friend lives in the house they used for the remake of Yours, Mine & Ours. It's a fabulous place on a lovely block. Her kids go to private schools so they run with a very rich, progressive crowd. So what I know of Pasadena, I know through her and it's pretty fabulous.

There is a Tibetan restaurant that serves yak.

Gays love Pasadena because of the queen and her court.

I grew up in Pasadena, in a beautiful huge turn of the century home (designed by the architect of the Wrigley Mansion on Orange Grove)

Apart from some interpersonal violence in my family unit, it was a charmed life. the Arroyo Seco was my backyard. My mother was old money horsey person. We kept horses at a stable in the Arroyo (long since closed) and a Shetland pony - we used to hitch to a pony cart and ride along the LA River tributary in the Arroyo (when it was dry). My mom stomped around in horsey clothing (like Tracy Ullman's Camilla) and had a big old station wagon always filled with carrots. My friends' mothers wore St John and Chanel suits. But they knew my mom had money so they said nothing.

We took tennis lessons at the Sam Marino Tennis club. When we were younger, we would play at Lacy Park, near the tennis club.

Most Sundays - when it wasn't summer - we went to the Descanso Gardens and had a picnic.

My dad was an East Coast prepster (Portsmouth Priory/Harvard) who worked at the largest white shoe law firm in LA, with office in DTLA. He was always dressed in Brooks Brothers (back when it was high quality clothing). My sisters wore that Lily Pulitzer stuff.

We later moved our horses to the La Canada Riding Club. Back then, La Canada was zoned for horses (Pasadena was not) and there was a big horsey community there. My mom thought of moving there but it is out in the boonies.

I went to a pricey private school in LA, My sisters went to Mayfield, in a huge old mansion on Grand Ave (a wealthy family had donated it to the nuns). The nuns rented it out to movie and TV productions. My sister got to see the Bionic Woman jump over the impressive ornate metal gate at the entrance to the mansion.

My sisters and I went to Cotillion at the Huntington Hotel, and my grandparents from the East Coast used to rent a bungalow there in winter, so I spent a lot of time at the Hotel. When dancing the Cha cha cha, we guys would try to punch the guys closet to us.

In summer, our crowd went to the Jonathon Club in Santa Monica. It was quite racist back then - they wouldn't let Jews or blacks join. I had a birthday part there (I am a cancer) and we had to get permission for my black friend to join. The J Club tried to get more beach front land from the city, but then mayor Bradley (who was black) said no way. My family eventually severed ties with the club due to the racism. For over 20 years, JC has allowed anyone to join, to keep the club in business.

My sisters went to school with Jackie Girardi, daughter of Tom Girardi of Erin Brokovich and Real Housewives fame. Her mom had gone to the Cordon Blue. My mom was too busy with her horses and other things to cook. One time I went to a party at Jacki e Girardi's house and I got sick from eating so much great food made by Mrs. Girardi #1 (an elegant, impossibly blonde woman).

R138 Interesting story, so where did your mother's family wealth come from?

R138 Thanks for the glimpse of a life I always fantasized about. In high school I adopted the Preppy Handbook and was the first person to wear boat shoes in my school. I was heavily bullied for that the first year than everyone had them, of course no one remembered I was the originator. I dreamed of boarding school, but it never happened.

R 138, are you Chatsworth Osborne,Jr.?

Very interesting, R138. What era are you talking about? 'pre-65 Postwar America? late'60s-70s? '80s? Surely not later, but then again you never know. Pasadena has always struck me as a place that clings harder than most East Coast towns to its old-money trappings simply because so much of its identity is wrapped in being NOT-HOLLYWOOD!

R138 makes it truly sound like a horrible place to grow up.

R138 needs to be hired as a film creative. Because that story - clearly totally made up - was such a perfect caricature of the mythical Pasadena. Well done R138

R144 Yes caricature is based on reality. So sorry your childhood wasn't similar to mine, as you seem perturbed that one could grow up under such circumstances.

I miss my home on Waverly Drive.

Fiction or not, I enjoyed R138's post. On my way to concerts and games at the Rose Bowl, I would wonder about how the other half lived in the surrounding neighborhood. I was a poor kid from DTLA-adjacent. Thank you to R138 for adding color to the canvas.