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Christopher Merritt and Domenic Priore discuss the Pacific Ocean Park pier. P.O.P. was located at the dividing line between Santa Monica and Venice, the only spot during Prohibition-era Los Angeles where residents were allowed to dance and consort in a carnival-like atmosphere.

Following WWI, Arthur Letts, owner of The Broadway Department Store was a man rich with cash and dreams of becoming a developer. Letts had his eye on the last big stretch of land between downtown and the beach. Then like a fairy tale out of some developer storybook, Lett’s daughter Gladys married Harold Janss, prince of the Janss Development Family. Westwood was the Kingdom they created.

As a US-born Japanese, Ted Tanaka was imprisoned with 120,000 others based solely on nationality, no due process of law.
He personally describes photos of his incarcerated 3-1/2 years in a US crude camp.
This is relevant today with our current government threats against immigrants and their US-born families.