Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hi All, I am working on an article about briefly knowing Jim Morrison at Coronado North Beach parties in 1963. Does anyone have any old photos of beach parties from Coronado around that time (early 1960s). Also, working on some 'carzy', and often dangerous, TJ stories. Any old photos from TJ would be great to see also. You could send anything you may have to my e-mail address at: drolivas@hotmail.com. Otherwise, all good with me except that damn age thing ;). Still surfing, exploring, and trying (trying) to be funny. Jerry

Terry Lee Maple

For a unique Father's Day message, please read our essay at theredleafpress.com . Enjoy!

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hello Everyone, Here’s a ‘good’ story that may bring back some memories of Coronado beach parties during our High School days. This is how I remember my knowing of Jim Morrison. There is a good possibility that some of you were at these parties too. The problem is/was that at the time (early summer 1963) Jim Morrison was just another guy so no one would have known he was, well, the Jim Morrison we all eventually knew about. Enjoy. Jerry  https://coronadotimes.com/news/2021/07/01/another-jim-morrison-sighting-in-1963/

Kay Kozuye Ochi

Hello, Jerry Olivas! Very glad that you've joined the "Forum". . . Back in the 60's we lived in very different worlds, although they intersected at HHS. And, oh, yes, with the Cheerleaders/Songleaders (by day). Had no idea that you were a wild child by night. Thanks for your article on Jim Morrison! Had no idea of his and your Coronado connection and I loved the Doors - especially during college and after. Hope that you share more of your adventures. RIP Jim Morrison.

Patricia Ann Prickett

It's interesting how all of our paths crossed without us knowing it.  Jim Morrison used to hang out at my old boyfriend's house across from the Chateau Marmont when I first moved to LA.  His band was called Gentle Soul and his producer, Terry Melcher - which is a whole other story, paid for the house we all were in.  I was there 1/2 time and in Pasadena at the Pasadea Playhouse the rest of the time.  They played the Whiskey, and then years later our son played the Whiskey..  interesting times

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Bruce and All, Thanks for the great snaps. The one of Jim Morrison (my best friend !#%&) in the Long Bar is not the Long Bar I use to go to (base on my long term memory). It looks like he is drinking a 12 oz bottles of Bud. Mostly pitcher beer and 40 oz Suprema and Superior (if you could afford those), and tequila too. Also, looks like a bottle of whiskey in the background—should be tequila. Wearing big coats in TJ, not usual either. In addition, the bar at the Long Bar was higher (I think) and no speakers hanging off the walls. But the dead give away that it’s not the Long Bar is those nice stools. No nice stools or chairs or tables in the Long Bar—just funky, get down, sh*t. You may all remember that there were plenty of fights and craziness in the Long Bar, but one of my most lasting and fond memory was the night Larry Cook broke the record for tequila shots—over 20 I think—and I remember he could still walk. Larry caught his last wave in 2018. Jerry   

Jim Hawes

On memorial day my 5yr old grandson wanted to look at my old Army yearbook with me. I remember posting earlier that Jim Eshbach (HHS 1963) was in our company, but had failed to mention another one of our classmates was there as well. Not sure where his enlistment took him but according to the "ole interweb" he and Linda are alive and well living in Oregon! 

Kay Kozuye Ochi

Thanks, Jim! I haven't seen Jerry Hanano since HHS. Always wondered where he was. Thanks to all Lancers that served.

Terry Lee Maple

Kay. I believe Jerry took a spin as an air traffic controller and lost his job when Reagan shut down the union. I would love to contact him as he was a wonderful athlete and good friend in high school. BTW please send me offline your email address so we can keep in touch. terrylmaple@msn.com. Thanks. 

