MacArthur Park
Encyclopedia
MacArthur Park is a park in the Westlake
Westlake, Los Angeles, California
Westlake is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. It should not be confused with Westlake Village, an independent municipality in Los Angeles County near Thousand Oaks and close to the Ventura County line....

 neighborhood of Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

, named after General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...

 and designated city of Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument #100.

Geography

The park is divided in two by Wilshire Boulevard
Wilshire Boulevard
Wilshire Boulevard is one of the principal east-west arterial roads in Los Angeles, California, United States. It was named for Henry Gaylord Wilshire , an Ohio native who made and lost fortunes in real estate, farming, and gold mining. Henry Wilshire initiated what was to become Wilshire...

. The southern portion primarily consists of a lake, while the northern half includes an amphitheatre
Amphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...

, bandshell, soccer fields, and a children's playground along with a recreation center operated by the city of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks. The bandshell was once home to many organizations and events such as "Jugaremos en Familia" (a live event hosted by Memo Flores for the Hispanic community). MacArthur Park's bandshell has been recently renovated as the Levitt Pavilion is once again the host of jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

, big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...

, salsa music
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...

, beat music, and world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...

 concerts. Since reopening it hosts at least 50 free concerts each summer between June and September.

The lake in MacArthur Park is fed by natural springs
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...

 (although an artificial bottom to the lake was laid during the construction of the Metro Red Line
LACMTA Red Line
The Red Line is a subway line running between Downtown Los Angeles via the districts of Hollywood and Mid-Wilshire to North Hollywood within Los Angeles where it connects with the Metroliner Orange line service for stations to the Warner Center in Woodland Hills.The red line, which is one of five...

, opened in 1993). In the past, a fountain with a reflecting pool on the northern end was also fed by the springs. The Westlake/MacArthur Park
Westlake/MacArthur Park (LACMTA station)
Westlake/MacArthur Park Station is a heavy-rail subway station in the Los Angeles County Metro Rail system. It is located at Wilshire Boulevard and Alvarado Street, across from the park of the same name in Los Angeles' Westlake District...

 Red Line station sits across the street.

History

The park, originally named Westlake Park, was built in the 1880s, along with a similar Eastlake Park, whose lake is artificial, in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

. Westlake Park was re-named May 7, 1942; Eastlake Park was re-named Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park (Los Angeles)
Lincoln Park in Los Angeles, California was originally created by the City of Los Angeles in 1881, from land donated by Griffith J. Griffith. It was one of Los Angeles' first parks. It was originally called East Los Angeles Park, then Eastlake Park in 1901...

. Both Westlake and Eastlake (as well as Echo Park) were built as drinking water reservoirs connected to the city's systems of zanjas (small conveyance channels/ trenches). When the city abandoned the non-pressurized zanja system for a pressurized pipe system, these smaller, shallow reservoirs located at low points no longer provided much benefit. They were then converted into parks.

In the mid-19th century the area was a swampland; by the 1890s, it was a vacation destination, surrounded by luxury hotels. In the early part of the 20th century, the MacArthur park area became known as the Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prestigious avenue in Paris, France. With its cinemas, cafés, luxury specialty shops and clipped horse-chestnut trees, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and one of the most expensive strip of real estate in the world. The name is...

 of Los Angeles.

Wilshire Boulevard formerly ended at the lake, but in 1934 a berm was built for it to cross and link up with the existing Orange Street (which ran from Alvarado to Figueroa
Figueroa Street
Figueroa Street is a street in Los Angeles County, California named for General José Figueroa , governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835, who oversaw the secularization of the missions of California...

) into downtown Los Angeles. Orange Street was renamed Wilshire and extended east of Figueroa to Grand Ave. This divided the lake into two halves; the northern one was subsequently drained.

According to a Los Angeles Times news story from 1956, two swans named Rudie and Susie hatched their five new cygnets on the island in MacArthur Park Lake, and according to the park superintendent, these were the first swans born in the park in over a decade.

For many years, Filipino World War II veterans protested in the park named after their former commander regarding promises made when they enlisted that the United States had reneged on. In 2009 as part of the stimulus package
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act, is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 and signed into law on February 17, 2009, by President Barack Obama.To...

 the Congress awarded lump-sum payments of $15,000 to Filipino veterans who are American citizens and $9,000 to those who are noncitizens.

Gangs

Despite the rather poetic homage paid to it in the 1968
1968 in music
-Events:*January 4 – Guitarist Jimi Hendrix is jailed by Stockholm police, after trashing a hotel room during a drunken fist fight with bassist Noel Redding.*January 6 – Gibson Guitar Corporation patents its Gibson Flying V electric guitar design....

 song
MacArthur Park (song)
"MacArthur Park" is a song by Jimmy Webb, originally composed as part of an intended cantata. The song was initially rejected by The Association. Richard Harris was the first to record it, in 1968; the song was subsequently covered by numerous artists. Among the best-known covers are Donna Summer's...

