BRASS TACKS PRESS

2023-08-04 The Canyon Chronicle - “The Children’s Guide to Astral Projection, 20th Anniversary” by Pablo Capra

The Children’s Guide to Astral Projection, 20th Anniversary”

by Pablo Capra

The Children’s Guide to Astral Projection by J. A. Homes turns 20 this year! The LA Weekly called it a “local cult classic” (2008-05-16).

James Mathers pseudonymously created his children’s book as Lower Topanga was being bulldozed for parkland… or whatever. When protests failed to halt the introduction of herbicides, he told the Messenger, “It’s remarkable that the people who are being kicked out are actually the ones preserving the land, and not State Parks!” (2003-11-06).

“Everything felt temporal. There was an urgency,” he continued, “Next door, Pablo Capra started playing punk rock and making chapbooks. His Brass Tacks Press published my book so we could give them out as Christmas gifts.”

Mathers grew up on Hillside Dr., and was a teenager when Andy Warhol gave him his first art show in 1983. He lived in Indonesia and Ireland before moving to Lower Topanga in the 1990s. The idea for his book came when he noticed the swelling popularity of J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. 

“As an old school Topanga occultist, I was appalled at the diminished and frivolous portrayal of the great art of Magyck-O. So I whipped up a REAL guide with some actual tools for the incoming star-babies and kids already on the shining path. I remember being quite pleased to discover that my book was the most shoplifted item at Hi De Ho Comics because anarchy always….”

Since 2003, the book has found a devoted fan base, been reprinted in larger and more colorful editions, and translated into Spanish. Locally, it’s for sale at Café Mimosa, Corazón, and Topanga Home Grown.

What makes it so special? According to the LA Weekly, “Mathers’s real mojo is in his mind, perspective, presence, style, and above all else, his words, which he uses, through lolling leaps of intellectual gymnastics and lingual acrobatics, to stretch the paradigm to its outermost limit until it’s taut and transparent and provides glimpses of the transcendent beauty and magic that are Mathers’s everyday reality.”

2022-04-18 Robert Campbell: Collected Works 1976-2004 - "Three Poems" by Robert Campbell

"Three Poems"

by Robert Campbell


COVE OF THE MAGICAL WOMAN  (A Song)


Chorus:
Down there where the sweet sunbeam flows
beneath enchanted nightshade grove
we can make love in the cove 
of the Magical Woman. 

Overdubs (alone or harmonized):
Come greet me, my love
come down and see me
you know you need me.

Through the mirror and far away
my mind left lisping azure waves
to find you gently sleeping 
near a stream
outside the birds are calling
the wind is blowing, the leaves are falling
outside love sleeps 
’neath a dream. 

But suddenly we’re here alone
the wind is dying, the birds are flown
and only Zen and moonlight fill 
the air
wasn’t Elysian Fields like this?
The scent of music, a stolen kiss
Diana weaving miracles through 
your hair?

Drifting through on my lowest cloud 
I see you down there dreaming 
moon’s cool rays light the love 
I’ve found 
love of mine, I think you see 
this midnight sky surrounding me 
and I think you know the tide will turn 
around.

You fly around my broken heart 
a whirling dervish in the dark 
spinning love, then sailing fast 
away
you leave me with no roots or wings
a prism held inside your dreams 
give me love or let me fly 
away.

1976, 7/20/1981

___


RODEO GROUNDS, LAST SPARK OF EDEN*


Cloaked in enigma 
it re-seeds again
covert as the drone of music
on a distant wind
though some believe it has dried up
I’m convinced it has just left for a season
to collect more angel and fairy stuff
Rodeo Grounds, the last spark of Eden
a babbling creek where 
a garden grows lush
beneath a fig tree 
and blackberry bush
Rodeo Grounds stands 
on the edge so fair
even the smog circumambulates
her garden-fresh air
a lush green mansion 
just east of Malibu
that abbreviates those palaces there
a bowl of cherries cradled 
in arms of innocence
Rodeo Grounds Eden
a perfect setting for sin
and the birds of prey circle above
the babbling creek, serenading duality
a reality flown
come and gone
cast out 
into outer darkness.

*Reprinted from Idlers of the Bamboo Grove: Poetry from Lower Topanga Canyon edited by Pablo Capra (2002), an anthology of 10 poets writing to celebrate their bohemian community, and lament the evictions that State Parks carried out between 2001–2006. Campbell sometimes stayed with the Capra family in The Rodeo Grounds, one of the main neighborhoods in Lower Topanga.

