Sure, there had been tacos al pastor before he did them, but after the popularity of King Taco, everybody had tacos al pastor. People had had carnitas before, but, suddenly, everybody had carnitas. It just seemed to form the template of what the modern Los Angeles taqueria should be. 

--Jonathan Gold, 2013

Nine years ago, Los Angeles lost an unsung hero, Raul Martinez Sr., the founder of King Taco. To find out why this man was so important to LA, I shared a taco or two (or three) with the late Pulitzer Prize-winning food writer Jonathan Gold at King Taco #1 in Cypress Park. (Gold died in 2018.)

Support for this podcast comes from Gordon and Dona Crawford, who believe that quality journalism makes Los Angeles a better place to live; and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.

In 2013, I visited an utterly charming and impish Harlan Ellison at his remarkable home and talked at length with him about his work as a prolific Sci-Fi writer. Then came the dreaded - and expected - phone call from Harlan's alter-ego. (Ellison died in 2018 but I wouldn't be surprised if he sent an angry message from beyond about using his name and "Sci-Fi" in the same sentence.)

Support for this podcast comes from Gordon and Dona Crawford, who believe that quality journalism makes Los Angeles a better place to live; and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

Off-Ramp theme music by Fesliyan Studios.

Brian May and Elena Vidal talk about "A Village Lost and Found," their preservation and tribute of the stereo photos of TR Williams.

Off-Ramp's junior reporters tour the newest/oldest wing of LA's Natural History Museum ... The LA Garment Citizen shuts down ... LA's best hot dogs on the Eat-LA/Off-Ramp Collaboration ... Remembering animator Pres Romanillos ... Dinner Party Download ... Slot cars!

Return to Doodah Surf!

EatLA-Off-Ramp Collaboration covers relish ... sneak preview of the Natural History Museum's Beaux Arts Building ... Dinner Party Download ... Twitter Poets on CyberFrequencies ...

Todd Schorr's Universe ... Anime Expo takes over LA ... Taschen explores Big Butts ... CyberFrequencies ... Mr Irrelevant -- the last NFL draft pick -- isn't ... Alan Furst's historical spy novels.

Tom Hanks' lets Off-Ramp onto the set of his new movie, "Larry Crowne" ... the subtle (not) art of Jean-Leon Gerome, on display at the Getty ... Silverlake Man Builds Own Bread Oven in Backyard ... Bugs in your Backyard ... Local Man Forgoes Laker Playoff Game for Ring Cycle ... Firefighters Loved "Emergency!" Local Museum Gets Show's Firetruck ...

L-Word Creator tells CyberFrequency how she adapted to social media ... RH Greene on films and memories of Eastern Europe ... Tom Hanks on public radio, "Larry Crowne," and "Philadelphia" ... Charlie LeDuff on Fathers Day ... Larry Mantle talks radio with John.

Noisy chips ... Mark Peel's "The Point" ... best milkshakes in the Empire ... Soup that's probably too hot for humans (sane ones, anyway) ... Eat-LA-Off-Ramp Collaboration on Goat and Global Pizza ... Michael Cimarusti's "What I Learned on my Japanese Vacation."