Erik Himmselsbach writes the Valley Boy column for the weekly CityBeat and ValleyBeat papers. His latest laments plans to tear down a complex of buildings on Radford Avenue near the CBS studio in Studio City that has been a home to writers and producers since Republic Pictures owned the lot. John Wayne kept offices there, and John Herzfeld wrote Two Days in the Valley while in the house.

Himmelsbach uses the piece to make some larger observations about Valleywood:

People forget, but the Valley and Hollywood are nearly joined at the hip, geographically speaking. Separated only by a small hill, a quick, ever-so-curvy ascent up Cahuenga from the Ford Theatre will drop you right into the comforting lap of Ventura Boulevard, the Valley’s most presentable (to cityfolk, anyway) artery.
 
First stop is, of course, Studio City. The name says it all: It is the hub of the symbiosis between Tinseltown and The Land Over the Hill. And anyway, the stupid tourists who pay $10 to park and walk around like sheep, mingle with suburban wannabe gangstas, and eat hyped-up chain food at CityWalk won’t know the difference. Like hand grenades and horseshoes, it’s close enough if you’ve come all the way from Podunk....
 
There’s no other explanation for the glut of exceptional sushi between Colfax and Coldwater (gratuitous plug: the jalapeño roll at Matsuda - to die for). You think it’s to cater to the family of five from Reseda? Don’t make me laugh - that’s what the Olive Garden’s for. Hollywood people like to eat well. And sometimes not, which explains the long life of that heart attack encased in glass that calls itself Art’s Deli.
 
Sadly, though, word is that a little pocket of the Valley’s Hollywood heritage will soon make way for the wrecking ball. On Radford Avenue, just north of Ventura, a quaint block of buildings that’s housed writers and production companies for more than 50 years, will soon fade to black, replaced by pricey condos. The entire Valleywood chapter of The San Fernando Valley: America's Suburb is available to read here. This entry will also roll over to The Valley Observed.