2002

___


THE THREAD OF JOY AND SORROW


Helen and Menelaus were restin’
noticin’ the healthy skin they lay in
munchin’ lunch in the sun
toyboy stole Helen of Troy
started a war in the spirit
she ran away to Paris
to the dismay of Agamemnon
tempted by the goddesses fair
living on high Olympus
Paris’s curse had foretold the worst
a gift disguised as a banquet
to decide would soon lead to his doom
to choose the fairest of them all
Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, or John Paul
his answer came swift charged by Venus’s gift:
the most beautiful girl in the world
but fate could recall that Troy would soon fall
while he wondered curiously, “Who’s John Paul?”
The Gods on high with love in their eye
enjoyed a Greek barbecue
as a wind rose out of the west
and picking his teeth, Apollo agreed with Zeus
that the nectar they drank 
could at best have stood more juice
they also agreed Ares had mounted his steed
the two of them taken by the sky
while a chariot blazed across the days
drawing the curtain of night
silk stockings, socks, and shoes
magic nets float into your room
floating around like a balloon
tying you up in a cocoon
leaving you breathless, you dream
magic nets are falling down in the mist
rainbows are steaming on the ground
a conscious thought left streaming on your brow
assures you another tomorrow
it’s your clothes, the pulp, the threads of joy and sorrow
it’s ambient, the matrix you’ve found,
bold as the metal on a chain-link fence 
yet annoying, euphoric, ethereal, or moody as sound
the interlinking lace of the shroud
moving mountain, tide, and cloud
man, beast, bird, fish, and beetle
finally threading Penelope’s needle
the needle of stereos
the waistband of pantyhose
CDs, TVs, videos, and radios
weaving tapestries, you dream
through the matrix of volleyball nets
pigskins and tennis racquets
teams and songs rise and fall
heated heartstrings leap with joy
and is it the medium of alcohol
that separates the man from the boy?
the emotion is inflamed
a cry of joy or pain
victory or defeat
a claim to fame
win or lose
the emotion drains
to win or to lose… blue goose!
macramé a basket case 
needlepoint the poison pen
weaving tapestries, you dream
and it all begins again
tapestries pull you in
it writhes through dreams 
through everything
a miracle that seems 
never happens
bigger than life 
smaller than a mustard seed
stands you up in the morning
crawling away like a centipede.

2002

___
by Robert Campbell
Edited and Introduced by Pablo Capra
Brass Tacks Press, 2022
388 pages

2022-04-18 Robert Campbell: Collected Works 1976-2004 - "Short Story: Tachyon Capsule of Physics" by Robert Campbell

by Robert Campbell
Edited and Introduced by Pablo Capra
Brass Tacks Press, 2022
388 pages

SHORT STORY

"Tachyon Capsule of Physics"

by Robert Campbell
 
1.

“Tachyons travel alone.”
— Capsule of Tachyon Physics

Jameson left home at 1:30 p.m. At 2:00 p.m., he entered the California Federal Savings and Loans building via its roof. A rented helicopter transported Jameson from his laboratory at Malibu Beach to the Savings and Loans branch located at Sunset and Glendale Blvds. It was Tuesday, July 16, 1988. 

Jameson had worked as a teller in that particular bank building for 14 years, and was promoted to the position of Director of Security approximately one week before he resigned in the spring of that same year. Working days, Jameson took night classes at Pepperdine University. He studied physics, math, horticulture, and optical delineation classes, in which he maintained a 4.0 GPA. Jameson was, in fact, a genius, but nobody knew that. His teachers respected him because he made A’s, and that of course made them look good. His lady loved him, but mainly because Jameson always had the best organic homegrown hybrids money could buy. The fact that the drugs were organic made it easier to swallow because they fit in with all of her synergetic ideals for a healthy environment. She was an all-American girl. No, no one ever suspected Jameson of being a genius. Except Jameson. He had ideas about himself.

*

Tachyons are the other component of the Universe that people don’t talk about much. Sure, there’s been ample talk about matter, cells, molecules, and atoms. Even antimatter made it big in the ’50s, got a manager in the ’60s, and became stars in the ’70s, a household word. That’s when black holes dominated the talk in the scientific community for years. But if you ask anyone about Tachyons, they’d say, “Who?” 

Tachyons travel alone. And, boy, do they ever travel fast! One Tachyon can leave your bathroom at a quarter to eight when you start to unzip your fly, and travel to every other square inch of the universe and back again at a quarter of eight before you whip it out and start to pee. I guess that’s why there’s more than one. 

Nobody is quite sure exactly how many Tachyons there are in the physical universe at any given time, but I’ll assure you that there’s plenty enough to record every instant of time passing, and to transmit the data to the Unigen1 [footnote missing]. Like I said, Tachyons are fast. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. Well, a Tachyon starts up where light leaves off. Scientists are only now beginning to investigate the phenomenon. 

