“The best historians in L.A. are storytellers. They’re gangsters in east L.A., they’re ex-cons, they’re guys who worked in their garage their whole life, they’re guys who’ve worked at one business for forty years, people who’ve lived on one street for forty years… “

“All Night Menu” started with a question: What is a well-known photograph of William Faulkner not telling us about his time in Hollywood? Since then writer Sam Sweet has spent four years prowling LA for its most closely-held stories. The result is a lovingly-produced, meticulously-researched and gorgeously-written three volumes of the city’s secret history.

Top: Photo of the Maravilla handball court by Sam Sweet. Read Sam’s remarkable story on the Maravilla court in its entirety here. 

Music:

Audio assistance for the episode was provided by Sameer Sengupta.

Summer 1942: William Faulkner at the Highland Hotel, 1922 Highland

Thanks to Sam Sweet, whose non-fiction novel “Hadley Lee Lightcap” will be published in September by All Night Menu Books. You can order the three volumes of “All Night Menu” published so far direct from Sam, or if you’re in Los Angeles, find them at Skylight Books and South Willard.