Few cities captivate the imagination as does Los Angeles. It is the locus of spectaculars: movies, earthquakes, freeways, riots, sunsets. In this fascinating desk reference, Leonard and Dale Pitt have gathered a sweeping array of information on the City of Angels. Bolstering their historical and humanistic approach with scientific and technical information, the Pitts include alphabetically arranged entries on history, geography, automobile culture, sports, movies, current events, architecture, flora, fauna, scandals, biography, the arts, politics, neighborhoods, and ethnic, racial, and religious groups. Quotations throughout provide provocative and amusing tidbits about the city that has been called "the fulfillment of the American Dream." Copiously illustrated and wonderfully anecdotal, this is a book for anyone with a question, large or small, about Los Angeles.

"It's a great place to live, but I wouldn't want to visit there."—Mark Twain

"At heart, Los Angeles is a vast cross-section of the Corn Belt set down incongruously in a Maxfield Parrish setting."—Irwin S. Cobb

"Hollywood is wonderful. Anyone who doesn't like it is either crazy or sober."—Raymond Chandler

"Great weather and automobiles."—Jamal Wilkes

Leonard Pitt is Professor Emeritus of History at California State University, Northridge, and author of Decline of the Californios: A Social History of the Spanish-Speaking Californians, 1846-1890 (California, 1966). Dale Pitt is a freelance writer, editor, and indexer.

“[A] deftly written 603-page reference work.”—Los Angeles Times

"Here at last is the book that tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the history, geography, and culture of the city that has been called 'the fulfillment of the American Dream.' "—Los Angeles Times

“A gem that should be a boon both to researchers and casual readers.”—Daily News

“For die-hard aficionados of everything Angeleno, it’s an indispensable reference tool.”—Los Angeles Magazine

“This is an anecdotal encyclopedia written in plaintalk, accessible and appealing to all readers. A basic reference!”—Umbrella

“What a browsing delight! What an informative source! This encyclopedic survey of Los Angeles County hits its mark.”—Booklist

“Chock-full of bits of information about the area. . . . ‘This first-ever encyclopedia’ about the city and county covers the full range of local history as well as politics, government, art, architecture, business, the film industry, people, trivia, humor, and the oddities that make the area unique.”—Publishers Weekly

“Pitt and Pitt’s A to Z is instantly indispensible, an encyclopedia with the narrative drive of a good airplane novel whose only downside, in a town where buildings come down as frequently as gas prices go up, may be its need for frequent updating.”—Detour Magazine

“[This] encyclopedia reflects the multiethnic population that has always constituted Los Angeles and provides current interpretations of each subject. Entries include short histories of ethnic communities and astute accounts of significant streets, neighborhoods, and adjoining cities.”—The Journal of American History

"Los Angeles cannot be contained by any one description or category. Thanks to the ancient miracle of the alphabet, to their wide-ranging scholarship, and to their personal knowledge of this distinctive city, Leonard and Dale Pitt have come as close as anyone to squeezing the breathtaking variety of this multitudinous, complex city between the covers of one book."—Dr. Kevin Starr, State Librarian of California

"Captures the fascination and downright zaniness of the City of Angels in a manner that is appealing to both the serious researcher and the casual browser. . . . An exemplary aspect of the encyclopedia is its inclusiveness. . . . Serious researchers will fast find themselves sidetracked into the seemingly inexhaustible details and trivia found in this volume."—Melissa Rae Root, American Reference Books Annual