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hi Kay, Thank you for checking in an saying hello. Are you still dating? Just kidding—it’s Jerry Olivas, always kidding around. Actually, I was too scared to ask you out. I am still hangin’ in—surfing a little, trying to be funny, exploring, and trying to be creative when possible. On my second marriage (37 years), one boy from my first marriage, and plenty of ‘sweet’ cats my entire life—two solid black boys (brothers) currently. It’s been and continues to be a good life for me. Lived overseas in the UK and Italy years ago and have travel all over the world from China to Haiti. Got another trip to Portugal planned, I hope soon. Would like to get back to Western Australia too. Ciao, Jerry

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Jim, It’s your old buddy Jerry Olivas from (use to be) down the street and around the corner on E. El Capitan. Sounds like you have a great family—just one son for me an no grand kids. I dodged the entire Vietnam and military—basically to chicken. For some reason, I thought you were a race car driver. Jerry Hanano was a good friend that I remember use to smach the sh*t out of me in JV Football. I still blame him for being a little off mentally. Do you happen to know where are old friend Roger Schmidt is? Ciao, Jerry

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Terry,

First, thanks for the shout out—I will take it :))). Second, man you have accomplished so much to be proud about in your life. But we all expected that of you … Those books and your research are fabulous. As for me, well, I am lucky I survived my teens and as for adulthood it has been a little dicey now that then. Actually I spend a good deal of time in academia (still working as a mentor for doctoral dissertation students at University of Phoenix) and have published quite a bit mostly in the educational technology field and a good deal of it is peer-reviewed. But it is my wife who is the big publisher in the household having published 11 books on pastry and desserts (Carole Bloom).

I did start off in the aerospace industry (you know, that darn Rohr got me at first) but later I got smarter and finished my education. I know the Atlanta area pretty well, mostly around Alpharetta, where both my wife and I have done some work (my wife taught for Publix’s), I did some business technology consulting. And if you live on Amelia Island, near Jacksonville, watch out for the parrot at the Nature Center, it will bite your finger ;).

Thanks for saying I was a good athlete, which I thought I was during JV football times, but it was my brother Jim (who is doing fine with a huge family) that was much better with much more courage.

It’s great and about time that I am crossing paths with so many good friends from the past. You may remember that I straddle all the groups in High School. It’s no wonder my grades were, well, marginal--I was too busy goofing off with everyone.

Jerry drolivas@hotmail.com

Karen Etsuko Tachiki (Savel)

Hello to all of you, from a basically little known member of the class of 1964, and just wanted to add a bit of information about Jerry Hanano. Another classmate, Judy Nutz Goldman has had contact with Jerry and I think she said that he lives in Bonita. She mentioned to me that he had at one time started a landscaping business and had worked for she and her husband. Not sure if his status remains the same. Nice to hear of the adventures of others of our class and hope all have maintained good health during the pandemic.

Jim Hawes

Hi Guys,

I talked with "Jerry" Hanano this past weekend! He is alive and well, he and Linda live in Oregon. I found his contact info on the "Interweb"! I'm not comfortable with posting it here, but will share with anyone interested in a private message. Terry Maple also has his contact info for those of you in contact with Terry.

It was nice to have a pleasant conversation with Jerry, I could remember his great smile when talking to him.

Jerry mentioned that Dean Butterfield had built his Bonita house for him and that when he was selling it Rosie came to look at it with a realtor! (Small world department !!!)

Jerry hunkered down during Co-Vid this past year, he was recovering from a kayak accident! I don't think he would mind me sharing that info! (attn Mr. Beckwith).

Bruce, Jerry O. & Patti

I do remember parties in IB and Coronado. We were always welcome (probably due to the fact that Linda B. was dating Tim Cousins at the time). One party moved from the beach to an apt. a couple of blocks from the Hotel Del. Not sure who's apt. it was, but it was located above a Bank and the only entrance was an outside staircase that was accessed through a driveway archway. The police showed up and parked their patrol car in the archway, blocking "get-a-way" access! They didn't bust anyone, but confiscated 1/2 the booze! 

I lived in Studio City for a while, worked at International Motor Imports in Beverly Hills (Wilshire & Beverly Glen). We had quite a few Celeb customers. Sorry, at the time I wasn't overly impressed (okay there were exceptions ).

One of the best was Marvin Gaye (I think I mentioned this in an earlier post to Bruce). Marvin was a "car guy", he would stop by the business every couple of weeks (usually mid-day) to check out the cars (Maserati's, Lambos, other hi end stuff). He was very softspoken and laid back. This was in 1968. The man created some  of the best music of the era. I'm still a MoTown fan and listen to many of his songs.

Oh, and Jerry Olivas' brother Jim shaving my head after Jr. High gradualtion! I didn't realize it would be a sign of thing to come! ha, ha, ha !

