SHORT TRAVEL/LONG TRADITION

Who wouldn't love the opportunity to bask in the sunshine, eat delicious food, and listen to an assortment of wonderful bands playing fantastic music for hours on end … all the while traveling no more than 15 minutes from home?  I am happy to report I have been able to do just that on a June weekend for 26 of the last 27 years.    The destination of which I report with much affection is the annual Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl.  

Early in the day ...

Check out the expiration date at top -- there goes my "Mother of the Year" award ..

   

Just in case we get stranded there!

Back in 1986 when the hubby (then still the fiance) told me this event would be part of our lives from now on, I must say I was a bit apprehensive about committing two full days to this spectacle (we now go one day and sell the tix for the second day).   This is not just your ordinary undertaking … no, this is schlepping enough food for the entire day (a lot), enough drinks for the entire day (really a lot), a change of clothes (it can go from boiling hot to quite cool after sundown), sunscreen, reading, phones, hats, etc., etc.)

Starters:  burrata, bruschetta, crudite ..

Hugh Hefner and Louis Armstrong from the first festival

This event starts at 3 in the afternoon and goes until 11 at night.  And, of course, we have to be there when it starts.  To give you a bit of the Festival history, it originally began in 1959 in Chicago – two years after Playboy first published their annual Jazz Poll.  Some 20 years later, it began in earnest in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Bowl as part of the magazine’s 25^th anniversary celebration.  Bill Cosby emceed the event every year up until 2012, when he finally called it quits and handed the mantle over to George Lopez.   

 

George Lopez dancing in the audience

Hugh Hefner typically shows up with a bevy of babes – for many years he would do a perfunctory parade up and down the aisles with the girls in tow – but time has even caught up with him; he has since stopped as apparently there is no pill for that ...

One iconic memory of attending the Festival was a Sunday in June, 2009 ... talk about a conflict of interest:   watching Game 5 of the NBA finals where the Lakers had a chance to win it all (this was an away game) or going to the Bowl as planned.   The solution?  Go to the Bowl, then literally run down to Hollywood and Highland to the nearest bar and watch the 4^th quarter live.  I manned our box at the Bowl while the hubby and son left  --  I must say it was so much fun watching the crowd as one after another realized the Lakers had captured another championship.  The place absolutely erupted and the beach balls were out in force.

Start with this ...

End with this!

 

Hats are the accessory of the day

Alas we didn't have that problem this year.  The only concern was doing everything necessary for a joyous day, celebrate Father’s Day, and bask in the sunshine once again.  I know what I needed to do, but I am still amazed at the planning that others undertake.   A couple of years in a row, our box was adjacent to a group of serious foodies (takes one to know one) – we learned they were in the liquor/wine biz so dining was a big part of their lives.  One of the men brought his entire set of carving knives with him and proceeded to slice up a rack of lamb before our eyes … of course that was after the sushi and several other courses.   Food sharing is de rigueur, and we’ve been fortunate to share and share alike.    The hubby ain’t bashful when it comes to this tradition – peering over into the next box is just a hint that one is interested in partaking!  Must say the boxes on both sides enjoyed the banana/walnut cake I brought!

Celery salad with parmesan and toasted walnuts

Picnic food:  Mustard crusted chicken/coleslaw/potato salad

 
 

Happy Father's Day cake

This year's festival lived up to our expectations, including at least one Conga Line where tons in the audience danced up and down the aisles while waving white napkins; stand-out performances included David Sanborn/Bob James, The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and the AMAZING Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (see for yourself in the short clip included).  All in all, this was a great way to celebrate things we love:  the summer, the Hollywood Bowl, Father's Day (just ask the hubby if he had a good day), food and fun ..


Lest you needed proof of jazz's popularity, click on this link for finding festivals literally all over the world -- there are hundreds listed!