Charles Schulz got hate mail, and newspaper editors threatened to pull his strip "Peanuts," after he showed Charlie Brown meeting Franklin Armstrong on the beach on July 31st, 1968. All because Franklin was Black ... in fact, the first Black character in a mainstream daily comic strip.

This time on Off-Ramp, we're listening back to my 2014 interview with the two friends who made it happen: Harriet Glickman, a white teacher, and Ken Kelly, a black aerospace engineer.

Harriet died two years ago at 93, and Ken died a year ago at 92 ... and by the way, Ken has an amazing life story you'll hear about at the end of the episode.

Advisory: Ken and Harriet use old fashioned language to describe Black people. They use the polite terminology of the time, NOT the N-word, but if this is upsetting to you, you should skip this episode.

This program is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

(Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.)

Pico Boulevard, Pico Union, Pico Rivera ... they tell the story of one of the most fascinating figures in California's 19th Century history: Pio Pico, the last governor of Alta California under Mexican rule, and a revolutionary who helped make the missions forfeit their land. But at the time of his death, he couldn't afford his own grave. Off-Ramp contributor Chris Greenspon has his quintessentially Californian story.

Originally broadcast September, 2015.

Support for this podcast is made possible by Gordon and Dona Crawford, who believe that quality journalism makes Los Angeles a better place to live.

This program is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

(Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.)

Does true love exist? Can you dig safely out a million pounds of dirt from under your house? Can you win a dinner party in 8 and a half minutes?

Hank Rosenfeld asks people, "What's the Richest You've Ever Been?" ... A Life of Crime - How the Scam Works ... EatLA: Happy Hours ... New Music Night at the Crawford Family Forum ... English Dracula v. Spanish Dracula ... the Car Culture and the SoCal Economy ... is the 14th District Council race about to go nuclear? ...

Wayne White's one man stage show ... Hard Times goes to South Central ... Dinner Party Download ... Vang Pao -- Arlington bound? ... Pluto's Assassin ... LA Phil and Dudamel go to Europe ...

Ron Perlman and Nameer El-Kadi on "Quest for Fire," one of their most demanding films ... Vietnamese cuisine from North to South ... getting through Hard Times with Pasadena's Union Rescue Mission ... personal finance for kids ... mobile murals ... Mark Peel says, "Skip culinary school." ... Pacific Serenades marks 25th year of chamber music with piece by Army major ... This Old House in Silverlake

Ron Perlman and Nameer El-Kadi tell Off-Ramp's John Rabe about their first movie: 1981's "Quest for Fire," a landmark film about human life on Earth 80,000 years ago.

Why did he dig a cavern under his house? ... Mac Davis: "And then I wrote..." ... Making Merguez with Farid Zadi ... Graham Moore, 28-year old author of "The Sherlockian" ... Dale Hoppert: "Leave the snow where it is!" ... Two OCMA artists who say "Touch my art!" ... Steve Lopez and the real lesson of the Arizona rampage ...

Graham Moore, a 28-year old Angeleno, on his debut novel, "The Sherlockian."

RH Greene celebrates iconic director Paul Mazursky ... Kevin Ferguson remembers Captain Beefheart ... Mark Peel says, "skip culinary school and work" and Dale Hoppert says, "put down that snow and step away from the vehicle" ... And Then I Wrote: Mac Davis sings "In The Ghetto," "Memories," and "A Little Less Conversation" ...