Best to all, and happy we made it this far!

Cheers, Jim Hawes

Kay Kozuye Ochi

Hi, Jerry Olivas! You are funny - am I still dating? - made me laugh. Wanted to let you know that back in 1963-64, I (and most folks) thought that you were SO cool. I once danced the "Surfer Stomp" with you at a noon dance in the gym. Highlight of my year (ha ha). Congratulatons on being married for 37 years; I only lasted for 10. I will check out your wife's cookbooks (!) And, to Jim Hawes, thanks for sharing about Jerry. I'm interested in talking to him and to  you, Karen, to find out what being Japanese American at HHS was like fo you two. Has anyone stayed in touch with Lynn Iwashita? *Not to get so ethnocentric, but, after WWII it was not easy being JA. that's a long story for some other time.

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hello Kay and All,

This is a sensitive subject but I thought I would make some relatively light weight comments regarding being raised in CV during (for me) the late 50s until, for many of us, I moved on after High School. Race, prejudice, and discrimination was not something I thought too much about although I did/do have a ‘coded’ Spanish surname but didn’t look stereotypically Hispanic. My father mainly kept me and my brothers screened from his side of the family and you did not speak a work of Spanish in my household. And I will add that although most of my best friends were Mexicans like Gary Baldwin and Danny Ramirez, who continue to be my best friends, my parents were not very accepting of anything other than all white Caucasians. At the time I didn’t quite get what was going on, but later, actually not to long after leaving CV, I could see that I was raised in a racist family and segregated community.

Chula Vista, as I remember it was a typical all white American community with very few blacks and I don’t remember any black students at Hilltop High (but I could be wrong here). Also, although there were some Hispanics at Hilltop High, I do not remember that many—and Spanish was for Spanish class (I never heard any one speak Spanish at Hilltop High). As for Asians, well my dad was a veteran of WWII so I couldn’t really have any friends that were Asian and I did not actually get that at the time. To be honest here I don't remember any administrators, teachers, or staff that weren't white--I think most men too at Hilltop High.

Chula Vista as I remember it was pretty much a segregated community. The street where I lived was all Caucasians—no anything else other than all white. Don’t forget that during the late 50s and most of the 60s the John Birch society was well established in Chula Vista, and they were definitely not about acceptance of difference. Others may see Hilltop High and Chula Vista differently and they have a right to their opinions and interpretations of how they see their experiences.

This link is a story that I recently published about a personal experience that helped form my core values regarding people that are not like me: https://short-edition.com/en/story/creative-nonfiction/tracks-and-pie. Luckily, my time in Berkeley, living abroad, and travels broadened my understanding and acceptance for most things in life including others, all others.

I hope I didn’t spook anyone with the above but had to get it off my mind. So, would I trash all my experiences of being raised in Chula Vista? No, but I am glad that I have a fuller understanding of my home town, Chula Vista in the late 50s and early 60s.

Jerry

Terry Lee Maple

Before Castle Park was opened, we had Hispanic and Samoan team-mates on the football team. I was friendly with Victor Araiza, Frank Gomes, and Phil Iulie. There was no racism on the football team. San Diego was segregated. We played all black schools like Lincoln and San Diego High. In fact, we used to beat them routinely in football and basketball. At the C.V. Boys Club we mingled with a lot of black children with no difficulties. My mother was Hispanic, family names Lopez and Salazar. Her family was from Ventura. My wife did the genealogy to trace my roots to the founding of Alta California so I could join an organization known as Los Californianios. Although my grandmother spoke Spanish, my mother did not. I didn't take Spanish because counselors wanted science-inclined students to take French or German. By contrast, my daughter Molly enrolled her three children in a bilingual preschool in South Carolina. By the age of six, they were fluent in Spanish and they speak it at home with their mother. You seen comfortable with the label racist. I do not believe America is a racist country and I don't blame white people for anything. My father married a Hispanic women. He was not a racist. We had many neighborhood Hispanic friends that we partied with. I remember the wonderful fiesta parties at the Acosta's home; tostadas, home made tortillas and tamales. In college, I played semi pro baseball on a team in the California Mexican League. After each game, the fans threw a big party for us with Menudo and other fine Mexican dishes. Frank Fernandez' father was Cuban, I believe. He lived in a trailer near the Silver Dollar where he worked as a bar tender. Frank and I would walk downtown, stop at the trailer to see his grandmother, then on to the bar to borrow money from his dad. They spoke Spanish during these transactions. I am very proud of my Hispanic roots but I'm equally proud of my farming roots on my faher's side. He grew up in Nebraska. Let me raise one last point. I was CEO of two non-profits. Imagine if I had to identify my staff as oppressors and oppressed. How do you encourage cohesion and teamwork among people stratified by these labels? I abhore Critical Race Theory. Be skepical about the left and their steady drift to socialism. Our teachers warned us about socialism. I fear that today's teachers are embracing it. 