, MacArthur Park became known for violence after 1985 when drug-dealing, shoot-outs and the occasional rumored drowning became commonplace, with as many as 30 murders in 1990. The Westlake area has also become famous for the sale of fake identification cards, especially those which allow non-US citizens to work in the US. When the lake was drained in 1973 and 1978 hundreds of handguns and other firearms were found to have been disposed of in the lake.
Gang-on-gang violence still occurs occasionally in and around the park, such as:

In 1995, a small, local gang in the Westlake and Downtown area called the Burlington Street Locos got into an argument with another man who was believed to be in a rival gang called the Crazy Town Locos. A few days before, a member of Crazy Town Locos struck a man from Burlington Street Locos across the face. Seeking revenge, members of the Burlington Street Locos went to look for members of the rival gang and thought that a man that looked like the target was him. Mistakenly, they fired a couple rounds into his chest, hiding the body in a garbage bag and throwing it in the lake.

In 1997, a member of MS 13
Mara Salvatrucha
Mara Salvatrucha is a transnational criminal gang that originated in Los Angeles and has spread to other parts of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America. The majority of the gang is ethnically composed of Central Americans and active in urban and suburban areas...

 was found dead in the MacArthur Park lake. Police found his body two days after he died. Apparently, members of two small time gangs called the Crazy Riders and Drifters shot the victim in the chest and head after they found out he was selling crack on their turf.

In 2001, a couple members of the notorious 18 Street gang had a shootout with their rivals, the MS 13. A 18th Street clique known as MacArthur Park clique got into an argument with members of MS 13 which eventually led to a shootout. There were three deaths and two injuries.

In 2002, members of the 18th Street saw a member of another rival gang and beat the victim until he went into a critical condition. A day later, members of the victim's gang approached members of the 18th Street gang and started firing with semi-auto pistols. This event led to the death of two 18th Street members and an injury to an innocent bystander.

In 2005, three bodies in a trash bag were found in the lake. They were tied together and thrown into the lake after they had been stabbed and beat. One of the bodies was identified as a man that belonged to MS 13.

In 2008, a shooting occurred while a birthday party was being held. Members of the 18th Street started firing towards a crowd filled with rival gang members. This led to the death of three people, a rival gang member and a mother and child.

May Day Mêlée with LAPD


On May Day May 1, 2007, a rally calling for U.S. citizenship for illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...

 took place in MacArthur Park. The incident has been dubbed the May Day Mêlée.

In the evening, police commanders to declared the gathering an unlawful assembly and give the order to disperse. The police then cleared the park, using what some thought was excessive force against those who disobeyed the order. Sanjukta Paul, a female National Lawyer's Guild observer, was beaten repeatedly by an LAPD officer, including a blow to the kidneys, as she attempted to impede the progress of the police.

Another police officer was seen throwing a news camera from a cameraman as well as beating news reporters attempting to access their news vans. Protestors clashed with members of the LAPD, suffering reportedly excessive force, with rubber bullets, property damage, tear gas canisters being used on a mostly peaceful crowd at the hands of police officers equipped in full riot gear. At a subsequent press conference, LAPD Chief William Bratton said an investigation was underway to "determine if the use of force was appropriate" and that "the vast majority of people who were [at MacArthur Park] were behaving appropriately."

Revitalization

Beginning in 2002 the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...

, and business and community leaders led a revitalization effort that has led to the installation of surveillance cameras, the opening of a recreation center, increased business, early-morning drink vendors, a new Metro station, the return of the paddle boats and the fountain, and large community festivals attracting thousands. Most recently, in 2005 the park was celebrated for having the highest reduction of crime statistics per resident in the United States. As of the fall of 2011, however, the defunct boathouse stands in disrepair and paddle boats are absent. The lake continues to host a number of waterfowl species, thousands of pigeons and small fish, and the fountain continues to spout a high column of water, but the lake water is dark green and layered with floating garbage. Public urination in the park is illegal but commonplace.

Popular culture

  • MacArthur Park is famous for the song named after it
    MacArthur Park (song)
    "MacArthur Park" is a song by Jimmy Webb, originally composed as part of an intended cantata. The song was initially rejected by The Association. Richard Harris was the first to record it, in 1968; the song was subsequently covered by numerous artists. Among the best-known covers are Donna Summer's...

