1987 Unique Media View of Los Angeles, California, and Environs

An appealing 1983 / 1987 pictorial view of Los Angeles published by the Canadian firm Unique Media, depicting, in part, the vast suburban sprawl of the region.

A Closer Look

Oriented towards the northeast, this view squeezes together parts of greater Los Angeles to include areas as far apart as Malibu, Santa Clarita, Pomona, and Newport Beach. In the foreground, the famous beaches of Santa Monica Bay sit at left, followed by Palos Verdes, the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and the beach communities of Orange County further south. Downtown Los Angeles stands out at center with the San Gabriel Mountains in the background. Famous buildings, important structures, movie studios, airports, golf courses, amusement parks (including Disneyland), and freeways are labeled throughout. An alphanumeric grid surrounds the view, corresponding to an index on the verso. The verso also includes tourist information on cities and neighborhoods, along with an inset view of downtown.

Riding High

When this view was published, Los Angeles was riding high after hosting 1984 Summer Olympics (the Coliseum at center towards bottom-left was the main stadium for the games, as it had been for the 1932 games, and will be again in 2028). The 1984 games were unusually successful and coincided with L.A. passing Chicago to become the second most populous city in the country. It was a crowning achievement in the long tenure of Mayor Tom Bradley, the city's first African-American mayor.

Publication History and Census

This view was initially published in 1983 by Unique Media, a Canadian company specializing in such city views. Information on the verso explains that this is 'new' 1987 edition with updates. It is only listed among the institutional holdings of Western University.