From The Liveliest 74-Year Old In L.A.
1. Farmers Market (no apostrophe!) was created in July 1934.
2. Farmers Market was “invented” by Roger Dahlhjelm, a businessman, and Fred Beck, an advertising copywriter. They asked the owners of the former Gilmore dairy farm at 3rd & Fairfax if they could invite local farmers to park trucks on vacant Gilmore land to sell fresh produce to local shoppers.
3. Eighteen farmers responded to the opportunity to sell their fresh produce, some in reply to advertisements aired on KNX radio; each farmer paid 50 cents rent to park their trucks on the property.
4. The land on which Farmers Market sits was originally purchased in the 1870s by Arthur Fremont Gilmore and his partner, Julius Carter. When the two dissolved their partnership a short while later, they drew straws to divide up their properties; A. F. Gilmore pulled the short straw and got the barren 256 acre dairy farm located at what is now 3rd & Fairfax in Los Angeles.
The Gilmore Gas Legend
5. Around the turn of the century, in order to expand his dairy herd, A. F. Gilmore started drilling for water on the ranch; he found oil.
6. A. F. Gilmore and his son, Earl Bell (E.B.) turned their Gilmore Oil Company into the largest independent distributor of petroleum products in the Western U.S.
7. E. B. Gilmore invented the self-serve gas station. He created a “gas-a-teria” at 3rd & Fairfax – customers saved 5 cents per gallon by filling their own tanks.
8. Those who preferred to have their gas pumped by “professionals” got unusual service when young ladies on roller skates would glide to the pumps to gas up the cars.
9. The Gilmore Oil Company built its reputation with a host of promotions, some outlandish, all successful; the “branding” of their products, Blu-Green and Red Lion gas, turned those names into a celebrated and commonplace part of Western U.S. culture.
10. “Gilmore” the Lion Cub was Roscoe Turner's official co-pilot. Together in a Gilmore airplane they set a number of intercity air speed records in the 1930s. "Gilmore" wore a leather pilot’s cap when he barnstormed.
11. “Gilmore” the Lion Cub is believed to have been the inspiration for Leo, the MGM lion.
12. “Gilmore” the Lion Cub logged more than 30,000 miles as a co-pilot and won a place in the National Air & Space Museum.
13. The Gilmores sponsored a variety of race cars, from midgets to Indy 500 racers; two Gilmore sponsored cars won the Indianapolis 500. Kelly Petillo drove the "Gilmore Special" in 1935, and Wilbur Shaw drove the "Shaw-Gilmore Special" in 1937.
14. Earl Bell Gilmore is honored in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall Of Fame and the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
15. The Gilmore Radio Circus, an extremely popular radio program, featured “Blu-Green, the Longest Song in the World,” a jingle which promoted Gilmore Gas. Each week, listeners submitted new verses for the song; weekly winners received $5 in Gilmore Gas coupons, monthly winners, $100. The song, adding new verses every week, grew longer and longer and longer. . .
16. Earl’s Service, an exact replica of a 1936 Gilmore Gas station, was built at Farmers Market at the turn of this century – every detail, from the pumps to the magazines on the desk in the station, is exact and precise (the station is surrounded by a complete history of Gilmore Gas and its place in Western American history).
Farmers Market: History & Fun Facts
17. Blanche Magee was among the first to notice the farmers parked on the lot at 3rd & Fairfax in 1934 – she speculated that they might want to eat lunch. Ms. Magee loaded a picnic hamper and began selling sandwiches – today, Magee’s is still serving Farmers Market patrons fine food at Magee's Kitchen.
18. Ultimate Nut & Candy Company opened a shop soon after the Market opened and they still offer wonderful fare, including candied fruits and exotic nuts.
19. More than 90% of all the shops and stalls at Farmers Market are independently owned and operated.
20. Farmers Market and its shops employ more than 500 people.
21. Farmers Market, the Market Plaza and North Market are home to at least 85 different shops and restaurants; North Market also has 60,000 sq. ft. of modern (and very popular) office space and is home to Gilmore Bank, one of the nation’s finest community banks.
22. Du-par’s Restaurant, a family enterprise which is among the oldest continuously operating food establishments in Los Angeles, arrived at Farmers Market more than 68 years ago. Now owned and operated by the Naylor family, equally steeped in Los Angeles restaurant history, Du-par’s has been recently renovated, adding a delightful patio offering outdoor dining. They still serve the finest pot pies on earth.
23. Magee’s Nuts, where roasted mixed nuts were invented, grinds and sells about 100,000 pounds of fresh peanut butter every year.
24. The Senior Doughnut makers at Bob’s Doughnuts begin baking at about 4:30 AM; on an average day, they’ll bake about 1,000 doughnuts (including dinosaur doughnuts, kitty doughnuts, and a cinnamon roll which many believe is the best ever made). There are no “day old” products at Bob’s – they make enough to sell today and start afresh the next day.
