Perriseau Paradise in the Land of the Sun

Harry saw Mr. Gumbiner earlier that day as he was busy preparing for the evening’s festivities. Mr. Gumbiner – Herman Gumbiner – was a theatre operator who had arrived in Los Angeles in 1921 from Chicago. He came to own and operate the Cameo and the Garrick Theatres, both on South Broadway downtown.

He brought down the Garrick Theatre in March 1927 and the modern, opulent, and innovative Tower Theatre rose in its place. It was the first in Los Angeles to be fully wired for sound to better serve the new “talkie” films. It was also the first to provide air conditioning. On Oct. 12, 1927 Herman’s crew prepared for the grand opening and as his film projectionist, Harry Robin Perriseau, had an important role to play.

Soon after that long day and the successful screening of “The Gingham Girl” Harry made the long journey to Sunland to visit his parents, Louis and Lizzie, at 10210 Oro Vista Ave. In the summer of 1928, Harry married Estelle Szydel and just over nine months later, their first son Merritt was born. The next year, the young family moved to Sunland, just blocks from their son’s grandparents.

When Harry and Estelle had their second son in 1932 – Melvin – Harry was 40, and Estelle was 30. Their youngest son, Marvin, was born in 1935. After Grandma Lizzie passed away in the spring of 1939, Harry, Estelle and the three boys moved in with Grandpa Louis at his house on the northeast corner of Oro Vista Avenue and Day Street.

When the family moved into the old home on Oro Vista, Merritt – the eldest son – was 10. When Merritt was about 80, he sat down to record an oral history with Lloyd Hitt, Bill Skiles and William Andrew in attendance. The rest of the story continues with Merritt’s words.

“My grandparents, Louis and Lizzie, came from Minnesota and bought this house in Sunland in 1927. I believe my father told them about the Crescenta Valley. He came to Los Angeles before 1920 and soon learned the skills of a film projectionist. He worked downtown at the Cameo Theatre on 5^th and Broadway and at the Tower Theatre on 7^th and Broadway. Grandpa figured the house was built around 1885 but claimed a fire in Los Angeles destroyed those early records.

“The house is almost as original as it was when my grandfather bought it in 1927, except that my dad put redwood siding on it. All the redwood siding came from a mill in Burbank and he picked out every board. As a result, none of the siding has a single knot. It also used to have a wood shingle roof that was replaced with a composition shingle roof.

“The landscapes around the house have changed a great deal. Across the street, west of the house on the other side of Oro Vista, there were citrus orchards. North of the house we had about an acre of grapevines. We grew Concord grapes, Tokays, Muscats and others. My father and I picked them and took them downtown to sell at the Grand Central Market. When I was a kid, the grapevines stretched all the way to the boulevard.

“I remember when Foothill was just two lanes. I can still see that big steam shovel they brought in to break up the concrete when they converted it to four lanes. Before Kmart was there, even before the drive-in theater came in about 1950, a large vineyard occupied that lot and the whole town attended a barbecue there each year.

“Merritt passed on May 4, 2018 at the age of 89; his wife Bernice preceded him. They had one daughter together. Today another happy, young family resides in the home at 10210 Oro Vista and if Grandpa figured correctly, it’s one of the oldest homes in Sunland and it remains the Perriseau Paradise that it’s always been.”