Title supplied by cataloger. Rolland Joseph 'Speedy' Curtis was born in Louisiana in 1922. After serving three years in the Marines during World War II, he and his wife, Gloria, relocated from New Orleans to Los Angeles in 1946. Curtis served four years with the Los Angeles Police Department, but resigned from the force in order to pursue both a Bachelor's and Master's degree from USC. He later became involved in city politics, as an associate of Sam Yorty, and later a field deputy to City Council members Billy Mills and Tom Bradley. He was briefly director of the Model Cities program in 1973. Rolland J. Curtis died in his home in 1979, the victim of a homicide. An affordable housing complex on Exposition Blvd. near Vermont Ave. was named in his honor in 1981, along with a nearby street and park.; James Roosevelt was born on December 23, 1907, the oldest son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt. He was an American businessman, activist and Democratic Party politician. He received the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism while serving as a Marine Corps officer during World War II. He served as a Secretary to President Roosevelt and in the United States House of Representatives. He died on August 13, 1991.; Golden State Mutual was the largest black-owned insurance company west of the Mississippi. Its business expanded into a five-story building on the corner of Western and Adams Boulevards that was designed by Paul R. Williams. Its founders started the Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Co. Afro-American Art Collection.; Charles Alston and Hale Woodruff were commissioned by the Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Co., 1999 West Adams, one of the largest black-owned businesses of its day, to paint murals dedicated to the theme "The Negro in California history". Woodruff completed this mural, "The Negro in California history, settlement and development", in 1949. The mural was restored in 1985 by Richard Wyatt. James Roosevelt is shown with un unidentified woman as they view a mural titled, "The Negro in California History - Exploration and Colonization," by artist Charles Alston, located in the lobby of the Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company building at 1999 West Adams Boulevard. This visit occurred during Roosevelt's failed Los Angeles mayoral campaign of 1965. Photograph dated 1965. See images 00141807 through 00141818 for additional photos in this series.
Type
image
Format
1 negative : safety ; 10 x 13 cm. Photographic safety negatives
Roosevelt, James,--1907-1991 Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Co Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Co.--Art collections Men Women Political campaigns Political candidates Politicians Insurance companies Insurance African American art Art exhibitions Art--Private collections Art Murals Los Angeles (Calif.)
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