*

“Yeah, we were successful… to a point,” states Dr. Allison, head of the Department of Astrophysics at Cal. State Irvine, as they gawk at the smoke billowing from the brain of the Genii X computer. Professors Beason and Sykes storm into the lab.

“Are you all right, Allison?” Beason asks as he runs up beside the professor, closely followed by Professor Sykes.

“Sure, we’re fine, but I think we’ve lost another good man to science. The etherization proceeded without difficulty, and the electrobe [sic] reflector screen registered affirmative. We were able to track Swenson’s activities for 20 minutes after etherization. His vibratory rate approached the speed of light at this point,” Allison says, pointing at the computer read-out sheet. “It looked to us as if Swenson’s body had started contracting at an accelerated rate. However, the messages he reported, although garbled, kept referring to an ultra-expansion. But the part that’s really baffling is where he kept referring to them as turning him inside out.”

“Them?” inquires Dr. Sykes.

“That’s what he kept saying, and that’s when this burnout occurred on the screen and we lost control altogether. We think that’s when Swenson shot the gap. We recorded the event at 2:00 p.m., 7/16/88.”

“You mean—Hyperspace?” Beason asks.

“That or something similar,” replies Dr. Allison, looking at the ceiling. “Maybe even Tachyonspace,” he adds, scratching his head.

*

Devoid of sedimentary impediments, Tachyons consume information. Being a link in the predatory chain, Tachyons illuminate knowledge. This knowledge, having been digested, is of a lower grade. The essence, having been extracted, is ingested into the circulatory patterns of Tachyons, and is transmitted to the Unigen. The raw viscosity, thusly ejected, becomes fertilizer in the fields of human understanding.

*

“Eat shit, Jameson!” screams the security guard on the top floor of the California Savings and Loans building as Jameson enters the rooftop lobby carrying with him an Uzi submachine gun and a black box. He notes a tiny flash of blue light registering in his peripheral vision, the kind one sees after lifting a heavy object, or during times of deep thought or fatigue. Sloughing it off as a normal occurrence, Jameson goes about his business, and training the Uzi on the guard, he unlatches the box. The Unigen groans. 

“You’ll never get away with this, Jameson. You of all people! You young upstarts are all alike. Feel like the world owes you something, don’t you, Jameson?” the security guard smirks. 

Jameson just listens, angling his body so as not to look directly into the lens of the monitoring camera to keep from being recognized. He lifts a cylinder-shaped object from the box, and aiming it at the camera, he releases a stream of light into its lens as the camera swings around in his direction.

“You’ll see, Jameson. You mark my words. Even if you escape today, it’ll catch up to you soon. What goes around comes around.”

Jameson looks at the clock. 2:01 p.m.

*

At Cal. State Irvine in the Astrophysics lab, another baffling occurrence is taking place.

“What the fuck!” exclaims Dr. Allison as the strange object begins to etherize in the air above their heads.

“Oh my God, Scott! Look at that thing,” Beason says, curiosity rising in his voice. A lab tech grabs a mike and flips on the recorder when the object, having materialized, falls to the floor with a clank. Everyone hovers around. The lab tech glances at his watch. He speaks into the microphone. 

“At 2:01, the seventh month, the 16th day, 19 hundred and eigh….”

*

In Malibu, Linda, Jameson’s fiancée, walks inside the beachfront apartment, and as she enters the living room, she notices a package lying on the sofa. Gift-wrapped, it is addressed to her. She quickly rips it open, and to her amazement, inside lies a most beautiful mink coat. Overjoyed, she lifts the garment from the box, and walking into the bedroom, she tries it on before a mirror.

“It’s ravishing,” she smiles as she gazes in the glass. 

Then taking a joint from a nearby bedstand, she lights it. And after another modeled look in the mirror, she leaves back into the living room. And sitting down on the sofa, she notices a note in the bottom of the package. She reads it.

*

Passing through a physical vortex or universe, Tachyons register more than 26,000 years of information in every passing second of Earth time.

*

The officer at the first floor monitoring station in the California Federal building, whose job is to view the activity of several monitoring devices, imagines he sees a bank robbery on the top floor change into an everyday routine bank pick-up. He wipes his eyes. Not exactly sure of what transpired, he sounds an alert.

“See there, Jameson,” grins the security guard on the top floor, “your goose is cooked. They’re on their way.” 

Jameson removes an aerosol can from the box, and spraying its contents into the air, the security guard’s attitude changes abruptly.

