Kevin Roderick approached the San Fernando Valley and its past from two angles. As a journalist he was intrigued by the stories he heard about one of the nation's most misperceived locales. He also brought to the subject his curiosity as a native son who wanted to learn more about the place where he grew up.

Kevin spent his boyhood in Northridge. His family lived in a ranch-style house on a half-acre that not long before had belonged to a commercial walnut orchard. A pair of towering trees offered shade during the blazing summers, served as second base for a thousand pickup baseball games and kept the kitchen (and the squirrels) stocked with walnuts. Every yard on the street had at least one relic of the old grove, and many grew lemons and oranges too. Kevin and his buddies pursued the contented Valley life of baby boomer kids. They caught tadpoles in the local creek, swiped pomegranates from the neighbors' trees and invaded construction sites to scavenge scrap wood for tree houses. Passage of the seasons was marked by the annual Northridge Stampede equestrian parade, opening day of Little League and the highlight of any year, the San Fernando Valley Fair at Devonshire Downs.

In Los Angeles, the Valley was "over the hill," a place one visited. If you lived there, though, it—not L.A.—was your home town. Kevin's favorite haunts were those of many teenagers at the time: the canyons and hills encircling the Valley, the Northridge Skateland roller rink, and cruising to see and be seen on Van Nuys Boulevard. Even then, stories of the Valley's past as a ranching domain and a haven for movie stars captured his interest. It suggested a deeper, richer body of lore than typically associated with "the suburbs," as the Valley was dismissed.

After an Army tour in Germany, Kevin studied journalism and political science at Cal State University Northridge and served as managing editor of the campus newspaper, the Sundial. After school he was hired as a reporter at the Los Angeles Times. His first beat was the Valley, where he again was fascinated by the stories he heard about the area's history and the past you could explore just by driving around with your eyes open. His career took him away to be a writer roaming California and the West and a senior editor of the Times. But the stories of his home town always waited to be uncovered and told.

Kevin is currently a Contributing Writer for Los Angeles magazine and the editor of L.A. Observed, a website he created that reports and comments on local media, politics and culture. His work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times Magazine, Smithsonian and L.A. Architect. Kevin also is the author of a book on Wilshire Boulevard and its importance in the evolution of Los Angeles.

He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. He still attends the San Fernando Valley Fair most years, prefers Cupid's Hot Dogs and laments the end of Cruise Night on the Boulevard.

Articles on the Valley
by author Kevin Roderick

Latino Power in East Valley
Los Angeles, July 2002


The Question Isn't Whether the Valley Has What it Takes
Los Angeles Times Op-ed, May 13, 2002


Neighborhood: San Fernando Valley
L.A. Architect, Jan.-Feb. 2002


A Million Stories in This City, Half from the Valley
Los Angeles Times Op-ed, October 15, 2001


Valley of the Pols
Los Angeles, September 2001


The Big Breakup
Los Angeles Times Magazine, July 22, 2001


Ritchie Valens' Star Burned Bright for Pacoima
Los Angeles Times Op-ed, March 25, 2001


Hometown Memories Jostled By Quake
Los Angeles Times, Jan. 24, 1994

Contact Kevin

The best way to contact the author is by email. For more information, visit his personal website at www.kevinroderick.com.