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Bob, I spent a little time in South Africa, mostly in the Western Cape region. On a couple of occasions, I was ask to stay (or come back) and work their (to help build the country) in the technology field. But timing was not right. South Africa has a great deal of diversity to explore and there are many great snaps to be had of people and places. The Knysna area had some really beautiful places especially the coast. Below is a snap of a friend I met in the wild near Simon’s Town (not to far from Cape Town). Oh, I kinda do remember Brian Belchers. I thought he was from Australia. Enjoy. Jerry

Bruce Wilson

Frank's father did not live in a trailer when I met him. 

I was friends with Phil Iuli and coached his little brother on the playbrounds. No problemo. Tubo was a different story..

Read Bryon's Shewman's historical article if you want the real story re racism in Otay=CV

For example the Woodlawn Park development in Otay.

Chula Vista was grossly racist. The head of the Chamber of Commerce in CV advocated sending black people to National City and locking them out of Vista Square. No blacks at HHS or CVHS and even Sweetwater.

If you want to look at race theory in the US 

look up postcards of the hanging out on highway 61

Gary William Baldwin

I remember CV as having a racist component. Names I was called include: "greaser" "taco bender" "wet back" "spic".  My identity was challenged because I did not look like a "Baldwin ".  After being stopped for walking, by a police officer, he followed me home because he did not believe me when I said I lived around the corner on Mitscher. My entire life I have encountered folks who labeled me, and questioned my rights, based on my brown skin.  

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Terry,

That’s interesting—I didn’t realize you had an Hispanic background. But what is really interesting is that we are probably related—well, maybe. My family is also originally from Ventura. They came to Alta California in the late 1700s on the Rivera Expedition from Sinaloa, Mexico (New Spain). This is all well documented. My great, great, great grandfather is Don Raymundo Olivas who received a Mexican Land Grant and built the Olivas Adobe, in Ventura https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/648/Olivas-Adobe. He and his wife had 21 children almost all males and they married some Lopez’s and Salazar’s. So, don’t forget to put in your trust.

In my humble opinion, it’s healthy that there are different interpretations, opinions, and discourse regarding what Chula Vista was like in the 50s and 60s in terms of segregation, LGBTQ, disability bias (‘challenged’ as it is now called), sexism, ageism, and inequalities (not sure how religion fit into the picture in Chula Vista in the 50s and 60s--my Catholic School days ended when I moved to CV in the 7^th Grade). What works for me is to try to fully understand the most accurate and honest reality of the past and history, put it all on the table (so to speak), critically analyze and question everything. This helps me, and I believe others, learn from the past and decide what we all want for the future. I pretty much adhere to the believe that studying history [as accurately as possible] is important because if we don’t, here we go again and again. For me erasing or changing history is is not healthy for anyone—and best to be truthful about current situations too—duh.

Oh my, that enough from me. Go Terry! Go Lancers! And time for a hamburger, fries, and milk shake at Jack in the Box on 3^rd and K (and don’t tell me it’s not there anymore)!

Jerry

Jerry Olivas, EdD

Hey Baldwin,

Good to hear from you. Last I heard you and LaHaye got into gun fight with a guy in TJ at the El Patio Bar. Story was that you disarmed him and as it turned out the guy was an escape convict. The TJ Police patch your head wound up and credited you and LaHaye with catching a most want criminal. Oh, while you and LaHaye subdued the bad guy, Williams and I were standing outside wondering what was taking you guys so long (we needed to get to the dance in CV). I certainly would have gone for help if I knew there was trouble ;).