“It’s really okay if you’re a few minutes early, Rodger,” he says, speaking to Jameson. “The sooner we get this stuff loaded up, the sooner I’ll be able to take my lunch break. I feel really great today,” he adds, smiling and patting his stomach. “But I have a terrible case of the munchies.” 

The other guards file into the room and line the wall. They train their guns on Jameson. 

Jameson, aware of the effectiveness of his serum, smiles. “Relax, fellas. I just called you up here to see if you could give me and Wilson here a hand with all these heavy boxes of tender.” 

The guards begin to smile and chat among themselves as the drug starts to take effect. They shove their guns back into their holsters.

“Oh sure, Rodge,” offers one of the guards. “No problem. Just tell us where you want us to stack the stuff.

2.

“Ye acts proceedeth thee and standeth the balance of time.”
— Capsule of Tachyon Physics

“Very interesting,” says Dr. Rayburn from the Geology Department. “It’s made from a substance I’ve never seen before, nor read about,” he adds. “There’s enough energy here to keep every light bulb in LA burning for the next four centuries, and that’s just an educated guess. I’ve never seen anything like it. Why, it’s in a constant state of fission, but it’s stable!” he adds again, pounding the table. 

All of the department heads stand around the small object, gazing in wonder. The object measures about 10 centimeters in length, and glows like the noonday sun. A lab tech rolls an ultraviolet lamp over the object and switches it on. The initials MA stand out in bold relief.

“For heaven’s sake!” exhorts Dr. Allison, frisking himself. “Why, that’s my pen!” Then turning around to face the others, “It’s my gold pen I lent to Swenson right before the experiment!”

*

In Malibu, Linda finishes the letter as tears swell in her eyes. She wraps herself in the mink and walks into the kitchen, where she turns a flame on under a pot of tea. And crying, she sits down at the table, her head falling onto her hands as her pain concludes with loud sobs. The letter falls to the floor.

Dear Linda, 

I’m leaving the country. I can’t explain now but here is a small gift I am leaving for you as a token of my love. I hope you like it. 

Pleasant thoughts, 

Jameson

When hearing the roar of an approaching chopper, Linda raises her head. She enters the living room, and taking the joint from the ashtray, she fires it up and walks outside. 

The sky is bleak, and 20-foot waves dash under a dirty red cloud cover. The rays of the sun penetrate the clouds and blaze onto the sea like spotlights. Wrapped in the mink, she turns her head around, and tilting it skyward, she sees a pterodactyl gliding overhead. A paltry figure dangles limply from its beak. Screams of terror exude from the figure as the giant bird hovers above the sea. She notices something falling from the figure’s hand as a meteor slants from the sky, striking the bird’s head pointblank. The beast falters and tumbles, belly-up, down into the sea below. 

She wanders aimlessly to the shoreline and gazes on the ocean, confused. Something washes up against her foot. Bending over, she picks it up and carries it into her cave, and kneeling before a blazing fire, she bangs on her find with a stone. The latch flies open, and to her amazement, the interior is filled with crisp, thin, green material. And gazing on it curiously, she smells it. A strange gleam ignites her eyes as she holds the material over the flame. It burns.

[Written in 1988?, the year the story happens]

2022-04-18 Robert Campbell: Collected Works 1976-2004 - "Introduction" by Pablo Capra

by Robert Campbell
Edited and Introduced by Pablo Capra
Brass Tacks Press, 2022
388 pages

"Introduction"

by Pablo Capra, Editor
 
Robert Campbell was born on April 18, 1951, in Marshall, Texas—a country town he liked to call “Mars Hall,” imagining that it had fallen from Mars. With his boundless talent and eccentric personality, he himself seemed to have descended from another planet.

A painter, writer, and musician, he employed the arts as interchangeable mediums to express his inner vision. He called his style “Real Fantasy” to emphasize the fantastic in his take on Fantastic Realism.
 
In high school, he excelled at football, and regretted being unable to go further because of his short skinny build. Stephen F. Austin State University accepted him on an art scholarship nearby, but he dropped out his junior year and never received a degree.
 
In 1975, he moved to Los Angeles, where he showed at Gallerie Rabindra, painted faux finishes and trompe l’oeil, and worked as a scenic painter in the theater. He entered the film business after meeting my father, art director Bernt Capra, in the mid-1980s.
 
His credits include Echo Park (1986), Bagdad Cafe (1987), and music videos for Prince (“Raspberry Beret”), Kenny Loggins (“Vox Humana,” where he played himself), Tom Petty (“Don’t Come Around Here No More” and “Make it Better”), Cyndi Lauper (?), Tori Amos (“Cornflake Girl”), and Nirvana (“Heart-Shaped Box”).
 