25. At least 20 sons and daughters of Farmers Market merchants work at the Market; at least two Market entrepreneurs employ their parents; one Market merchant worked for his dad and later employed his daughter.
26. On an average day, Market visitors purchase more than 1,000 gallons of coffee.
27. On an average day, visitors to the Market toss about $35 into the Wishing Well (near the entrance to Mr. Marcel’s Gourmet Grocery) – over the years, the spare change and bills have generated close to $1,000,000 in donations to charity.
28. On an average day, Tusquellas Fish & Oyster Bar sells about 3,000 shrimp.
29. On an average day, employees in the various Farmers Market shops and restaurants may use at least 20 languages as they serve their customers.
30. In an average year,millions of visitors come to Farmers Market. Each year, Rose Bowl fans come to the Market in such numbers that as many as 85 coach busses have visited the property on a single day.
31. Farmers Market Poultry maintains an Actor’s Club which offers discounts to out-of-work thespians.
32. Farmers Market’s “official” hours (9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Sunday) are expanded every day to serve Market regulars who arrive early or stay late. Among them are teachers, long-time friends and Hollywood writers and directors. The BBC once made a documentary about the latter group. Often, both of the Market’s excellent bars (E.B.’s Beer & Wine and 326) are open late into the evening.
33. Charlie Sue Gilbert, of Charlie’s Coffee Shop, serves some of the morning regulars so often that she puts their orders on her grill when she sees them walking onto the West Patio.
34. Portions of Farmers Market are designated as an official Los Angeles Cultural & Historical Landmark.
35. Mr. Kidson (A.K.A. Fred Beck, who co-invented the Market) wrote a daily column about the Market which appeared in the Los Angeles Times for many years and was judged by that newspaper to be as popular as their most popular comic strip at the time, Dick Tracy.
36. Fred Beck frequently dressed up as Chef Baloni and wandered the aisles of the Market passing out free recipes to shoppers. Mr. Beck also used his Chef Baloni persona to lead a parade of merchants every year during Fall Festival.
37. Each year, the Market stages a popular auto show, The Gilmore Heritage Auto Show, on the first Saturday in June, a Fall Festival, a Mardi Gras celebration and special celebrations of St. Patrick’s Day and Cinco de Mayo.
38. Farmers Market has been described (by the Los Angeles Times) as “the number one place in L.A. to spot stars.”
39. Every two-wheeled wooden shopping cart at Farmers Market is hand-made on the property; the carts are painted in “Farmers Market Green.” A large display near China Depot tells the story of the carts; a second display, at Gate 14 between Huntington Meats & Sausage and Mr. Marcel’s Gourmet Grocery, shows how the carts are made.
40. Scott Bennett, of Bennett’s Ice Cream is one of a handful of experts in the nation who makes his own ice cream from scratch – he can be seen practicing his trade through the window of his shop’s kitchen at Gate 15.
41. Michael Graves, of Littlejohn’s House of Toffee, is one of a handful of experts in the nation who makes candy by hand – he can often be seen making candy (usually up to his elbows in chocolate) in the window of his shop.
42. Bennett’s Ice Cream once filled an order for 500 vanilla ice cream busts of USC's Tommy Trojan. They were served at a wedding reception.
43. Bill Thee, of Thee’s Continental Pastries, decorates cakes by hand in the window of his shop – in addition to his extremely popular “Pink Elephant” cake (which features a bottle of champagne), Bill also makes personalized "photo" cakes.
44. During one holiday season, Lee Liberace parked his convertible in front of a Market store and then purchased every single set of cuff links and most of the robes in the shop. He loaded the gift-wrapped packages into his car and drove off; observers reported that he never bothered to turn off the convertible’s engine.
45. CBS Television City, just north of North Market, was once part of the Gilmore dairy farm; it was also the site of Gilmore Stadium.
The Sporting Life
46. Long before the Dodgers broke Brooklyn’s heart by moving to Los Angeles, the Hollywood Stars played professional baseball at Gilmore Field which was just a short stroll from the Market on Gilmore land.
47. Gilmore Field was charmingly intimate -- 1st base and 3rd base were 24 feet from the first row of seats, home plate just 34 feet away. The fans were so close that some in the bleachers conducted running conversations with the outfielders and others reportedly kept containers of beer readily available for thirsty players.
48. The Hollywood Stars were owned by such true Hollywood stars as Bing Crosby, Barbara Stanwyk and C. B. DeMille.
49. Jayne Mansfield was Miss Hollywood Stars of 1955.
50. Sparky Anderson – later one of baseball’s most successful managers and television’s most popular baseball commentators – played for the Stars. So did Chuck Connors, The Rifleman.
51. The Grove, due east of the Original Market, is on land which was part of the Gilmore dairy farm (The Grove is on the site of Gilmore Field, the Gilmore Drive-In Theater, and the original home of Gilmore Bank).
52. Gilmore Stadium (a separate venue west of Gilmore Field) was primarily known as the place where midget car racing was invented and flourished, but the Stadium also hosted college and pro football, donkey baseball, boxing, rodeos, dog shows and at least one cricket match.
