Title supplied by cataloger.; Original photograph shows lighting distortion from upper left to bottom right of image. 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. View of the 2nd annual Watts Christmas Parade, held on December 10, 1966 which ran along Central Avenue from El Segundo Boulevard. Pictured are three Los Angeles City Commissioners, including Library Commissioner Leontyne King (center left), seated atop the backseat of a convertible automobile, waving to a large crowd of spectators while traveling along the parade route. The young boys riding in the car and the driver are unidentified. 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 photographic print : b&w ; 10 x 13 cm. Photographic prints
King, Leontyne B Los Angeles (Calif.).--Board of Library Commissioners African American men Men African American women Women African American boys Boys African American children Children Civil service Parades Christmas--Miscellanea Storefronts Stores & shops Spectators Automobiles, Convertible Automobiles Signs and signboards Streets Smiling Watts (Los Angeles, Calif.)
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