REAL ESTATE & BUSINESS
INSIDE SCOOP
OPINION
THE REAL DEAL THESE KIDS NEED YOUR VOTE PAGE 3 CHRISTMAS HAS BECOME TOO COMMERCIAL PAGE 4 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2008
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Volume 7 Issue 346
Santa Monica Daily Press TOP FLICKS FOR CHRISTMAS SEE PAGE 5
Since 2001: A news odyssey
THE SPEND TIME WITH FAMILY ISSUE
Wealthy are tightening belts, looking for bargains BY ANNE D’INNOCENZIO Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK The rich are tightening their belts, too. Even if it’s still a Gucci. Faced with the sharpest decline in net worth in nearly 50 years, wealthy Americans are re-evaluating their priorities and slashing their spending at a rate unseen in decades — a move that could have dire consequences for the economy, luxury stores and high-end brands. In response to the increasingly subdued shopping mood that began late last year, luxury brands are cutting their inventory, changing the assortment of products they offer and tweaking their advertising message. “Fewer, better things,” suggests diamond jewelry giant De Beers Group in an ad campaign launched last month. Sure, many of the ultra-rich aren’t exactly scrimping. Some are still dropping $100,000 on a fur coat or $600 for a pair of shoes — but increasing numbers who were never bargain-hunters are picking through mounds of discounted designer goods to save money in an uncertain time. And why not? Deep discounts are making it a great time to stock up on high-end clothes and accessories, whether its a Chanel suit, a Prada bag or a $1,000 pair of Christian Louboutin shoes with their bright red soles. But if conspicuous consumption was a hallmark of the luxury days of old, those still shopping ‘til they drop are taking a more low-key approach, apparently out of deference to the new breed of have nots. “I keep a stash of brown paper bags,” says Sara Albrecht, owner of Ultimo, a Chicagobased designer clothing boutique. “No one will ever know.” Albrecht said she used to keep just a few bags on hand for those who wanted to keep their purchases hidden from their husbands. But now she has a bigger pile in response to requests from shoppers who want to keep their buying secret from friends and neighSEE WEALTHY PAGE 9
Brandon Wise brandonw@smdp.com
FINDING A PATTERN: Woodlawn Cemetery in the Pico Neighborhood is the final resting place for more than a thousand Masons and their loved ones.
Graves make up one of world’s largest Masonic emblems BY MELODY HANATANI Daily Press Staff Writer
WOODLAWN CEMETERY There is an exclusive group of Masonic lodge members who meet here on a permanent basis, resting with their fellow brethren in perpetuity. Though it is not clearly discernible in person, the final resting place of the now departed masons and their loved ones together form what many believe is the world’s largest emblem of the fraternal organization. The iconic Square and Compasses — visible via Google satellite images — is made up of more than 400 individual flat granite markers, situated in a peaceful pocket behind the mausoleum at Woodlawn Cemetery. It is in this plot of land where the members and wives of four local Masonic lodges
Gary Limjap
— Santa Monica Palisades 307; Sunset 369; Liberal Arts 677 and Riviera 780 — can be interred upon their death thanks to an agreement entered in 1935 with Santa Monica City Hall. “There are Masonic plots at cemeteries all across the United States and back then the people who were in charge saw there was an opportunity to do this (in Santa Monica),” said Walter Ringwald, a 58-year member of the Santa Monica Palisades Lodge. “They got together and made an arrangement with the city of Santa Monica to reserve that area for Masonic members.” The plot of land is located just off 17th Street, taking up approximately 1.44 acres with burial space for more than 2,000 graves. The emblem, which is centered in the plot, measures 352 feet wide and about 240 feet deep. More than 60,000 people altogether are
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buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, which is about 26.5 acres. When Virgil County took the job as cemetery administrator in 2006, he was surprised to see the unique collection of gravestone markers. It’s one of the more popular features at Woodlawn. “People come here all the time visiting the cemetery and that is one of the conversation pieces,” County said. “They ask about the history of it and not many people know about the Masons and the emblem.” Today there are approximately 1,827 people buried in the Masonic section of the cemetery, averaging about three to five interments a year since 1992. The Woodlawn Masonic Cemetery Association is responsible for approving burials, verify-
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