ROLL CALL: SIX DEGREES OF LACC Emmys, Oscars and Nobels, oh my. If an institution as eclectic as LACC has a calling card, it is success. Just take a look at the sampling of successful alumni who got their start here first. Denise Barrett 1. LACC helped lay the foundation for this Nobel Prize-winning economist - Lawrence Klein
14. This LACC architecture student shaped the face of downtown Los Angeles with the Disney Concert Hall - Frank Gehry
2. No one knew he would go where no man has gone before - Gene Roddenbury
15. As the creator of the most widely seen modern dance work in the world, his work offers “Revelations” for anyone who sees it - Alvin Ailey
3. If her trademark Brooklyn accent doesn’t get you, her dynamic dance moves will - Rosie Perez
16. Before this author got her groove back, she studied African-American literature at LACC - Terry McMillan
4. This squeaky clean TV mom once wore the title of Campus Queen - Donna Reed
17. She completed her studies here before going on to win Soap Opera Digest’s Best Actress five times - Deidre Hall
5. Dubbed queen of American folk music by Martin Luther King Jr., this LACC music major performed for presidents and protesters alike - Odetta
IN MEMORIAM (18, 19) Producer, director, special effects artist and special Academy Award® recipient Ray Harryhausen, used the anatomy and art training he received at LACC in groundbreaking movies like “One Billion Years BC,” “Jason and the Argonauts,” and “The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms.” His brand of animation, dubbed Dynamation by producing partner Charles H. Schneer, was inspiration for contemporaries like Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, James Cameron and other filmmakers. “Without Harryhausen’s effects work over the last five decades, there never would have been a ‘Star Wars’ or a ‘Jurassic Park,’” Spielberg wrote in a letter supporting a bid to get Harryhausen a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. “His films continue to set our imagination on fire.” Harryhausen passed away May 7, at the age of 92.
6. Besides co-writing Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song),” he is a founding member of the Second City improv troupe - Alan Arkin 7. Even at LACC, he moved to a jazzy beat of his own making - Charles Mingus 8. Before his film premiered at Cannes Film Festival, he made two innovative shorts here - Albert Hughes 9. What LACC alum is the second-most nominated person in Oscar history? - John Williams 10. LACC’s child development center once babysat this would-be king of the world - Leonardo DiCaprio 11. A ‘D’ in high-school algebra didn’t stop this American Mermaid from reaching for the stars - Esther Williams 12. Whether driving Miss Daisy or leading the free world, this Oscar winner always plays it cool - Morgan Freeman 13. Which actor enrolled in LACC on the GI Bill as a business major before getting his start in film? - Clint Eastwood 46 CollegianTimes
From South Central to Rodeo Drive, 99 Cents Only stores have become an iconic part of the Los Angeles cityscape, like the Mann Chinese or Hollywood sign. Dave Gold, who attended LACC until forced to drop out to help his ailing father with the family’s business, founded the chain in 1982. “When I put a 99 cent sign on anything, it was gone in no time. I realized it was a magic number. I thought, wouldn’t it be fun to have a store where everything was good quality and everything was 99 cents?” Gold once said. In the ensuing years, Gold expanded the company to 300 stores in California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada, only recently selling them for $1.6 billion. Gold died in Los Angeles April 22. He was 80.