In the late 1990s, he was diagnosed with diabetes but didn’t take it seriously. As a tragic result, he lost his eyesight around 2000 and died on May 28, 2004, at age 53.

I was closest with him in the last four years of his life, when he mainly wrote poetry. In 2002, we cofounded Brass Tacks Press (his idea), and published his poetry in the anthologies Life as a Poet (2002–2004) and Idlers of the Bamboo Grove (2002), then republished it in his own book, Anesthesia Lake (2004).
 
After his death, I found his earlier writings scattered in the dark, fire-damaged attic of his downtown LA building, where it would have been impossible for him to go. I published them in Magic Woman (2005), Jeremy Black (2005), Audesheer and Deja (2006), Rut Weaver (2008), Camp Bell (2008), and On a Purple Spiral Floating (2016), with my notes and uncertain readings [in brackets].
 
He had never mentioned these earlier writings, except for one story that he said was 100 pages long and had been lost… maybe Audesheer and Deja? I don’t know of any other publications of his work, or even of another person who kept his writings.

Among the early writings, his Real Fantasy manifesto, “Reflection on Art in Society,” offers a rare explanation of his artistic intentions.
 
In music, he envisioned Real Fantasy as a kind of “New Age” rock and roll. He often used the words “poem” and “rock song” synonymously, and his first poems were the songs he made up while learning to play guitar in the late ’70s and early ’80s. The stories “Fan Mail” and “Liza” offer cool portraits of Real Fantasy rock stars.
 
Humor was an important part of Real Fantasy, and his fascination with it takes center stage in “Nothing Nuisance,” about two friends on a mission to discover where jokes come from.
 
The supernatural and surreal were always encroaching, as in the kaleidoscopic blurring of perception that concludes “Jeremy Black.”
 
When dated, most of his short stories indicate that they were written in 1985.
 
His late poetry, begun around 2000, was more introspective, challenging, and gritty. He continued to revel in the power of the imagination, but also suggested that there was danger involved, or a sacrifice. This theme appears in his earlier writings too, like the title of the poem “Magic Begins Where Logic Burns Out.”
 
Robert feared that his overactive imagination “could rob me of reality” (“Left Home on a Crystal Morning”). His many references to drugs and alcohol were a way to express this metaphorically, I believe, because he didn’t use them in real life.
 
From the incredible worlds he could dream up, it’s easy to see why he never wanted to stop dreaming.
  
Robert Campbell, Marshall High School yearbook, 1969.

2021-12-24 The Canyon Chronicle - "Mindwalk: The Screenplay"

Mindwalk: The Screenplay
by Floyd Byars, Bernt Capra, and Fritjof Capra,
with Scientific Commentary by Fritjof Capra,
a Director’s Note by Bernt Capra,
and behind-the-scenes Photos
 
108 pages, $13 Book, $6 Ebook
Brass Tacks Press, 2021

*

Since its release in 1991, Mindwalk has become a cult classic, showing not only in theaters, but in college courses and business seminars… and it can be viewed for free on YouTube!
 
The film is based on The Turning Point (1982) by Fritjof Capra, the author of numerous science books, including the bestseller The Tao of Physics (1975). Fritjof’s younger brother Bernt Capra created the story for the film and directed it.
 
Bernt lives in Topanga with his daughter Michele, who was born during the making of Mindwalk. She is named after the film’s location, the tidal island of Mont-Saint-Michel in northern France. Bernt’s son Pablo Capra, who founded Brass Tacks Press in Lower Topanga in 2002, published the book.

Fritjof Capra wrote the book The Turning Point (1982), and his brother Bernt Capra created the story for the film and directed it.

The lead characters are a physicist, a politician, and a poet (played by Liv Ullmann, Sam Waterston, and John Heard) who enter into a philosophical discussion patterned after Galileo Galilei’s classic Dialogue on Two World Systems (1632). Social and environmental concerns are at the heart of the film, which proposes alternative solutions based on Systems Theory, along with insights into Quantum Mechanics and Particle Physics.
 
Bernt Capra describes the challenges of trying to bring this heady subject matter to the screen.
 
“I come from a design background and my next draft included a lot of stage design... but that didn’t hold up either, because at the core of our story lies the fact that the realities of modern physics can no longer be visualized by any human being. This is when I came up with the name ‘Mindwalk’... and the idea of having a lot of dialogue. I didn’t mind that at all, because a good dialogue is what I really enjoy most in movies. That’s when I get a true feeling of discovery: I, the invisible observer, stand right next to the people who share their very personal thoughts and feelings. That gives me the sensation of seeing a piece of life through somebody else’s eyes. Action sequences, even great ones, never turn me on like this....”
 
