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.; Leslie Shaw (1922-1985) was named the postmaster of Los Angeles in 1963, under the direction of President John F. Kennedy. He was the first African American postmaster of Los Angeles, and the first black male to be appointed Postmaster of a major US City. He was preceded only by Nancy Avery, who was appointed Postmaster of Pacoima in 1961 and was the first African American Postmaster of a major office in California. View of the 2nd annual Watts Christmas Parade, held on December 10, 1966 which ran along Central Avenue from El Segundo Boulevard. Pictured is Honorary Grand Marshall and Postmaster Leslie Shaw who is seated atop the backseat of a convertible automobile and traveling along the parade route. A large crowd of spectators are gathered along the street as the parade passes through. See images 00053373; 00053409; 00053433; 00119205, 00119206; 00125550; 00128938; and 00141769 through 00141796 for additional photos in this series.
Type
image
Format
1 negative : safety ; 10 x 13 cm. Photographic safety negatives
Shaw, Leslie N.,--1985 United States Postal Service--Officials and employees African American men Men African American women Women African American boys Boys African American girls Girls African American children Children Postmasters Apartments Spectators Christmas--Miscellanea Automobiles, Convertible Automobiles Signs and signboards Streets Smiling Watts (Los Angeles, Calif.)
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