    , written by Jimmy Webb
    Jimmy Webb
    Jimmy Webb is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He wrote numerous platinum selling classics, including "Up, Up and Away", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", "Wichita Lineman", "Galveston", "The Worst That Could Happen", "All I Know", and "MacArthur Park"...

     and first performed by Richard Harris
    Richard Harris
    Richard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....

     in 1968.
  • MacArthur Park is featured in the 2008 video game, Midnight Club: Los Angeles
    Midnight Club: Los Angeles
    Midnight Club: Los Angeles is the fourth video game in the Midnight Club series of racing video games, not including Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition Remix. It was officially announced for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on January 11, 2008 by Rockstar Games. The game was developed by Rockstar San Diego...

    .
  • In the Simpsons
    The Simpsons
    The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

     episode "A Fish Called Selma
    A Fish Called Selma
    "A Fish Called Selma" is the nineteenth episode of The Simpsons seventh season and originally aired on March 24, 1996. The episode sees Troy McClure attempt to resurrect his acting career by marrying Selma Bouvier. Show runners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein were fans of Phil Hartman and wished to...

    ", Troy McClure
    Troy McClure
    Troy McClure is a fictional character in the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. He was voiced by Phil Hartman and first appears in the second season episode "Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment". McClure is a washed-up actor, usually shown doing low-level work, such as hosting infomercials...

    's agent, voiced by Jeff Goldblum
    Jeff Goldblum
    Jeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is an American actor. His career began in the mid-1970s and he has appeared in major box-office successes including The Fly, Jurassic Park and its sequel Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Independence Day...

    , is named "MacArthur Parker."
  • The MacArthur Park bandshell was painted by local artists and graffiti artists under the direction of Otis Parsons. Some of the artists involved were: Robert Williams, Skill, John "Zender" Estrada, Hector "Hex" Rios, Geo, Exit, Trip, Hate Prime, Relic, Galo "MAKE" Canote
    Galo "MAKE" Canote
    Galo Canote is a graffiti artist born in Los Angeles. He also lived in Guadalajara in the mid 1980s.-Career:...

    , RickOne and others. Various Dates. Some of the artwork was featured in the book Spray Can Art by Henry Chalfant
    Henry Chalfant
    Henry Chalfant is a well known and highly regarded urban culture photographer and videographer most notable for his graffiti and breakdance photography and film...

     and Jim Prigoff
  • The park was the setting for Joseph Wambaugh
    Joseph Wambaugh
    Joseph Aloysius Wambaugh, Jr. is a bestselling American writer known for his fictional and non-fictional accounts of police work in the United States...

    's novel, The Choirboys
    The Choirboys (book)
    The Choirboys , a novel is a controversial 1975 work of fiction written by Los Angeles Police Department officer-turned-novelist Joseph Wambaugh...

    .
  • MacArthur Park was featured in the 1997
    1997 in film
    -Events:* The original Star Wars trilogy's Special Editions are released.* Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.* Titanic becomes the first film to gross US$1,000,000,000 at the box office making it the highest grossing film in history until Avatar broke the record in 2010.*...

     film, Volcano, as well as the 2005
    2005 in film
    - Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005...

     film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
    Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
    Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 crime/dark comedy film, which engages many conventions of the classic film noir genre in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is based, in part, on the novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them by Brett Halliday. The cast includes Robert Downey, Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan...

    .
  • MacArthur Park was also featured in the 2001
    2001 in film
    The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy...

     Sundance
    Sundance Film Festival
    The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...

     film MacArthur Park.
  • In one episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Carlton Banks decides to take a trip to MacArthur Park after dark in an attempt to win a bet and prove to Will that he can "make it" in Compton, California
    Compton, California
    Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...

    .
  • In the horror novel, World War Z
    World War Z
    World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War is a 2006 post-apocalyptic horror novel by Max Brooks. It is a follow-up to his 2003 book The Zombie Survival Guide. Rather than a grand overview or narrative, World War Z is a collection of individual accounts in the form of first-person anecdote...

    , it is said that MacArthur Park is being used as a potato farm.
  • Jimmy Webb's song, MacArthur Park, is referenced in the Michelle Shocked
    Michelle Shocked
    Michelle Shocked is the stage name of Michelle Karen Johnston, an American singer-songwriter.-History:Shocked received her first international exposure in Europe, particularly Britain, with her debut album The Texas Campfire Tapes .Her first U.S...

     song "Come a Long Way": "I heard the screams of the dying dark / Through the sweet green icing of MacArthur Park."
  • The song "Leave It
    Leave It
    "Leave It" is a song by Yes. It appears on their 1983 album, 90125. The song featured repeated single issues, most backed with remixes of the song or an a cappella version. The original version was occasionally placed as the B-side of "Owner of a Lonely Heart", and on another instance, the original...

    " by the pop group Yes (band)
    Yes (band)
    Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...