Upon Mindwalk’s release, Daily Variety magazine called it “An extraordinary piece of renegade filmmaking.” American Movie Classics said, “Mindwalk is a must for every thoughtful, intelligent, well-educated person.”
 
Bursting with poetic insights and ideas for how to change the world, Mindwalk still points to the future 30 years later. Fritjof Capra explains, “The implications of the profound change of paradigms from a mechanistic to a systemic and ecological worldview, which lies at the heart of Mindwalk, are even more relevant today.”
 
The book invites deeper study, and is enhanced with behind-the-scenes photos and scientific commentary by Fritjof Capra.

Fritjof Capra wrote the book The Turning Point (1982), and his brother Bernt Capra created the story for the film and directed it. Photo c/o the Capra family, November 1991.

2021-09-17 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers that capture the times when they were written. Read more at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org, and support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a member and checking out their catalog of books reflecting the history of Topanga, available for sale.

2021-07-23 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers that capture the times when they were written. Read more at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org, and support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a member and checking out their catalog of books reflecting the history of Topanga, available for sale.

2021-07-09 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers and publications that capture the times when they were written. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a Member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2021-05-28 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers and publications that capture the times when they were written. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a Member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2021-04-30 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers and publications that capture the times when they were written. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a Member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2021-03-19 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist

As Archivist for the Topanga Historical Society, Pablo Capra saw an opportunity to compile historical vignettes lifted from bygone newspapers and publications that capture the times when they were written. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a Member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2021-02-19 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

"Topanga Before Today"

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
Historical accounts abound and stay hidden for decades or centuries. In his role as Archivist and his avid interest in Topanga History, Pablo Capra has ferreted out enticing vignettes from local newspaper archives that allow us a glimpse of what went before. Social gatherings, World War II, the environment, and Topanga first $1 million real estate sale, by Ian Brodie, Publisher of the Topanga Messenger. It’s good to hear his voice again grace the pages here. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a Member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2021-02-05 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

“Topanga Before Today”

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist
When Pablo Capra, The Canyon Chronicle’s (and Topanga Historical Society’s) intrepid researcher of Topanga history, began reading old newspapers, he discovered numerous vignettes that caught his attention but weren’t relevant to the books and articles he was writing. Too small to publish on their own, we found them interesting and amusing enough to present them as ongoing glimpses into our local history. Check out Capra’s video trailer for his book, Topanga Beach: A History, 1820s-1920s on YouTubePablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.

2020-12-24 The Canyon Chronicle - "Topanga Before Today" compiled by Pablo Capra

“Topanga Before Today”

Compiled by Pablo Capra
Topanga Historical Society Archivist

When Pablo Capra, The Canyon Chronicle’s (and Topanga’s) intrepid researcher of Topanga history, began reading old newspapers, he discovered numerous vignettes that caught his attention but weren’t relevant to the books and articles he was writing. Too small to publish on their own, we found them interesting and amusing enough to present them as ongoing glimpses into our local history and start with these. Pablo encourages you to support the Topanga Historical Society by becoming a member or buying a book at www.topangahistoricalsociety.org.


2020-08-23 Performing Arts Review - “The Mystery Man From The Magic Band” by Lee Greene

“The Mystery Man From The Magic Band”

by Lee Greene

Book Review

The Mystery Man from The Magic Band: 
Captain Beefheart's Writing Partner Revealed
by Herb Bermann, Introduction by John "Drumbo" French,
Interview by Derek Laskie, Foreword by Alec Baldwin
(Brass Tacks Press, 2015)

Now something a little different. Having previously reviewed numerous musical and theatrical performances and artists, today we’re offering a review of a book, The Mystery Man From The Magic Band, which is centered around an interesting tale concerning some notable musical and theatrical performances. The Mystery Man From The Magic Band is a unique work presenting the history of a unique, notable talent, Herb Bermann.

Mr. Bermann happens to be the answer to a very long, shrouded trivia mystery: namely, who wrote the lyrics to the 1967 debut album, Safe As Milk by the avant-garde group, Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band?

Of the 12 songs on the Safe As Milk album 8 are co-credited to someone called Herb Bermann. Who was he? No-one at the time seemed to know, he wasn’t a member of the band, he didn’t co-write any songs on the following albums and he was never mentioned in interviews. Very strange. Some fans thought he may have been an anonymous staff-writer foisted on Beefheart to keep the lid on his eccentricity… or, maybe, he was a friend of the producer or an agent getting a cut of the royalties.

Then when Shiny Beast was released in 1978 there he was again as co-writer of “Owed T’Alex.” Although some thought Don had been working with this mystery man again, the most likely scenario was that this was a song written almost ten years previously alongside those Safe As Milk tracks.