53. Esther Williams performed a diving and water ballet exhibition at Gilmore Stadium. She had an above ground pool built and staged her performances in it. The next day, the pool was removed.
54. The Los Angeles Bulldogs, the first professional football team in Los Angeles, played at Gilmore Stadium.
55. Gilmore Stadium was, for many years (1934-1950), the home to a long annual season of midget car racing, a sport of enormous popularity in its heyday. One of the original midget racers from that era has been lovingly restored and is displayed each year at the Gilmore Heritage Auto Show by the President of the A. F. Gilmore Company, Henry Hilty, Jr.
More Farmers Market History & Fun Facts
56. James Dean is believed to have eaten breakfast at Farmers Market on the fateful day he drove north and died in a fatal auto crash (9/30/55).
57. Irwin “Kip” Kipper, of Kip’s Toyland, has been in the toy business for 60 years; his toy shop at Farmers Market is among the oldest and most popular shops in the Market.
58. The Farmers Market Lottery Booth, located at Sheltam’s Newsstand, is consistently one of the highest selling lottery outlets in California.
59. Jay Leno drove a wooden-body Rolls Royce to the first Gilmore Heritage Auto Show. The car overheated as it arrived for the show and the Market staff happily provided water, topping off the radiator so The Tonight Show host could drive home when the show ended.
60. The Bugle is a monthly publication filled with Farmers Market information, news, gossip, and event listings. The best way to read The Bugle is to “Meet Me At 3rd & Fairfax” since the publication is available throughout the Market. It is also available online by clicking here.
61. The Farmers Market Clock Tower, which overlooks Farmers Market Plaza and the main entrances to the Market, has welcomed visitors to the Market for more than half a century (it was first erected in 1941). When The Grove at Farmers Market was constructed and the Market added the Plaza and North Market, the clock tower was carefully taken down, fully restored and erected in its new home with a brand new clock works.
62. The trolley which shuttles between the Market and The Grove at Farmers Market is patterned after the original Red Car system which served L.A. for decades. The double-decked trolley makes three stops on its route; the ride is free and so is the fun of riding it.
63. When the stars of the 1950s movie “T-Men” took a break from chasing counterfeiters to grab some lunch, they dined at Farmers Market.
64. When the stars of the film “Stigmata” stroll down a foggy and rainy shopping area in Pittsburgh, they’re really in the aisles of Farmers Market.
65. When Dick Van Dyke and his son visited a Chinese Herb Shop during an episode of “Diagnosis Murder,” they were in a Farmers Market fruit stand.
66. Every Summer, Farmers Market hosts two highly popular – and absolutely free – music series, Thursday Evening Jazz and Friday Night Concerts. Both series feature some of the most talented musicians in Los Angeles (and from as far as Texas, Chicago, New Orleans and South America).
67. In the days before the Market was open for evening enjoyment, it was once taken over by a group of Hollywood wives to raise funds for charity. Among those who worked behind the counters at the Market that evening were Shirley Temple, whose presence drew such a crowd that, out of concern for her safety, the fire department had to cut a hole in the roof of the shop to rescue the moppet from the crush of the crowd.
68. The Market’s second floor Dining Deck, an ideal place to eat and enjoy an expansive view of the Hollywood Hills, features Portraits Of The Market, a magnificent photo gallery of Market people created by screenwriter Leon Capetanos.
69. AMA, the robot who stands by the entrance to Kip’s Toyland and Ama’s dog, Togo, are the creation of Alfredo Alcaraz, one of the Market’s outstanding crew of carpenters, gardeners and maintenance staff. Ama and Togo are both constructed entirely of spare parts found lying around the Market’s carpentry shop.
70. Among the Market’s remarkable array of restaurants, at least 16 different ethnic or cultural cuisines are readily available, ranging from Asian and Brazilian to French, Mediterranean, Greek and Mexican.
71. When Walt Disney was preparing his early designs for a place called Disneyland, he did some of his work while dining on one of the Farmers Market patios. Elements of the Market’s unique design - it is said - are incorporated into his original drawings.
72. Clark Gable, Claudette Cobert and “It Happened One Night” won Oscars, St. Louis shut out Detroit to win the World Series, and “Blue Moon” topped the pop music charts . In 1934, these achievements were, in retrospect, eclipsed by another notable event: “Meet Me at 3rd & Fairfax” became the most delightful invitation ever offered. Farmers Market has been welcoming the world ever since.
73. The Gilmore Drive-In Theater, which faced Third Street where The Grove now stands, featured rows of benches in front of the spaces reserved for cars so that "Walk-In" movie fans could enjoy the shows, too.
74. One of the starting players for a college All-American football team, The Western College Stars, in a January, 1948 game at Gilmore Stadium was John Ferraro. "Johnny" Ferraro later served as President of the Los Angeles City Council for more than a decade, representing the Council District which includes Farmers Market.