Your buddy, Olivas

Terry Lee Maple

I spent a lot of time with Frank from our elementary years to high school. We were team mates and he lived round the corner from me. I walked with him to Chula Vista to see his father many times. If that wasn't a trailer it was a mighty small house just around the corner from the bar. We may have separate realities here, but don't tell me I'm wrong. I'm confident that my memory is every bit as good as yours. As for racism, it certainly existed especially in the south but my brother played football with a lot of black athletes and so did I. The Boys Club was a melting pot. Chula Vista and Castle Park and Sweetwater all had more African-American students than Hilltop. One of my best friends at Castle Park Junior High was Biff McClure, all 5'9 and 234 pounds of him. Iuli was a buddy of George Kelly, one of my best friends in high school. George and Iuli quit school to enter the Marine Corps on the buddy system. They served on the Kitty Hawk. I knew Tubo Leonard, an adversary at Mar Vista in football and basketball. He was not a nice person as I recall but an excellent athlete. I regret that any of my friends suffered racial slurs, but I was taught by my mother to be kind to all people. I never considered the color of their skin or their ethnicity as a deficiency. I abhor this woke notion that goes against the ideas of one of my heroes, Martin Luther King, Jr. I worked for Andrew Young, one of his lieutenants in the civit rights movement when Andy was Mayor of Atlanta. He is a fine man. There is racism, but I will never accept the idea that America is a racist country. It is the freest country on earth. We should all be grateful for the opportunities we've had to succeed and prosper. For those of us who are "white" we don't have to be ashamed because we are not oppressors. Critical Race Theory has really pissed me off. 

Karen Etsuko Tachiki (Savel)

Just a few thoughts about my racial/cultural/ethnic experiences growing up in Chula Vista for most of my childhood...I did experience some prejudice and did have a few negative experiences related to my Japanese heritage. I guess it was to be expected in our area with significant military presence. I found living in the Bay Area during college to be seemingly more tolerant of cultural differences. When my family moved to Chula Vista in 1956, my father was told by his real estate representative that she could not sell him a house in the city limits of Chula Vista because of our ethnicity. Well as things turned out, a military man was willing to sell our house to my father and we were able to live within the city limits of Chula Vista. In my very limited exposure to the world outside of my small group of friends most parents of friends were very tolerant of the fact that I was not white and there were some parents who were very very kind to me even though it was not the case for many others. And I am very grateful for those parents who were so kind. I was able to share with some of those classmates the gratitude I felt for their parents at our 50th reunion. I do believe there is a lot of racism in our country and in fact of late quite a lot more than I had thought for nearly 75 years.I recently had a negative encounter while walking in the early morning of a person yelling negative Chinese slurs at me from an open car window. So even today these kind of prejudices exist in our somewhat idlyllic city.I have had the good fortune to travel to many foreign countries and with each of those experiences I have always felt we have the greatest country in the world and would not wish to live in any other country. Today there is a little part of me that is not so sure it is quite as great as I thought it was a few years ago. Hopefully I'm wrong and it remains a country to be proud of. To those of you who have shared your experiences thank you it has been an interesting discussion.

Bruce Wilson

Gary: The only names I recall using with you were Gary, maybe Baldy and ''brother'. Looking back at the old fotos I can see why folks had a hard time swallowing the line that we were siblings, but we tried!

Jerry: The JIB is gone, moved to the south side of K Street and being remodeled as we speak. Now Robert and I were sometimes on the wrong side of the law on certain issue, but gunz. Tell me it ain't so Joe. When I tracked him down a few years back he was living in LA and selling some of his jewelry.

So Terry, a lot of words to say you were not racist. I do not see where anybody said you were. I do not think I am racist either.

It has "generally" seemed to me that generalizing based on one or two cases is a bad procedure though..

BTW, I  did not say you were wrong. I just stated a fact.

A careful look at contemoraneous aerial fotos reveals no trailers in existance in the block where Mr. Fernandez lived.

...

There are lots of fotos of hangings and all the victims in the ones I have seen are black, never white.

Why did so many black people end up living either south or north of CV and so few in CV?

Sampling error?

I