Despite Bermann’s name reappearing nothing new was found out about him. As years went by little more came to light. In fact, some people close to Beefheart during the Safe As Milk days even suggested that Herb Bermann was an invention of Don’s and didn’t exist. This did seem to be a possible option as nothing could be discovered about him… not even a mention on the internet (apart from a New York artist called Herb Berman—one “n”!). He just seemed to have disappeared between the cracks of rock music history.

“Herb Bermann”, quoted from Captain Beefheart Radar Station by Graham, 26 September 2012

For over 30 years, as the group and the album developed a cult following, fans of Captain Beefheart, musicologists, and the general public were left in the dark about the lyricist who produced the texts for those songs. As described above, it became the popular belief that no such person existed, but was only a fictitious name created by Captain Beefheart (alias of musical artist Don Vliet), himself an “enigmatic persona” who “frequently constructed myths.” (Wikipedia, Captain Beefheart)  Finally, in July 2002, a journalist (Susan Bunn, writing for The Malibu Times) managed to track down and interview the actual Herb Bermann and begin to get the real story behind the creation of the Safe As Milk songs and the authentic person who wrote the lyrics.

Captain Beefheart’s 1967 debut album Safe As Milk.

Herb Bermann’s original lyrics sheet for the song “Electricity.”

As it happens, the real Herb Bermann is not a one dimensional talent, whose only claim to fame is writing the lyrics to a cult band album, though that in itself would be worthy of note and interesting to read about. It turns out that Mr. Bermann has a long, colorful history in the entertainment industry with many turns and an assortment of positions besides lyricist: screenwriter, playwright, radio jockey, and actor in TV, film, theater, and commercials. In the 1950’s he was a DJ on the Billboard Top-30 KNOG in Nogales, AZ and KTUC in Tuscon.

In the 1960’s he was active as a television, film and theatre actor (using the screen name, Herb Masters), with recurring roles in a number of popular shows at the time, such as Dr. Kildare and The Asphalt Jungle.

In the late 1960’s he began writing theatrical plays, and then television screenplays, continuing through the 1970’s when he penned screenplays for popular TV shows like S.W.A.T.Wonder Woman, and Medical Center, winning a Writer’s Guild Award for his screenplay for NBC’s The Psychiatrist: Par for the Course (1971) directed by Steven Spielberg. After the Gold Rush (1970), one of his film screenplays from that era, co-written with Dean Stockwell, was the inspiration for Neil Young’s 1970 “Billboard Top Ten Pop Album” by the same name.

1960s headshot of Herb Bermann, using the name Herb Masters.

Herb Bermann in Topanga Canyon, 1969. Photo by George Herms.

In the wake of his emergence from obscurity, in the 21st century, he has resumed his acting career, appearing in several films, including the Roy Burdine directed Damage Done (2008), playing the role of Dad; on television, in shows such as the Showtime program, Milk and Honey (2002); and was most widely seen in commercials, where he played George Washington in the Mastercard ads, Debit—The Date (2002) and Debit—Burned (2003).

During most of his adult, professional life, he lived in the former Rodeo Grounds at the mouth of Topanga Canyon, in the midst of the artist colony there, in a home previously occupied by Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre, surrounded by other actors, musicians and artists all living out a Bohemian, liberated, and extraordinarily creative and productive lifestyle. [For those interested in hearing more concerning Mr. Bermann’s time in the Rodeo Grounds, you can access a video online in which he reads his composition, “Colophon”, about the Rodeo Grounds, part of the Brass Tacks Press media collection, Goodbye to the Rodeo Grounds. The text of “Colophon” is included among The Mystery Man from The Magic Band’s Appendix documents.]

Herb Bermann is no longer a mystery, a mythical invention of Captain Beefheart / Don Vliet, hidden in obscurity. He now is recognized with entries in Wikipedia (“Herb Bermann is an American lyricist, screenwriter, and actor...”) and IMDb (“Herb Bermann is a writer, known for S.W.A.T. (1975), Wonder Woman (1975) and Medical Center (1969)...”).

Herb Bermann as George Washington in Mastercard ad.

The book, The Mystery Man from The Magic Band, like its prime subject, is unusual, atypical, unique. It’s not your normal dry prose chronological biographical exposition of an artist’s life. Rather it is an interesting collection of bits and pieces of things written about or by the artist, which together weave a fascinating and effectively comprehensive picture of this unique talent’s career.

For musicologists and cult fans of Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band, it is invaluable, for it presents original lyric sheets prepared by Mr. Bermann, not just of the eight Safe As Milk songs, but lyric sheets for a total of 64 songs, some of which have been recorded and marketed, and many others which have never seen the light of day before.