    , from the album 90125
    90125
    -Yes:*Jon Anderson – lead vocals*Tony Kaye – keyboards*Trevor Rabin – guitars, additional keyboards, backing vocals*Chris Squire – bass, backing vocals*Alan White – drums, percussion, backing vocals- Studio personnel :...

    , includes the line "MacArthur Park in the driving snow".
  • In the Gym Class Heroes
    Gym Class Heroes
    Gym Class Heroes is an American hip hop rock band from Geneva, New York. They have collaborated with Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump on numerous occasions, notably for providing backing vocals on the song "Cupid's Chokehold." Stump also produced the majority of their album The Quilt.The group formed...

     music video for Cupid's Chokehold
    Cupid's Chokehold
    Cupid's Chokehold is a single performed by Gym Class Heroes, featuring Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy. The song relies heavily on the music, chorus and famous spoken "ba ba da da" line from Supertramp's hit song "Breakfast in America"...

     (the As Cruel as School Children version) directed by Alan Ferguson, Travis McCoy and factitious girlfriend Katy Perry
    Katy Perry
    Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

     meet in MacArthur Park along with dancing cupids
  • In the movie Training Day
    Training Day
    Training Day is a 2001 crime drama film directed by Antoine Fuqua, written by David Ayer, starring Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke. The film follows two LAPD narcotics detectives over a 24-hour period in the gang neighborhoods of South and East Los Angeles.The film was a box office success and...

    , Jake stops two drug addicts from raping a 14 year old girl near MacArthur Park.
  • Rob Dyrdek
    Rob Dyrdek
    Robert Stanley "Rob" Dyrdek is an American professional skateboarder, actor, entrepreneur, producer, philanthropist, and reality TV star. He is best known for his roles in the reality shows Rob and Big, Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory and Ridiculousness .- Personal life :Rob Dyrdek was born in...

    's MTV show Rob & Big featured MacArthur park in an episode where Rob broke two skateboarding world records bringing his total that day to a total of 21 separate skateboarding world records. (305 - Guinness)
  • The song "Lazy Days" by the pop group Shwayze
    Shwayze
    Aaron Smith , better known by his stage name Shwayze, is an American rapper.Born and raised in Malibu, California, Shwayze worked at a local Starbucks coffee shop until he met Whitestarr frontman Cisco Adler at a nightclub. One night Shwayze jumped on stage during Whitestarr's performance and...

    , from the album Shwayze
    Shwayze
    Aaron Smith , better known by his stage name Shwayze, is an American rapper.Born and raised in Malibu, California, Shwayze worked at a local Starbucks coffee shop until he met Whitestarr frontman Cisco Adler at a nightclub. One night Shwayze jumped on stage during Whitestarr's performance and...

    , mentions "walkin' through MacArthur Park."
  • In the film Havoc
    Havoc (film)
    Havoc is a 2005 American film about the lives of wealthy Los Angeles, California teenagers whose exposure to hip hop culture inspires them to imitate the gangster lifestyle...

    , Allison meets Hector in MacArthur Park the afternoon before she is arrested.
  • In the film Money Talks
    Money Talks
    Money Talks is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Brett Ratner, starring Chris Tucker and Charlie Sheen.- Plot :Franklin Hatchett is a car wash hustler, who gets dimed out to the police by an investigating news reporter named James Russell When placed on a prison transport unit, he is...

    , Chris Tucker
    Chris Tucker
    Christopher "Chris" Tucker is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing the role of Detective James Carter in the Rush Hour film series.-Early life:...

    's character named Franklin Hatchet goes to a nightspot looking for someone named Aaron. A doorman opens and Franklin proceeds to explain how he knows Aaron."Tell him I was there when he shot Baby Bro at MacArthur Park."
  • On the television show The Shield, Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) instructs a Salvadoran gangster Guardo Lima (Luis Antonio Ramos) to place $50,000 in a trash can by the lake.
  • MacArthur Park also appeared in the Numb3rs
    NUMB3RS
    Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...

     episode Hangman (6x01).
  • MacArthur Park (referred to as Westlake Park) was a prominent location in the 1949 film noir, Too Late for Tears, with Lizabeth Scott, Dan DeFore, Dan Duryea and Arthur Kennedy.
  • MacArthur Park is featured in the 2011 video game L.A. Noire
    L.A. Noire
    L.A. Noire is a 2011 crime video game developed by Team Bondi and published by Rockstar Games. It was released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows. It was released as a 3-disc game for the Xbox 360 console, which prompts the player to switch to another disc at certain points in the...

    .
  • MacArthur Park is featured in the 2011 FX series "American Horror Story
    American Horror Story
    American Horror Story is a horror-drama television series created and produced by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. The series centers on the Harmon family: Ben, Vivien and their daughter Violet, who move from Boston to Los Angeles after Vivien has a miscarriage and Ben has an affair...

    "

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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