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Podcasts Off-Ramp
50 Years since the dam collapse and the first woman marathoner - Off-Ramp for Dec. 14, 2013
Off-Ramp with John Rabe Hero Image
(
Dan Carino
)
Episode 6310
Listen • 48:30
50 Years since the dam collapse and the first woman marathoner - Off-Ramp for Dec. 14, 2013

Merry Lepper broke the rules and, in Culver City, became the first US woman to run a marathon. Shifting ground broke the Baldwin Hills dam; we talk with a woman who has never told her story before.

Rhea Coskey points to an aerial photo of the Baldwin Hills Dam collapse devastation. Her thumb is on South Cloverdale Avenue. Her index finger points to her former address: 4601 South Cloverdale Avenue. The home she lived in with her husband and kids was reduced to a single wall, the white line you can see in the blue photo.
Rhea Coskey points to an aerial photo of the Baldwin Hills Dam collapse devastation. Her thumb is on South Cloverdale Avenue. Her index finger points to her former address: 4601 South Cloverdale Avenue. The home she lived in with her husband and kids was reduced to a single wall, the white line you can see in the blue photo.
(
John Rabe
)

Merry Lepper broke the rules and, in Culver City, became the first US woman to run a marathon. Shifting ground broke the Baldwin Hills dam; we talk with a woman who has never told her story before.

50 years later, Culver City honors first female marathoner
Listen • 5:32
Merry Lepper, now 71, accepts a commendation from Culver City for breaking distance running's glass ceiling in 1963.
RIP bassist, jazz great, teacher Charlie Haden
Listen • 5:50
Off-Ramp producer Kevin Ferguson went to the Downtown L.A. theater for a rare performance of Haden's ensemble ... composed entirely of CalArts students.
What's a $15K model train look like? Pasadena's Whistle Stop sells them
Listen • 4:00
As with any other hobby, model railroading can become a little bit of an obsession. Modelers readily spend top dollar for detail and craftsmanship.
50 years after the Baldwin Hills Dam collapse, a survivor tells her story
Listen • 6:43
On December 14, 1963 the dam in front of the Baldwin Hills reservoir broke. Rhea Coskey lost her home in the flood, and for the first time in 50 years, she's ready to talk about it.
LA archivist pleads for cop shows like 'Mob City' to use 'just the facts'
Listen • 5:40
LA's City Archivist archivist gives us a personal tour of the LAPD archives, which have been used - usually loosely - for productions from "Dragnet" to "Mob City"
'Young Turks' shows downtown LA arts scene when 'the rent was cheap, the streets were tough, and the beer was warm'
Listen • 8:20
The documentary has two things things that make it strong: it's purposely limited in scope, and moves fast.