The collection of penned works include a warm-hearted forward by Mr. Bermann’s longtime friend, actor Alec Baldwin; an informative introduction by Magic Band drummer John “Drumbo” French; an extensive interview of Mr. Bermann about his career, life, and work for Captain Beefheart by journalist Derek Laskie, along with Mr. Laskie’s explanatory introduction to the interview; an Appendix presenting an assortment of relevant historical documents, providing hard evidence of elements of Mr. Bermann’s career; and a treasure trove of engaging photographs depicting various moments from Mr. Bermann’s life. All in all, it paints a vibrant picture of the creative life of an intriguing, original, innovative artist. It is an interesting, entertaining and captivating read, especially at this time when the worldwide coronavirus pandemic has deprived us of fresh theatre, musical concerts and new motion pictures, and compelled us to remain isolated at home.

2020-06-26 The Canyon Chronicle - “Book Review—Topanga Beach: A History by Pablo Capra” by Linda Ballou

“Book Review—Topanga Beach: A History by Pablo Capra”

by Linda Ballou

Everything you ever wanted to know about Topanga Beach History, but didn’t know to ask is here. In this meticulously researched chronicle of the events taking place at this mostly overlooked bastion of eccentrics, dreamers and schemers you get the answers. The spirit of enterprise began with marketing relics found in mounds of native peoples dating back about 7,000 years. With the arrival of the Spanish, who doled out huge land grants to the elite, rodeos began. Soon makeshift lodging sprang up at Topanga Beach and the party that lasted more than a hundred years began.

The geography has changed since crowds of thousands clamored for seats at events at Topanga Beach. In 1906 a sea arch collapsed beneath where posh Mastro’s Ocean Club sits today. The arch marked the end of the highway until the defeat of May Rindge, the “Queen of Malibu,” who spent her vast fortune fighting those who wanted to lay railroad tracks through her land. Before Pacific Coast Highway was established there was a lagoon with a large bird population opening to the surf.

Moonlight dance parties often lasted the night. Rodeos with spur-jangling cowgirls and boys drew crowds of thousands. Rumors of bull fighting brought more. Bootlegging blossomed during Prohibition and Hollywood made its mark there as well. There was even a notorious cult performing secret ceremonies. Storms eventually took out the holiday cabins that popped up on the beach. Then came the surf culture. An amazing array of characters populated Topanga Beach between 1820 and 1920. The photo gallery included in this compact, yet concise history of this dynamic time is worth the price of admission.

Topanga Beach: A History by Pablo Capra is available from the publisher Brass Tacks Press, and from the Topanga Historical Society and Topanga Homegrown.

2019-02-13 Topanga Historical Society - "Presentation Video: Native Americans of Topanga Beach" by Pablo Capra and Chester King

"Presentation Video: Native Americans of Topanga Beach"

by Pablo Capra and Chester King



Pablo Capra and Chester King present "Native Americans of Topanga Beach" at the Topanga Historical Society.


2019-02-08 Messenger Mountain News - "Topanga Historical Society Presents: Native Americans of Topanga Beach" by Joe Sloan

"Topanga Historical Society Presents: Native Americans of Topanga Beach"

by Joe Sloan

The Topanga Historical Society's quarterly event features local historian Pablo Capra, who will share his research on "Native Americans of Topanga Beach" that appeared in a recent edition of the Messenger Mountain News.

Learn about a forgotten Native American burial mound that was discovered in 1910 and paved over for Pacific Coast Highway in 1923. A mysterious world emerges of men with horns, dwarfs, giants, Aztec invasions, and smoking mountains. There are also fascinating stories about the original discoverers of the burial mound: a class of Stanford students, a Wisconsin artifact-collector, a Civil War colonel, and a family of squirrels.

Save the Date! Wednesday, February 13, at 7 p.m., the evening begins with the traditional potluck dinner. Bring your best main dish, salad, dessert, bread, and beverage of choice, in a recyclable container. Organic coffee, tea, and lemon water, as well as plates, cups, and cutlery, will be provided. Cash donations are welcome to help defray expenses.

The presentation begins promptly at 8 p.m.

This is also a good time to join or renew your THS membership: $20 for individuals, $30 for families, and support the keepers of Topanga's history. Or, join online at topangahistoricalsociety.org, where you can buy our famous book The Topanga Story, or pay your annual membership fee. Also, like the Topanga Historical Society on Facebook.

The Topanga Community Center is located at 1140 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga, CA 90290.



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Los Angeles, California, United States
Official website at www.brasstackspress.com